Beyond Winnipeg

Mystical Guardians: The Spirit Bears Unveiled

2023-12-01T14:19:00.000-08:00

Mystical Guardians: The Spirit Bears Unveiled,

The Chipmunk

2023-11-28T19:46:00.000-08:00

What the #@(& is that: Winnipeg’s got balls edition. | Exploring Winnipeg and Beyond.

2012-09-03T08:08:00.001-07:00

What the #@(& is that: Winnipeg’s got balls edition. | Exploring Winnipeg and Beyond.

Growing Romance – A meal from garden to the plate. | Exploring Winnipeg and Beyond.

2012-08-26T08:17:00.001-07:00

Growing Romance – A meal from garden to the plate. | Exploring Winnipeg and Beyond.

Dropping in for a cause: The Easter Seals Drop Zone Challenge. | Exploring Winnipeg and Beyond.

2012-08-18T13:30:00.001-07:00

Dropping in for a cause: The Easter Seals Drop Zone Challenge. | Exploring Winnipeg and Beyond.

Bryan Adams: The good, the bad and the ugly. | Exploring Winnipeg and Beyond.

2012-07-07T09:33:00.001-07:00

Bryan Adams: The good, the bad and the ugly. | Exploring Winnipeg and Beyond.: Bryan Adams, Joni Mitchell, MTS Centre, Platinum Blonde, Rock Concert, Roger Waters, Rogers Media, Teenage Head, Ticketmaster, Van Morrison, Waking Up the Neighbors

Roger Waters, tear down that wall!! A concert preview. | Exploring Winnipeg and Beyond.

2012-05-30T11:53:00.001-07:00

Roger Waters, tear down that wall!! A concert preview. | Exploring Winnipeg and Beyond.

Composting made so easy that even a blogger can do it! | Exploring Winnipeg and Beyond.

2012-05-17T07:41:00.001-07:00

Composting made so easy that even a blogger can do it! | Exploring Winnipeg and Beyond.

Firing it up with Johnny Reid | Exploring Winnipeg and Beyond.

2012-04-28T10:48:00.001-07:00

via bahbs.wordpress.com

Firing it up with Johnny Reid | Exploring Winnipeg and Beyond.

2012-04-28T10:47:00.001-07:00

Firing it up with Johnny Reid | Exploring Winnipeg and Beyond.

The Peasant Cookery: More than a step above the ordinary. | Exploring Winnipeg and Beyond.

2012-04-21T13:17:00.001-07:00

The Peasant Cookery: More than a step above the ordinary. | Exploring Winnipeg and Beyond.: Chicago, Exchange District, French Cooking, French onion soup, French-Canadian Culture, Half Pints Brewery, Hermanos, Kasseler Pork Chop, Oka Cheese, Soups and Stews, The Peasant Cookery, Urban Spoon Review, Winnipeg, WOW Hospitality

The Stanley Cup – An almost impossible dream. | Exploring Winnipeg and Beyond.

2012-04-15T15:45:00.001-07:00

The Stanley Cup – An almost impossible dream. | Exploring Winnipeg and Beyond.

Was Harry Houdini America’s first international super spy? | Exploring Winnipeg and Beyond.

2012-03-23T17:14:00.001-07:00

via bahbs.wordpress.com

Was Harry Houdini America’s first international super spy? | Exploring Winnipeg and Beyond.

2012-03-23T17:12:00.001-07:00

Was Harry Houdini America’s first international super spy? | Exploring Winnipeg and Beyond.

Are you my mother? | Exploring Winnipeg and Beyond.

2012-02-26T08:07:00.001-08:00

Adoption, Adoption Searches, Adoptive Rights, Ancestry.com, Are You My Mother?, Birth Family, family, Family and Children Services, Fort Frances, Foster care, Ian Fleming, Logan, Ontario, Ottawa, P. D. Eastman, Who Do You Think You Are, William Stephenson

via bahbs.wordpress.com

Are you my mother? | Exploring Winnipeg and Beyond.

2012-02-26T08:05:00.000-08:00

Are you my mother? | Exploring Winnipeg and Beyond.: Adoption, Adoption Searches, Adoptive Rights, Ancestry.com, Are You My Mother?, Birth Family, family, Family and Children Services, Fort Frances, Foster care, Ian Fleming, Logan, Ontario, Ottawa, P. D. Eastman, Who Do You Think You Are, William Stephenson

William Stephenson the quiet man that would become 007. | Exploring Winnipeg and Beyond.

2012-02-19T09:32:00.001-08:00

via bahbs.wordpress.com

William Stephenson the quiet man that would become 007. | Exploring Winnipeg and Beyond.

2012-02-19T09:30:00.000-08:00

William Stephenson the quiet man that would become 007. | Exploring Winnipeg and Beyond.

Hit the afterburners: The Winnipeg Jets logo takes flight.

2011-08-27T09:03:00.000-07:00

Yes, yes I am a day late with this and I do apologize to everyone who swarmed my page last night looking for the latest on The Winnipeg Jets logo saga. The wait is over my friends and the Jets are indeed ready to fly high and proud with a new corporate identity.

The new logo borrows highly from the Royal Canadian Air Force insignia that has graced our fighter planes for over the last half century. Wanting something brand new and not reliant on the Winnipeg Jets logos of old was critical Mark Chipman explained in the launch ceremony. The new logo dates back to the 1948 RCAF Flyers Hockey Team, a team cobbled together to compete in the Olympic Games in St. Moritz, Switzerland. Our air force players competed as amateurs and brought home the Gold Medal with a victory over home team Switzerland and an edge in goals over second place Czechoslovakia.

The new logo also works in the relationship the City of Winnipeg has with its armed forces here in Manitoba; home to 17 Wing. The Jets logo features a stylized CF-18 fighter jet over the bright red maple leaf, while the side patches call to mind a flight captain’s wings. All sporting teams here incorporate an armed forces day into their game schedules and Chipman’s AHL Manitoba Moose were no different. Their armed forces game day sweaters also paid tribute to the RCAF and the sacrifices they made.

This new logo brings all of those traditions together while also incorporating a nod to the True North Enterprises logo of a stylized compass pointing due north.

I must admit that I wasn’t personally too thrilled to see the new design, I thought that it borrowed from the military roundel too closely but after having a night to sleep on the new motif and the reasons for the design I think that the city is more than ready to get our boots polished up, our brass shined and welcome this new team and its new identity to the city and province.

Let’s get ready to hit those afterburners and go supersonic. After all these are our Winnipeg Jets!

Next Stop: Swaggerville, Manitoba

2011-08-27T08:43:00.000-07:00

Swagger:
Verb (usually disapproving) to walk in an extremely proud and confident way

Ville:
Noun and adjective combining form (slang) a place, condition, or quality with a character as specified

Swaggerville:
Noun and adjective combining form (Slang) a Winnipeg state of mind, referring to the crushing defensive squad of the Winnipeg Blue Bombers; a statement of fact, an attitude, way of life. Population: 29,533 fanatics.

Odell Willis Mayor of Swaggerville (Photo Brian Donogh/Winnipeg Sun)

Ladies and Gentlemen welcome to Swaggerville, the hottest professional sports city in Canada. The change from last year has been incredible to say the least. Last year when the Winnipeg Blue Bombers were a dismal 4-14 on the season a person could pick up their choice of ticket in pretty much any section desired. Tumbleweeds blew through the upper west side seating deck on many an occasion. The fans that were in attendance were booing the boys in blue as often as they were cheering, sad to say the very least.

This year however, The Winnipeg Jets are back and The Winnipeg Blue Bombers are on a tear destroying opponents with a ferocity that is leaving Canadian football analysts slack jawed in disbelief. For the first time since 1987 The Winnipeg Blue Bombers are an astounding 5-1 on the season; a feat that has only been accomplished 5 times in the 80 year history of the football club.

But the season thus far has not been without its tragic moments. A few weeks ago on July 26th, defensive line coach Richard Harris was rushed to hospital after suffering a massive heart attack in his office. He would die that afternoon leaving a huge hole in the Blue and Gold fabric of the team he loved so much.

To most on the d-line he was more than just a coach he was a father figure; a trustworthy soul and moral compass to those in his charge.

Three days later The Bombers faced the BC Lions. Our defence looked shaky at the beginning but regained confidence in their form recording 6 sacks along the way to a defensive route of the Lions.

This week with the stands full to capacity the feeling was electric as the league’s top offensive squad, The Edmonton Eskimos, met our top rated defensive team The Winnipeg Blue Bombers. This game was to decide first place overall in the league. Edmonton coming into the game with an undefeated 5-0 record; if any team could snatch that title from Edmonton's hand it would be our boys in blue.

Although Edmonton jumped out to an early 10-1 lead, our defensive squad held firm to Harris' teaching. Near the half quarterback Buck Pierce highhandedly ran for an incredible 48 yards breaking two tackles to even the score at 11.

Now with the sell-out crowd almost 30,000 rabid fans firmly into the game the second half was dominated by our defence. Sacking Edmonton quarterback Ricky Ray 4 times and leading the CFL in overall sacks with an astounding 30 in only 6 games.

At times when Edmonton was in possession of the football it was hard to think and impossible to hear with the noise coming out of the east side upper deck. It was as if a tornado, a freight train and AC/DC were converging on Canad Inn Stadium all at once. The noise levels were easily reaching into the 100+ db levels and easily drown out any hope of Eskimo communication on the field.

In the end our Swaggerville defence carried the day, soundly defeating the Edmonton Eskimos 28-16 and handing them their first loss of the season, putting Winnipeg firmly atop the pile as top team in the CFL.

Swaggerville, it's not just a saying this year. It's a belief in great things; it's an attitude that invades the whole body. From the way you walk to the way you hold your head up high. It's about pride, confidence and overwhelming crushing defensive power. Thanks boys it’s all about you this season, now go get that Grey Cup.

Authors Note: This amusing bit of information has just crossed my desk. Apparently Demi Moore of stage and silver screen fame is a fan of the Big Blue Machine! A touchdown celebration by Alex Suber and crew "planking" has caught Demi's eye.

The celebration "Plank" was caught on TSN and has gone semi viral. Demi liked it so much that she Tweeted it to her adoring fans.

Got Swag??

Thanks Norway!

2011-04-28T14:25:00.000-07:00

I en uformell avstemning jeg nettopp har fått ser det ut til at jeg er en hit i, av alle steder, Norge. Kanskje det er fordi vi deler samme klima eller kanskje det er en masseflukt av nordmenn planlegger å rømme fra EU og emigrere til vennlig Manitoba? Jeg vet ikke.

Uansett tilfelle jeg vil takke mine venner i Norge. Mine lesere fra Oslo spesielt. Jeg tror du vet hvem du er. Midt på natten når jeg brann opp trykk som er det blinker bort på min verden, men gode gamle Oslo.

Dag og natt jeg kan se deg blinkende bort, jeg aner ikke hva jeg har skrevet å fengsle ditt sinn. Noen ganger kan jeg se bort fra skjermen for å se om du er titte ut på meg ... ser på meg som jeg skriver, redigerer, ripe og redigere litt mer.

Du er alltid der, blinkende bort i dag og natt, er du en terrorist sovende celle bruker bloggen min som en front? Planla å gjennomføre nefarious ordninger mot vest? Jeg håper ikke det, det ville virkelig ødelegge bildet mitt perfekt utsikt over ditt land.

Et land hvor folk er frosset som vi kanadiere. Et land hvor en god øl er en fødselsrett, og alle tenker at de franske snakker bare litt morsomt. Et land med majestetiske fjell og dype fjorder. Landet der Viking historier sprang frem. Jeg ville hate å tenke stygt om deg Norge. Hvor ville våre to land være uten den klassiske kampene på curling isen? Ingen andre land kan gi opphav til en krølltang som Dordi Nordby.

Dordi Nordby

Jeg ville elske å rapportere at mitt land elsker meg så mye som du gjør skånsom Norge. Men med dobbelt treff dommen er i, står en oversikt i Norge 2402. USA på andreplass med 1435 treff. Dessverre mitt eget land Canada forutsigbar runder ut toppen 3 med 1247 treff.

Du kan lære Sør-Korea en ting eller to, elsker bare én person meg i landet kimchi og Chile vet knapt at jeg er levende med bare 4 besøk.

Takk Norge! Jeg vet ikke hva jeg gjør for å skape et slikt oppstyr, men jeg lover ikke å skremme deg bort i fremtiden.

And now in English...

In an informal poll I have just received it seems that I am a hit in, of all places, Norway. Maybe it's because we share similar climates or maybe there is a mass exodus of Norwegians planning to escape the EU and emigrate to friendly Manitoba? I don't know.

Kom til Canada (Come to Canada)

Whatever the case I would like to thank my friends in Norway. My readers from Oslo in particular. I think you know who you are. In the middle of the night when I fire up the press who is there blinking away on my globe but good old Oslo.

Day and night I can see you blinking away; I really have no idea what I've written to captivate your mind. Sometimes I look away from the screen to see if you're peeking out at me... watching me as I type, edit, scratch and edit some more.

You're always there, blinking away in the day and night, are you a terrorist sleeper cell using my blog as a front? Plotting to carry out nefarious schemes against the west? I hope not, that would really ruin my picture perfect view of your country.

A land where people are frozen like we Canadians. A land where a quality beer is a birthright and everyone thinks that the French talk just a little funny. A land with majestic mountains and deep fiords. The land where Viking tales sprung forth. I would hate to think ill of you Norway. Where would our two countries be without the classic battles on the curling ice? No other country could give rise to a curler such as Dordi Nordby.

Silly franskmann (Silly Frenchman)

I would love to report that my Canada loves me as much as you do gentle Norway. But with double the hits the verdict is in, the tally stands at Norway 2402. The United States second with 1435 hits. Sadly my country of Canada predictably rounds out the top 3 with 1247 hits.

You could teach South Korea a thing or two, only one person loves me in the land of kimchi and Chile barely knows that I am alive with only 4 visits.

Thank You Norway! I don't know what I am doing to create such a fuss, but I promise not to scare you away in the future.

Are the Atlanta Thrashers set to become the Winnipeg Falcons?

2011-04-28T14:02:00.000-07:00

In a bit of breaking news I managed to scoop the big boys today in the Phoenix Coyotes/Atlanta Thrashers/Winnipeg Jets saga.

As the news has more than fully explained the new deal to sell the Coyotes to Matt Hulsizer have reached an impasse. The Goldwater Institute, a tax payer watchdog group, has threatened to sue the city of Glendale, Arizona over its alleged gifts to Hulsizer in the purchase of the team.

Now I am not here today to argue for or against that deal, but what I did learn today did perk my ears up. In preparation of a potential possibility of the "Jets/Coyotes" moving back to Winnipeg the Thompson/Chipman group who currently own the MTS Centre and the Manitoba Moose have secured the name "Falcons".

The Original Winnipeg Falcons Sweaters

My source confirms that a logo and hockey sweater are ready to go should a team become available. My question is would Winnipeg accept the Falcons as a new team name?

The Falcons have a deep history in hockey history here in Canada and in Manitoba in particular. Being the first team in Olympic history to win a gold medal. Nostalgia runs deep here in the north, hockey is more than just a sport it is a way of life. Team names are cherished and coveted, people often describe their lives as revolving around the rink where their children play.

Personally I think that if the Jets name cannot be secured then the obvious second choice would be the Falcons. A team that echos in Manitoban hockey history would be a fitting name for any NHL team that may find its way home to Winnipeg.

Story Update: Doing some digging I found a likely candidate for a possible team sweater. Could this be the new look for a Winnipeg Hockey franchise?

Could the future team logo look something like this? (SigmaKappa.Carbonmade.com)

Canadians try to derail Phoenix Coyotes deal (sportingnews.com)
Dreger: Coyotes situation could become clearer next week (tsn.ca)
Bettman: Goldwater Institute 'has placed cloud on bonds' needed to sell Coyotes (thehockeynews.com)
TSN's Winnipeg Jets Meter Monitors Coyotes, Thrashers Ownership Troubles (sbnation.com)
More trouble for Coyotes sale, as interest rates and legal issues might force a move to Winnipeg (prohockeytalk.nbcsports.com)
Goldwater Institute fires back after Bettman's comments (tsn.ca)
Efforts to save Coyotes deal reach crisis point (aol.sportingnews.com)
You: Bettman Visits Desert, Blasts Goldwater Institute for Holding Up Coyotes Deal (bleacherreport.com)
Bettman on Coyotes sale: Time is running out (aol.sportingnews.com)
Are Winnipegs NHL prayers about to be answered? (theglobeandmail.com)

Main Street Beaver!

2011-04-26T18:07:00.000-07:00

On the way home today I caught an interesting story on the radio. Apparently someone had filmed gorgeous beaver on Main Street in Winnipeg. Obviously I consider Winnipeg to be a total beaver hot spot. Given our close proximity to many beautiful lakes and beaches you would expect to see a huge population of the furry critters.

Not this kind of beaver silly!

This video was shot at night on the main street strip, apparently this lonely creature was trying to find a home for the night and got caught on tape. If you listen closely you can hear the cameraman whistling to attract the beavers attention. Some beaver I would guess love being whistled at, this one seems a bit on the shy side.

THIS kind of beaver.

Without further delay and double entendre on my part I give you Winnipeg Beaver. Enjoy!

Authors Note: For this outfit and a fine selection of adult costume ideas check out 3wishes.com.

Harry Houdini: a true magician among false spirits.

2011-04-25T15:09:00.000-07:00

In my last post I described Sir Arthur Conan Doyle as one of the leading figures of the spiritualism movement. I also referenced Harry Houdini but only in passing as one of the great entertainers of that era.

Houdini Handcuff King and Prison Breaker

I was very quickly called upon the carpet for not fully explaining Houdini's other role in that age of spiritualism and wonder, the role of skeptic. Thus today, on the 84th anniversary of his death I will attempt to set the record straight.

Today we are constantly bombarded by television programs and images of illusionists and psychics, from David Copperfield on a brightly lit stage to the back room parlour tricks of a tarot card reader or clairvoyant on the Psychic Hot-line. But today most of us recognize that what Copperfield does on stage is just a cleverly crafted trick, and illusion designed to entertain and confound us. We know that he really didn't make the Statue of Liberty disappear into thin air, but why do we know that? We know that because of men like Harry Houdini.

Houdini was born Erik Weisz, March 24, 1874 in Budapest, Hungary. His family moved to the United States when he was only 4 years old. Harry began his career performing card tricks and other simple slight of hand illusions. He also convinced audiences that he could fall into a trance like state and commune with the dead although he reportedly felt horrible doing so and would later become one of spiritualism's greatest foes.

A Rare Surviving Metamorphosis Poster

From card tricks and psychic cons he graduated to the acts that would make him famous around the world, illusion and escape. Along with his new wife Bessie they premiered the illusion "Metamorphosis" in which Harry and his assistant Bessie would switch places in a locked cabinet.

Houdini and his Wife Bessie perform Metamorphosis

It was also around this time that Harry would offer the princely sum of $100 dollars for anyone that could produce a set of handcuffs that he could not escape from. As he toured from town to town he not only never paid out the $100 prize but also escaped from all manners of jail cell and locked room. Harry you see had trained himself extensively as a locksmith and would often secret any number of picks upon himself that remained undetected as he set about his task of escaping.

His future name forever secured as the world's foremost escape artist, and a cunning illusionist, it was in the early 1920's after the death of his mother that Houdini began dealing with the charlatans of the spirit world. When he felt the need to try and contact the spirit of his departed mother he contacted a number of mediums who he felt were taking advantage of his grief in order to extract large sums of money from him. Given his extensive knowledge of slight of hand and illusion Houdini quickly saw through their parlour tricks becoming a crusading force in what he saw as "Vultures who prey on the bereaved."

Houdini Making Hands felt in a Seance

Harry even went so far as to make a pact with his wife that in the event of his passing he would attempt to make contact with her, if possible from the other side, giving her a secret code so that only she could verify the legitimacy of any attempt at contact.

In 1923 Houdini took time away from his stage show touring instead to give lectures against mediums and to promote his new book A Magician Among the Spirits. He also joined a panel formed by American Scientific Magazine which offered a cash reward for anyone who could prove the existence of genuine psychic gifts. Much like Houdini's handcuff award this prize was never claimed.

Ectoplasm or Tissue Paper?

Harry Houdini's public debunking of spiritualistic practices did not sit well with his close friend Arthur Conan Doyle a promoter of contact with the other side. The friendship turned sour over the case of one Mina Crandon, a regular member of the Thomas Glendenning Hamilton circle in Winnipeg. Once considered a front runner to win the American Scientific prize until she ran up against Houdini. The American Scientific panel had crafted a special cabinet for Crandon in which her hands were bound. Unable to produce the spiritual phenomena that she claimed was real when unfettered she was pronounced a fraud by the committee. What had started as a friendship based on admiration and respect between Doyle and Houdini had deteriorated into threats of legal action and public animosity.

Eventually Houdini's gambling ways came back to haunt him. He had long boasted to be able to take a blow to the abdomen from any man. His bet was called in full Oct 22, 1926 when McGill University student J. Gordon Whitehead asked Houdini if he could indeed take a punch from anyone. Houdini reportedly replied "Yes, given time to prepare". At which point Whitehead struck Houdini 4 times in the stomach before he had a chance to brace himself for the blows. He went on stage that night performing in severe pain and for the next two weeks could not even sleep due to the agony he was in. He refused medical attention until it was too late, collapsing on stage at the Garrick Theatre in Detroit, Michigan. He was rushed to hospital with a ruptured appendix and died at 1:52 pm on Halloween day.

Today Houdini's legacy is carried on in many forms. Magicians continue to debunk the spiritualists. One need only look to Penn and Teller, or The Amazing Randy for a rational and often entertaining look beyond the veil. Winnipeg's own Dean Gunnarson is a rightful heir to Houdini's escape crown performing many of the escapes that Houdini himself had performed with a modern twist.

Houdini's Heirs: Dean Gunnarson and James Randi

In fact today on the anniversary of Houdini's death he is as I write this buried beneath 6 feet of soil and in a grave site escape. If you hurry you may be one of the lucky ones in attendance when he breaks free of the frozen ground at 1:52.

May you rest in quiet peace Harry, free of those who claim to have contacted you, laughing in what ever afterlife awaits at those who you continue to discredit even from your grave.

Authors Note: This post was originally written on October 31, 2010.

Winnipeg's occult connection: Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

2011-04-25T14:11:00.000-07:00

You wouldn't know it now but back in the heyday of the 1920's Winnipeg, the Chicago of the North, was a hotbed of spiritual investigation.

Ectoplasam at a Hamilton seance - Note the image of Doyle suspended in the ectoplasm 2 years after his death. (Photo - June 27, 1932)

Thanks in part to advances in photography and scientific method a number of dedicated and learned people began serious inquiry into the possibility of life after death. One Winnipeg physician in particular stood out in this realm of inquiry. Dr Thomas Hamilton, a member of the Manitoba Legislative Assembly and president of the Manitoba Medical Association, began investigating a strange phenomena after encountering his neighbour, Mrs. Elizabeth Poole.

Dr. Thomas Glendenning Hamilton

It seems that Mrs. Poole had the ability to move objects with her mind alone and commune with the spirits of the dead. It intrigued him so much that he held meetings at his home calling them "A circle for psychical research", where the believers in the supernatural would gather to witness the unexplained.

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

Among the believers in the power from beyond was none other than Sherlock Holmes creator Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. It seems at first glance that the man who created the world's most recognized detective would hardly be a person to believe in what most people today would consider completely false. But we must recognize the age in which spiritualism arose, the world had just emerged from the greatest war humankind had ever known. The world economy was roaring and people needed diversion. Harry Houdini performed feats of magic and bravery before spellbound audiences in packed theatres across the United States and Canada.

Harry Houdini

Radio was in its infancy, and television had yet to be invented. Thanks to advances in travel the world was opening up in ways never imagined. Why not explore the realm of the para-normal. In 1923 Doyle came to Winnipeg and participated in a time of study into spiritual phenomena. Upon joining Dr. Hamilton's circle he had this to say about a séance in Winnipeg:

The circle, which contained ten persons, including my wife and myself, placed their hands, or one hand each, upon a small table, part of which was illuminated by phosphorous so as to give some light. It was violently agitated, and this process was described as ‘charging it’. It was then pushed back into a small cabinet made of four hung curtains with an opening in front. Out of this the table came clattering again and again entirely on its own, with no sitter touching it... like a restless dog in a kennel, springing, tossing, beating up against the supports, and finally bounding out with a velocity which caused me to get quickly out-of-the-way

Elsewhere other Canadian minds were using scientific methodology in an attempt to explain the rash of seemingly unexplainable events going on in darkened parlours across the countryside. Dr. Samuel A. Akroyd, great-grandfather to Ghostbuster Dan Akroyd, told tales of ghostly events as a psychic investigator along with the family medium Walter Ashurst. The family tales told through the generations became the seed from which Ghostbusters would emerge.

Dan Akroyd in Ghostbusters

Even today there are places in Winnipeg one should not go to alone at night. The Masonic Temple on Ellice Ave has been long rumoured to be home to a poltergeist of sorts. Having personally been in the upper floors after dark, I can attest to the distinct sense of being watched or followed. Workers who were renovating the upper floors told me of strange events and noises that seemed to confirm the decades old rumours.

Masonic Temple (Photo Bryan Scott - Winnipeg: love and hate)

The Fort Garry Hotel, Room 202 is also the site of repeated unexplained phenomena. Reportedly a young woman committed suicide in the room and her spirit haunts guests as a spectre floating above the bed or walking the halls.

Winnipeg's Fort Garry Hotel

Perhaps in our technological age we have lost touch with the simplicity of a levitating table or photos of ectoplasm. But when the lights go out, the wind picks up and a gnarled tree branch scratches across our windows on a dark moonless night. All it takes is the slightest movement out of the corner of our eye to conjure up our darkest fears driving the bravest of us under the covers praying for a safe return to dawn.

Maybe Hamilton and Doyle had it right after all, maybe there is something lurking just beyond the veil that separates the living and the dead. Something that craves a little taste of humanity, something that longs to feel warm and alive once more.

Beyond Winnipeg

Mystical Guardians: The Spirit Bears Unveiled

The Chipmunk

What the #@(& is that: Winnipeg’s got balls edition. | Exploring Winnipeg and Beyond.

Growing Romance – A meal from garden to the plate. | Exploring Winnipeg and Beyond.

Dropping in for a cause: The Easter Seals Drop Zone Challenge. | Exploring Winnipeg and Beyond.

Bryan Adams: The good, the bad and the ugly. | Exploring Winnipeg and Beyond.

Roger Waters, tear down that wall!! A concert preview. | Exploring Winnipeg and Beyond.

Composting made so easy that even a blogger can do it! | Exploring Winnipeg and Beyond.

Firing it up with Johnny Reid | Exploring Winnipeg and Beyond.

Firing it up with Johnny Reid | Exploring Winnipeg and Beyond.

The Peasant Cookery: More than a step above the ordinary. | Exploring Winnipeg and Beyond.

The Stanley Cup – An almost impossible dream. | Exploring Winnipeg and Beyond.

Was Harry Houdini America’s first international super spy? | Exploring Winnipeg and Beyond.

Was Harry Houdini America’s first international super spy? | Exploring Winnipeg and Beyond.

Are you my mother? | Exploring Winnipeg and Beyond.

Are you my mother? | Exploring Winnipeg and Beyond.

William Stephenson the quiet man that would become 007. | Exploring Winnipeg and Beyond.

William Stephenson the quiet man that would become 007. | Exploring Winnipeg and Beyond.

Hit the afterburners: The Winnipeg Jets logo takes flight.

Next Stop: Swaggerville, Manitoba

Thanks Norway!

Are the Atlanta Thrashers set to become the Winnipeg Falcons?

Related Articles

Main Street Beaver!

Harry Houdini: a true magician among false spirits.

Winnipeg's occult connection: Sir Arthur Conan Doyle