I am not an expert on ghosts. But several experiences have added to my belief in the supernatural. I like to think there’s more “out there” to explore.
As a kid, Halloween was my favorite time of the year. I loved playacting and dressing up. . I didn’t know much mystical stuff at the time but witches,pumpkins, black cats, and of course ghosts. were links to the deepdown feelings of old legends and traditions that I read about in fairy tales.
I stayed away from horror movies with ghosts because they gave me bad dreams, and a fear of spooky attics. However, the TV series, “Ghost and Mrs. Muir” was fun, and kept me wondering how the ghost sea captain and lonely woman were going to cross the time-space barrier. The movie “Ghost”with Patrick Swayze and Demi Moore impressed me with its realism about how ghosts communicate.
My communication with otherworldly spirits is that I have a kind of ESP (extrasensory perception) in strange places, often historical. I feel pressure around me, cold, shivery and sometimes see images of people . Here are a couple of my experiences with what seemed to be ghosts.
One of them was in England. My two-year-old daughter and I stayed in an old house in the countryside. We had to walk through long hallways from our bedroom. Frightened and holding hands, we looked back. A dim light followed us every time we walked down the hall.
About six years ago I had another experience. I stayed in an old house turned into a bed and breakfast in Trinidad, Colorado. My room was on the top floor. Walking into a long, dark closet under the roof, my ESP sent a strong feeling circling around my head. I had the immediate impulse to write a story. I imagined a twentieth century boy ghost meeting a twenty-first century real boy in the house.  I published SEAN’S SECRET ROOM about my experience.

Technorati Tags: fairy tales, ghosts, mystical, old house, spooky, supernatural

• Sat. Nov 26, 1-3 pm. Full Moon Books, 9106 W. 6th Ave  (at Garrison) Lakewood, CO 303-233-6666. Meet writers and explore metaphysical stuff. Meet and greet 6 authors and view their books including Melissa Kline, hosting the event, Patricia Reid, Diana Dolan, Breezy Fair, Audrey Smith. W.L. James.
• Friends of Historical Trinidad meet in November for Holiday Banquet. Date & Time: TBA. Membership is open and members like to tell tales about pioneers and ghostly experiences.
• Sat. December 10, 12:30 pm Goozell Yogurt , 1200 Washington Ave.Golden, CO 303-279-2000  Stop for a cool one with authors after big Christmas parade.

JCPL 2012 BUDGET –LIBRARIES MAY CLOSE…COMMISSIONERS MAKE CASE FOR DISTRICT, and CITIZENS RALLYING AROUND LIBRARIES!!!

Most of us take libraries for granted. They are there for us to use, free,with a few exceptions, helpful for browsing everything from maps, books, magazines, newspapers and more. Most.Librarians are helpful, pleasant and energetic in digging out endless details and  information.

I have found the libraries in Jefferson County invaluable in writing two books. But I am dismayed at the current scene that prompts the headlines above. It is part of our current economic fabric. A financial shortfall in county library funds is due to using part of a mill levy for other county expenses. The loser is the library system, with no apparent       ……

What this means to me is a loss of valuable support and information. I grew up with libraries. I discovered my favorite book, THE RED SHOES on my first trip to a library with my father. Since then I have visited twelve or more libraries in different parts of the world. The school library in P.S. 101 in Forest Hills, N.Y. was my escape during free (and not free) periods to read THE THREE MUSKETEERS and  THE COUNT OF MONTE CHRISTO. At the Concord, New Hampshire Library I discovered the full extent of the Dewey Decimal system in writing a detailed term paper about Ernest Hemingway’s A FAREWELL TO ARMS. Recently I donated my first book to the beautiful little Carnegie Library in Trinidad, Colorado.

The current proposal before Jefferson County Commissioners is to establish a library district, independent from county management and funding. I am in favor of this. While the digital age is vastly changing publishing and reading options, I would like to preserve libraries as quiet places to explore, discover and discuss information.

What do YOU think? You may not agree with me. I encourage you to tell county commissioners, librarians, and others  what you think and want.

savejeffcolibraries.org

*Ghosts in Denver?  You bet!  Try some of these books and places.

THE GHOSTS OF DENVER

CAPITOL HILL by Phil Goldstein, Denver New Social Publications 1996

MURDERS IN THE BANK VAULT by Phil Goldstein as told by Walter L.Gerash

Denver New Social Publications

BROWN PALACE HOTEL HAUNTED TOUR, Resident ghost have haunted this 100-year –old-plus hotel for years. Visit online description and pictures. The tours are on Wednesdays and Saturdays, and cost $10. Reservations are  necessary, call 303-297-3111 or www.brownpalace.com

*For western history buffs:

GHOST TOWNS OF THE WEST by Lambert Florin, Promontory Press 1970 -71

*Famous writers of mysteries, supernatural

THE GHOST  STORIES OF M.R. JAMES, selected by Michael Cox, illustrated by Rosalind Caldecoll, Oxford University Press 1986

SHERLOCK HOLMES NOVELS AND SHORT STORIES by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, look in your library or online for listings. Frightful suspenseful stories!

THE TRAGIC HISTORY OF HAMLET,PRINCE OF DENMARK by William Shakespeare, written in the 1500’s , Shakespeare’s longest play and among the most famous tragedies in the English language. Afraid the language is strange? Go with the flow and  read.

Online, POE STORIES.COM , an exploration of  short stories by Edgar Allen Poe, remarkably talented writer, often varied, usually dark, considered a forerunner of sci-fi.

In “The Wolf,” the author tells about her fierce resolve to return a young abandoned female wolf to the wilderness. The author drives cross-country from the Midwest U.S. to the Pacific Northwest,with the wolf McKenzie, and a young fox. During the long journey the author seeks reconciliation of her mixed Osage Indian and Italian ancestry, and makes mystical contact with her Osage grandfather.
Training the wolf and the fox for a year takes place in the sparsely-populated forests of the Northwest . Establishing boundaries and rewards by hunting with the animals, the author finds that they readily learn gratification from finding food. Gradually they learn to hunt alone within expanding boundaries. The author delightfully compares the behavior of the two animals in play and hunting: the fox immediately eats his pry, while McKenzie saves and guards his “take;” the fox plays roughly and viciously, while the wolf plays more gently and affectionately. The book vividly describes how trainer and animals learn lessons in survival from each other.
Unexpectedly, the author discovers a strong “wolf mystique” reaction among neighbors, friends and rangers due to the wolf’s predatory history. Threats to kill the animals force Teresa to move to more remote areas to complete the training. Both animals return to the wilderness.
This book has appeal for animal lovers and wildlife preservationists, and is heartwarming and poignant. Another of Teresa Tsimmu Martino’s books is “Dancer on the Grass: True Stories About Horses and People.” She writes about true life events with compassion and dedication.
Review by Patricia Ann Reid authorpatreid@gmail.com

• Check out what is available online. Start search with title: ” Kindle and other book readers.”

• The search will give you all kinds of information about the different readers, shopping outlets, prices, reviews and comparison of readers. Examples from the search.  Barnes & Noble and Amazon are the big competitors.  Amazon sells a Wi-Fi for $139,B&N Nook sells for $149.  Amazon has “Kindles Blowout” for $21.59!  There are also freebies.   Access www.amazon.com/kindle, www.barnesandnoble.com/nook.

• Look up the sites of  other readers: ipad (Apple), Kobo, Literati, Sony ereader.

• Check with friends and at stores for comparisons of readers and features like print size and style, color, page-turning. Wal Mart, Best Buy and Barnes & Noble are good starting retail outlets.

For you writers:

• The traditional route is to work with a publisher, or self-publish a book, or go digital.Think about what kind of writing you are doing and what you want to represent you..
• Consider whether you want to make money with the book and what is the quickest way. The digital route through established companies such as Amazon provides wide distribution and royalties.
• While the digital route is the popular current publishing route, it entails pre-planning before submitting a manuscript.
• Essential preparations for digital “conversion” to electronic form are 1.Well-prepared manuscript in Microsoft Word layout with correct spelling, punctuation, spacing, 2. Editing by an experienced editor.
• Incorporate changes and submit manuscript for “conversion” to either a computer specialist, or learn how to do it yourself.
• Compare charges and experience among the “conversion” specialists.
• Design a website and/or blog and emails to handle sales contacts.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          The above are only a few guidelines in the digital publishing field for you. Explore. Have fun. Blog, or email your comments, questions. Patricia Ann Reid, authorpatreid@gmail.com, http://authorpatreid.com

Sept. 2010 By Patricia Ann Reid

Reading became a passion at about age 7. When I first saw the book, The Red Shoes by Hans Christian Anderson, I was hooked. Fairy tales became my lifelong favorites. I especially liked Fairy Tales from Baltic Shores a Scandinavian collection, and Mary Poppins, about the magical governess. Wild Winter’s Tale by Mark Helprin delighted me.

The Boxcar Children appealed to my sense of adventure, and The Secret Garden absorbed me completely with its hidden secrets. I went on to read Tarzan and the Apes which introduced me to the jungle series, and led me the The Jungle Book.

Moving on to mysteries, The Hound of the Baskervilles, terrified me when I read The Complete Sherlock Holmes. I buried myself under the covers at night to read King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table by flashlight.

Animal stories interested me as a kid because of my pet collie dog.   I read Albert Payson Terhune’s A Book of Famous Dogs, and cried over Black Beauty and Bambie.

I turned to travel and philosophy in Albert Schweitzer’s Reverence for Life, and Livingston and His African Journeys by Huxley. I flew high reading West With the Wind by aviatrix Beryl Markham, and Lindberg Alone by Brenda Gil.

On the lighter side, World’s Fair took me to 1939 when I went to the Fair. I enjoyed Paul Theroux’s A Kingdom by the Sea about England. The No.1 Ladies’ Detective Agency series by Alexander McCall Smith is a kick with African dialect, while Mark Twain’s Innocents Abroad is a rocket ride.*

I have many more favorites to share with you another time. What are your favorites?

Suggestion to readers: keep a journal or card file of books you read, with short summaries.

*Find titles and authors online, school and public libraries.