Darrell J. Pursiful

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Yearly Archives: 2014

Looking for Bigfoot in North Georgia (and Elsewhere)

Via one of my local TV stations:

The Gulf Coast Bigfoot Research Organization (GCBRO) is convinced that not only is there a Bigfoot, but there are in fact bigfeet scattered across the countryside, even as many as 30,000 creatures (a number they admit is a “wild guess”) from the Pacific Northwest and across the South from Texas to Georgia….

During our conversation, Landsdale shared some of the best places in America to spot Bigfoot, including the following:

“Monster Central”

The so-called “Monster Central,” about 1500 acres, 30 miles south of Shreveport Louisiana, is actually on Landsdale’s property, where he first laid eyes on a Bigfoot 20 years ago and where the GCBRO does many of their hunts. They’ve most recently spotted a female bigfoot along with her child, though since the GCBRO team only wants to harvest a male specimen, they didn’t pursue. Landsdale says these are sharp, corn-feeding creatures, but they can also be fearless. When the creatures allegedly started killing Landsdale’s pets, he resolved to kill one for study.

Northwest Louisiana

The Toledo Bend Reservoir, on the Sabine River between Texas and Louisiana near the city of Natchitoches, is a prime area for Bigfoot sightings, sometimes generating two reports a month. The GCBRO has seen “packs” of Bigfoot here, roaming across four or five parishes.

East Texas

Landsdale reports there is heavy activity continuing along the Sabine River through Greg, Harrison and Panola counties in Texas. Five months ago a GCBRO group saw a total of five young creatures scampering around the area in a single day.

Southeast Oklahoma

The Kiamichi Mountains are a hotbed of Bigfoot activity. A GCBRO member that owns 40 acres in the area claims to routinely get Bigfoot visits around his cabin. A word of caution: The creatures in this area are said to be especially aggressive.

Mississippi

The GCBRO says they receive anywhere from three to five reports a week from up and down the river and its tributaries in the Mississippi Wildlife Management Area (WMA). Other times, an entire month will pass without a report. Based on this and other evidence, the group has concluded that Bigfoot individuals and families of up to 10 creatures are probably hunting in geographic loops on a roughly 72 hour cycle, originating from their bedding area, moving to various hunting grounds, and back to their bedding area. As with much of the South, it’s theorized that Bigfoot prefers this area for the climate and abundance of vegetation and animals.

Arkansas

This area is best known for the Fouke Monster, aka “Southern Sasquatch,” near the town of Fouke in Miller County, Arkansas. A book and a number of films have been made, based on this legend. Fouke was the first known variety of sasquatch, with only three toes (Bigfoot species can have three, four or five toes), and are aggressive, prone to killing pigs and terrorizing people. Landsdale believes the three toed creatures may be inbreeding, making them more aggressive than their four and five-toed cousins.

Georgia

The Appalachian Mountains in the northwest part of the state, particularly near the Benton-MacKaye Trail off Highway 515, are said to get sightings four or five times a month. Though this is one of the hottest parts of Georgia, caves provide refuge from the heat and there is abundant vegetation and animals.

Washington State

The west coastal areas of Washington State have several reports of sightings, including Kitsap County, which has had quite a few sightings in 2014 alone, as well as Bumping Lake and Skooum Valley. The coast is said to be preferred by these sasquatch for the climate, as it’s never really hot or cold, and there’s plenty of available vegetation and meat. Again, the sasquatch in this region tend to be less aggressive, more likely to be loners, and stay away from people.

Northern California

Bluff Creek is famous for the hotly debated Patterson film, showing footage of “Patty” in 1967. Since then, male tracks have been found in the snow in the area. Caves provide protection from the elements between hunts, which persist all winter, as Sasquatch don’t hibernate.

Sunday Inspiration: Humility

Humility, after the first shock, is a cheerful virtue.
—C. S. Lewis

Booking My Flight to Gondor

This is, indeed, the most epic airline safety video in the history of ever.

The Science of Aquaman

Pondering merfolk and whether they might make an on-stage appearance in a future volume of Into the Wonder, I stumbled upon a deep-sea biologist’s attempt to explain the physiological problems DC’s Aquaman might face as a marine humanoid and some of the adaptations he might have evolved to deal with them. I commend Andrew David Thaler’s musings to you:

Enjoy!

The Hobbit in 72 Seconds

It’s epic, even though especially since it leaves out all the fluff Peter Jackson added in.


(H/T: io9)

Paissake: Forest Spirits of the American Midwest

Illinois_River,_ORPaissake are magical little people of Central Algonquian folklore, similar to European gnomes or fairies. Paissa is singular; the proper plural form is paissake. There is a wide range of spellings in the various Central Algonquian languages (Sauk, Fox, Kickapoo, Menominee, Miami-Illinois, etc.), but the pronunciation is roughly similar across languages, approximately pah-ee-sah.

Paissake means “little ones,” and they are said to be diminutive creatures—perhaps as little as two feet tall. In most stories, paissake are portrayed as mischievous but generally benign nature spirits who live in the forest and play tricks on mortals. Though they are tricky, they are not generally dangerous.

In other stories, however, paissake have more formidable magic powers and pose a threat to humans or even to the divine culture hero Wisake, but usually only if they are provoked. In some Miami traditions, paissake played a more important religious role as guides to lead the spirits of the dead along the Milky Way to the afterlife.

In the Fox and Sauk tribes, the native names for the Little People also include the twin heroes Lodge Boy and Thrown Away. These heroes are also little people, but are not really dwarves or pygmies. Rather, they are magical children who never grow up. In the folklore of these peoples, the names “Paia’shiwuk” or “Apayashihaki” can be seen referring either to the magical boys or to the forest-dwelling tricksters. In other Algonquian cultures, these magical twins are not referred to as paissake.

The paissake have been associated with the so-called “Piasa Bird,” a kind of Native American dragon depicted in a mural in Illinois on the bluffs above the Mississippi River. This creature is not, however a paissa at all. The name became attached to it due to misunderstanding or simple ignorance on the part of early European settlers in the region. Piasa (by any spelling) definitely does not mean “the bird that devours men” or anything of that nature.

The Devil’s Due: Back Cover Blurb

The book is not quite ready for prime time, but here is the cover blurb:

Taylor Smart knew that living with one foot in the everyday world and the other in the faery realm wouldn’t be easy, but nobody told her it was a death sentence! When you’re only thirteen years old and a powerful sídhe overlord puts you on his black list, bad things are bound to happen. And as if that weren’t enough, somebody has also set their sights on her best friend, Jill.

In the unearthly world its inhabitants call the Wonder, people pay their debts…or live to regret it. And so, Taylor and Jill find themselves running away from home, forging new alliances, and facing unexpected dangers in hopes that maybe—just maybe—they’ll be able to soothe the wounded pride of the powers that are out to get them.

Percy Jackson’s Greek Heroes

Apparently a companion piece to Percy Jackson’s Greek Gods will be arriving next summer. According to Rick Riordan,

During the Blood of Olympus tour, we announced Percy Jackson’s Greek Heroes, which will be published on Percy’s birthday, Aug. 18, 2015. This is very much like Greek Gods, except about (you guessed it) the Greek heroes like Hercules, Theseus, Atalanta, Perseus, Orpheus, and all the rest. Filled with Percy’s snark and sass. Illustrated with full-color art by John Rocco. So heavy you won’t be able to lift it. Yes, it will be awesome!

So, there you go.

Banana Pudding Discipleship

Mike Ruffin is making me hungry.

Occasionally I am brought up short by the realization that some people have never had real banana pudding. If you are wondering what I’m talking about, you are one of those people.

My heart breaks for you.

Hengel: Christology and New Testament Chronology

Tim Henderson has posted his summary of the next essay from Martin Hengel’s Between Jesus and Paul: “Christology and New Testament Chronology.”