This is one of those ideas that has me saying “Damn, I wish I’d thought ot that!” and “Okay, now I do believe I’ve seen everything.”

These suckers are clever and funny. They also come in a few different price points and styles. I’ve included pics below to give you an idea what I mean.

But now it has me wondering, “What’s next? Skelegnomes? Zombie gnomes?”

Hmmm, think I’m on to something?

Mommy D's calling card

I’m taking a break from my regularly scheduled programming (if I even really have such a thing?) to write about the very special box that came in the mail from one of my very dearest of friends, Mommy D. (You might know her as Dinell, the mastermind behind Mommy D’s Kitchen and/or the Weekly Spectre. They’re both her babies.)

I truly thought there might be a haunted doll under all them peanuts. I was WAY off!

She had given me the heads up she’d sent me a birthday box. She had also said, “Open it before you leave on your trip.”

Okay! I’m good at following orders like that!

Here are the amazing gifts inside that box full of love.

A hat!

A bag! This is what's on one side...

...this is what's on the other! (That's a dog with a sheet! TOO CUTE! He's a little ghostie pup!)

Notecards!

A cool notebook for all the notes I'm forever jotting down!

But wait, she wasn't done yet! There was also a keychain, mug, mousepad AND magnets!

And for Mr. Meow there was comfy (?) tissue paper to claim as his. (For reasons I can't explain, he loved the tissue paper!)

Mommy D, if you read this, THANK YOU SO MUCH AGAIN FOR SPOILING ME ABSOLUTELY ROTTEN FOR MY BIRTHDAY WITH ALL OF THESE MOST AMAZING HAUNT JAUNTS DESIGN GIFTS!!!!!!!! I LOVE THEM!!!!!!!!!!!

A PLUG FOR MOMMY D

She’ll probably be appalled that I’m doing this, but if you like these designs and would like her to design some for you, see the info on the card below for how to get in touch with her. She needs to be in business doing graphic design!

(I think she wants to, or I’d never just randomly plug her and put her on the spot like this. However, I’m not sure she realizes just how talented she is. Example, I had no idea she was going to do the design on the above gifts she sent me, but I LOVE them! It’s like she got in my head, heart and soul and brought forth the spirit of my blog with a design. To me, that’s talent! She’s like a graphic design-whisperer!!! I want to buy these from her and make them my new Haunt Jaunts logo!!!)

I snagged the above cool icon from the Patients Against Lymphoma‘s Facebook page. I can’t let the first day of September begin without acknowledging a cause very near and dear to my heart: lymphoma. (Because September is National Leukemia and Lymphoma Awareness Month.)

LYMPHOMA & ME

On the About page I used to have a more in-depth explanation about how a trip to the emergency room ended with a four day stay in the hospital where I underwent a battery of tests before I was finally diagnosed with Stage 2 B-cell non-Hodgkins lymphoma on December 31, 2008. I was initially given a 50-50 chance of survival. Not bad odds, but I wanted better.

The first question I asked my oncologist after he gave me and my husband the news was: “What can I do to help myself beat this?”

He said, “The people I see who do the best are the ones who get off the couch as much as possible. Who keep trying to live as normal a life as possible and don’t wallow in being sick.”

I was unfortunately sidelined to the couch the first couple of months. First due to the grapefruit size tumor in my chest causing me excruciating pain that had me zonked out on morphine. Then from adverse reactions to the chemo.

But during my couch phase I’d plan how I wanted to change my life around.

NO HAUNT JAUNTS IF NOT FOR LYMPHOMA

I’d had the idea for Haunt Jaunts for a while, but not as a blog. Once I got the idea to do that, though, Haunt Jaunts became my “get off the couch” project as I underwent chemo and radiation.

In a weird way, cancer almost killing me ended up saving my life. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it until the day I’ll die: lymphoma was one of the best things to ever happen to me. If I hadn’t stared Death in the eyes, Haunt Jaunts would surely still just be something I might do someday.

But look at Haunt Jaunts now. Here’s just some of the things that’s come from the creation of Haunt Jaunts:

• I’ve made an array of awesome new friends who I admire very much, including, but not limited to (and in no particular order), such paranormal community superstars as Jessica from Ghost Stories and Haunted Places, Mommy D of the Weekly Spectre, Linda Moffitt, Chad of ChateauGrrr, Nathan from A State of Mind, Brooke (and gang) from SCARED!, Jason from The Occult Section, Javier from GhostTheory, Peter from Ask Doc Paranormal, Andrea from Ghost Stories, Julie from Above the Norm, the Frog Queen of Frog on the Pumpkin, Brenda the Heart Centered Psychic, Steve and Angie from Ghost Eyes, Autumnfotest from Ghost Hunting Theories, Michelle and Joey from Guy & Girl Travels, all those who make up Southern Ghosts, and the lovely Lisa from Wanderlust Women.
• All the paranormal enthusiast friends I’ve made, and continue to make, on Facebook and Twitter, like Jen Blaney, Syd Southworth, Rachel Ruiz, Rozanne Womer, Monica Robayo, and Marilyn Biersdorff just to name a few.
• Haunt Jaunts’ Facebook page, which today soared passed 200 people “liking” it. (It’s now been thumbed-up by a mind-boggling 242 people! Mind-boggling to me, at any rate. A year ago I had a whopping 4 fans, including myself. I was hoping just to get to 50. But 242? What a blessing! Thank you to everyone who took the time to “like” HJ this past year!)
• Haunt Jaunts’ over 1,800 Twitter followers. (Again, I reluctantly began Tweeting last September, not having any idea all the amazing people and connections I would make via that crazy social network. I love it!)

HAUNT JAUNTS SUPPORTS THE LYMPHOMA RESEARCH FOUNDATION

As you might have surmised by the ads I run on my blog, I’m a for-profit kind of blogger. I haven’t exactly made money from those ads just yet, but if I ever do a portion of any money earned will go to the Lymphoma Research Foundation.

That hasn’t stopped me from donating to them a couple of times over the course of the past year, though. Once as a part of HJ’s one year anniversary celebrations, and again to match ChateauGrrr’s “Cruise Against Lymphoma” contribution.

I’d be highly remiss in my advocacy if I didn’t include links for those who might be interested in donating to one of the organizations that help all those affected by this kind of cancer.

Donate to Patients Against Lymphoma

Donate to Lymphoma Research Foundation

Donate to the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society

I love the cover! I’m looking forward to reading what’s between it. If Jessica’s blog is any indication of what her book might hold, I’m positive I will be entranced. I love the ghost stories of haunted places she shares there. She’s a very talented writer who skillfully blends together legends, history, and personal dramas to create alluring stories of the haunted places she features.

Jessica did something kind of fun to celebrate her book’s release too: a book release party giveaway. But it was a different kind of giveaway, a sort of a treasure hunt.

She had four prizes:

1. A smoking monkey
2. A collection of Lovecraft stories
3. Two necklaces

She tucked $75 into one of them. (Well, she had someone else do the tucking so even she didn’t know which item the money was in.)

Winners were drawn from the comments on her post. I’ll be curious to find out which giveaway prize the money ended up in and who the lucky grand prize winner was. I thought it was a clever concept for a giveaway!

She’s going to be doing more giveaways this week to celebrate Haunted North Alabama’s debut so stay tuned to her blog to find out what she does next.

And, Jessica, if you read this: congrats again, lady!

Last week I received an email with the subject line “Why did Ghost Hunters do this?”

Well of course that piqued my interest and I opened it, even though I didn’t recognize the sender’s ID.

But let me pause here for a second. While I’m on the topic of IDs…not that there was a name attached to the email (it was sent using an online alias), but the sender requested I just refer to him –or her, because I’m not even sure which gender he or she is– as Anonymous if I wrote about this. He or she attends some of the Ghost Hunters events, knows (and is known by) many of the GH stars and doesn’t think they’re all bad. He or she was just super peeved by this particular incident.

And what was the incident? I admit I haven’t done my full diligence yet so I’m not 100% sure, but I believe it has to do with a sneak peak of the show’s upcoming season.

If anyone else has any insight on this matter, please feel free to comment.

EMAIL #1

I am really upset with this show now. As I watch the premiere, they act like this is the first time they’re at the Otesaga, but they were there in January BEFORE they filmed it. I know cause I was at the event. Britt, Amy, Jay and Grant were there. Also, I like Amy Bruni, but she and psychic Chip Coffey had experiences at the hotel in a certain room (she had luck with the flashlight test and actually had something thrown at her), and not only do they not acknowledge that, but she acts so surprised by the activity there. ALSO, the “hotel guest” James Johnson is the editor of the TAPS Paramagazine, and a local politician from Cooperstown and a close, personal friend to Jason Hawes. This seems devious and wrong that they don’t admit to this. Don’t believe me? Do your homework and talk to demonologist Adam Blai, physicist Andy Coppock, paranormal pop culture historian Aaron Sagers, TAPS paramag editor Scotty Roberts, comedian Mike Brody, Ouija expert Robert Murch. THEY WERE ALL THERE WHEN TAPS FIRST INVESTIGATED OTESAGA WITH THE TAPS EVENT GROUP BEYOND REALITY. I love this show but I hate how they’re lying here.

The “James Johnson” is the worst part of all this. It’s like they expect us magazine subcribers to be stupid or blindly loyal. They didn’t disclose important info, and that’s just wrong.

Honestly, I am really disillusioned. I feel like a show I’ve been watching for so long just faked me out.

MY REPLY EMAIL

Hey, thanks so much for your message! Would you be okay if I reprinted this on my blog? I can leave your name out. (Well, I don’t think you left your name. But I can leave the identifier … out if you want.)

This is really interesting and yet another claim against them. (They keep racking them up, sadly.)

Thanks so much for venting to me. I can relate. I really dug that show in the beginning. Didn’t watch last season at all. Just haven’t liked how they’ve handled their fame.

Court

EMAIL #2

Feel free to reprint it, but as you noticed, I left out my name. I still like most of the GHers and will continue to attend some events because I don’t they are all dodgy. So I don’t want a name attached….just ‘anonymous’

I understand it’s a tv show with production and editing, but they could have said, “hey we did an event here and loved it so much we came back.” Especially because Amy was so impressed with her experiences there. But the thing that really killed me was the publisher (I said editor, I think, but was incorrect) posing as a “hotel guest.” He lives just a few miles away from the hotel and is a longtime friend of Jason. Heck, I follow the guys on Twitter and Hawes talks about him a lot (them vacationing, snowmobiling, etc). I feel like that maneuver on air was openly deceptive and treated fans like rubes.

I have never in all the events I’ve been to, ever seen anyone fake something but … you know, I was just bugged by it.

I guess the other thing is that – you know the expression ‘loose lips sink ships – well, there are a lot of loose lips at events. Things are becoming petty amongst team members, there’s lots of gossip, and you never see Jason for more than five minutes anymore.

I’m not just complaining, I don’t think, but I don’t think they are above criticism just because I happen to have liked the show.

Is this more evidence against Ghost Hunters credibility? (Kind of like the clips of their faked footage.) I’m not sure, but I found it very curious indeed…

One of my favorite paths to walk on is the one at River Park off Concord Road in Brentwood. There are over 10 miles worth of trails that connect up with other paths in Concord Park (which River Park is a part of) and Crockett Park.

THE WHITE DEER

When we first moved here random strangers on the path would stop me and ask, “Have you seen the white deer yet?”

They’d be so excited about it I couldn’t help but think it was a big deal. However, I came to think of the white deer as the ghost deer because I never saw it. I’d see part of the herd of deer that live and roam in the park from time to time, but I never saw the white deer.

Not for the longest time at least. Every chance I got to take a walk in the park I would, and one day I finally saw the white deer.

It was pure white from head to toe. An albino deer. A beautiful creature. The stuff of legends and myths. I could see why people were so excited about it. It was a miracle. I wanted everyone I knew to see it too.

After my first sighting I spotted the white deer more frequently. He was just a fawn then. As the months passed, he started sprouting antlers. Eventually he grew into a full-fledged deer.

The other day me and Murph were taking a walk in the park and I realized it’s been a couple of years now since we’ve seen him. I couldn’t help but wonder whatever happened to him. Is he still around? Or is he but a memory to those of us who witnessed the rare animal.

THE GHOST OF THE WHITE DEER LEGEND

I happened to Google “white deer” as I started writing this today. I wanted to see if perhaps I’d come across some info about the white deer of River Park.

Instead I came across some Native American Indian lore called “Ghost of the White Deer.” It was how the Chicksaw believed albino animals to be magical and wove a star-crossed lover tale around the creature.

A warrior named Blue Jay fell in love with the chief’s daughter, Bright Moon, but the chief didn’t like him. So he gave him a challenge: find a white deer and bring back its hide.

Blue Jay found a white deer and shot an arrow in its heart but it didn’t fall. He never returned to the tribe, and Bright Moon never married. But she knew Blue Jay had shot the deer. “When the moon was shinning as brightly as her name, Bright Moon would often see the white deer in the smoke of the campfire, running, with an arrow in his heart.”

The Chicksaw still consider white deer sacred and brides of the tribe prefer white deerskin as their wedding dress material of choice.

I found it curious I automatically associated white deer with ghost deer, and then come to find out that’s how Native Americans viewed such animals too.

If you ever take a walk at River Park, be sure to keep an eye out for the magical white ghost deer that once upon the time called the park home –and perhaps still does.

The question is, will he survive long enough around here to even make it to party time?

Much to my cat’s chagrin, I found an assistant as I was out and about running errands today. One I thought would put the “Spooktacular” in the Halloween Blog Party: Scooby Doo!

Scooby comes complete with party pouch and everything. (A handy tool come prize giveaway drawing time.) I was so excited about it I decided to make a video of what he can do. (I was trying to show how Scooby shakes and scoots around, but it didn’t come out too good.)

However, my other assistant, Mr. Meow, didn’t think much of my bright idea. He didn’t have any qualms about throwing his weight around and showing Scooby who’s top dog around this joint.

I caught it all on video, which bodes badly for Mr. Meow if Scoob opts to gets H.R. involved!

My faithful Haunt Jaunting hound, Murphy. Rescued 9/2001.

August 26 is National Dog Day and in honor of it I thought it’d be fun to write about some pet friendly haunt jaunts.

I always like to take my Murph (pictured above) along on jaunts with me when the haunts will allow. I try to keep a list of haunted places, like hotels and B&Bs (or spooky stays as I like to call them), that welcome both my ghost enthusiast self and my pooch.

However, my list was pretty slim. I decided to put a shout out on HARO to find more pet friendly haunted places and boy did I get a great response!

Below is the list I put together of 16 pet friendly haunt jaunts for those of you who also like to ghost hunt with your four-legged friends. Woof!

1. Admiral Fell Inn – Baltimore, MD: On Friday and Saturday evenings the Inn does a Historic Ghost Tour. (And one of the ghosts they’ll talk about is Edgar Allan Poe, who’s thought to maybe still haunt the nearby The Horse You Came In On Saloon!) It’s a historic charmer that welcomes both you and your pet!
2. Allegiance Bed and Breakfast – Mount Morris, NY: The owners of this B&B, along with its resident ghosts “Karen” and “Ray,” welcome pets to this Finger Lakes region spooky stay.
3. Bulldog Tours – Charleston, SC: Me and Murph loved our visit to Charleston a few years back, but had I known there was a ghost tour company that allowed dogs along? We would’ve been all over that! Their Ghost and Graveyard tour is a 90 minute walking one that averages about two dogs on a haunted tour per night. This is a paws up pleaser!
4. Erie Mansion Bed and Breakfast – Clyde, NY: Your dog will find lots of activity here, paranormal and otherwise, to enjoy!
5. The Groveland Hotel – Groveland, CA: This is a gem of a hotel offering Southern-hospitality to both you and your pet in a hotel nestled just west of Yosemite National Park. Oh, yes, and there’s ghosts said to be floating about this Gold Rush era landmark.
6. Historic Oakland Cemetery – Atlanta, GA: Okay, this one’s for you gravers out there. You and your dog can wander amidst this garden cemetery and final resting place for Atlanta’s noted citizens such as Bobby Jones, Margaret Mitchell, and Maynard Jackson.
7. Hotel Colorado – Glenwood Springs, CO: I do believe this was the hotel my family and I used to stay at when we’d head to Glenwood Springs when I was a kid. I never knew it was haunted! And these days it’s even pet friendly! Oh, and some like to think this was actually the inspiration for Stephen King’s The Shining, not the Stanley. Juicy controversy!
8. Inn by the Sea – Cape Elizabeth, ME: A woman named Lydia who died in a shipwreck is thought to haunt the inn looking for her fiance. Perhaps your pooch would want to help her in her search? If he or she’s not too busy enjoying the Dog Days at the Inn, a slew of services and amenities aimed at pampering your pup in a style I don’t think you’d want them to become accustomed to. Talk about raising the benchmark on spoiled!
9. Napa River Inn – Napa, CA: Oh wow, does this sound like a posh place to stay with your pet! They have a Very Important Pet (VIP) program which includes a blanket just for your pet, stainless steel food and water bowls, Napa Valley-based “Cab-Bone-Nay” or “Char-Dog-Nay” bones (made with real wine!!!), and more! And as for ghosts: The Inn’s grand staircase and Rooms 207 and 208 seem to be the hotspots.
10. Old Cahawba – Near Selma, AL: This is not a spooky stay. Rather, it is an archaeological park managed by the Alabama Historical Commission. It’s tagline is “Alabama’s most famous Ghost Town.” Apparently pets are welcome to explore with you the “landscape of ruins and relics” that once made up the town. Sounds like a neat historical jaunt!
11. Olde Harbour Inn – Savannah, GA: For ghost enthusiasts, the Inn provides a “Haunted on the River” package that includes two nights plus a Ghost Trolley Tour. Plus, they not only welcome pets, but they also have a page on their site that lists other Dog Friendly businesses in Savannah to take your dog with you to see.  Oh, and “Hank” is their resident ghost.
12. Omni Bretton Arms – Bretton Woods, NH: This lush resort is rumored to be haunted and allows you and your dog to roam their lavish grounds. (Murph says it looks like good squirrel and bunny territory to him!)
13. Rivershore Hotel -  Oregon City, OR: There’s a little red-haired ghost boy who’s been seen at this hotel as well as the historic McLoughlin House and the Oregon City Municipal elevator. Dogs are welcome at the hotel. No word if the little boy is drawn to dogs or not though. If so, your pup might help you catch a glimpse of him!
14. St. Augustine Lighthouse – St. Augustine, FL: Dogs are obviously not allowed inside the museum or the lighthouse, but they are welcome on the grounds outside.
15. The Stanley Hotel – Estes Park, CO: Not only does this hotel embrace it’s haunted reputation by offering a Historic Ghost Tour, it allows pets! But only in the Manor House rooms, not in the main hotel. Your dog won’t complain. Both are swanky!
16. Thayer’s Historic Bed n’ Breakfast – Annandale, MN: Your pets must be up to date on their vaccinations and you must have the vet’s signature to prove it, but, yes, pets are welcome to stay in this haunted B&B. They may even see a ghost cat (or a real one) to play with!

What's in the packages? Halloween goodies of course!

This morning on our Facebook page I created a new album: Spooktacular Halloween Blog Party Prizes. I couldn’t help it. I’m no good at keeping secrets. I’m also no good being patient when I’m excited about something.

I’m so stoked for Halloween I’m about to bust! I want to get the party started NOW!

Alas, I have to wait. But I can at least show you some of the prizes I already have on hand for the giveaways!

Toxic Wine Labels

These were too fun to pass up. They’re labels that say things like “Zombie Virus” or “Truth Serum” that you can stick on an ordinary bottle of wine (or any bottle really) and transform it into something deliciously macabre!

Hand Painted Boo Bead Bracelet

You’ll be sporting Halloween style with ghosts, spiders and spider webs encircling your wrist if you end up winning this giveaway prize. (I don’t think the Frog Queen will appreciate this item since she’s not too fond of spiders, but Jessica of Ghost Stories and Haunted Places, who likes beads, might. What about you?)

Hand Painted Scarecrow Earrings

Scarecrows, complete with crows, dancing on your ear lobes. (But the great thing is you can wear these thru Halloween into Thanksgiving.)

Hand Crafted Boo Earrings

What kind of hostess would I be without offering something ghostly? Boo!

Gothic Debutante Chalkboard

The chalk is tucked in the handbag for easy access when you want to jot something on the chalkboard. I liked that it’s a real netted tulle veil draping down her backside. Spooky elegance!

That’s all the goodies in the cauldron for right now. But there’s more to come…

Is Cape May the new paranormal tourism hotspot? I’m thinking it must be because this summer it’s the one place that I keep seeing over and over again.

CRAIG MCMANUS IN CAPE MAY

It all started when I got one of Craig McManus’s newsletters earlier this summer. He talked about a paranormal weekend he was going to do in Cape May starting on August the 13th.

As part of it he was returning to Historic Cold Spring Village. (I mentioned and linked to a post he wrote about the village in one of mine about avoiding bringing home unwanted guests.) But this visit the Historic Cold Spring Village was going to be open for a first-time ever ghost hunt.

Then on Saturday of that weekend he was in Cape May for a “Ride with the Ghost Writer” ghost trolley tour. Making for a very neat way to take in Cape May’s paranormal hotspots.

THE GUY & GIRL TRAVELS CAPE MAY TWEET

Soon after reading McManus’s newsletter, @GuyNGirlTravels on Twitter tweeted me about Cape May. I thought I had their Tweet saved in my Favorites but apparently I didn’t “star” it like I had meant to.

No worries. A quick search of their blog and I found the subject of their Tweet to me: Haunted Happenings in Cape May, NJ.

It’s actually a post from last year about all the Halloween happenings planned in Cape May. (Oh, and the opening sentence of their article answers my question I guess: “Cape May, New Jersey is one of the most haunted cities in America.”)

THE NEW YORK PARANORMAL SOCIETY’S SPINE-TINGLING FRIDAY THE 13TH WEEKEND IN CAPE MAY

The Occult Section (which is the official blog of the New York Paranormal Society) blogged about the (then) upcoming paranormal weekend in Cape May. Again I noted a phrase they used in their post: “…Cape May, NJ, believed by many to be one of the most haunted cities in the country…”

I also noted that the weekend was being “funded by the Mid-Atlantic Center for the Arts & Humanities and endorsed by the city itself.” Neat! I love places that embrace their paranormal tourism!

At any rate, members of the New York Paranormal Society attended Cape May’s paranormal weekend festivities. How do I know? Most recently I couldn’t help but notice the mention about Cape May on the New York Paranormal Society’s Facebook page.

They thanked their tour guide, Shannon Baker, for giving them a great tour. They also posted pictures from the visit.

NEW TO ME

Listen folks, I know I’m newer to the writing/covering haunted places part of things, but I’ve been fascinated with haunted places since I was bitty. And by “fascinated” I mean tracking haunted places and paying attention to the who, what, where, when and why and storing them in my “future places I’d like to visit” files.

Before this summer I had never heard of Cape May. WTF? I’m really feeling left out of the loop!

Cape May sounds and looks (if the pics NYPS put on their Facebook page are any indication) like a gorgeous, historic haunted place to visit. It is definitely on my radar and stashed in my files now!

Better late than never I guess, right? I never said I was the fastest roadrunner in the flock. This is just another example of me taking some time to get up to speed!

CAPE MAY TOURISM LINKS

http://www.thejerseycape.net/

http://www.visitnj.org/cape-may

Photo credit: Flickr TruffShuff