New Beginnings

I started this blog because I didn't like the other one I had.  I wanted to start fresh with something.  This blog isn't going to be about anything specific but rather about anything and everything that may come to mind.  The two posts below, Yellowstone and Oak Island, Nova Scotia, I brought over from my other blog because they've always been my two most popular posts and I didn't have the heart to take them down.  On this blog you'll find posts about writing, books, the supernatural or cryptozoology, anthropology/forensic anthropology, random ramblings, irritations, observations and hopefully photos of my travels (when I'm in a position to start them).

I can't tell you how often I'll post, I tend to just write when the mood hits but hopefully you'll enjoy this place anyway.  This will also be a place where I post news of my books and upcoming publications.

I'm going to start this blog of with, what I call, "My to do and to learn list".  A sort of new years resolution for the rest of my life.  I'm going to add a new tab for them and add and cross off as I think of new things or complete them.  And by all means, if anybody out there has a way to help me accomplish any of these, let me know!  :)

To Do and to Learn:

- lose weight and be healthy (in progress)

- learn more about nutrition (in progress)

- run a marathon

- buy a really nice camera to take all my travel photos with (got one for Christmas!  2012)

- visit every state in the U.S. (10 down (and Washington D.C.) and 40 to go) (I'll spare you and not list all 50 states . . . but I've been to Pennsylvania, New York, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New Hampshire, Maine, Florida, Texas, Arizona and Georgia....could list many more that I've just "passed through" but my goal is to actually visit in some capacity . . .)

- visit every continent at least once (3 down, 4 to go)

   Africa (South Africa)

   North America (United States, Canada and Guam)

   South American (Peru)

   Australia

   Europe

   Asia

   Antarctica (yes I will even take a trip here for the sake of this goal) 

- travel the Trans-Siberian railroad in its entirety, a 9 day trip (or at least until it reaches North Korea, not sure if I'm allowed in, or would even want to go in....but I believe that N.K. is the last stop on the railroad)

- learn a martial art (or two)

- learn yoga (in progress)

- write more books!  ;) (in progress)

- learn how to effectively (and safely) shoot a gun

- learn self defense

- become a forensic anthropologist (on my way!)

- hike the grand canyon

- learn a new language (or several)

- swim with dolphins

- visit the redwood forest
- visit Puzzlewood, in the UK

- visit the "7 wonders of the world" as currently listed below:

   The Original Seven Wonders of the World

        The Colossus of Rhodes

        The Great Pyramid of Giza

        The Hanging Gardens of Babylon

        The Lighthouse of Alexandria

        The Mausoleum at Halicarnassus

        The Statue of Zeus at Olympia

        The Temple of Artemis at Ephesus

   The Seven Wonders of the Modern World

         Channel Tunnel
         CN Tower
         Empire State Building
         Golden Gate Bridge
         Itaipu Dam
         Netherlands North Sea Protection Works
         Panama Canal
    Natural Wonders of the World
         Grand Canyon
         The Great Barrier Reef
         The Harbor at Rio de Janeiro
         Mt. Everest
         Northern Lights (but I would like to see them from somewhere more northerly than Pa.)
         Paricutin Volcano
         Victoria Falls
    The "New" Seven Wonders of the World
On July 7, 2007 (7-7-07) an organization announced a "new" set of the Seven Wonders of the World based on online voting from around the world...          
         Chichen Itza, Mexico - Mayan City
         Christ Redeemer, Brazil - Large Statue
         The Great Wall, China (and possibly hike it in its entirety, almost 2000 miles)
         Machu Picchu, Peru
         Petra, Jordan - Ancient City
         The Roman Colosseum, Italy
         The Taj Mahal, India

Oak Island, Nova Scotia

Oak Island located off the shore of Nova Scotia:


Daniel McGinnis. The reason Oak Island exists in the first place. A teenager during the summer of 1795 Daniel went exploring on Oak Island. That's when he saw a strange depression in the ground. Upon remembering the pirate tales of the area Daniel ran home to get his friends. Upon their return Daniel, John Smith and Anthony Vaughan began to dig. They digged for days, astonishment keeping them going.

As Daniel and his friends first started digging they only got two feet before I'm sure a new wave of excitement gushed over them. A layer of flagstone blocked their path. They removed the obstacle and kept digging. Ten feet later they ran into a layer of logs and every ten feet after that until they could dig no more and had to admit defeat...for the time being. They would not give up so easily. Eight years later Daniel and his friends returned with the Onslow company. They quickly redug the hole the boys had made eight years ago making it 90 feet, finding the same oak logs at every 10 feet. Besides the boards, at 40 feet a layer of charcoal was found, at 50 feet a layer of putty, and at 60 feet a layer of coconut fiber. At 90 feet they discovered a stone inscribed with text which has since been translated to say (although somewhat controversially) that there is hidden treasure in the pit. After 90 feet the group unknowingly sprung a booby trap that filled the pit with about 60 feet of water. Nothing helped to get the water out and the digging halted for 45 years.
Since then several companies have spent millions of dollars trying to get to the bottom of what has been dubbed the Money Pit. Six people have even died in the attempt to unearth what is deep within the ground and to this day Dan Blankenship and the Michigan Group continue their exploration.

It is rumored that many things lie deep in the money pit. Some say pirate treasure, or perhaps naval treasure. Some say Marie Antoinette's Jewels, Templar treasure, perhaps the Holy Grail or some unknown exotic treasure. Others who cannot stand the inner child within them and have to ruin the fun for everybody say it's just a sink hole. Treasure or natural phenomena? It's up to you to decide. As for me, well I'm almost certain treasure lies in wait to whomever can make it to the bottom alive.

Yellowstone

Did you know that at any second the world could be ushered into an ice age? Surprising? Scary? A little dramatic? Probably. Let's take our first trip. We're going to Yellowstone National Park which is mainly located in the state of Wyoming. To most Yellowstone conjures images similar to the picture above.

However, become a seismologist or a volcanologist and Yellowstone will probably look more like this...
What the hell is that, your probably wondering to yourself if you've not yet seen the movie 2012. That, my friends, is called a Caldera, or a super volcano. Yellowstone's volcano is by no means the only or even the largest caldera in existence by any means (however, still large and menacing enough) but I find it the most interesting.

This volcano is about 34 miles by 45 miles (these figures vary). In comparison, the crater on Mount St. Helens is only about one mile in diameter. The only reason Yellowstone has it's beloved geysers is because of this big fellow sitting beneath it. So now your probably asking...who gives a damn. Well, you should.

Every year, 1,000-3,000 earthquakes occur in Yellowstone, most of them being very mild and of little or no consequence to go along with that the floor of Yellowstone Lake continues to expand upwards. Your probably saying at the moment, ok so what happens if it erupts?
There is evidence of this volcano last erupting about 600,000 years ago destroying much if not all of the life in the surrounding area. Due to the pattern in which this volcano erupts scientists predict we are long overdue for an eruption "any time now." The force of this volcano would devastate the surrounding area and, if not evacuated beforehand, kill thousands of people...and that's just the immediate eruption. Ash would most likely coat the entire U.S. and effectively block out the sun for a long time causing plant and animal life to die and starving most of the world population and causing the temperature to drop several degrees ushering in what would be the equivalent to a nuclear ice age. However, scientists say the likelihood of it erupting in our lifetime is "extremely minimal." But that is only the short of it people...do some research yourself, there's tons of information out there. But just remember the next time you go to Yellowstone and are taking in the trees and wildlife that a gigantic pool of hot lava flows under your feet just ready to burst at anytime and if you see any little dead critters who look a little strange you might want to think of running in the opposite direction...fast. Don't believe me, just watch Dante's Peak...