Episode 33: The Dark Spirit of Winter, a Cannibalistic Nightmare from Ancient Folklore; The Wendigo

Season 2 Episode 1: Watching for Yokai and Greek-Irish Orphans

Season 2 premier starts off with a tour of Japanese Legends and Folklore as told by Legendary author Lafcadio Hearn. Join me as I tell the sometimes creepy, sometimes heartbreaking stories of Japanese ghosts, monsters, and legendary beings.

Episode 34: Comets, Cults, and Creatures From Outer Space

Comet Nishimura gave us all a once in several lifetimes chance to experience the wonders of space, and for most earthlings it was a wondrous momentous occasion. But to those who may still believe in the Comet's mysteriously ominous place in the annals of doomsday prophesies and catastrophe, perhaps things looked a little different. Come with me this week as I explore the Comet's complicated history and relationship with mankind, then sit back and enjoy a different kind of brush with green tinted extra terrestrial terror as I read When The Moon Turned Green, by Hal K. Wells. A History of Comets - Pt. 1: From Harbingers of Doom to Celestial Wanderers; https://sci.esa.int/s/wRMV4DA; September 14, 2023. A History of Comets - Pt. 2: Testing Gravity: How Comets Helped to Prove Newton Right; https://sci.esa.int/s The Biblical Flood, Noah's Flood, the Deluge of the Scriptual Genesis Record; www.accuracyingenesis.com Noah Goldman, "Comets in Ancient Cultures." deepimpact.astro.umd.edu Joel Schwarz, "Humans Have Feared Comets, Other Celestial Phenomen Through the Ages." www.jpl.nasa.gov; March 24, 1997. Claire Weintraub, Christina Ng, Acacia Nunez, and Haley Yamada, "Heaven's Gate survivor reflects on the cult's mass suicide 25 yeaers ago." Abigail Beall, "Last chance to see comet Nishimura before it vanishes for 400 years." New Scientist, www.newscientist.com; September 21, 2023.

Episode 33: The Dark Spirit of Winter, a Cannibalistic Nightmare from Ancient Folklore; The Wendigo

Join me for a retelling of Algernon Blackwood's Wendigo, his take on the truly terrifying Native American and First Nations folktale/modern day cryptid. The Wendigo's fearsome motivations, its disturbing appearance, and the true stories told by those who have experienced the Wendigo first hand will leave you questioning whether it's safe to go into the Winter Woods. References: J.W. Ocker, "Beware the Wendigo, the Frostbitten Flesheater of North America's Chilly Heartland." atlasobscura.com; October 12, 2022. Wu Mingren, "What is a Wendigo? The beast with an insatiable hunger for human flesh." ancient-origins.net/unexplained-phenomena/wendigo; December 28, 2022. Rene Ostberg, "Wendigo, Algonkian mythology." britannica.com/topic/wendigo Kathy Alexander, "Wendigo-Flesheater of the Forests." legendsofamerica.com Kaitlin SMith, "More than Monsters: the deeper significance of Wendigo stories." facinghistory.org/ideas-week/more-monsters-deeper-significance-wendigo-stories; November 30, 2021.

Episode 32: Interview with Tim Moon; Bigfoot, Star Trek, and the Meaning of Life

Join me as I interview a new author in the Cryptid and paranormal horror ficion genre, Tim Moon. We discuss his new book, Tomato Fields, facts and fiction about bigfoot, some personal encounters with the otherworldly, and more! I am not an Amazon affiliate, but I thought I'd provide you a handy link to Tim's book in case you feel inspired to crack open a book spine this weekend... https://www.amazon.com/Tomato-Fields-Tim-Moon-ebook/dp/B0BRNRRS6Y/ref=sr_1_1?crid=7HXKXQLMA6T2&keywords=tim+moon+tomato+fields&qid=1692072898&sprefix=tim+moon+tomato+fie%2Caps%2C647&sr=8-1

Episode 31: Bigfoot or Bust; The Big Guy in Folklore and Fact

Everyone loves Bigfoot, we may not all believe he's real, but we find his story compelling nonetheless. This week I delve into some of the science and psychology of Bigfoot research, then read you a wee little story called "The Thunder Voice, The Story of a Hairy Monster" by F. Walter Wilson, as it appeared in Weird Tales in 1923, long before Bigfoot hysteria really took hold of the United States. Works Cited: Ben Crair, "Why do so many people still want to believe in Bigfoot? The appeal of the mythical, wild man holds strong." Smithsonian Magazine; September 2018. Robbie Mitchell, "7 Legendary Cryptids that Turned Out to Be Real." ancient-origins.net; October 12, 2022. Peter Dendle, "Cryptozoology in the Medieval and Modern Worlds." Folklore; Vol. 117, August 2006. Ashot Margaryan, Mikkel-Holger S. Sinding, Christian Caroe, Vladimir Yamshchikov, Igor Burtsev, and M. Thomas P. Gilbert, "The genomic origin of Zana of Abkhazia." Advanced Genetics; 2021. Brown Lotus, "Zana's story: Did a 19th Century Russian Noble Tame a Female Yeti?" The Mystery Box; September 24, 2020.