Hey Strangers!
While this isn't New Orleans news, it looks as though a Montana rancher shot something that may be a werewolf. I'm a bit far away, so I can't dig into the details as much as I'd like, but here's the story:
Something's been eating the livestock. Rancher sees a thing. Shoots it. It's clearly not a normal wolf.
I'm calling this vindication for my Werewolves in the Swamp theory that Walt at the Supernatural Society called stupid.
Be safe out there!
Stay Strange!
-Steve
A place to keep your fingers on the pulse of what's REALLY happening in New Orleans.
Saturday, May 26, 2018
A Message
So, I got a request from a guy I know who, well, to put it simply, when he says something, I listen.
"N+A,
They've here.
Even Steven here saw one, back in August 2015.
Shadow men.
People are starting to notice. It used to be in ones and twos, a stray shadow here and there, but ever since last year, since he called them and they set him free... the big one, The Shadow Man... there've been more and more.
39° 5.957′ N, 76° 43.363′ W Look into the clearing beneath the three trees
They must be stopped, but they are careful. They are cautious. They hide in the black, lurking. If you want to find a way to stop them, you can't be obvious. You must read between the lines.
-S"
I don't know what that was about. I don't want to know (Okay, I do, but I'm a little terrified to know). Whatever it is, stay safe out there, and as always...
Stay Strange!
-Steve
"N+A,
They've here.
They've always been here.
Even Steven here saw one, back in August 2015.
Shadow men.
People are starting to notice. It used to be in ones and twos, a stray shadow here and there, but ever since last year, since he called them and they set him free... the big one, The Shadow Man... there've been more and more.
39° 5.957′ N, 76° 43.363′ W Look into the clearing beneath the three trees
They must be stopped, but they are careful. They are cautious. They hide in the black, lurking. If you want to find a way to stop them, you can't be obvious. You must read between the lines.
-S"
I don't know what that was about. I don't want to know (Okay, I do, but I'm a little terrified to know). Whatever it is, stay safe out there, and as always...
Stay Strange!
-Steve
Saturday, March 25, 2017
Ghostly Madam Seeks Naughty Teens?
So, there's a fairly new urban legend popping up in that Venn Diagram where horny teenagers and the supernaturally aware intersect (which thanks to shows like The Vampire Diaries and Twilight is a pretty big intersection).
If talk of sex makes you uncomfortable, look away. Maybe go here instead. For the rest of you, who don't get squeamish about that sort of thing because this is New Orleans and it's part of our history (and part of our city's favorite holiday season), the legend is as follows.
If you have sex at Mahogany Hall, the ghost of Lulu White will show up and take you to the glory days of Mahogany Hall, back when it was the biggest, most successful brothel in the U.S.'s only legal red-light district back before it was demolished in the 1940s.
Oh, you don't know about Miss Lulu White and Mahogany Hall? It was a four story/five parlor/fifteen bedroom brothel made of marble, staffing as many as forty mixed race women, right at the heart of the District, or Storyville as it was unofficially called. Miss White was a savvy business woman who made a fortune servicing the, erm, needs of the men of New Orleans.
She even almost owned most of Hollywood. When public approval of Storyville's unapologetic prostitution industry started to turn unfavorable, she sent someone out west with $100,000 to buy up a lot of the land down there. Turns out, that guy wasn't trustworthy and he scampered off with her cash, but had he done as she asked, she'd have been not only the Madame of New Orleans, but the Queen of SoCal. She didn't die penniless, but she definitely lost a lot of her financial stability with that swindle. Fortunately she had friends she could rely on from her glory days to keep her from falling to total ruin and she passed away in relative comfort.
That's where the rumor comes in. She was happiest in the good old days when she could openly run a successful brothel, even publishing tourist guides to let newcomers to the city know where to find her, who her girls were (with photographs!), and what their rates were. Then when people got squirrely about sex again, her life took a decline it never recovered from. Her ghost, they say, is looking to recapture the spirit of the old days by seeking out like-minded individuals. People who aren't embarrassed or ashamed to get busy and have fun, nasty fun.
I haven't met anyone who knows someone directly who has been taken to the old Mahogany Hall. It's all been someone knows someone who knows someone who knows someone. As such, I haven't heard a clear story about whether you're whisked off for a night of fornication, or if she takes you to the brothel to spend the rest of eternity (possibly dead) surrounded by ghostly prostitutes.
I told my girlfriend about this (you remember my girlfriend, right?) and she suggested we find out the old fashioned way, wink wink nudge nudge say no more say no more. I'll admit I was tempted, but the fact is, I had to tell her that while I would love to practice summoning that ghost, if you get my drift, I'm not sure I want to spend forever surrounded by ghost prostitutes. I mean, who even has that much money?
I kid, of course. Even so, I'm not summoning any ghosts if I don't have to. That's how horror movies start.
If you've heard the rumors, though, or some variation of 'em or know someone who did the deed, share what you've heard in the comments. Maybe we can get to the truth of this new legend.
Until next time,
Stay Strange!
-Steve
If talk of sex makes you uncomfortable, look away. Maybe go here instead. For the rest of you, who don't get squeamish about that sort of thing because this is New Orleans and it's part of our history (and part of our city's favorite holiday season), the legend is as follows.
If you have sex at Mahogany Hall, the ghost of Lulu White will show up and take you to the glory days of Mahogany Hall, back when it was the biggest, most successful brothel in the U.S.'s only legal red-light district back before it was demolished in the 1940s.
Oh, you don't know about Miss Lulu White and Mahogany Hall? It was a four story/five parlor/fifteen bedroom brothel made of marble, staffing as many as forty mixed race women, right at the heart of the District, or Storyville as it was unofficially called. Miss White was a savvy business woman who made a fortune servicing the, erm, needs of the men of New Orleans.
She even almost owned most of Hollywood. When public approval of Storyville's unapologetic prostitution industry started to turn unfavorable, she sent someone out west with $100,000 to buy up a lot of the land down there. Turns out, that guy wasn't trustworthy and he scampered off with her cash, but had he done as she asked, she'd have been not only the Madame of New Orleans, but the Queen of SoCal. She didn't die penniless, but she definitely lost a lot of her financial stability with that swindle. Fortunately she had friends she could rely on from her glory days to keep her from falling to total ruin and she passed away in relative comfort.
That's where the rumor comes in. She was happiest in the good old days when she could openly run a successful brothel, even publishing tourist guides to let newcomers to the city know where to find her, who her girls were (with photographs!), and what their rates were. Then when people got squirrely about sex again, her life took a decline it never recovered from. Her ghost, they say, is looking to recapture the spirit of the old days by seeking out like-minded individuals. People who aren't embarrassed or ashamed to get busy and have fun, nasty fun.
I haven't met anyone who knows someone directly who has been taken to the old Mahogany Hall. It's all been someone knows someone who knows someone who knows someone. As such, I haven't heard a clear story about whether you're whisked off for a night of fornication, or if she takes you to the brothel to spend the rest of eternity (possibly dead) surrounded by ghostly prostitutes.
I told my girlfriend about this (you remember my girlfriend, right?) and she suggested we find out the old fashioned way, wink wink nudge nudge say no more say no more. I'll admit I was tempted, but the fact is, I had to tell her that while I would love to practice summoning that ghost, if you get my drift, I'm not sure I want to spend forever surrounded by ghost prostitutes. I mean, who even has that much money?
I kid, of course. Even so, I'm not summoning any ghosts if I don't have to. That's how horror movies start.
If you've heard the rumors, though, or some variation of 'em or know someone who did the deed, share what you've heard in the comments. Maybe we can get to the truth of this new legend.
Until next time,
Stay Strange!
-Steve
Sunday, January 29, 2017
An Apology for My Absence and An Observation on Many Absences
Hey Strangers!
I know it's been a long time since I've updated, and for that I apologize. I've been away, leaving you in the dark regarding all things that lurk in the dark, and that's not right. I apologize for that to.
The truth is, since that strange night about a year ago with all the ice all over St. Louis Cathedral (and those busted doors that I maintain no human could have made: see my post on an abominable snowman attack from last year), New Orleans hasn't been quite as strange. I mean, sure there's been crazy stuff, but not as much.
Also, I've been on dates with a girl and that's been keeping me busy too. She's cool and I've done all the tests. Not a vampire, not a werewolf, not a ghost. None of that madness. Just a cool lady who recognizes talent when she sees it.
Unlike those hacks at the SyFy network who sent me an e-mail saying they were interested in doing a show based on my blog, and then when I e-mail them they act like they've never heard of me. Jerks.
But then, THEN things started getting weird again. Missing persons on the rise, but here's the strange part. So are homelessness and John/Jane Doe cases. And I mean, crazy people John/Jane Does. A lot of them don't even know what year it is. Some don't even know what century it is.
You want to know what I think? Of course you do. Otherwise you wouldn't be reading my blog. I think the ghosts of the dead are rising up and possessing people. The possession changes their appearances in subtle ways and that's why no one recognizes these John and Jane Does. It's also why a lot of them talk like it's still the 1800s and say crazy things like, "Dear heavens! What invisible devil is pulling that carriage?" The ghosts don't know what they've missed, see?
So why are all of the dead rising up and possessing people? Unrest. That's my theory. Ghosts are driven by unfinished business, which is fueled by unresolved emotions. I'm sure you've noticed people all over the US have a lot of emotional baggage they aren't really resolving too well. The excess emotion welling up is attracting the ghosts who feed on emotion to help them fuel their quest to resolve things that went unsaid (and I know a lot of people these days have a lot they are thinking and not saying, you know what I'm saying?)
In other words, we're so angry lately and it keeps building and building unresolved, and it's like we put out ghost bait who, being fueled by unresolved emotions, are drawn to us, and are jumping into bodies left and right, probably on promises of doing whatever it is that we keep not doing because... whatever.
That's my theory. What do you guys think is causing all the missing persons and the strange vagrants?
Share your theories in the comments!
Stay Strange,
-Steve
I know it's been a long time since I've updated, and for that I apologize. I've been away, leaving you in the dark regarding all things that lurk in the dark, and that's not right. I apologize for that to.
The truth is, since that strange night about a year ago with all the ice all over St. Louis Cathedral (and those busted doors that I maintain no human could have made: see my post on an abominable snowman attack from last year), New Orleans hasn't been quite as strange. I mean, sure there's been crazy stuff, but not as much.
Also, I've been on dates with a girl and that's been keeping me busy too. She's cool and I've done all the tests. Not a vampire, not a werewolf, not a ghost. None of that madness. Just a cool lady who recognizes talent when she sees it.
Unlike those hacks at the SyFy network who sent me an e-mail saying they were interested in doing a show based on my blog, and then when I e-mail them they act like they've never heard of me. Jerks.
But then, THEN things started getting weird again. Missing persons on the rise, but here's the strange part. So are homelessness and John/Jane Doe cases. And I mean, crazy people John/Jane Does. A lot of them don't even know what year it is. Some don't even know what century it is.
You want to know what I think? Of course you do. Otherwise you wouldn't be reading my blog. I think the ghosts of the dead are rising up and possessing people. The possession changes their appearances in subtle ways and that's why no one recognizes these John and Jane Does. It's also why a lot of them talk like it's still the 1800s and say crazy things like, "Dear heavens! What invisible devil is pulling that carriage?" The ghosts don't know what they've missed, see?
So why are all of the dead rising up and possessing people? Unrest. That's my theory. Ghosts are driven by unfinished business, which is fueled by unresolved emotions. I'm sure you've noticed people all over the US have a lot of emotional baggage they aren't really resolving too well. The excess emotion welling up is attracting the ghosts who feed on emotion to help them fuel their quest to resolve things that went unsaid (and I know a lot of people these days have a lot they are thinking and not saying, you know what I'm saying?)
In other words, we're so angry lately and it keeps building and building unresolved, and it's like we put out ghost bait who, being fueled by unresolved emotions, are drawn to us, and are jumping into bodies left and right, probably on promises of doing whatever it is that we keep not doing because... whatever.
That's my theory. What do you guys think is causing all the missing persons and the strange vagrants?
Share your theories in the comments!
Stay Strange,
-Steve
Thursday, January 21, 2016
Yeti in the Cathedral?
Hey Strangers!
I'm sure you've all seen the news about St. Louis Cathedral in Jackson Square. Doors smashed apart. Ice everywhere. I'm sure you've heard the "official explanation" about an overworked A/C unit whose coolant tanks must have burst, smashing out the door, filling the church with Freon and winter air before jettisoning itself off over the square and into the mighty Mississippi where the evidence will never be found. How convenient. And of course there's no security footage anywhere of this gas explosion because of course there isn't. Most touristy spot in the city and no cameras saw anything? Yeah, okay, mister investigator. Nothing strange happened. I believe you. Just a regular gas explosion. Move along. Move along.
Look, I haven't seen the pictures from the scene personally, but I have a friend who has, and he says the splinters indicate the door was clearly smashed inward like something trying to get in, and not outward like a flying Freon canister on its way to the river. That nobody saw (the can. Not the river. Obviously). No, my friends. That door was SMASHED IN. By something big and nasty and powerful.
But wait, I hear you asking. I thought monsters couldn't go on holy ground. Werewolves, vampires, and ghosts are all cursed and thus unable to enter holy places, so what gives?
I'm glad you asked. I think it was a yeti. I'm sure you're asking yourself how that makes any sort of sense. Don't worry. Old Steve's going to explain.
First, a yeti is a powerful creature with extra-normal powers (hence the smashed oak doors and the ice and snow everywhere), but the thing is, it isn't supernatural. Just a strange part of nature. That means it's not cursed. That means it can enter hallowed ground without problem.
Second, the cold. What's a yeti, known for inhabiting icy wooded regions doing in the warm humid swamps of New Orleans? I know it gets hold here, but not that cold. True. EXCEPT... I don't think it was native to the place. Sasquatch, maybe, but not the yeti. No. I've heard whispers of a big global corporation that does biomedical experiments on the supernatural, the paranormal, and the strange to help develop better aging creams and diet supplements and things like that (after all, where better to study anti-aging than a vampire, or metabolic stimulation than a werewolf?). Anyway, my theory is their "field research teams" caught a yeti up in Canada or Minnesota and were shipping it down river to their research labs in a refrigerated shipping container, except even with the refrigeration and the yeti's ice and snow powers, this far south, it couldn't stay cold enough. It made the container walls brittle with cold, smashed its way out, and escaped from the ship.
So why attack the church? That I don't know. I know a lot about yetis, but not their psychology. It's the only piece of the puzzle I can't figure out (as to what happened to it, clearly it escaped north, hence all the blizzards and stuff, and the pharmatech company paid off the officials to cover it all up). If you have any theories why a yeti would smash up such a beloved cathedral, I'm all ears.
Until next time,
Stay Strange!
-Steve
I'm sure you've all seen the news about St. Louis Cathedral in Jackson Square. Doors smashed apart. Ice everywhere. I'm sure you've heard the "official explanation" about an overworked A/C unit whose coolant tanks must have burst, smashing out the door, filling the church with Freon and winter air before jettisoning itself off over the square and into the mighty Mississippi where the evidence will never be found. How convenient. And of course there's no security footage anywhere of this gas explosion because of course there isn't. Most touristy spot in the city and no cameras saw anything? Yeah, okay, mister investigator. Nothing strange happened. I believe you. Just a regular gas explosion. Move along. Move along.
Look, I haven't seen the pictures from the scene personally, but I have a friend who has, and he says the splinters indicate the door was clearly smashed inward like something trying to get in, and not outward like a flying Freon canister on its way to the river. That nobody saw (the can. Not the river. Obviously). No, my friends. That door was SMASHED IN. By something big and nasty and powerful.
But wait, I hear you asking. I thought monsters couldn't go on holy ground. Werewolves, vampires, and ghosts are all cursed and thus unable to enter holy places, so what gives?
I'm glad you asked. I think it was a yeti. I'm sure you're asking yourself how that makes any sort of sense. Don't worry. Old Steve's going to explain.
First, a yeti is a powerful creature with extra-normal powers (hence the smashed oak doors and the ice and snow everywhere), but the thing is, it isn't supernatural. Just a strange part of nature. That means it's not cursed. That means it can enter hallowed ground without problem.
Second, the cold. What's a yeti, known for inhabiting icy wooded regions doing in the warm humid swamps of New Orleans? I know it gets hold here, but not that cold. True. EXCEPT... I don't think it was native to the place. Sasquatch, maybe, but not the yeti. No. I've heard whispers of a big global corporation that does biomedical experiments on the supernatural, the paranormal, and the strange to help develop better aging creams and diet supplements and things like that (after all, where better to study anti-aging than a vampire, or metabolic stimulation than a werewolf?). Anyway, my theory is their "field research teams" caught a yeti up in Canada or Minnesota and were shipping it down river to their research labs in a refrigerated shipping container, except even with the refrigeration and the yeti's ice and snow powers, this far south, it couldn't stay cold enough. It made the container walls brittle with cold, smashed its way out, and escaped from the ship.
So why attack the church? That I don't know. I know a lot about yetis, but not their psychology. It's the only piece of the puzzle I can't figure out (as to what happened to it, clearly it escaped north, hence all the blizzards and stuff, and the pharmatech company paid off the officials to cover it all up). If you have any theories why a yeti would smash up such a beloved cathedral, I'm all ears.
Until next time,
Stay Strange!
-Steve
Thursday, October 22, 2015
When Fighting Corruption Lets the Monsters Corrupt Us
The New Orleans Ethics Review Board, which checks the finances of elected officials for signs of bribery or corruption, must now submit to financial review themselves.
Not to sound like a Negative Nancy, but this worries me. I know, I know. I'm the only guy in town who thinks this could be a bad idea. To be fair, if you don't know about the supernatural, why wouldn't you think this was a good idea? "Who watches the watchmen" and all of that.
But think on this:
Can a mobster bribe a city official? Yes
Can a banker bribe a city official? Yes
Can a businessman bribe a city official? Yes
Can a vampire bribe a city official? Yes
Can a demon? Yes
Can a ghost? No.
Strip away the ability to bribe, and we are left only with ways to corrupt a city official that mortals can't do.
Can a mobster mind control a city official? No
Can a banker mind control a city official? No
Can a businessman mind control a city official? No
Can a vampire mind control a city official? Yes
Can a demon? Yes
Can a ghost? Yes.
Granted, those mortals who can't mind control can still blackmail and threaten, but those are against the law and can be easily diffused with, say, surveillance equipment or a bold public confession. But what can you do against mind control?
Holding the Ethics Review Board, while on the surface, seems to curb corruption, really it just curbs mortal corruption. In other words, our politicians are still in someone else's pocket, but they are no longer serving mortal, human masters.
This is something I would like to call the Lex Luthor problem. People see him as the villain for bribing police and what not, but he's just trying to keep people from siding with the alien, to keep control of Metropolis in human hands.
Admittedly, this is a bad analogy because Lex Luthor is evil and Superman is good, and bribery and threats and blackmail and extortion are all evil, but now only one side is allowed to cheat, and that ain't our side.
Honestly, I don't know that anything can be done. We need laws like this to limit corruption. I just wish there were a way to limit supernatural corruption too, since I imagine it's the more insidious and evil.
What do you guys think? How can we stop monsters from controlling our elected officials the way the ERB keeps mortal parties from controlling elected officials?
Stay Strange!
-Steve
Not to sound like a Negative Nancy, but this worries me. I know, I know. I'm the only guy in town who thinks this could be a bad idea. To be fair, if you don't know about the supernatural, why wouldn't you think this was a good idea? "Who watches the watchmen" and all of that.
But think on this:
Can a mobster bribe a city official? Yes
Can a banker bribe a city official? Yes
Can a businessman bribe a city official? Yes
Can a vampire bribe a city official? Yes
Can a demon? Yes
Can a ghost? No.
Strip away the ability to bribe, and we are left only with ways to corrupt a city official that mortals can't do.
Can a mobster mind control a city official? No
Can a banker mind control a city official? No
Can a businessman mind control a city official? No
Can a vampire mind control a city official? Yes
Can a demon? Yes
Can a ghost? Yes.
Granted, those mortals who can't mind control can still blackmail and threaten, but those are against the law and can be easily diffused with, say, surveillance equipment or a bold public confession. But what can you do against mind control?
Holding the Ethics Review Board, while on the surface, seems to curb corruption, really it just curbs mortal corruption. In other words, our politicians are still in someone else's pocket, but they are no longer serving mortal, human masters.
This is something I would like to call the Lex Luthor problem. People see him as the villain for bribing police and what not, but he's just trying to keep people from siding with the alien, to keep control of Metropolis in human hands.
Admittedly, this is a bad analogy because Lex Luthor is evil and Superman is good, and bribery and threats and blackmail and extortion are all evil, but now only one side is allowed to cheat, and that ain't our side.
Honestly, I don't know that anything can be done. We need laws like this to limit corruption. I just wish there were a way to limit supernatural corruption too, since I imagine it's the more insidious and evil.
What do you guys think? How can we stop monsters from controlling our elected officials the way the ERB keeps mortal parties from controlling elected officials?
Stay Strange!
-Steve
Wednesday, October 21, 2015
Floating City... Perhaps Atop Leng?
A couple of days ago a floating city in the clouds was spotted over China. Conspiracy theorists are quick to blame NASA's Blue Beam Project, but that's a bit far fetched. Scientists claim it's Fata Morgana, but that floating city looks absolutely nothing like anything below, so where would that city come from? Besides, I've never heard of Fata Morgana appearing that high above the horizon. Fata Morgana? Now THAT's crazy talk. Some say it's a temporal vortex revealing the area in a different time. Others that it's a peak through space or even reality to another world.
My theory is much more reasonable, and more in line with the last. I believe we are seeing a glimpse of the very city described atop the evil Plateau of Leng described in H.P. Lovecraft's famed work, At the Mountains of Madness.
According to Lovecraft, the plateau was believed to be in China, and thus the characters were quite surprised to find something fitting its description in Antarctica. If Leng does exist in the Dreamlands, then it stands to reason that it could be found anywhere, though most likely it would be found in China due to their meditative practices making the Dreamlands more easily viewed and discovered their.
The main character sees in the distance in the cloud and fog a sheer cliff face, with distinctly unnatural and angular objects atop it, high off the ground. Buildings.
What do we have here? Distinctly angular buildings, high off the ground, concealed in mists and clouds in Asia, where the plateau was long suspected to be.
For a brief moment, earth and the Dreamlands aligned and opened a path to the famed and feared city of the Elder Things atop the Plateau of Leng. This raises the vital and troublesome question:
Did any shuggoths come through? Unholy Star Spawn or Mi-Go? Or perhaps the horrific unnameable horror that Danforth mad?
If you live in China and should happen to hear cries of "Tekeli-li! Tekeli-li!" warn everyone and run like Hell.
Stay Strange!
-Steve
My theory is much more reasonable, and more in line with the last. I believe we are seeing a glimpse of the very city described atop the evil Plateau of Leng described in H.P. Lovecraft's famed work, At the Mountains of Madness.
According to Lovecraft, the plateau was believed to be in China, and thus the characters were quite surprised to find something fitting its description in Antarctica. If Leng does exist in the Dreamlands, then it stands to reason that it could be found anywhere, though most likely it would be found in China due to their meditative practices making the Dreamlands more easily viewed and discovered their.
The main character sees in the distance in the cloud and fog a sheer cliff face, with distinctly unnatural and angular objects atop it, high off the ground. Buildings.
What do we have here? Distinctly angular buildings, high off the ground, concealed in mists and clouds in Asia, where the plateau was long suspected to be.
For a brief moment, earth and the Dreamlands aligned and opened a path to the famed and feared city of the Elder Things atop the Plateau of Leng. This raises the vital and troublesome question:
Did any shuggoths come through? Unholy Star Spawn or Mi-Go? Or perhaps the horrific unnameable horror that Danforth mad?
If you live in China and should happen to hear cries of "Tekeli-li! Tekeli-li!" warn everyone and run like Hell.
Stay Strange!
-Steve
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