Entering the Orb: Stumbling on the Hill (s)?

The area where we saw the orange orb is hilly. We lived at the top of a hill. Well, already we're in a land of confusion, because Jim insists we weren't living there yet when we saw the orange orb; we were living on Hilyard St. "downtown" ish, near the U of O campus. I insist that simply isn't correct at all, that the orange orb was seen when we were living at the house on top of the hill at Friendly St.

Inspired by a comment left here yesterday I was skimming through my copy of Captured! (Stanton Friedman and Kathleen Marden) about Barney and Betty Hill. Specifically I was looking at sections regarding Dr. Simon, who used hypnosis to help recover their memories of what happened during their missing time.

Last night I had a dream:

it's night, very dark, and Jim and I keep walking up a hill. It's not the hill where we lived, but around there, up a ways. (Kind of near where I saw the orb drop down behind a house.) We get almost to the top of the hill, but then stop. We're lost, can't see well, things sort of dead end. So we try again. Go back, walk around, come back up the hill. Same thing. We're both getting very irritated with each other, and the whole thing, just all of it. We just keep doing this over and over and are getting very frustrated with "them" and  Jim kind of calls out to "them" to knock it off. It's like "they" are close by and can see us but we can't see them.

I was telling Jim this dream as we were taking our walk. I said it was like Sisyphus and Jim said "I was just going to say, it reminded me of that." Just at the part where I said "We keep getting to almost the top of the hill then things just stop..." I almost fell flat on my face, thankfully Jim caught me. I had tripped on the sidewalk, the top of my sandal got caught somehow. It wasn't a small stumble but a big one; really yanked my toes! If Jim hadn't caught me I would have fallen.

Venus Contactee Update

I stumbled on a bit more about Omnec Onec: The case of Omnec Onec, an alleged 'Venusian'. Other Venusian contactees, Venusians, and "walk ins" are mentioned, including Val, or Valiant, Thor.

Omnec came to earth in 1955 from Venus, specifically:

in a town called Teutonia (a city whose name reflects earlier Venus-Earth contacts that included a trip to Venus by a German scientist). She alleges that she lived on an astral plane -- without a physical body -- until she was instructed by her leaders to travel to Earth with a message of peace and brotherhood.

Like many of the Contactees, the 1950s seemed to be the decade. However, as researchers have pointed out, including Nick Redfern (Contactees: A History of Alien-human Interaction) there are plenty of contactees, (reffered to as "hidden contactees")in the world right now; they haven't gone away with the ending of the '50s.

The first International UFO Congress convened in Tucson, Arizona, in November 1991, in the presence of presenters Valery Uvarov and Marina Popovich from Russia; Irina Gracchi from Brazil; Anthony Dodd from England; and Omnec Onec from Venus. A standup survey of the 300-or-so attendees would attest to the fact that Omnec stood out from all other presenters.

I love the following description of Omnec at the conference: silver stilettos, "blood-red" polish:

Omnec had a very high IQ. She seemed to know a little bit about almost everything, and could carry on a conversation with anyone about anything. She also had a considerable degree of physical charm: Maybe it was the Chicago accent combined with blood-red nail polish, combined with spiked silver heels - which collectively upstaged her alien intelligence, like the floating vixen in a magic show.

Continuing the Contactee/Venusian theme, here's a clip of researcher Greg Bishop (UFO Mystic blog, author of Project Beta,) speaking on the Contactee era at Gaint Rock, California.


Related items:
Women From Venus
Venusians, brought to you by Burlington UFO and Paranormal Research Center

Sunday Orb

Shameless Pleadings

Read my Bigfoot blog. Link to it, Favorite it on Technorati, talk about it. Leave comments. Enjoy. Or even if you don’t.

My Bigfoot blog Frame 352: The Stranger Side of Sasquatch.

And Shameless Self-Promotion:
I’ve submitted a piece to the Book of Thoth site: They Want to be Seen, Not Discovered. No guarantee it will be accepted, but hopefully it will be, so look out for it.

On UFO Digest is my piece
Disingenuous Infiltration on the unethical tactics of Abdullah Hashem and Donna Bassett. Yes, both are “old news” but that doesn’t mean anything.

Currently on Trickster’s Realm for Tim Binnall’s Binnall of America is my piece on the Trickster: No Mere Prankster. (and I must say I was very jazzed about Brad Steiger's nice email to me about the piece.)

In the current issue of UFO Magazine is my article on The Purple Road, about my New Agey self.

Ghost Picture Contest
Lesley of The Debris Field has her ghost pic contest going again. I entered a photo I took a few years ago at a local cemetery. Be sure to enter; it will be fun to see all the ghostly images!

Recent Orb Postings


I'm still reeling from Noory's Flintstone comment.
The UFO footage from Venezuela does seem too good to be true, as one person commented, it could be a blimp. Whatever, it's unlikely it was a flying saucer from outer space.

Noory, Meet the Flintstones

Remember when Jeremy Vaeni was a guest on C2C with host George Noory, and that now infamous question: “How do you know it wasn’t an angel?” (Something to that effect) was posed by Noory?

Poor Jeremy had just related, in very forthright and clear terms, an experience he had with a UFO. A craft. And Noory, out of the blue, all he can find to say is, “How do you know it wasn’t an angel?”

A pin dropping was heard throughout the land that night, my friend.

Last night Noory did a similar thing, but not so bad. He had open lines and a woman caller related her story of being taken to Venus where she saw both the grays and the reptilians. The grays were all right, but the reptilians were terrifying. Anyway, she had to get out of there because the poisonous air and gases on Venus was starting to get to her, which is quite understandable. I hear it’s quite hot up there.

The woman mentioned that this was some time ago, and that the grays looked like what Barney and Betty HIll saw. Noory then asked if she thought the characters Barney and Betty from the Flinstones were named after the Hills! That struck me as very funny. Maybe it was all the cold medication I’ve been talking lately but I just about fell out of bed at the surrealness of that question.

Barney and Betty Hill had their abduction experience in 1961. The Flintstones aired from 1960 to 1966. There was an alien introduced to the series in October of 1965: “The Great Gazoo” was a little green man from outer space who crash landed on earth in his flying saucer. What I find interesting is that only a few could see Gazoo; only Fred, Barney and the children saw him.


I don’t know what motivated the creators of The Flintstones to introduce Gazoo; some sources call it the moment when the show “jumped the shark.” That’s possible, or maybe it was one of those disinfo/programming campaigns by psy ops. Or someone’s vision of blending visions of America’s space program with a popular children’s show. Any number of reasons, or any number of combinations of reasons.

A bit of the trickster is seen here as well, for Gazoo thinks little of humans, tries to help Fred and Barney out anyway, but ends up making things worse. And of course, only Barney and Fred, and the kids, can see the alien. As Gazoo tells Fred and Barney in one episode, after not showing up earlier to help them as promised: “I”m not only undependable, but I’m a bit of a kook.” Gazoo does tell them he’ll try to help them, but for Fred and Barney to “be careful for what you ask for, you might get it.”


Gazoo didn’t appear in any Flintstone spin-offs, but according to the entry on Wikipedia, he is a Flintstone vitamin, has appeared as a promotional character for a contest, and is “the mascot for Marshmallow Mania Pebbles cereal.” (Wikipedia.) There is also a Great Gazoo Wacky Wobbler toy you can buy. (Which of course I have to get.)

I’d forgotten about Gazoo; when I was a kid, I thought he was kind of neat, but didn’t see how it really fit. The whole thing was disconcerting. I liked the Flintstones and have good memories of watching the program.

To your right on the side menu, at the top, is a feed from YouTube on Gazoo Flintstone episodes. Have a look, and have fun.

Sources:
Wikipedia

Great Gazoo Wacky Wobbler

The 8th Annual McMinnville UFO Festival Mini Report

The 8th Annual McMinnville UFO Festival in McMinnville, Oregon. The festival happens in the small town of McMinnville every year, McMinnville being the home of Paul and Evelyn Trent. Paul Trent snapped two photos of a UFO he saw flying in the sky above his farm in 1950.

Last minute cancellation had us scurrying with little time to get up to McMinnville, and we didn't bring a camera (damn!) I forgot my cell phone, and we trusted the vague directions on the web site. 1-5 indeed! For anyone leaving the Eugene area, do not take 1-5, which should seem obvious, I do know. Oh, and another obvious point: don't travel during rush hour. Nothing like being stuck -- stuck! as in dead stopped -- on the interstate! We were in Portland before we realized we were way off, but since my husband's a maniac (thank god) we took a lovely rural road through Newberg to McMinnville. Next time: take 99W. Direct, simple, there you go. Okay, you probably don't want to hear about my near panic attack stuck in bumper to bumper traffic, and how I've turned into a hick living here for 30 years and now think of po-dunk Eugene as the big city,

We get there about 6:00 pm, no time to eat, and our blood sugar is dropping by the second. Check into the delightful McMenamins Hotel Oregon and walk a short block to where the conference speakers: Peter Robbins, Peter Davenport, and David Jacobs, were speaking.

The room seemed packed. It was good to know you could order a slice of pizza and a glass of that great McMenamins brew. (My favorite is the Ruby Ale, he likes their Hammerhead.) We hadn't eaten since noon; blood sugar going down fast. The pizza helped, but we both needed real food. The constant sound of the ancient cash register clanking every few moments was a distraction though, hard to hear the speakers.

First speaker, Peter Robbins, who gave a very thorough talk on the death (murder) of James Forrestal. Robbins was articulate, his research solid. I was interested, being very familiar with the Forrstal story. But as my husband said -- who wasn't familiar with the story -- it was boring. I have to agree; unless you had some background into the topic, it would be hard to see exactly what it had to do with UFOs. For the context -- a UFO Festival -- the choice was a poor one. Even I found myself getting impatient, and I was interested. Don't misunderstand, I thought Robbins did a good job of researching his material. I just don't think it was a good fit for this particular venue.

By this time it was getting late, and, despite the slice of pizza, we were both hungry and tired. David Jacobs was next, and he was very engaging. He was funny and his overview of UFOs in pop culture, leading up to the abduction phenomeana, was an excellent choice for the festival. We left towards the end, and so I didn't get to hear the last of Jacob's presentation.

I enjoyed Jacob's but wonder at his conclusions regarding the Contactees. He dismissed them as charlatans, and while he was funny doing it, I wondered at his easy rejection. Jacob's has said in the past that, as a history professor, he approaches the UFO phenomena from that perspective. That makes a lot of sense to me. While I don't agree with Jacob's on the abduction phenomeana (because I don't know what to think) I understand where he's going. Given that approach, why doesn't Jacob's see that there's something more to the Contactees than just a bunch of kooks?

Back to the McMenamins Hotel Oregon. Most of the rooms are just a room, bathroom down the hall. There are some rooms available with bathrooms, but those were booked long ago. Thank god the bathroom (very large, with showers, etc.) was right across our room. There's free Wi Fi, always a good sign. If you sign up for the UFO Festival package, it includes dinner and breakfast (good food), tickets to the speakers, two glass tumblers with the UFO Festival logo, and silly and fun bobbing things to wear on your head (yes, of course I wore mine!) There were also book displays, including Peter Robbin's collection of vintage UFO books and comics, a masquerade ball, and the alien parade the next day.



The McMennimmin's do beautiful and charming work; they retain the original features of the places they buy, and add their own touch. If you live in Oregon, or visit, try to explore one of their places. (The McMenamins in Troutdale is amazing.) Doors and walls are painted with original paintings of local artists. Many of the paintings, quotes painted on the walls, murals, etc. have to do with the history of the place. For example, two of the paintings on two of the doors are of Mrs. Trent, surrounded by her rabbits, looking up at a UFO, and one of the reporters who first wrote about the case.

Later that night we went one of the four bars inside the Hotel Oregon. It was much quieter there and the only people there were Jacbos and Davenport and several others at a long table. The next morning at breakfast Davenport came down and sat in the booth next to ours. We hadn't signed up for the full two day package, so didn't attend the morning panel. I would have liked to have stayed for that, but being it was short notice we had to get back to Eugene.

As rushed and crazy as it was, and despite the "doh!" moments, like no camera, etc. it was well worth it. We both plan to go next year, and this time sign up for the full two night package. And sign up early!

Edited to add: We reserved a room (no bath, those are already booked for next year!) for two nights. See you there next year.

McMenimins UFO logoimage source: http://www.ufofest.com/ufofest07/

Peter Robbins:
http://www.jerrypippin.com/UFO_Files_peter_robbins.htmC

McMinnville UFO Festival:
UFO Fest.com
http://www.ufofest.com/ufofest07/

“Mock Them As Barflies From Venus and Mars”

Alfred Lehmberg, of An Alien View blog, has written another great piece, this one on the perception by chronic skeptics who spend large units of time sneering at abductees. No understanding, just the lowest and easiest form of attack. I also saw this piece as a metaphor for other issues, including non-UFO ones.

“Forget that the saucers still fly in your skies; forget the abducted, and pretend that their cries... are musings of idiots, cretinous loons who scratch at your wallet then howl at your moon. But it's you, not *abductees*, "out to lunch" here today! It is YOU, and not them, sopped in naiveté!”

What is so often missed in all this craziness and high strangeness, is what it does to all of us, and why. I don’t pretend to know the “why,” and often am unaware of it doing anything at all to me. We need these experiences, whether it’s us that’s having them, or someone else. Among other things, these abductees, and encounters with entities, and all the rest of it, are gifts. Not just for the individual experiencer, but everyone. These “gifts” are not often appreciated, wanted, or even good ones -- give it back! But they are gifts, of a kind, reminding us that it’s not just us solid citizens out here doing the hard core reality thing.

These events have been going on for thousands of years, and we’ve been trying to figure them out -- or suppress them -- for just as long. Doesn’t seem we’ve gotten anywhere, and insisting that those that experience the anomalous are money hungry, emotionally needy, lying fruitcakes with mental diseases is getting a bit tired.

Women and UFO Studies

I've been neglecting not only my funky angelfire website, but my Women in UFO and Fortean studies pages. Here's one page updated a bit. I've moved over to an official domain: orangeorb.net, but I'm still working on the little glitches. Probably won't be up for awhile. In the meantime, you can see what I have up on the old angelfire site. And if you feel like adding a banner or link on your blog, that's always a wonderful thing. Better yet, if you have any names to add, let me know. I'm always interested.