67 Not Out

Menabilly Daphne Du Maurier's Manderley In Cornwall

2012-03-02T08:00:00.000Z

A sidetrack today as I continue my journey in Daphne Du Maurier country in Cornwall, near to where I live. In my post The Magic of Fowey there was a photo of Du Maurier's house Ferryside. Today I was in search of Manderley as featured in her book Rebecca, which starts: "Last night I dreamt I went to Manderley again."

Manderley was based on a house called Menabilly where Du Maurier lived from 1943 to 1969. Unfortunately the house is on a private estate, so no admittance to the public and can't be seen from the coast or from the road. Only the gatehouse of Menabilly (small photo right) can be seen. But I've dug out an old photo (below) of Daphne and her family at Menabilly house, taken while she lived there.

What I've tried to do is to give a flavour of the Menabilly area with the photos I have clicked. The picture at the top of the post shows some of the estate.

Fowey and Menabilly is somewhere that I love. As yesterday was a pleasant winter's day it was a pleasure walking the coast and area.

The Menabilly estate stretches right to the sea. Below is Polridmouth Cottage which incorporates an old watermill which once ground grain for the estate. This is situated by a lake and overlooks a small beach and the sea.

Next is the lake taken from the small beach ...

... and this is the seaweed strewn beach. A bit hazy in the distance but clear for this time of the year.

From here we headed along the coastal path which took us up Lankelly Cliff. In the distance was the ancient town of Fowey and where the River Fowey joined the sea.

With the sun now behind us the views inland were clear and bright. Good, green farming land.

When Daphne Du Maurier started Rebecca with the words, "Last night I dreamt I went to Manderley again," it was like a cry from herself. Her husband had been temporarily posted to Alexandria, which she disliked. She longed to return to Menabilly, her Manderley, and to see the cliffs, sea and the wooded headlands. And who can blame her!

I came across this short video of Daphne Du Maurier at Menabilly when she was about 40.

See also other Fowey area posts:
The Magic Of Fowey Cornwall
The Tristan Stone And King Arthur And His Knights

Hitler And Princess Diana Baptised As Mormons

2012-03-01T08:00:00.000Z

I get puzzled by many organised religions. Today it's the Mormon beliefs that I find a little strange.

I'm told that Mormons believe people who have died - and are not members of their faith - must be made Mormons to have an afterlife.

I believe we have everlasting life, but it's not only for people who follow a certain religion, cult or faith. It's for everyone, regardless. How can Mormon's believe that only they will have an afterlife? But it gets stranger still!

It seems that you/we can be converted to the Mormon faith after you/we have died and so, I presume, have an afterlife. But let's take two random people who have been posthumously baptised by them: Princess Diana and Adolf Hitler.

Princess Di okay but: Hitler lives on while that nice, average bloke next door, who wouldn't harm or hurt a fly, doesn't. That doesn't seem quite right.

Let me quote something about Hitler:

"Current IGI TM Addendum temple ordinance entries for Mr. [Adolf] Hiedler (Hitler) show that Hitler was 'baptized' by Mormons on September 30, 1993, and 'endowed' on April 27, 1994, in the Jordan River Temple, Utah. I obtained a copy of this particular record for Hitler from the LDS Family Search Center in the Joseph Smith Memorial Building in downtown Salt Lake City on July 13, 1998, less than two months before Ashton stated that no such IGI record existed for Hitler."**

Also Hitler's mate, Eva Braun, was bapitised:

"Eva Anna Paula Braun, born in Munich, Bavaria, Germany, on February 7, 1912, was 'baptized' by Mormons on October 16, 1964, and 'endowed' on February 5, 1965, in the Los Angeles Temple."**

Let's leave the afterlife and move on to marriage. As most probably know the Mormons were associated with polygamy, though this was banned by the church in 1890 to comply with federal laws. All well and good. The founder Joseph Smith must have got it wrong - even though he is purported to have experienced a divine revelation that polygamy was ordained by God. But it's a mistake any of us could have made, though some researchers have managed to come up with 29 wives for Smith.

It does appear, however, that posthumous plural marriages to dead people can still be made in Temple rituals acted out by stand in brides and grooms. Again very strange.

It's up to us what we decide to believe in life. Just last week a Mormon 'missionary' from the USA was in the town where I live in Cornwall. Very nice, polite young men but how can anyone believe that, in the eyes of God / Universal Consciousness or whatever, we are not all equal and if we don't sign up there's no afterlife. Wonder how the USA president contender, Mitt Romney, squares this with US citizens who are Protestants, Jews, Muslims, atheists and so on?

The photo at the top of the page shows Joseph Smith, Mormon founder, having his first vision.

**See The Mormon Curtain

Further Religion Posts:
The Failed Predictions Of The Jehovah Witness
How Can Man Imagine A God Who Is Undefinable
The Size Of The Human Soul

Russian Politician Abducted By Aliens

2012-02-29T08:00:00.000Z

I was looking on the Internet for non UK or USA opinions about the situation in Syria and came across a post on The Moscow Times. On this a gentleman called Kirsan Ilyumzhinov was saying how he believed that if NATO were to begin military action in Syria it would be the start of a third world war. He reckons that Syria would be followed by Iran and other countries with oil and gas — Russia, Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan.

I wondered who Kirsan Ilyumzhinov actually was or is. I discovered that he is a former head of the Buddhist Kalykia region in southern Russia and is the elected head of the World Chess Federation. He is a millionaire and his heroes are Genghis Khan, the Dalai Lama and Bobby Fischer and ... he has been abducted by aliens!

Yes, a Russian politician, who has openly given interviews about UFOs and being abducted.

His abduction happened on September 17th, 1997 when aliens appeared on his Moscow apartment balcony travelling via a transparent tube. He is quoted as saying:

"I was reading my book, watching television and had almost fallen asleep. Then I felt that someone was calling. I would not have believed it, if I had not had three witnesses—my driver, my minister and my aide. The extraterrestrials put a yellow spacesuit on me. They gave me a tour of the spaceship and showed me the command center. I felt very comfortable with them."

He also told UK's Guardian newspaper, "They took me from my apartment and we went aboard their ship. We flew to some kind of star. They put a spacesuit on me, told me many things and showed me around. They wanted to demonstrate that UFOs do exist."

A further quote of his, about the aliens, said, "They are people like us. They have the same mind, the same vision. I talked with them, I understand that we are not alone in this whole world. We are not unique. I am not a crazy man. But after I gave the first interview to Radio Freedom in Russian five years ago, thousands - not hundred - thousands of people wrote me letters and called me on the phone saying, ‘Kirsan, you are a politician and you aren’t afraid to speak about it.'"

Ilyumzhinov also believes that chess may have come from space: "My theory is that chess comes from space. Why? Because the same rules, 64 squares black and white and same rules in Japan, in China, in Qatar, in Mongolia, in Africa. The rules are the same. Why? I think it seems maybe it is from space."

Okay, UFOs and aliens, why not? But chess from outer space, now that's stretching it a bit, isn't it ... bishops, castles, knights ... no, surely not.

Further UFO Posts:
Alien Precious Metal Plates Found Under A Crop Circle
Mystery Of The Angel Hair Left Behind By UFOs
Classic Photos Of Spirits And UFOs

A Message Of Hope From The Angels

2012-02-28T08:00:00.000Z

Lorna Byrne from Ireland has been seeing angels since she was a small child. In fact, when young, she was so preoccupied with them that doctors considered that she may well be 'retarded' - an unpleasant word sometimes used at the time.

According to Lorna there are millions of angels and - because most of us don't call on them for help and assistance - many of them are sitting about with nothing to do. Perhaps we should put this right!

So what do these angels look like? Well, it seems, they might be golden or blue or any colour, other than black and they come in all different sizes and can be male or female.

Angels tend to glow but I was disappointed to hear that they don't necessarily have wings. I've always thought of angels as being synonymous with wings.

Now, again according to Lorna, we all have our own guardian angel who only looks after us as individuals and these tend to appear like a column of light.

These guardian angels have the ability to call on all sorts of other angels for even the most mundane of assistance like, say, when we have a problem with the car or the household plumbing. There are others that will be there for us at more important times: during medical problems and surgical operations.

Angels place an invisible shawl around the shoulders of long married couples. If the relationship then slips into difficulties it will because the shawl has slipped and needs putting back in place.

Angels also do a spot of match making for the unattached if needed. These angels of love pair off couples by putting a golden thread around them and they don't just confine this to heterosexuals. Same sex couples get the same help.

Many people will mock the very thought of angels but lets open our minds and think that this may just be possible. I'm sure we've all heard tales of how a guardian angel has plucked someone to safety in an emergency or something similar.

In all honesty I don't communicate with angels myself directly but there again perhaps I do. If something goes missing, for an example, I often ask nobody in particular to help me find the item. I'd say words similar to: 'Please help me find my keys.' And when whatever it is, is found I say, 'thanks,' while looking upwards. No idea where I got this habit from, it's just with me.

I use the same procedure if the car breaks down or I'm lost. I'll ask for help to fix the car or with finding the way I should be going. So perhaps the angels have and do help me at times.

I've always believed in life: if you don't ask, you don't get. And I remember back in my management days I'd say: if you don't tell, you won't sell. Though that's something different from asking angels, who knows what we could achieve with the help of the angels - but if we don't ask ...

Book: A Message of Hope from the Angels by Lorna Byrne
Short three minute video: An Interview With Lorna Byrne

Freemasons: The Solemn Obligation Of A Master Mason

2012-02-27T08:00:00.000Z

I wasn't sure what to write today but was handed the following which, I'm told, is part of the Freemasons initiation into the Third Degree of a Master Mason. It is the Solemn Obligation of a Master Mason, and is only a small part of the complete process.

I thought it may be of interest to readers, especially the promise in the final paragraph.

Candidate:
I, full name, of my own free will and accord, in the presence of Almighty God and this Worshipful Lodge of Master Masons, erected to Him and dedicated to the memory of the Holy Saints John, do hereby and hereon solemnly and sincerely promise and swear that I will keep and conceal and never reveal any of the secrets belonging to the Degree of Master Mason, which I have received, am about to receive, or may be hereafter instructed in, to any person unless it shall be to a worthy Brother Master Mason, or within the body of a just and duly constituted Lodge of such, and not unto him or them until by due trial, strict examination, or lawful Masonic information, I shall have found him or them justly entitled to receive the same.

Furthermore: I do promise and swear that I will support the Constitution of the Grand Lodge of the name of lodge here, also all the laws, rules, and edicts of the same, or of any other Grand Lodge from whose jurisdiction I may hereafter hail; together with the by-laws, rules, and regulations of this or any other Lodge of which I may become a member, so far as the same shall come to my knowledge.

Furthermore: I do promise and swear that I will answer and obey all due signs and regular summons sent me from the body of a just and duly constituted Lodge of Master Masons, or handed me by a worthy Brother of this degree, if within the length of my cable-tow.

Furthermore: I do promise and swear that I will help, aid, and assist all poor and distressed Master Masons, their widows and orphans, they applying to me as such, I finding them worthy, and can do so without material to myself or family.

Furthermore: I do promise and swear that I will keep the secrets of a worthy Brother Master Mason, when communicated to me as such, as secure and inviolate in my breast as they were in his before communication.

Furthermore: I do promise and swear that I will not give the Grand Hailing Sign of Distress of a Master Mason, except for the benefit of the Craft while at work or for the instruction of a Brother, unless I am in real distress; and should I see the sign given, or hear the word spoken, I will hasten to the relief of the person so giving it.

Furthermore: I do promise and swear that I will not give the substitute for the Master’s Word in any other way or manner than that in which I receive it, which will be on the Five points of Fellowship, and at low breath.

Furthermore: I do promise and swear that I will not wrong, cheat, nor defraud a Master Masons Lodge, or a worthy Brother of this degree to the value of anything, knowingly, nor suffer it to be done by another, if in my power to prevent.

Furthermore: I do promise and swear that I will not knowingly strike a Brother Master Mason, nor otherwise do him personal violence in anger, except in the necessary of myself, family or property.

Furthermore: I do promise and swear that I will not have illicit carnal intercourse with a Master Mason’s wife, widow, mother, sister or daughter, nor suffer it to be done by another if in my power to prevent.

Furthermore: I do promise and swear that I will not be present at the initiating, passing, or raising of an old man in dotage, a young man under age, an irreligious libertine, an atheist, a person of unsound mind, or a woman, knowing them to be such.

Furthermore: I do promise and swear that I will not be present at the initiating, passing, or raising of a candidate clandestinely, nor hold Masonic intercourse with a clandestine Mason, or with one who has been suspended or expelled, knowing him to be such, until duly restored.

To all of which I do solemnly and sincerely promise and swear, without any hesitation, mental reservation, or secret evasion of mind in me whatsoever; binding myself under no less a penalty than that of having my body severed in twain, my bowels taken thence, and with my body burned to ashes, and the ashes thereof scattered to the four winds of Heaven, that there might remain neither track, trace nor remembrance among man or Masons of so vile and perjured a wretch as I should be, should I ever knowingly or willfully violate this, my solemn Obligation of a Master Mason. So help me God and make me steadfast to keep and perform the same.

Further Posts:
Hitler And His Divining Rod For Dark Forces
The Lessons Of The Bees As A Symbol

Funny You Should Ask God About This Problem

2012-02-26T08:00:00.000Z

One day a middle-aged Jewish man named Leo hears from his son attending university, "I've decided to become a Christian, Dad," the boy tells him.

Leo panics. "What do I do?" he asks himself. The only thing he can think of is to call his rabbi.

"Funny you should come to me with this problem, Leo," says the rabbi. "Not two years ago my son comes to me with the same speech. I had no idea what to do. I panicked, and the only thing I could think to do was to go to God."

"What message do you think you got from God?" asks Leo.

The rabbi laughed, "God said to me, 'Funny you should come to me with this problem ...'"

More humour posts:
Humorous Letters
An Atheist With Nowhere To Go
Make Me One With Everything

The Lunar Ritual That Worked In An Unexpected Way

2012-02-25T08:00:00.000Z

Some of us visualise or create an image when we want to attract something or other into our lives. Others do an evocation ritual to gain a similar affect.

This post is about a Welsh woman, I'll call her Gwen, who wanted to learn more about alchemy. Okay she could have done a Google search but she wanted something more personal and meaningful. So she chose to perform a magical ritual.

The invocation was to Sophiel, a lunar spirit, who has been described as one who 'teacheth the knowledge of herb and stone.'

Gwen carried out the ritual on a Monday at the full moon which is, supposedly, a good time to contact lunar spirits. Unfortunately nothing happened. No lunar spirit materialised so she simply asked for help in interpreting alchemical texts. Still no immediate response or flash of thunder, or whatever else should happen on such an occasion.

However, exactly nine weeks later to the day, Gwen was at a conference. Afterwards an elderly American gentleman walked straight up to her and her opening words were, "Are you interested in Alchemy?"

A coincidence some will say, but Gwen would answer that 9 is the Lunar number of the cabbala (kabbala).

The elderly American gentleman and Gwen met up the next day and he spent twenty-four hours helping her understand the subject - and, yes, I'm still talking about alchemy! He also put her in touch with a group of practical alchemists.

So Gwen's ritual did work. As to whether she would have got the same result with visualisation or something similar is debatable. Some will say that it was a chance meeting but there is also a saying that when the time is right the teacher will find us.

The Tickling Ghosts

2012-02-24T08:00:00.000Z

I came across an interview given by author David Conway. He wrote, amongst others, a very informative book called Magic: An Occult Primer which I read in the early 1970s. I still have the book today and, in the post Magic Talisman Attracts Money, I tell of how talismans I made - following David's instructions - attracted lots of money to my wife and myself.

Anyway, in the interview, David talks of an experience he had as a child.

"Every night after my mother put me to bed, two elderly ladies would appear at my bedside. The taller one would stand back a little, while her companion made a big show of nodding and smiling and blowing kisses in my direction. At some point one of them, usually the taller woman, would lean over and tickle me.

Every evening without fail, thin, bony fingers would reach down and begin the same relentless tickling while I, powerless to stop it, thrashed about in bed.

Throughout it all my tormentor's expression stayed blank, disconcertingly so, with no hint of a smirk or scowl, just a mindless, unflinching resolve. Apparently my screams could be heard outside in the street.

Night after night my parents would try to persuade me it was all a bad dream, but some weeks later I was taken off to see our elderly family doctor."

David explained to the doctor what he saw:

"I went on to describe them in detail and even provided him with their names, as well as diminutives that they encouraged me to use."

It was recommended that David's bed should be moved to another room. After this the visits stopped and never returned.

Only several years later did he find out what the doctor had told his parents:

"Years earlier, it seems, he (the doctor) had attended two patients in what was now our house, elderly sisters now long dead. Not only had I described them in remarkable detail - their hair, their clothes, even the consumptive cough of the older woman - but I had given him their names as well as the pet names each used for the other. A mystery he called it."

But was it really such a mystery as David has been quoted as saying, "Reality, as we know it, is more, far more, than what we ordinarily perceive."

Source: The Book of English Magic

Mystery Of The Celtic Cross Symbol Nearly Solved

2012-02-23T08:00:00.000Z

Back in march 2011 I published a post The Mystery Of The Celtic Cross With A Dollar Symbol. At the top of the post was the photo above showing, what I took to be, a dollar sign but with three lines through the centre as opposed to the normal two.

I wondered what the symbol meant. I couldn't find an answer on Google or anywhere else until that is yesterday when an an anonymous comment was left which simply said: 'It means I Have Suffered three letters overlapping, I H S.'

Now, that sort of made sense and I found out that this could have referred to say Psalm 119:107 in the bible. This reads "I have suffered much; preserve my life, O LORD, according to your word". This would make sense to be on a gravestone. But this is only one translation of the Bible , some have differing interpretations.

Then I got more confused as I read a blog post on Restless Pilgrim which claims that IHS stands for the name of Jesus taken from Greek.

According to the website mentioned Jesus in Greek is ΙΗΣΟΥΣ - the first three letters being iota, eta and sigma which when translated into the English alphabet becomes IHS.

So now I'm confused as to what IHS actually stands for, especially when I also discovered that it originated from the initials of Isis, Horus and Seb, and these somehow crept into Christian early churches.

I next came across the following cartoon, knocking the Catholic religion, which again shows IHS and where it (may have) originated.

It looks to me that the symbol I saw at the graveyard could well be the letters IHS overlapping, as per the anonymous comment. The only problem is as to what it definitely means. As it was by a Christian church it could easily be either I have suffered or Jesus' name.

But this is an illustration of life. We think we may well have an answer to what it is all about when more and more ideas, suggestions, solutions are placed in front of us. It's a long, winding road. Let's hope it finally reaches somewhere perfect.

30 Year Old Library Book Coincidence Story

2012-02-22T08:00:00.000Z

A short, but nevertheless, quite a remarkable coincidence story from a 67 Not Out reader who wishes to remain anonymous.

"I know this isn't as big as some of the coincidences on your blog, but years ago I was in my school classroom and my teacher told me to get a book from the library or I would get a detention.

To cut a long story short, I ran to the school library and picked up the first thing I could see.

When I got back to my class and sat down, I looked at the list of names of all the people to take out this particular book. It was a battered old thing, and you'll never believe it - the last person to take out this book was my mother, a whole 30 years before me!

I spoke to her when I got home and she said that was the only book she'd ever taken out of the library, when she was in a similar situation!

Spooky!"

Other Readers Coincidence Stories:
67 Not Out Readers Coincidence Stories - 10
She Found Her Painting After 40 Years
67 Not Out Readers Coincidence Stories - 6

The Magic Of Fowey Cornwall

2012-02-21T08:00:00.000Z

Yesterday I wrote that I was about to visit Fowey, so I thought I'd continue with this today.

Fowey (pronounced Foy - rhymes with Boy), Cornwall is an ancient, magical little town set on the river Fowey where it meets the sea. It's also known as Daphne Du Maurier country as the author lived in the area for many years and her books are often based in Cornwall.

If we stay with the Daphne Du Maurier theme she lived in the house called Ferryside, pictured below, and it was from here that her first books originated. Her house is the one on the water's edge to the right of the photo. It was a cloudy winter's day so the pictures aren't as good as they would be in summer.

The house is called Ferryside because it is next to a slipway for the ferry which takes cars and passengers across the River Fowey. The photo below shows the ferry with Daphne Du Maurier's house to the right in the distance.

The town of Fowey is all narrow streets and old buildings, not really suitable for cars - though they do make their way through if necessary via a one way system.

The sky cleared briefly when I photographed the church and there was even a touch of blue.

The quay, from where a small passenger ferry runs across the river to Polruan, ...

... has it's own pub, The King of Prussia, in a garish shade of pink!

Fowey has it's own small beach at Readymoney Cove. We didn't swim, much too cold! I took the photo below from where we sat to eat our lunch. It was perfect as there was no one else about. In summer though it gets quite packed.

Readymoney cove again below. From the far side there is a path, next to the wall, that leads up to St.Catherine's Castle and then along the cliffs. A lovely walk in the summer.

Fowey in Cornwall is a good place to hideaway.

And, just in case you need to keep up with the news here's the cottage of the town crier. You might just be able to make out the sign above the door number.

If you are in Cornwall I'd recommend a visit to Fowey, but don't forget to pronounce the name properly, otherwise the locals will realise that you are an emmet. Fowey is also the start of my favourite walk. Maybe I'll write about that another time.

Further Cornwall Posts
Luxulyan Valley Combined Viaduct And Aqueduct
Keeping The Devil Away At Veryan Cornwall
The Magical Charlestown Old Cornish Sailing Ships

Further Daphne Du Maurier Post:
Menabilly Daphne Du Maurier's Manderley In Cornwall

The Tristan Stone And King Arthur And His Knights

2012-02-20T08:00:00.000Z

We were out and about in Cornwall and we stopped at the Tristan Stone, sometimes known as the Drustan Stone, as shown above. The stone is between Par and Fowey on Cornwall's south coast.

There are several stories about this stone and a probable link with King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table. The one thing that is certain is that it dates back to the year 550.

On the north side of the stone a raised 'T' shape can be seen which is an old version of a Christian Cross known as a Tau. The 'T' can be seen in the photo below, obviously it has weathered somewhat over nearly 1500 years.

On the south side of the stone 6th century letters can be seen, photo below, again well weathered but translate as "Trystan here lies of Cunomorus the son."

Cunomorus was Marcus Cunomorus of the Medieval life of St Sampson and King Mark of Cornwall in the love story of Tristan and Iseult.

I mentioned King Arthur. The connection is that Tristan (or Trystan) was one of the Knights of the Round Table.

As for the the Tristan and Iseult story this is how it goes:

Isolde married King Mark of Cornwall, but had a love affair with Tristan. This continued after her wedding. King Mark eventually found out about the naughty goings on but forgave Isolde. Tristan, however, was exiled from Cornwall and he moved to the court of King Arthur.

Tristan travelled to Brittany in France, where he met Iseult. He was said to have been attracted to her because of the similarity of her name to that of Isolde. He did the honourable thing with Iseult and married her ... but in his heart of hearts he continued to love Isolde. See also another version about Tristan and Roche Rock

After looking at the stone for long enough we moved on to Fowey, one of my favourite places, but will leave that for another day.

Other Cornwall Posts:
The Cornish Mystery Of Trevethy Quoit Stones
The Cornish Mystery Of The Men-an-Tol Stones
The Mystery Of The Cornish Roche Rock And Hermitage

Photos: © Mike Perry

Change Comes From Within

2012-02-19T08:00:00.000Z

Last Sunday I posted the joke: "What did Buddha say to the Hot Dog Vendor? Now comes the second thrilling instalment!

Backward Illuminati Leads To USA National Security

2012-02-18T08:00:00.000Z

Something of a novelty post today - or perhaps you may view it differently.

It's to do with the Illuminati and is something that seems to have been around for a while. So maybe you have seen it before, but it was new to me.

In the occult world some consider seeing things through a looking glass as a way to enter different dimensions. Seeing things backwards can have a similar effect.

Moving back to the Illuminati if we viewed this name backwards it would be Itanimulli.

Now lets do a Google search for Itanimulli. If we do, at the top of the Google page will be this entry:

Welcome to the National Security Agency - NSA/CSS
www.nsa.gov/
National Security Agency/Central Security Service Public Information

Yes, the top entry is for USA's National Security Agency!

That's pretty weird in itself but lets now see where the www.itanimulli.com URL (re)directs us to:

Yes, it takes us to the National Security Agency (NSA) website again! You can check this for yourself.

And what's more if you use the URL http://www.itanimulli.org you will also end up on the NSA website!

Most readers will say that both these websites simply re-direct to NSA (as a hoax, joke, conspiracy theory etc.) but if we look at who http://www.Itanimulli.com is registered to on Go Daddy it's interesting to see that the website was created 20-Nov-02 and next expires on 20-Nov-12, so it's been about for ten years.

I guess it's not against the law to redirect a website to a government website ... but it is a bit odd that this has gone on for several years, or maybe it isn't. Depends on how you look at such things and what conclusions you wish to draw.

For those who may not know of the Illuminati this is the descrption via Wikipedia:

"The Illuminati (plural of Latin illuminatus, "enlightened") is a name given to several groups, both real (historical) and fictitious. Historically the name refers to the Bavarian Illuminati, an Enlightenment-era secret society founded on May 1, 1776. In more modern contexts the name refers to a purported conspiratorial organization which is alleged to mastermind events and control world affairs through governments and corporations to establish a New World Order. In this context the Illuminati are usually represented as a modern version or continuation of the Bavarian Illuminati."

Watching Over Us With White Feathers

2012-02-17T08:00:00.001Z

Today I'm back on the theme of how white feathers comfort the bereaved. This is Emma Dudley's experience - thank you Emma.

"I lost my nan suddenly in November of 2011, and have had many encounters of white feather prior to her death as well as after, but tonight was the most poignant of all showings.

I was sat in my bed in the dark watching television, when I saw something slowly drifting downwards in front of the screen, I got up to catch it and turned the light on to have a better look, and it was a white feather.

I must add, I do not open the windows in my room, as I don't like spiders, and have no feathers in quilting, pillows or anything else in my room. I placed the feather on my dressing table and went to tuck my son into bed. When I returned the feather was gone.

Some might say they are sceptical, but I had an experience several years ago when I was seriously ill in hospital with meningcoccul meningitis.

I was visited by a relative that had passed over several years before, and she stood watching over me for several hours. After she faded I began to improve, and am here to tell the tale today.

So I do truly believe there is someone or something to watch over each and everyone of us, and once in a while they let us know they are there to comfort us."

~ Emma Dudley

As I have said previously I get more emails and contact about white feathers than anything else I have written, including coincidences. All I can really add is that it does happen, regardless of what many sceptics may think.

More White Feather Posts:
White Feathers And A Special Beach
Receiving White Feathers From The Dead
The White Dove As A Messenger Of The Dead
The Meaning Of White Feathers As Messages From The Dead
White Feathers Comfort The Bereaved

How President Eisenhower Met A UFO Alien

2012-02-16T08:00:00.000Z

I was sent this 2010 Press Release - which I presume was to do with the Kate Valentine Show. Now I've never heard of Ms Valentine previously - though curiously I'm writing this post on February 14th!

The Press Release is about how President Eisenhower supposedly met an alien from a UFO. This isn't exactly new info but, as it arrived today (on Valentine's Day), I thought I'd better still publish it. Think of it as you will.

TEANECK, NJ, May 22, 2010 / 24-7 Press Release

Former Legislator, Henry McElroy Jr., of New Hampshire released a video testimony, testifying to have seen a brief sent to the then President Eisenhower, on the continued presence of extraterrestrial beings in the United States. McElroy also said that the document he viewed, while at the State Legislature, made reference to the opportunity for Eisenhower to meet the alien visitors.

Historian, author, researcher, and investigator Art Campbell, appeared on the Kate Valentine Show to assert what he believes to be an actual meeting between Eisenhower and the occupants of a flying disk. The time frame indicated by Campbell's research coincided with that of the McElroy brief. It was purely coincidental that Mr. McElroy publicized his knowledge of the unreleased Eisenhower brief just prior to Art Campbell's appearance on the show.

Art Campbell's investigation was prompted by a seven page letter from an ex-airman who had been stationed at Holloman's Air force base at the time of then President Eisenhower's conspicuously unceremonious visit.

"The Columbine III, Ike's Air Force One at the time, landed at Holloman around 9:00 a.m. on Feb. 11th. By previous arrangement, the plane taxied and parked on an active runway. A short time later a UFO was seen to land in front of Air Force One. A man presumed to be Ike left the parked plane and walked to the UFO. A meeting of some 45 minutes took place and then he returned to the plane. Another UFO was seen hovering over the flight line while the meeting was going on".

The details are sketchy, but Ike was at the base until 4:30 or 5:00 p.m. when his plane left. Hundreds saw it. Ike and the base commander spoke to several hundred military and civilian workers on the base and at a hangar and in the base theater. The airman listed the names of eight witnesses to this event. Other witnesses are being sought by investigator.

Eisenhower was not the only president mentioned during this episode of The Kate Valentine Show. Kate mentions quotes and communications from Woodrow Wilson, Harry Truman, JFK, Carter, Ronald Reagan and Clinton on the subject of UFO's. Kate also gives mention to Gorbachev, the Governor of Russia, the first Lady of Japan, and the Prime Minister of England.

UFO cover ups are all over the Internet but as happens, prior to receiving this Press Release, I'd read a 2010 article in the Daily Mail headed: "Churchill and Eisenhower 'agreed to cover up RAF plane's UFO encounter during WWII', secret files reveal."

This information came about after the UK declassified many Ministry of Defence UFO files in 2010 - you can read the Daily Mail's article here.

More UFO Posts:
Two New UFO Photos: Are They Linked To Rendlesham UFO Incident
Ezekiel: The Alien Abduction Of The Bible
Alien Abduction With A Sexual Encounter

The Ghost Of A Child Caught On Camera

2012-02-15T08:00:00.000Z

Sarah Walsh from Redhill, England, had a new phone so she tried out the camera on her children. She deleted the first attempt because her kids seemed to have halos above them. She tried again with her son Sirius in the picture.

It was then that she noticed that Sirius had a ghostly friend included on the photo. Odd to say the least.

The thought of ghosts or spirits roaming their house hasn't, however, spooked the Walsh family. Grandmother Julie says that they have a friend who is a bit of a psychic and he has told them that, "You’ve got lots of them in here – people from the other side in your house."

Julie has denied that the photo is faked. She insists that no one in her family has the technical know-how to mock up a forgery.

I tried to make the 'spirit / ghost' a bit clearer by making it slightly larger and altering the colouring. The result certainly looks like a child and not some trick of the light. As to whether it's a genuine ghost, that's up to the reader to decide.

Other Ghostly Posts:
The Dead And The Dying Are Trying To Contact Us
Classic Photos Of Spirits And UFOs
The Ghost Between The Girls Legs

Heart Saving Coincidences

2012-02-14T08:00:00.000Z

I came across this story on the Wirral News and it reminded me how my friends had a similar experience. In the case mentioned in the Wirral's story they call it a freak coincidence. I'm not sure if this is an accurate description, it's more of a case of one good turn deserving another.

On Merseyside a son-in-law saved his father-in-law's life following a heart attack. Just months later it was the other way round with the father-in-law saving his son-in-law's life, when he too had a heart attack. Both times they were in the same garden doing a makeover.

The father-in-law, Peter Smith, age 67, told the Wirral News "We are so lucky to be alive. If Tony (the son-in-law) had not been there, I probably wouldn’t be here. I was up a tree when I suddenly felt sick. I came down and told Tony I was going inside for a drink of water. As soon as I got into the house I collapsed. I had pains shooting across my chest, I couldn’t shout ‘Tony’ but managed to call him on my mobile. He came running in and that’s all I remember."

Peter then explained what happened a few short months later: "Tony and I resumed our makeover on the garden. I just heard a thump behind me. I turned and saw Tony on the ground. There was no warning, nothing, he didn’t say anything – he just went down like a sack of potatoes. I felt his heart and it had stopped so I started CPR. After a few seconds it started again and he started breathing again. The paramedics gave him oxygen, but then his heart stopped again so they used a defibrilator."

Their general opinion is that without the others intervention they may well not be here today to tell the tale. Saving each others lives has also brought them closer together.

In the case of my friends it was wife saving husband and then husband saving wife.

The wife, Jean, woke up in bed one morning and her husband was suffering a heart attack. She told us that she didn't know what to do but she screamed at him that he mustn't die and started pounding his chest. He had stopped breathing but somehow, because of Jean's instinctive actions, he started to breath again.

By this time their daughter was awake and Jean shouted to her to dial 999 - the UK emergency number. When the ambulance arrived the paramedics said that Jean had saved Norman's life.

A few months later, again in bed, Jean had a heart attack and this time it was Norman's turn to do the life saving. He saved her before calling an ambulance.

They are now both well, though Jean has been fitted with a pacemaker in case her heart should need any assistance.

As they joke, their bed has certainly seen some unexpected action!

In life good turns and help seem to be returned, though not always in such dramatic ways. When I was a child I remember my mother telling me this after I asked her why she had bothered to help someone. "Because some day you might need help," she answered. It's something that has always stuck with me.

See also:
Circles Of Goodness
Woman Donates A Kidney To A Stranger

The Peaty Smokiness Of The Islay Whiskey Coincidence

2012-02-13T08:00:00.000Z

We went into Truro yesterday morning, about 15 miles from where we live in Cornwall, and saw the above sign outside of a wine merchants as we entered the city. We could have made our way into the city centre by several different routes and could, therefore, have easily missed the sign.

"So?" you might ask.

Well, the day before yesterday we were talking to the man who brings us any spare eggs he has over from his chickens. He normally leaves them by our door and we pay for them when we see him. The day before yesterday we bumped into him as he was taking his dog for a walk. We got chatting.

Somehow we got onto the subject of alcohol. We said we didn't drink much but often liked a glass of wine or two at the weekends. I mentioned that I also enjoy whiskey, in small amounts.

I told him about a whiskey that my late friend had brought back from somewhere in Scotland. It was the best I'd ever tasted as it had a definite smokey, almost peat like taste. But I had no idea what it was called or from what part of Scotland it came from.

"Ah!" said the egg man, "That'll be from the island of Islay."

He went on to tell us that when visiting Islay he bought a plot of land there - a very small plot! Only about one foot square. He did this as it entitled him to earn interest of one glass of Islay whiskey for every year he kept the plot. So if he went again in five years time he could enjoy his 'interest' of five glasses of the distinctive whiskey.

So the coincidence or synchronicity is that the day after speaking to the egg man I see a sign for the very same Islay whiskey. It's about two and a half times more expensive than a standard whiskey - and it's not for those that want to drink it with cola - but the distinctive taste makes it an enjoyable treat - if you like whiskey that is.

I took the photo yesterday of Truro Cathedral from the river, on a cold but bright winter's day - and it's a long way from Islay one of the Inner Hebridean Islands of Scotland.

Be Drink Aware

Make Me One With Everything

2012-02-12T08:00:00.000Z

What did Buddha say to the Hot Dog Vendor?
Make me one with everything.
Part 2 Next Sunday!

The Bad Omen Of The Crown Falling Off The Coffin

2012-02-11T08:00:00.000Z

On a walk this morning I took a photo of an old Post Box, as above, because it came from the period of King Edward VII. This reminded me of a coincidence about, what would have been, King Edward VIII. Funny how the mind works at times.

There has been lots in the UK newspapers, and on television about how it has been 60 years since Queen Elizabeth II ascended to the British throne. The previous King, George VI, died on the 6th of February 1952.

It's therefore a diamond anniversary for the Queen - but she should never have been Queen and her father, George VI, should never have been King.

When King George V died it was Edward VIII who was to be crowned the new King as heir to the throne - and at last I'm getting to the mysterious coincidence bit.

At the procession to George V's Lying in State in Westminister Hall, London the Imperial State Crown fell from the top of the coffin, crashed to the ground and rolled into the gutter. Onlookers saw this as a very bad omen.

It is also said that the new, but uncrowned, King Edward VIII also wondered if this was a bad omen for his reign as king.

The bad omen was proved to be spot on.

Before the year was out Edward was forced to abdicate the throne for the love of Mrs Wallis Simpson, a divorcee.

Kings couldn't marry such women back in those days, it was deemed to be 'morally unacceptable'. Today it seems the strict morals have disappeared, what with Prince Charles being unfaithful to Princess Diana with Camilla Parker Bowles - who he has now married. Prince Charles will still be King when Queen Elizabeth dies.

So, there we go, an old Post Box led me here. These old Boxes are still in use, the oldest going back to Queen Victoria in the late 1800s. The one below I saw in Rye in the church wall. Not sure why they interest me. Might be because I have bags and bags of postage stamps from all over the world from when I used to publish magazines worldwide. One day I'll not doubt get round to doing something with all of those postage stamps. The Boxes show the times that the mail will be collected.

Neptune And The Little Harbour In Cornwall

2012-02-10T08:00:00.000Z

We were out and about in Cornwall, on a cold, grey winter's day and came across this new carving of the Roman Sea God Neptune at the harbour village of Charlestown.

The carving has been created from a tree outside one of the old cottages. It was carved by Peter Martin and commissioned by Sarita and Jason Miller. Neptune has a purpose, and it is to raise funds for the new local Little Harbour children's hospice - picture takers are welcome but are asked to pop some money in a box for the charity. Please, if you are passing and take a photo, leave some money to help terminally ill children. Thank you.

I like Charlestown. It sticks in my memory because we visited the village on the morning of this millennium. It was quite foggy and as we looked back from standing on the harbour wall it was like being transported back to the 1700s when it was first built.

As with our recent visit the tall ships were in, as they often are and create something more akin to a film set, but this is all for real.

One of the things about being out and about - even on a cold, grey day - is that you never know what you might see: Neptune, tall sailing ships, harbour from the 1700s and ... a fairy house, built into a part of the harbour wall. Most people will never see this unless they are very sharp-eyed (and believe in fairies!)

Below is a video showing the new Little Harbour children's hospice I mentioned at the beginning of this post. Having a fit, robust little grandson it breaks my heart to think that we need such places. But we do and such hospice's do a wonderful job. If you are in Cornwall or England please support your local hospice - thank you.

The Torturer Is Forgiven As The Hating Has To Stop

2012-02-09T08:00:00.000Z

It's strange how things came about, this post for example.

By 'chance' I read here that Colin Firth is set to star in a film called The Railway Man based on a book of the same name by Eric Lomax. Filming is to start this month (February 2012).

The The Railway Man is a true story that tells of how Eric Lomax's early obsession for steam railways is ironically linked to World War II where he became a prisoner of war on the notorious Burma Railroad. Here he was tortured by the Japanese and witnessed dreadful war crimes.

I then came across a coincidence from Peter Wright.

Peter, another railway enthusiast, explained: "I was recently given a box of books on railways by someone who knew I was interested in railways and discovered a first edition of The Railway Man complete with its cover."

It's always nice to own or find a first edition of a book, but there is more to this. Peter mentioned his good fortune to his brother, who then discovered that his daughter Diane knew Eric Lomax the book's author.

Mr. Lomax often used the library where Diane worked as a librarian in Berwick-on-Tweed. After a few phone calls Diane was able to arrange for Peter's copy of The Railway Man to be signed by Eric Lomax, who is now in his 90s.

All well and good but then I happened on a website called, the forgiveness project, which is a subject that has interested me recently. And who do I come across, but an article by Eric Lomax about how he met Nagase Takashi who was his torturer and interrogator in World War II.

Eric Lomax and Nagase Takashi met in Thailand in 1988. Mr Lomax writes of this experience:

"When we met Nagase greeted me with a formal bow. I took his hand and said in Japanese, 'Good Morning Mr Nagase, how are you?' He was trembling and crying, and he said over and over again: 'I am so sorry, so very sorry.' I had come with no sympathy for this man, and yet Nagase, through his complete humility, turned this around. In the days that followed we spent a lot of time together, talking and laughing. It transpired that we had much in common. We promised to keep in touch and have remained friends ever since." You can read the full article here.

The big lesson for the world today is how Eric Lomax ends his article: "Some time the hating has to stop."

Sometimes things are brought to our attention for a reason.

Further World War II Posts:
67 Years After The D-Day Landings They Meet By Coincidence
World War 2 Coincidences With Happy Endings
They Meet Up Again After 67 Years

Author Sees Dead Father At His Hospital Bedside

2012-02-08T08:00:00.000Z

Roger Lewis is an author and former Fellow of Wolfson College at Oxford University. He has described himself as being more atheistical than Richard Dawkins and Christopher Hitchens combined.

He wrote, "If it's supernatural powers I want, the fairies in A Midsummer Night's Dream suffice." (That's some of Shakespeare's fairies above.) So he's a definite non believer in any of this sort of thing. When you are dead, you are dead. Full stop. But ...

Last year Roger Lewis was very ill, dying in fact, in a Cornish Hospital with pancreatitis. The good news is that he survived though he now describes himself as being, "Craggy, pouchy, morose and look as if I was born is 1920 or 1820, not 1960. The slightest thing ties me out."

At the time he was 'dying' prayers were said for him in Llandaff Cathedral.

Was it the prayers that saved him? Or maybe his dead father? For this is the remarkable bit ...

Lewis writes, "When I was fading away and it was touch and go whether I'd make it through the night, I saw my late father calmly sitting by my bedside as clear as absolute day. Perhaps this is why at no point did I feel the slightest fear about conking out. Indeed, I felt bizarrely happy, serene."

Bizarre indeed for a confirmed atheist.

But even atheists get some strange ideas. He is also convinced that Satan lives in his boiler!

On returning home from hospital in August of last year his boiler went kaput. To quote him, "Boilers never go wrong in sunny August, only on cold and damp January evenings. This is a scientific fact."

Strangely his boiler also went wrong when he was previously ill in 2010.

When the vicar came to call he told him not to bother with him but to "exorcise the damn boiler" instead.

So, if an atheist can see his dead father and can believe that Satan is in his boiler, there must be hope for us all.

Roger Lewis Books Available On Amazon

Luxulyan Valley Combined Viaduct And Aqueduct

2012-02-07T08:00:00.000Z

A little off subject today! Some people say it doesn't get cold here in Cornwall, England - huh! It's bitter today, below freezing and there are even icicles hanging from the rocks and foilage at Luxulyan Valley, as the photo above shows.

Even though it's cold we still wanted to walk so we headed for Luxulyan (pronounced Luck-silly-un) Valley where there are lots of paths and also a very old viaduct and aqueduct combined crossing the valley.

The viaduct / aqueduct is bigger than the photo above shows. It has ten 40' arches and from the base it is 100' high with a length of some 650'. It's made of local granite stone and the building commenced way back on the 15th of March 1839. This must have taken a lot of manpower with the stone blocks being raised up by only blocks and pulleys.

The construction was built for two reasons. Firstly to carry water across the valley. There is still water flowing across today. And secondly to transport granite - using horse carts - from quarries to the other side of the valley.

We climbed to the top and all that can be seen is what looks to be a pathway made of granite blocks. The water flows below this stone floor and glimpses can be seen in parts where the blocks are no longer close together.

The valley is full of water: a river and water flowing through a comprehensive leat system.

Near the valley, in the grounds of Prideaux, is a hill-fort at least 2,000 years old and it is believed there were dwellings in the valley in mediaeval times.

Further Cornwall Posts:
The Mystery Of Jesus Visiting Cornwall In England
Keeping The Devil Away At Veryan Cornwall
The Cornish Mystery Of Trevethy Quoit Stones

For more information on Luxulyan Valley go to The Friends Of Luxulyan Valley website.

Photos: © Mike Perry 2012