You Might Be a Ghost Hunter If . . .

YOU MIGHT BE A GHOST HUNTER IF:

Today, I wash clothes. Not because Monday is the traditional wash day in the South, left over from times when there were no Maytags or Kenmores and the wash was a day long ordeal of boiling clothes in large iron cauldrons to get them clean. The day red beans were seasoned and simmered all day long because they didn't need much attention while everyone was busy doing laundry. (How deeply ingrained is the hundred plus year old tradition? To this day many Southern cafes and diners serve red beans and rice for plate lunch specials.) But I digress. We were discussing my laziness. I mean exhaustion after Saturday night's investigation.

Ghost hunting can lead you into some unusual places, and may require unexpected equipment. I struggle with one such piece of 'equipment' right now as I try to peel the thermies out of the legs of my camouflage--(I'm almost six foot tall, mostly legs, so there's some serious arm-stretching peeling going on, maybe even an extended bare toe involved--lol). One must take great care not to punch oneself in the face when the two stretched-to-the-max pieces finally separate. The camouflage I was so tired the pants ended up one leg right, one leg wrong side out. I just wanted them off so I could crash in bed. Working in the cold can exhaust you that way, and we spent the hours of darkness working an extensive outdoor area in 34 degree weather. I'm lucky Hubby helped me untangle when I managed to get the camouflage shirt and thermal top underneath it caught up with my hair while trying to tug them off. (Still trying to figure out how my elbow got jammed into the shoulder section of a sleeve.) Everything wound up stuck over my face, arms pinned together overhead, no escaping no matter how much I flailed and twisted. I'm telling you, the situation got downright critical! I might have smothered or jerked myself bald if left on my own. Hubby swears he was clearing his throat--repeatedly-- and trapped in a darkened environment of my own making, I couldn't actually see him, so I can't accuse him of laughing.

I love history, particularly the local history of areas we investigate. This investigation involved a site in use since the 1920's, and not all of its history was pleasant. Some was quite tragic, involving the abuse--and deaths--of children. I'm always amazed, and sometimes saddened by the emotional energy left behind in such places. We got some interesting photographs, outdoor photography particularly tricky in the cold. You have to hold your breath while taking pics to avoid vapor from exhalations. I not only hold my breath, I use the screen view finder rather than the eye piece so I can extend the camera well away from my body. When all the pics, video, and audio are completed, I hope to share the results.

But right now I need to get back to washing my equipment. Going to need them this weekend at another historical site on the Mississippi-Tennessee line! And I need to head to the kitchen. I'm suddenly experiencing a relentless craving for red beans and rice!