Episode Summary:

Synchronicity refers to two or more events that seem to be related simultaneously occurring at the same time. And our guest today has had multiple, strange synchronicities happen in his life. Are these events merely coincidental, or is there something larger at play? Decide for yourself as we interview one of the original paranormal podcasters, Jim Harold.

AI-generated transcript of this episode available upon request.

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About the Guest, Jim Harold

Jim Harold is the creator of several podcasts, including The Paranormal Podcast, Jim Harold’s Campfire, Unpleasant Dreams, and You Won’t Believe What Happened To Me. And those are just the paranormal ones. Jim also has podcasts discussing true crime, classic TV shows, and relationships. He’s not exclusively into audio, either. Check out his YouTube channel, several books of true ghost stories, and even a true ghost story coloring book for grown-ups.

Show Notes

What is Serendipity?

Serendipity involves unexpectedly happening upon something of interest, relevance, or value, and having the wisdom to recognize that value within an entirely different context or application. You might be pondering a problem, and find the answer in the graffiti on a highway overpass, that you only witnessed because your normal route was under construction. Or you might, in the course of developing a new drug, accidentally get some in your mouth, and discover the next big artificial sweetener.

We notice serendipities because it’s part of human nature to search for patterns. We humans automatically notice patterns, even within randomness. In design, it’s nearly impossible to create a design that truly appears “random.” That’s because we are so good at identifying patterns and assigning meanings. Common phenomena like Blue Ford Syndrome and pareidolia remind us that most serendipities we notice are just noticeable because they are outliers within the normal chaos.

The word is fairly new, and based on a Persian fairy tale called The Three Princes of Serendip. This week, our Apple Premium and Patreon subscribers will get to hear Diana tell her own version of this out of print, oft-translated fable.

Serendipity vs. Synchronicity and their Relation to the Paranormal

Whereas serendipity is the ability to glean a relevant eureka moment from an unexpected source, synchronicity is more about timing. As my etymology peeps will appreciate, Chronos refers to Father Time, and the rest of the word, Syn+City refers to Las Vegas, NV. But although you and I know that truth, Psychology Today claims that synchronicity is a Jungian term. “Synchronicity, as an acausal connecting principle, suggests that the shared meaning between two low-probability events had something to do with explaining why they happened.”

Either term potentially implies that a coincidence is more than just a coincidence; synchronicity exclusively so. Serendipities usually result in objectively practical external outcomes, but their causality can be dismissed as coincidental. Synchronicities are, by definition, not mere coincidence. Synchronicities tend to have mainly subjective internal emotional intrigue. The events themselves may hold no inherent value or useful outcome. Rather, it is their connection which is relevant to the study of epistemological metaphysics.

One might say that serendipity is similar to receiving a mystical sign from the universe. But another might argue that the wonder of serendipity lies within the human ability to recognize the relevance of the serendipitous discovery from within in a completely irrelevant context. Synchronicity by necessity uses the simultaneous happening of rare events to imply a supernatural connection between the two.

What can you do with your haunted mirror?

This episode sparked a little debate between haunted mirror owners. If you find yourself in possession (no pun intended) of a cursed mirror, would you keep it? Or would you get rid of it? And how? If you’re in the “get rid of it” camp, it’s not a simple decision. Breaking it comes with bad luck. Burning glass doesn’t work so well. But selling it or giving it away involves inadvertently cursing someone else. Patrons will get a bonus this week of Becky and Diana’s best hot tips on how to get rid of a cursed mirror like the one in this episode without calamitous results.

Have you taken a paranormal cruise?

Is it anything like we imagined? NO??? Sounds like it’s time for us to start a Go Fund Me to buy a cruise ship. Let’s make this nightmare a reality.

Have you experienced a serendipity or synchronicity that bordered on supernatural?

We love the concept of synchronicity, and are fully open to believing that some serendipities are supernatural in nature. Tell us about your synchronicities by finding us on social using those buttons down at the bottom of the page. Or submit your story if you’d like to tell it in an episode. We appreciate you sharing so we can all have a spooky day!

The post Synchronicity Only Explains So Much appeared first on Homespun Haints.

Listen here:

Did Shelby Enter a Time Slip?

Have you ever heard of a time slip? Have you ever experienced one? Everything seems normal until you suddenly find yourself face to face with a person from another era. And slowly you begin to wonder, which of us is in the wrong time?

Time slips and ghost stories go hand in hand, as we hear today. Our guest has encountered both. Hold onto your flux capacitor as we talk to Shelby of Scare You to Sleep Podcast.

About the Guest: Shelby Scott

Shelby Scott tells gently terrifying bedtime stories on her podcast Scare You To Sleep. She recently joined the Bloody Disgusting Network. You can catch her in-person soon at the upcoming Midsummer Scream Convention. She’s also doing a live show in Chicago this November. She also collects vintage midcentury paranormal magazines.

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What is a Time Slip?

The infamous Moberly–Jourdain Incident in Versailles is a great example of a time slip. To make a long story short, a pair of tourists got lost on their way to the Petit Trianon in 1901. As they wandered back alleys or Versailles, they witnessed several anachronisms. They saw people they later decided must have been ghosts, including the spirit of Marie Antoinette herself. Ten years later, they published their story in a book entitled An Adventure under the pseudonyms “Elizabeth Morison” and “Frances Lamont.”

Critics claim their time travel story has been thoroughly debunked. Indeed, editions of An Adventure seemed more embellished each time they were published. Yet it’s relevant to note that the two educated women were likely attempting to make sense of their experience by thoroughly researching and analyzing the things their senses presented to them. The main theories they could surmise—time travel and hauntings—are rife with easy counter-arguments. And yet, the counter arguments made (by men) at the time were based mainly on ad-hominem presumptions. Criticism included theories like the ladies were too shocked by French avant-garde behavior to recognize a costume party. Or that they had a shared delusion, perhaps brought on by virulent lesbianism. Or perhaps that they made it all up for attention. Perhaps Jourdain, the more dominant of the two, coerced Moberly into corroborating her false claims. Remember, these women were well-travelled, middle-class, Oxford academics. True, Jourdain may have ruined her career by claiming that a German spy had infiltrated her college. But is it still paranoia if someone is actually out to get you?

When and how do I tell my partner I’m into ghosts?

Woah, get your mind out of the gutter! We’re not talking about spectrophilia today. Just being an average person who believes in ghosts, seeks out hauntings, and wants to hear as many spooky stories as possible. We propose listening to our podcast with them, preferably in the car, so they can’t run away. As for when, that’s a question for the ages. Is it best to wait until you have a spooky experience together, like Shelby an her husband did? Or better to tear off the bandage right away? After all, do you really want to date someone who would reject you because you love ghosts?

Why don’t we like looking in mirrors in the dark?

Our early H-Files episode Mirror Mirror talks about this common human fear in the context of Bloody Mary. And the darker the mirror, the darker the prospect.

Are You Into the Time Slip?

Have you ever found yourself suddenly thrust into another time? If you have any wisdom to share about time slips, hit us up! We don’t get many paranormal stories like this, so it really made us think. Is being alive and stuck in a time slip kind of like being a ghost stuck in the world of the living, but in reverse? And—oh god—could you get stuck?! What a spooky day that would be!

The post Into The Time Slip: True Stories About Civil War Ghosts appeared first on Homespun Haints.