Mysterious Cave House Discovered in Scotland

In a story somewhat reminiscent of the magnificent Perforating Mexicans, a mysterious dwelling has been discovered in a sea-side cliff near the town of Arbroath, Scotland.

According to the BBC:

"The [Arbroath authorities were] investigating reports of cries for help coming from local caves on Tuesday.

After scouring the area they spotted a rope ladder which led into a cave house built into the rocks.

The dwelling, about half way up the 120ft cliffs, contained a floor, painted walls, seating, tea lights and several beer cans.

No-one was home at the time.

Read more here.

I'm Sensing a Trend Here

Apparently, the quickest way to fame these days is to put nasty stuff on your face/head. The girl shown above is Japanese celebrity Shokotan, who enjoys accessorizing with the dried and discarded shells of cicadas. Ew. Read more at Pink Tentacle. Pictures via the Shokotan blog.

As for the upcoming contest, thanks for the support! I'll be announcing the details tomorrow, so stay tuned!

Contest Time?

(Above: Jedi Squirrels by an unidentified genius.)

I'm thinking of sponsoring a new contest. One that won't necessarily take writing or drawing skills, but will instead require a devious mind and a heap of creativity. What do you think?

Now That's What I Call Talent!

Nine-year-old Tiana Walton has used an unusual skill to break into the Guinness Book of World Records. She now holds the world record for balancing snails on her face. Just how many did it take to shatter the previous record held by Australian Liam Kenny? TWENTY-FIVE!

All I can say is . . . do not try this at home.

(Of course Tiana comes from a talented family. Her mother once held the record for growing the largest lemon in the world.)

Read more and see a video masterpiece here.

My NEXT Vacation: The Mayan Underworld

Yes, I'm back in good old New York, where the streets still smell like summer. (Which is a heavenly mixture of rancid garbage and urine in case you're wondering.)

For the past five days, I've been in the Bahamas--trying to figure out what REALLY makes their sand pink, avoiding sharks and wandering through creepy Caribbean graveyards (see below). What's making some of the graves in the picture rise, I'd like to know? I have a feeling you'll be reading about this cemetery in one of my books someday.

But while I'm all for sunbathing and relaxing, I think I'm ready for some serious adventure. So the next time I have a few days off, I'm heading down to Mexico's Yucatan Penninsula where archaeologists have discovered a real-life portal to Xibalba, the mythical Mayan underworld.

Deep underground lies a complex of caves that the Mayans believed was the route souls took to the underworld. At least eleven stone temples line the way--some underwater and others filled with human bones.

According to one archaeologist, ancient Mayan texts said the dead followed a dog along a path, "filled with obstacles, including rivers filled with scorpions, blood and pus and houses shrouded in darkness or swarming with shrieking bats."

Now THAT sounds like fun to me!

Read more here and here.

China's Winged Cats

I AM SPEECHLESS. (And I'm back!)

Read more here. (Via Boing Boing)

Time for a Little Break

(Art by Sarah Hobbs.)

After working my butt off for months, I've decided to get some sun. I'll be back in New York next Thursday. Until then I may post a little something here and there, but I probably won't do so every single day. (Which means I may not respond to emails, either.)

In the meantime, do something daring. Or at the very least, check out Yoda the four-eared cat. (Thanks, anonymous!)

The Cottingley Fairies

The unfortunate Bigfoot incident which took place earlier this month (don't get me started!) brought to mind another, much more interesting hoax. For two years, I've been meaning to write about the Case of the Cottingley Fairies. Now, the time has finally come.

In 1917, ten-year-old Frances Griffiths and her sixteen-year-old cousin Elsie Wright shocked all of England with five photographs they claimed to have taken near their home in the town of Cottingley. The photos seemed to show the girls posing with a number of tiny woodland fairies.




Now before everyone starts talking about how fake the photos look today, you must remember that back in 1917, photography was relatively new. The public still thought seeing was believing--and they weren't used to questioning evidence provided by their own two eyes. As a result, many people were absolutely convinced that the Cottingley photos were proof of the existence of fairies. Even Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (the brilliant creator of Sherlock Holmes) was certain that the photos had not been faked.

(I'm of the opinion that most people were fooled by the photos because they believed two little girls could never have staged such an elaborate hoax.)




Alas, poor Mr. Conan Doyle was wrong. Elsie and Frances had indeed pulled the wool over England's eyes. And they refused to confess until 1981. As one said then, "I never even thought of it as being a fraud - it was just Elsie and I having a bit of fun and I can't understand to this day why they were taken in - they wanted to be taken in."

Find out how they did it here.

Sidewalk Manta Ray

Last week, a Manta Ray mysteriously appeared on a San Francisco sidewalk. (My worst fears have been realized! They're making the move to land!) Read more here.

On the one hand, this is the sort of crazy story that makes life interesting. On the other hand, people must stop messing with manta rays and painting pigeons purple! People who are cruel to helpless. animals are the lowest form of life!

PS: Let's not get too worked up about cheerleaders, OK?

The Mysterious, Maddening Hum

What if your house was plagued by a mysterious noise that never seemed to stop? One that sounded like an 18-wheeler left idling in the driveway? That's what a Green Bay, Wisconsin couple say is driving them slowly insane. Yet whenever the authorities show up to check, the noise mysteriously goes away.

When I received this story from two long-time readers (thanks Hazel & Nellie!), I immediately thought of another, more famous, hum. The Hum, as it's known, (catchy, huh?) has been reported in locations around the world, but most famously in Taos, New Mexico.

Not everyone can hear it, but those who do describe a maddening noise that sounds much like the one the Green Bay couple experienced. It doesn't stop and earplugs won't diminish it.

Is it man-made, mass-hysteria, or a form of alien communication? No one knows. Since it was first reported in the 1990s, the Taos hum has not been explained. It has, however, provided fodder for both the X-Files and Unsolved Mysteries.

Read more here and check out some sound files here. Maybe it's my computer, but I couldn't hear a thing!

The Magnet Mafia

It took me a while to recover from my recent Bigfoot disappointment. (BLAST THOSE SCUM-SUCKING CON MEN!) But I'm okay now. It's time to move on. So today I'm going to profile some people who truly deserve a place on this blog.

Over the past three years, strange works of art have begun showing up on metal surfaces throughout Denver, Colorado (and a few other cities as well). Some are large, others tiny. But all were created by members of a (not so) shadowy organization known as the Magnet Mafia.

The Magnet Mafia are artists who choose to display their work on the streets where everyone can enjoy it. Their medium of choice? Magnets, of course. Which is fabulous. Why? Because it offers all the positives of "graffiti" (it's free, unexpected, and it makes you think) without any of the negatives (vandalism).

It's also really cheap to make, which gives me a few ideas . . .

Visit the Magnet Mafia's website and read more here.

PS: Cheerleaders are people, too!

The Sad Truth

It's becoming clear the the Georgia Gorilla is most likely a hoax staged by a bunch of con men. Too bad! (But I gotta admit that part of me is glad there's still a chance that I could be the first person to prove that Bigfoot exists.)

The Georgia Gorilla: Has the Body of a Bigfoot Finally Been Discovered?

Okay. Calm down. Take a deep breath and write the post, darn it!

The body of an ape-like creature has been discovered in the mountains of North Georgia. (Not far from where I grew up in Western North Carolina!!!!) Although it's still too soon to say, some people are speculating that it may be Bigfoot.

According to a press release sent to Cryptomundo this morning, here are some of the creature's vital stats . . .

1. The creature is seven feet seven inches tall.
2. It weighs over five hundred pounds.
3. The creature looks like it is part human and part ape-like.
4. It is male.
5. It has reddish hair and blackish-grey eyes.
6. It has two arms and two legs, and five fingers on each hand and five toes on each foot.
7. The feet are flat and similar to human feet.
8. Its footprint is sixteen and three-quarters inches long and five and three-quarters inches wide at the heel.
9. From the palm of the hand to the tip of the middle finger, its hands are eleven and three-quarters inches long and six and one-quarter inches wide.
10. The creatures walk upright. (Several of them were sighted on the same day that the body was found.)
11. The teeth are more human-like than ape-like.
12. DNA tests are currently being done and the current DNA and photo evidence will be presented at a press conference on Friday, August 15th.

A picture of the creature can be seen here. WARNING! The picture shows a dead creature and it isn't pretty.

This is the most exciting thing to happen EVER!!!!! Be sure to check in with Cryptomundo (the web's best cryptozoology site) throughout the day!

Chupacabra Caught on Tape!

By a police officer!

A cop in Cuero, Texas spotted the creature shown above while on patrol. He quickly flipped on his video camera and captured some fascinating footage. The beast looks much like an ordinary dog until it turns it's head, displaying a snout that's way too long for your average pet.

Whatever it is, it sure is strange. What's up with all the mutants running around and washing up on our beaches these days?

Chupacabra
by guanabee

Two New Underground Cities to Report

(Awesome picture from agentsofurbanism.com.)

It seems that some states are luckier than others when it comes to secret underground cities. I recently discovered that Kansas has not one but TWO!

The first can be found under the sleepy town of Leavenworth. The article I read doesn't offer much information, but from what I gather, a stretch of underground storefronts can be accessed through the basement of a tile company. Though the tunnels are clearly old, no one can agree on why they were built--or who might have built them. Some say they were created to hide fugitive slaves, others think they were used to run liquor during prohibition. In either case, I wish I could find some better pictures!

The second underground city is beneath Ellinwood, Kansas. Actually, it's more of an underground village, since it now consists of two long tunnels and three rooms built sometime in the 1850s. (Apparently it was once much bigger.) You can find an interesting guide with pictures here.

So our list of American Shadow Cities grows! Here are the ones I've discovered so far . . .

Portland
Seattle
Pendelton, OR
Fresno
Chicago
Leavenworth, KS
Ellinwood, KS
Tacoma, WA
New York (of course!)

Am I missing any? (Of course the list of international Shadow Cities is much longer. I just found out that Beijing has one, too! More on that later.)

Ever Wanted to BE Kiki Strike?

One of our regular readers and comment contributors has started a Kiki Strike role play site! So all of you who think you've got what it takes to be an Irregular, test your skills here!

Your Very Own Anime Eyes

(Above: From Worth 1000)

Ever dreamed of looking just like a cartoon character? Well here's your chance! Scores of Japanese websites now sell "extra wide contact lenses," which will give you the big-eyed gaze of an anime girl (or guy). They come in a wide range of colors and can even correct your vision (if you're into silly things like 20/20 eyesight).

I'm not sure what to think. Part of me says these would be super cool on Halloween. And part of me finds the whole thing really creepy. What about you?

(Below: The lenses in action.)

Future Cat Burglar

Okay, I know I said I wasn't going to post, but this is the GREATEST VIDEO OF ALL TIME! (I know there have been a few of them.) I nearly fell off my chair when I saw it. I love this kid.

(Just in case you're wondering, the machine is one of those games where you use a "claw" to grab a toy.)

Via Boing Boing



http://view.break.com/536276 - Watch more free videos

Dear Readers and Irregulars:

I must take a short break so I can FINALLY finish my latest project. I will return, even weirder and more dangerous than before, on Monday August 11. I wish all of you an adventure-filled weekend.

It's Arts and Crafts Time!

The following video offers instructions for copying a key using only some scissors and an aluminum can. I wonder if it really works. I would think that the aluminum would bend when you try to turn the "key."

So if anyone cares to try it out, the rest of us would be grateful

(I highly recommend wearing some sort of safety gloves. I've cut myself doing stuff like this, and it ain't fun.)

Bullet Proof Undies!

It's a good time to be a German policewoman. Now, in addition to the "I MEAN BUSINESS" uniform, each lady cop gets her own bullet proof brassiere. At least that's what they're being called. I doubt that they actually stop bullets. They're meant as an alternative to regular bras, which contain bits of metal and plastic that can prove dangerous when worn under a standard bullet proof vest.

But they do say "Police" on them, which is pretty durn cool if you ask me. Read more here.

My Kind of Merit Badges

The Boy Scouts are offering some awesome merit badges these days. Once you've perfected your knot-tying and survival skills, you can try your hand at . . .

Shark Fishing
Cat Herding (shown above)
Brain Surgery
Coffee Drinking
Cow Tipping, and more!

See them all here. (I think they'd look pretty good on a Girl Scout sash, too.)

Famous US Astronaut Says Aliens Visit Earth

Dr. Edgar Mitchell is a renowned American astronaut--and one of the few people who've had the chance to walk on the moon. Now, at age 77, he's decided to add world-class bean-spiller to his resume as well.

In a recent interview, Dr. Mitchell claimed that extraterrestrials have made several trips to our planet. And each time they pay us a visit, the government simply covers it up.

But WHY? According to Mitchell, though the aliens boast technology far superior to ours, they pose no threat to humankind. Perhaps officials are worried that the extraterrestrials' creepy looks (small bodies and over-sized eyes) would scare the general public.

Whatever the reason, their secret is OUT. According to Mitchell:

"I happen to have been privileged enough to be in on the fact that we've been visited on this planet and the UFO phenomena is real. It's been well covered up by all our governments for the last 60 years or so, but slowly it's leaked out and some of us have been privileged to have been briefed on some of it.

"I've been in military and intelligence circles, who know that beneath the surface of what has been public knowledge, yes - we have been visited. Reading the papers recently, it's been happening quite a bit."

Read more here. (Thanks, Eternal Espionage!)

The Week in Bizarre

(Above: "Pick out a good one for dinner, son." Photo by Cheryl Gerber for The New York Times.)

A new "Insectarium" recently opened in New Orleans. How many museums let you spend quality time with cockroaches, eat cajun-fried crickets, handle some millipede goop, and watch termites devour a wooden version of the New York skyline? (Why is is ALWAYS New York that gets eaten, stomped, or destroyed?)

Got a spare $100,000? Then next year, you just might be able to purchase your very own jet pack. See a video here.

A twelve-year-old girl (and drummer in a rock band) survived a fifteen-story fall down an old Manhattan chimney. The Irregulars would like to state for the record that we had NOTHING to do with this.

Queen Victoria's enormous, 100-year-old bloomers sold for $9000 to a Canadian woman. I bet they don't even fit. (Thanks, Macy!)




(Above: Who looked at these and thought, "refreshing?")

A beverage called Unagi Nobori (Surging Eel) went on sale in Japan. According to reports, "The fizzy, yellow-colored drink contains extracts from the head and bones of eel and five vitamins." Yum! (Thanks again, Macy!)

CNN reported that girls are just as good at math as boys. What? This is news? Should we be just a teensy bit offended that reporters seem so surprised?

A rare (and extremely cute) pod of snubfin dolphins was filmed off the coast of Australia. The species was completely unknown to science until three years ago! Is it just me or does Australia have more than its fair share of cool animals? (Be sure to check out the video of the guys surfing with whales, too.)

(Below: Awwww!)

The Montauk Monster

I've been sitting on this post for a few days now. 'Cause to be honest, it's pretty gross. But as an amateur cryptozoologist, I feel it's my duty to report the facts. However, out of respect for our more sensitive readers, I won't post a picture. You can choose whether you're up for it or not.

A while back, several people photographed a dead creature that had washed ashore on Montauk beach in New York. Weeks later, no one has figured out what, exactly, it was. Some say the photos show the carcass of a dog. Others say raccoon. But there's a little problem. Pictures of the creature seem to show that it had a muscular body, fur, large fangs . . . and a beak.

Many have speculated that the creature escaped from a nearby animal testing facility. What do YOU think?

See a video here, and read more here. (Consider yourself warned.)