Bumps in the Night!!!! January 2014 Issue Inside This Issue Wishing everyone a Paranormal “U” Famous Haunts Happy NEW Year!! Tools of the Trade Paranormal or Not? TnT Paranormal Happenings TnT Paranormal Asks It’s hard to believe that 2013 is gone and we are now in a new year. This past year went by Paranormal Talk so fast for us it’s almost a blur. In 2013 we got to do some many new and exciting things Ask TnT Paranormal and we can’t wait to see what 2014 has in store. Upcoming Events In 2013 we, • worked with 59 clients and conducted 22 investigations • were the guest on several local and national podcasts and radio shows At TnT Paranormal • had articles published in several paranormal newsletters and online publications such as, Investigators LLC our primary mission is to help the client UPI Newsletter, and Paranormal Current with their paranormal • were interviewed by author Dane Ladwig for his book, Piercing the Veils of Death concerns. We research the background of the property, • got to investigate with several of the TAPS team members, John Zaffis, and local favorite, gather data during an onsite Dale Kaczmerek investigation, review that data • hosted 17 lecture programs at various locations around the Chicagoland area to determine if any paranormal data was captured, and • hosted 2 Investigate with TnT Paranormal Events; one at the Coronado Theatre and the provide the client with a report other at Tinker Swiss Cottage (both locations are in Rockford) of our findings. We also use this time to educate our clients We have a lot of interesting articles in this months issue on Dybuk Box, Crump Theatre, on the paranormal field and Photography Dos and Don't, and an interview with paranormal investigator Rob Depew. If helping to ease their fears. you are a budding author, or even an experienced one and would love to have your article in We would love to assist you our newsletter, please let us know. with your paranormal needs. If We are always on the lookout for new cases and places to investigate, so please keep us in you would like to know more about our services, ask us mind if you hear of anything. That’s all for this issue but not all, by any means, for us and questions, or to request an what we are up to. To learn more go to our website (www.tntparanormal.com), check us out investigation please go to on FaceBook (https://www.facebook.com/#!/home.php?sk=group_146712678732927&ap=1), www.tntparanormal.com. or Twitter (@TnTParanormal). www.tntparanormal.com We never charge a client for an investigation! Bumps in the Night!!!! January 2014 Issue Paranormal “U” Dybbuk Box By Carl Crooks, TnT Paranormal Investigators LLC The term “dybbuk box” is a reference to an antique wine box that was owned by an antique shop owner named Kevin Mannis, whose shop is located in Portland Oregon. He used the name, dybbuk, upon hearing the story that this antique wine box had some type of negative spirit attached to it. The original owner of the wine box was a holocaust survivor, and as the story goes, she purposely put a dybbuk spirit into the antique wine box before coming to live in the United States. In Jewish mythology, the dybbuk is a malicious spirit or demon that is the dislocated soul of a dead person. The dybbuk enters the body of a living person who then controls the behaviors of that host body. The only way to rid the body of this demon spirit is through the rites of exorcism. Some people are familiar with this story and term from Syfy channel’s, Paranormal Witness, Episode 204, which originally aired on August 29, 2012. It is a rather fantastic story of how the presence of this box was quite disturbing to his business. Figuring out that the problems were stemming from the wine box, he tried selling it on eBay making potential buyers fully aware of the events around it. Eventually, he sold it to a curious gentleman wishing to experience these dark events . The story goes on with the box continuing to bring trouble to all the people who come around it and the environments in which it is stored. Finally, the current owner, passes the box on to the director of a medical museum who also experiences difficulties. Jason Haxton, the director, consults with local rabbis who help to seal the box properly at which time the negative experiences stopped. It is currently stored at an undisclosed location. Interestingly enough, there is an opposite type of possession called an Ibbur. An ibbur is when the soul of a righteous person temporarily possesses a person, always with permission, so this person can perform a mitzvah, a moral deed performed as a religious duty. The dybbuk has also been a part of popular culture with it being part of three theatrical releases: A Serious Man (2009), The Unborn (2009), and The Possession (2012). For me, the fun of this story is the connection to old world folklore and mythology. Despite whether this story is true or not, there is some comfort in knowing that the things many of us think about, and even believe in, are things that people have thought about and believed in for hundreds of years. Certainly, knowing that, it causes me to think that the truth is out there. For more information, you may wish to visit these web sites: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dybbuk_box http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dybbuk http://www.syfy/paranormalwitness/episode204 www.tntparanormal.com 2 We never charge a client for an investigation! Bumps in the Night!!!! January 2014 Issue Ask TnT Paranormal The following question(s) was/were submitted by our readers, by our online subscribers, or at events. What is Samhain? Samhain (pronounced Sow-en) is a Celtic word meaning “summer’s end”. The Celts believed that summer ended on October 31st and the New Year started on November 1st and, as they followed a Lunar calendar, celebrations started at sunset on the 31st. Samhain celebrations honored the dead who were allowed to rise from the Otherworld to be sent to their new incarnations as well as honored the Celtic Gods and Goddesses of the harvest, fields and flocks, asking for their favor throughout the coming year in return. A more in depth look at its history can be found at: http://www.paganspath.com/magik/samhain-history.htm - Jenni Garcia, Investigator in Training Name this Haunted Location Do you know the name of this haunted location? Email us with your guess at [email protected]. Last months Name this Haunted Location was Missouri State Pen in Jefferson City, MO. Photo courtesy of The Midwest Ghost Society. www.tntparanormal.com 3 We never charge a client for an investigation! Bumps in the Night!!!! January 2014 Issue TnT Paranormal Asks Rob Depew Rob Depew was born and raised in the small town of Marquette Heights, IL. Rob has always been interested in the paranormal but never pursued researching it until a shoulder injury ended his competitive softball days. Rob and his wife, Krystal, joined a paranormal research group but soon decided they would like to try it on their own, thus creating Illinois Ghost Seekers Society. Most of his free time is spent learning and researching the equipment used for paranormal investigating. 1) Tell our readers a little bit about you and the role you serve in the field of the paranormal? My name is Rob Depew and my wife and I run a team called Illinois Ghost Seekers Society located by Peoria, IL. We have been married for 17 years and have a 15 year old son, London. Our group has been together for roughly 6 years and we usually average about 2 investigations a month, with most of them being peoples homes. 2) How long have you been interested in the paranormal and what sparked that interest? I have always been interested in the paranormal even though I had never experienced anything personally. The idea that there are things out there we have not found yet is cool, even if they are not paranormal. 3) What makes you and/or your team different from others in the field? I would say that we really aren't any different than a lot of teams out there. We have a mixture of different backgrounds and beliefs that seem to work well together. I do think we use more common sense than some other groups though. 4) What do you believe is the most common mistake paranormal investigators make? How can they correct that mistake? I think most groups biggest mistakes are not knowing their equipment. How different conditions effect their camera and photographs. What their EMF meter is actually measuring. Most of this can be avoided just by researching the equipment. And I strongly feel that beliefs have no use when investigating a claim. There are a lot of beliefs out there that have not been proven at all, but yet they are generally accepted. One being that spirits give off EMF. 5) In your career in the paranormal have you ever had someone bring up a phenomenon or unusual experience that you had never heard of before? We have not run into that yet. Usually most claims are of noises or things being moved. 6) Any advice for a new investigator getting into the field of the paranormal? Learn your equipment and use common sense. Get to know others that have the knowledge you lack.