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Summary of this Strange Paranormal Podcast Episode

Do you believe in fairies? What do you think they look like? What do they sound like? If you saw one while you were driving down the road, would you stop to say hi?

Shane is obsessed with cryptids, fae, and UFOs because he has encountered so many strange unexplainable phenomena in his lifetime. He shares several stories of ghosts and fairies. It’s up to you to decide what it is he saw on Christmas Eve outside of Asheville, NC.

This is our last episode of Season 4! We’ll be back in February, 2023. If you miss us and want more content between now and then, we’d love it if you’d join our Patreon at patreon.com/homespunhaints.

A Strange Paranormal Podcast

About Our Guest Shane

Our guest today has become used to the high strange. In fact, he himself has a strange paranormal podcast devoted to the unexplainable happening around us all the time. Because he himself has seen some things that will give you pause. Shane co-hosts Dark Notes, a podcast about music, horror, and high strangeness, with his friend Lisa. Check out Shane’s podcast Dark Notes on Spotify and YouTube. You can also follow him on Instagram @ufobigfoot.

The 12 Orbs of Christmas

On Christmas Eve, 2014, Shane was in the process of moving to Asheville, North Carolina. Passing through the little town of Hickory, NC, he witnessed a mystical ballet of orbs by the side of the road. When he went online to report the event, he learned that he wasn’t the only one to witness the phenomenon.

What do you think these orbs could be? Were they really communicating with Shane? Also, why do sightings of inexplicable lights seem to correlate with sightings of Bigfoot?

Bigfoot sighting similarities

I guess the term “unidentified flying objects” applies to orbs, when speaking generally. But Shane definitely felt like the orbs he encountered were not extraterrestrial in origin. There are however plenty of accounts where Bigfoot sightings coincide with sightings of orbs and/or UFOs. And perhaps at least one sighting of Bigfoot wearing a belt?

Anomalous Music

Shane also mentions hearing music that “wasn’t there.” As a musician, he is usually pretty good about picking out individual instruments within a composition. But in this case, the tune was an un-replicable musical phenomenon that existed only within Shane’s mind, for only an hour, only once. Like Tartini‘s dream score, the magic of the tune may have existed within its inability to be heard with physical ears.

Hopefully you’re not stressed enough to be haunted!

It is interesting to note that the standout supernatural experiences in Shane’s life occurred during periods of intense emotional turmoil. And he isn’t our only guest to draw this correlation. If you’ve had a ghostly experience, do you feel like tension in your life may have had something to do with manifesting it? Are you more likely to see a ghost when you’re stressed? Join the conversation on our FB group and let us know your opinions and experiences.

And until next time, have a spooky day!

The post The Weirder The Better appeared first on Homespun Haints.

Wait, Santa, there’s nothing on this list.

You probably know that the term “naught” means “zero” or “nothing.” That’s why I legitimately refer to the decade spanning 2001 through 2009 as “the naughties,” not because of a personal life phase. Naught probably stems from the PIE root word ne meaning “not” and wekti meaning “thing” (“not thing” is the Poetry for Neanderthals-acceptable version of the concept, all right). Possibly Old English nawiht may have contributed or been involved, as wight used to refer to a living creature or being, before it evolved to refer to a type of ghostly supernatural creature. Nawiht (or neowiht, the Old Saxon version) would refer to the concept of nothing or nobody.

In the late 14th century, the word “naught” spawned the adjective nowghty, noughti, referring to someone who has nothing. Nowghty was basically a synonym of “penniless.” Around the 16th century, the term took on a moral tone. Instead of having nothing, the term morphed to mean something more like “good for nothing.” The aristocracy viewed (or views?) the poor as lawless and malignant in nature. The upper class took to using the word “naughty” to describe a poor person who was poor because they were morally corrupt and therefore prone to committing crimes (certainly not the other way around).

Naughty becomes etymologically sexy…in a degrading way, of course.

Like all words that evolved a concomitant meaning for moral corruptitude, the word eventually expanded to describe women’s sexuality. “Naughty” as an adjective (or “naughty pack” as a noun) came to solidly refer to a sexually promiscuous woman after the 1860’s. The word’s harsh, judgy tone eased through the decades, however, the more it was applied to children. Now when “naughty” describes sexuality, it’s more in fun than in serious damnation. I’m guessing that’s sort of partially reclaiming the derogatory term as one of empowerment. It might be fun to point that out at office Christmas parties to up the awkwardness in the room. The patriarchy hates awkward etymology even more than it hates a naughty pack.

Is being nice really any better than being naughty?

But ironically, our favorite antonym for “naughty” also evolved using the same PIE root word ne. Add ne to scire (“to know”), and you get the Latin nescius, which means “ignorant.” From nescius blossoms the Old French nice, meaning “clumsy; weak; poor, needy (again!); simple, stupid, or foolish.” (c. 1100s).

Did you catch that?! That very word with that basic meaning entered the English language as the word “nice.” At the time, “nice” basically referred to a person who is impoverished and needy because (s)he is weak (perhaps morally) and foolish. The etymology of “nice” eerily crosses paths with the 16th century definition of the word “naughty.”

But I thought “nice” was supposed to be a good thing.

“Nice” has perhaps always been one of those English words that everyone uses, but whose meaning is slippery. “Nice” just keeps evolving in unpredictable and inconsistent ways, like a coveted Pokémon. Over the past millennium, the meaning of “nice” has morphed from “simple and needy,” to mean “senseless and weak” (c. 1200s); then to “fastidious” (c. 1300s.); then to “dainty” (c. 1400s); then to “precise, careful” (c. 1500s); then to “agreeable” (c. 1700s); and finally to “kind, thoughtful” (c. 1800s through today). English speakers since the 20th century have used “nice” mostly as a throwaway term with little meaning. Yet the word’s evolution hints at a moral judgement in its subtext, just not quite as finger-wagging as its more explicit counterpart “naughty.”

You’d better not pout; this is all your fault.

So, deep down, it seems like Santa’s infamous list really doesn’t sift the good from the bad, but merely into different flavors of degenerates. According to what we learned in our etymology lesson today, if you’re “naughty,” you’re trapped in poverty because you’re a sexually deviant criminal. But if you’re “nice,” you’re trapped in poverty because you’re a faint-hearted simpleton. Forgive us, Santa, but if we’re all going to the same Hell, we’d rather climb aboard the party-handbasket. 

References:

https://www.etymonline.com/word/naughty,

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2000s,

https://www.etymologynerd.com/blog/nothing-is-naughty

The post Have You Been Naughty or Nice? appeared first on Homespun Haints.

Episode Summary

Nothing is more terrifying than Christmas. For Samantha, this darkest time of year brings objects moving on their own, phantoms banging on the walls, and a particular Christmas doll that wrecks untold havoc.

Why is this the time of year more scary than merry for Samantha? Maybe you can decipher the mystery. Today, on Homespun Haints.

The Haunted Santa

Our guest, Samantha, graciously pulled this haunted little guy out of storage so you could have these photos. She actually did it twice because, well, the first time all the photos mysteriously went missing.

Please let us know if the photos disappear from this webpage at any point in the future. If not, enjoy these creepy Santa pictures!

Kitty Kitty Kittens!

If you’re our age, we are guessing you remember the exuberant commercials for this adorable Tyco toy. This stuffed kitten doll made the top of Diana’s Christmas list, and when she unwrapped it she fell in love scary fast. Unlike all her other kitten dolls, this one purred! But it wasn’t electronic. It had a marble in its head. So as you tilted the toy back and forth, the marble rattled around to mimic a purring sound. Swoon! Hey, it was simpler times. Diana’s Kitty Kitty Kitten was the himalayan cat one, and she named it Sushi.

What is Parasomnia

We’ve talked to several people with parasomnias. Parasomnia describes something that you do involuntarily while sleeping. Aside from the classic, ever-spooky sleep paralysis, examples of parasomnias include things like night terrors, somnambulism (sleepwalking), severe nightmares, talking in your sleep, and sleep-related abnormal eating.

Should you make friends with a haunted doll?

Samantha’s guests ask her why she keeps moving the creepy Santa doll in her bathroom…but she isn’t. She can’t get rid of the doll, since her mom would object. She tried placating him with a snack, which usually seems to work with Santa Claus…thus the milk and cookies, right? But nothing seemed to help quell the doll’s creepy behavior until she made friends with it. But there’s one thing Samantha’s sure of; she’s not going to let it terrorize the next generation of her family. Becky has a little too much experience making friends with haunted dolls. People are constantly giving them to her against her wishes. Fortunately, she’s been a lot less possessed since she no longer possesses any more possessed dolls…because she’s selling these haunted dolls on Etsy now, so you can possess them!

This scary Christmas story episode made us want to be nice

…But we are probably going to be naughty despite our best efforts. After all, we can’t seem to stop attracting haunted dolls. But you, dear Hainted Loves, you still have potential. Be good for goodness’ sake, or you’re gonna have a spooky holiday!

The post It’s the Most Scariest Time of the Year appeared first on Homespun Haints.

Where did the word “Quaaltagh” come from?

As certifiable cat-ladies, when we hear the word “Manx” we think of the adorable cat version of a corgi. You know, the cats with the stumpy tail, or even no tail at all? So adorbs.

Well, it turns out to be a language, too. Before the cat, “Manx” originally referred to the Celtic-based language spoken on the Isle of Man, which is a small island in the Irish Sea. Which is, coincidentally enough for this article, the language that gives us the wonderful word quaaltagh. (Just so you know, “qualtagh” is also a spelling option, but 3 A’s are objectively much more fun.)

What is a quaaltagh?

Quaaltagh is a word meaning, specifically, the very first person who walks through your door on New Year’s Day. The nature of this person will affect your luck in the new year. What are the main quaalities we look for in a good quaaltagh? Different cultures have different traditions. Of course almost all of the Venn diagrams intersect at handsome young eligible male bachelor with dark hair being the luckiest type.

I’ve heard a rumor that in some times and places, people with these desirable traits have actually rented themselves out as professional quaaltaghs. If you fit the local expectations, we’d highly endorse this as a career, compared to those we foolishly decided to get degrees for. Expect to be way too busy on New Year’s (and in some places, on Christmas), but the rest of the year would be pretty much retirement. Nice work if you can get it.

What specific kind of quaaltagh should you solicit?

If you have no interest in a handsome young eligible bachelor (*ahem*) I’m going to go ahead and say you can set your own expectations and parameters. What type of person would you consider lucky? Perhaps the luckiest quaaltagh would be a manx cat; we wouldn’t object to a merry, tailless new year’s cat wandering over our doorstep. But if your ideal quaaltagh just happens to be a middle aged woman with a penchant for sarcasm and a taste for the macabre…please hire us. We could really use the work this time of year.

What are your new year’s traditions?

We love the lucky quaaltagh concept. But let’s be honest…even if you hire a professional, this situation is still a little hard to control. We don’t want to be a dick about not letting anyone else into the house if the quaaltagh is running late. What to do? In just a few days, we’ll be releasing an episode about our family new year’s good luck rituals. Neither includes a quaaltagh, so we are positive that there are other ways to usher in the new year for good fortune. All we ask is that you take some action, because we just aren’t ok with another 2021.

The post Time to Schedule Your Quaaltagh appeared first on Homespun Haints.

Winter is a scary time of year. The days grow short, the nights grow long, and the world goes through a strange transition as living things tunnel under the earth and prepare for their rebirth in the spring. While the earth may look dead on the outside, it is in fact teeming with change, preparing for the new life to come once the snow has thawed.

The Winter Solstice—the longest night of the year—occurs on December 21, just a few days before Christmas. Many use this period of time to reflect upon their shadow selves—the darkness that lies within. For many more, these days represent the unseen, the unknowable, and the supernatural. The longest, darkest night of the year is the perfect time to talk about ghosts.

But why Christmas ghost stories?

In days before electricity and widespread literacy, people’s work days would be cut short by the encroaching nights, and they would gather around the fire for warmth and tell stories to keep themselves entertained. And, of course, the dark cold nights were the perfect time for ghost stories.

While so many oral traditions have been lost through time, the Christmas ghost story has not, thanks in large part to the Victorians. Improvements in printing and increased literacy sparked widespread publication of ghost stories around the holidays, and the public gobbled them up. But this love for the macabre didn’t just stem from the Victorian’s memories of telling ghost stories in the past; this was a time of great technological change, and people were fearful of what that meant for God and country. Remember, this is also the time period that produced classics such as Frankenstein, Dracula, and Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. So it’s no wonder that the industrialized population would gobble up ghost stories alongside their Christmas goose.

And how about today? Why do we still crave scary stories this time of year? The reasons have not changed, and we are still as human as our ancient counterparts. We know the world is changing, transitioning from life to death to life again. We feel the chill in the air. We see our breath in the dwindling sunsets. And we know, next to the twinkling tree and the glittering presents, the shadows, and the ghosts, are near.

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