The Orange Orb Journal: "Meet me in the orb"

I've been playing around with a book idea; a journal, an e-book, who knows yet. I'm toying around with titles: right now I'm liking Weaving the Orb: a small journal of a UFO encounter, or something... as I say, it's all in the process of being, well, processed.

Here's something I wrote today:

Entry: August 20th, 2010

Meet Me in the Orb

After our interview on Bill and Nancy's Birnes podcast Future Theater, I decided to try to “meet” Jim in my, or our, dreams. More than that, I decided to meet “inside the orb.” I think this idea was inspired by Bill and Nancy’s questions about our dreams, our discussion of UFO related dreams in general, and also, Jim’s sphere imagery in the novel he is writing.

Jim has been writing an incredible novel for the past year; it’s difficult to put it into a category. Sort of science fiction, I suppose. . . but anyway, after the interview, Jim read me (every Sunday evening, he reads me what he’s written that week) his new chapter. It involved one of his characters, a wealthy mad (in a good way) scientist who has a lab inside the bilge of a ship. The laboratory is a sphere, suspended in the belly of the ship's’ bilge. Jim’s description created such a vivid image in my mind, and, while the story had nothing to do with UFOs (although in a previous scene Jim had written about a giant UFO, or more correctly, USO, rising up out of the ocean next to the ship; the USO seemed to suspend time, with only a few of the characters aware of what was happening)  but it reminded me of the Orange Orb. (I’d like to share the scenes here but I wouldn't do so  without his permission, and I don’t know if he’d be open to that or not... probably not. However, I will ask -- I am curious if he’ll say yes or not.)

So lately I’ve been saying to Jim “Let’s meet each other in our dreams, inside the orb,” and then quickly realize, I’m not so sure I want to do that. But after the intent is put out there, too late. Unless I change it of course. But I'm not sure I want to do that, either.

So far, nothing. In fact, the other morning I said to Jim, “I know I had a dream about us, but I don’t remember anything about it.”

Dreams are intriguing events; how can you know you experienced something (dream) but don’t remember anything about the thing (dream) you don’t remember? How can you remember not remembering? Frustrating, but it’s in there. I know it is. The trick is to figure out how to get at it.

The Giant Rock Project

This came to me by way of Adam Gorightly, who posted the item on Facebook, and I'm passing it along.

The wondrous Giant Rock, in the Mojave Desert, is under the BLM care. Funds are scarce, and vandals and other elements have done damage to this icon of the Contactee era, and amazing natural artifact. Here is a bit from The Giant Rock's Mission Statement, an organization created to preserve the rock:

Our goal, through this website is to educate, preserve and promote the legend of Giant rock. We intend to do this by sharing stories, photographs and videos of the past and present day. We hope to inspire you to help with the preservation of this lesser known historic site.    

Visit The Giant Rock Project for information on what's being done to protect Giant Rock, and how you can help.

A Small Moment: Finding My Watch

Yesterday I realized my watch was missing. One of them; I have several. After all, as I told Jim the other day, watches are more than just time keeping objects if you're a girl. They're accessories. Anyway, my cheap treasure find ($3.00, at Target, clearance rack) gold colored watch was missing. I had no idea where it was, with me, it could be anywhere. Anywhere. In a purse, the car,  or ... who knows. I pictured the watch in my mind; and thought to myself, "Well, I'll try using the dowsing rods, I've had success with finding lost items using them, so I'll guess I'll try it tomorrow."

Later last night, I was in the bedroom watching True Blood. That's my guilty pleasure; Jim stays out in the living room (can't blame him, especially this season) and I settle in, just me, the flat screen and True Blood. So I manage to drop the remote out of my hand, and in between the bed and my nightstand. Which annoyed me, since it is an extremely skinny space; between the bed and nightstand; I could barely get my hand down there. I'm peering down, and see, to my surprise, the watch! There it was, on the floor, in between the bed and the nightstand. Obviously I had taken the watch off and put in on my table and it fell off; but I never would have thought to look under the bed for my watch.

The C- Inflluence Blog: Seed Post 4; Folklore and Influences

On the C-Influence blog, new discussions on influences in the paranormal esoteric world, which inspired me to write about my experience as a student of folklore, the field of folklore in context of exploring UFO and paranormal topics, and more.

UFO Researcher Leslie Kean

 Leslie Kean discusses UFOs and her new book UFOs: Generals, Pilots, and Government Officials Go On the Record,  in this clip of a recent news show appearance.  Kean is excellent: poised, articulate.

When Skeptics See UFOs

A report of a black triangle sighting by a "skeptic" in Washington, as reported to MUFON. MUFON investigator James Clarkson is looking into the sighting. Read more here.

Similar to the triangle I saw so many years ago in Dexter, Oregon, including this part about the craft blocking out stars:

 ...stars were blocked out in the middle of the assumed formation, which led me to believe it was a ufo. Upon some research, it would appear that this "black triangle" ufo is a common sight. However, most sightings include a large light in the center of the object. This is not the case in my sighting.

Stars were blocked out in the one I saw as well. And the triangle I saw did not have any lights in the middle, or, at it's points either, but the object was a shade darker than the surrounding sky in a triangle shape.

Despite seeing this, I still don't believe in Aliens. But I remember thinking that I should not be seeing the object at all, because of my strong belief that extraterrestrials don't exist. I tried to rationalize it by thinking it may have been 3 airplanes in a close formation.

Interesting comment; "...I should not be seeing the object at all . . ."  there is something very disconcerting about seeing of these things. And: " . . .because of my strong belief that extraterrestrials don't exist." Interesting he acknowledges it's a belief they don't exist; none of us know either way, including myself, although I "believe" they do exist. Regardless, no one knows if the triangles, or any UFO, belong to extraterrestrials or not. I have no idea who, or what, is behind the triangles, but I do know they exist. It's been a puzzle for decades; who is behind the triangles? Military, shadow government, private industry, some combination, aliens, -- some combination, again -- we don't know.


An interesting matter of fact UFO report from someone who appears to be a true skeptic, and not a debunker skepti-bunkie, nor a true believer in ET space brothers.

Jim's "Popcorn- Machine Alien" Dream/Memory

Jim discussed his "popcorn machine alien" dream/memory on the Future Theater podcast. I had written about his experience in June of 2007 for my Trickster's Realm column for Binnall of America. (I notice that I had quoted David Jacob's in this article!)

Popcorn Machine Aliens
It’s a cliche: that we’ve met our soul mate, or that there is even an idea that there’s a soul mate to be met. It may be true for some, for all, I don’t know. I do know that for us, my husband and I felt as if we’ve known each other all our lives - and in past lives as well. We share a lot of particular (and peculiar), specific and esoteric “coincidences” going back to childhood. Including living, a couple of blocks away from each other when I was in my teens and he was in his twenties, before we met.

This connection continues to exist concerning the world of UFOs and the esoteric. From seeing literal, physical craft to experiencing missing time, we’ve both had a life time of anomalous, paranormal, (for lack of a better word) experiences. Some related to UFOs, some to other events: telepathy, hauntings, and the just outright plain anomalous and weird.

We discuss these things almost daily. Our personal values in this context are similar. I trust him completely and know I can tell him anything. Still, even after 30 years of marriage, there are surprises. His story of childhood episodes that continue to “haunt” him for example. I’d never heard these stories before; he casually dropped them on me the other night.

He started off by telling me he’s always been mystified by something that happened when he was about fifteen. “If I ever were to get regressed, that’s what I’d want to know about, not the sphere we saw” (meaning the orange orb we saw years ago; we experienced missing time, cover memories, and another sighting of a craft.)

When he was fifteen he spent the night at his friend’s house. They slept out in the living room. “It’s haunted me ever since, I don’t know what happened, but I know that it was something really weird.” Whatever it was, wasn’t good, and it involved a German Shepherd. I asked him if the family had a German Shepherd, (my mind immediately going to screen memories and aliens disguised as animals) he said yes. “All I remember is some dark, shadowy figures and the dog going crazy, absolutely nuts.” For some reason he can’t explain, he’s always had the feeling it had to do with aliens, that he felt an invisible presence, or presences, were in the room that night.

When he was ten years old, he said he had what he calls the “pop corn machine dream.” He was living in Hawthorne, California, at the time. Back then the area was almost out in the sticks, no sidewalks, brush, tumbleweeds. He woke up -- or, as he put it, he dreamt he woke up -- to see a craft outside his window. He went on board, where he saw a machine that “smelled like popcorn, and it reminded me of one of those popcorn machines.”

“I knew they were aliens, and they weren’t good. Over my life, of all the dreams I’ve had about aliens, they’ve never been good in any of them. They’ve been all about bad, or Trickster at best.” (To this day he talks about how he hated living out there, moving from the Hollywood area to live in the middle of nowhere. This could probably be chalked up to being a kid, and suddenly uprooted from friends and school. But I wonder if some of this intense dislike has something to do with his “alien” experiences.)

I told him I rarely see aliens in my dreams. (But then I immediately remembered my “Geisha Woman” dream of the tall female gray being; where I found myself on board, sitting across a tall “gray” female with black hair.) He said “I have. They’re usually human looking, but alien nonetheless. I just know they’re aliens. I don't’ think I’ve ever had gray aliens, specifically, but I have had insectoid aliens, giant preying mantis kind of things.” (When he said that, I almost fell out of the chair!)

He continued: “You never see them completely, but more like parts of them, and they appear in parts, revealing themselves slowly. I never see the whole thing.”
“Do you still have alien dreams?” I asked him.
“Yeah, occasionally.”“I don’t have bad dreams or scary dreams that often, but when I do, they’re about aliens. Whatever it is I’ve been seeing all my life, it hasn’t been good,” he said again.

This somewhat vague, dream not a dream, bits and pieces memory related to UFOs and aliens is not uncommon. I’ve had similar experiences. This aspect of UFO experience is what frustrates many for it isn’t concrete. Nothing tangible; it’s all so fuzzy. Nuts and bolts craft, now that’s something we can get a hold of. Not so with these semi-New Age, mystical, murky, other realms stuff.

While it may be “paranormal” on some levels, maybe it isn’t. Maybe these memories, these partial, nagging memories of questionable realities are a product of the nuts and bolts UFOs. In other words, an effect of their technology. It isn’t so mysterious after all, merely technology beyond our current understanding.

Yet, these kinds of experiences have been with us a very long time; thousands of years, if we accept that the alien “abduction” UFO phenomena remains the same, merely shifting settings to fit the times. Either “their” technology has been capable of influencing us for thousands of years, or it’s something else.

This “something else” could include the idea that they’re not “aliens” at all (as in, from outer space) but some other entity. And maybe this “entity” or force isn’t as separate from us as we may think. Maybe on some level, as many mystics and esoteric philosophers have suggested. We are active participants on some level.

Two different scenarios: UFOs from space with technology that boggles the mind (at times literally) which still amounts to a “nuts and bolts” explanation, just spiffier nuts and bolts, or something more “mystical.” I don’t know, and of course no one does. I vacillate between the two. And then of course, there’s the “excluded middle” maybe a third area, some combination of both.

Some researchers, such as Dr. David Jacobs, have suggested that "repeated UFO sightings" are not as random as they appear; that there's a reason why some people continue to experience multiple UFO encounters. Maybe this can be extended; it's no random thing either, that my husband and I found each other, having both experienced these things before we met, as well as continuing to experience them together. That's not insignificant, and yet, what it means, remains elusive. But whatever it is, it’s real for those of us who’ve experienced it. Real enough to continue to “haunt” us throughout our lives.

"They're on the Moon"

 

An amazing experience last night, being interviewed by Nancy and Bill Birnes on Future Theater. Both Jim and myself were the guests, and I cannot tell you how much we enjoyed this experience! We both felt as if we'd known Nancy and Bill for years. The discussion was very ... intense. Among the areas discussed, was family history of the UFO kind. I think it was Bill, maybe it was Nancy, who asked me if anyone in my family had shared weird experiences of their own with me. I said no.

But, and I didn't think of this at the time, I realized this morning that there is an interesting history of anomalous events, experiences and thoughts among family members. For example, while neither of my parents had encounters with aliens (that I ever heard about, and I feel confident in saying they would have shared with me if they had) my mother did see a flying saucer when I was about ten years old. I've written about that in other places. Briefly, mom's out on the porch after dinner (this in L.A.) she excitedly calls out to us that there's a "space ship" above the two story four commplex across the street, siblings say "Yeah, sure mom," but I go out. By that time the UFO had gone. My mother was very disappointed, insisting she saw what she saw. I said, "Don't worry mom, it'll be back, they always come back."

With all of my weird experiences, both my parents (my father is deceased) have been open. My mother's usual response to my experiences and ideas is that it's all very "interesting." Some things she's not so sure about; like Bigfoot's existence. But at least she's never called my sanity into question.

I forgot about something my mother has always insisted, or I would have mentioned it last night. For whatever reasons, ever since I was a little kid, my mother has said that she believes there are beings, or aliens, living on the moon. She says this with a matter of fact assurance and confidence that leaves no room for argument. Now and then, through the years, she's said somewhat random things like (paraphrasing) "There are things out there we know nothing about," "There are beings on the moon, and Mars, too..." and so on.

And speaking of beings living in the moon, I wrote a children's story when Jim and I were living on Curson in West Hollywood, where we had our first missing time episode. That story was about animal characters, pigs and rabbits, who lived inside the moon.

Other related family experiences: one of my siblings has always had a paranormal life; has clairvoyant abilities, has seen ghosts, etc. My uncle and his family saw a UFO in the desert. It was a classic sounding flying saucer in the desert story: late 1950s, huge bright white light following them, zooming above their car, then taking off, they're in the middle of nowhere. And talking about shared experiences and connections: Jim's cousin also had that experience, driving through the Arizona desert in the mid-1960s. (Jim is making it very clear as I'm writing this that this cousin was "of the skeptic kind," not a "hippie" and clearly "not smoking dope," -- he was a serious student and actually kind of a humorless kind of person.) Concerning Jim's other cousin and his family, we've all seen UFOs while together, which I've written about.

So our experiences --Jim's and mine -- go back to childhood, before we met. They've continued to this day. And in both families, UFO related events and connections have occurred.

Jim and I On Future Theater Tonight

Jim and I will be guests on Nancy and Bill Birnes podcast Future Theater tonight. 6:00pm EST. Can't wait!

Earthquake and Dream Synchronicity, or Precognition?

I wrote up a dream I had last night (posted on my blog Frame 352) about looking at property for sale in "Wyoming-Idaho," which had moved itself to my part of western Oregon. In the dream I told the man that there is no such thing as "Wyoming-Idaho," and that Wyoming is not in Oregon. Things had shifted and I didn't like it. There was also a goofy man who appeared in a grey Bigfoot suit.

I just checked the earthquake site, and see that Wyoming had a 4.8 earthquake on August 5th around 5:00 pm Pacific time.

Jim's Comment: Another Nerdy Geeky UFO Moment

My blue suited human/alien hybrid dream of the other day was cause for discussion between myself and Jim. It was Jim who pointed out the similarities of my dream to our missing time experience in L.A. years ago.

So after that, as usual, I'm looking up at the night sky. Jim is with me. I tell him, and the sky, kiddingly, that it's time for me to see a UFO; I haven't seen one in a long time and I'm waiting! Jim says, "Yeah, I've been aboard them, now I'd like to actually see one."

Blue Suited Aliens in Parking Garage

This year has found me working on consciously recovering the facts/reality of my UFO events, including missing time. I don't think hypnosis is the answer, although I find myself arguing with myself about it a lot. Meanwhile, I've been trying to remember, through meditation, dream work, and just plain demanding my suppressed memories to come forth, goddammit! and get real here. The following is a dream I had last night but before I relate the dream, here's the background:

The Event
I wrote about the missing time experience here: Missing Time Los Angeles/West Hollywood 1996 or '97 Jim and I were compelled to walk down a side street; something about a light coming from a parking garage. We both remember feeling there was something odd about it and went towards it. As I wrote in the post on Saucer Sightings, this was when all kinds of UFO related events, dreams, etc. started happening.

The Dream
I'm in a city, daytime. Jim is with me, or nearby. . . I/we get an urgent call, a telepathic "call," from a friend. Or is it Jim, who's already there? Either way, telepathic message of urgency comes to meet him/her/them at a parking garage a few blocks away.

I/we get over there fast. We're walking when this happens, so we kind of run over there. Arriving at the garage, there is no friend. In fact, there isn't anyone around. The city seems to be a ghost town. No people. Just us. And about a half dozen aliens.

The aliens are very human looking; a little weird looking, but human. Around six and half feet tall, maybe taller. Their skin is pale white, but again, they are more human looking than not. They're all wearing the same uniform, a skin tight, thin, blue jumpsuit with yellow and silver trim. I'm the only human (for they look human, and could pass for human, but I know they're not) around. Jim is off in another part of the garage, I know this telepathically.

Two or three of these beings grab me, which is ridiculous I think. (A lucid moment in the dream.) They're men, they're tall and big, why would it take three of them to hold me? But they're kind of weak. It's all show. They're not hurting me but I still don't like this. I don't like being tricked, I don't like being held here against my will. I have no choice. I'm angry, screw them!

They're holding me and one of the beings comes over to me, and presses himself against me, on top of me. It seems sexual and almost like rape, except, it isn't anything physical he wants. We remain clothed, there's no genitalia (I'm not sure they have any) and while it's very much an intrusion, it's not sexual. He doesn't want my body, he wants me - my soul, or ...something.  He presses himself into me, in a sense. Sort of lke a Vulcan mind meld, as silly as that sounds. He's taking something from me, but he's also giving me a bit of something as well.

Then he's done, the others release me, and they're pleased with themselves. Me, I'm still pissed. I don't care if they didn't hurt me, or that Jim is now back, and we can go. I'm angry at the whole thing: the ruse, the assumption they can just take what they want, the lack of communication or explanation, let alone asking permission.

Aftermath
When I told Jim my dream the first thing he said was that "obviously" I was remembering something about that night in West Hollywood. He thinks, as do I, that night was the beginning of our UFO journey.

How much is memory of a real event, how much is my own subconscious creativity and taking from what I know to create something? The event happened at night, yet I dreamt it took place during the day. Uniform clad "aliens," -- MILABS? I mentioned those in a post here the other day; do I think humans were involved in some of this? I don't know. . . I really just do not know. . . is that a memory of a true event, or my fears?

Richard Thomas Interviews Dean Haglund (X-Files, Lone Gunmen)

From June of the year: BoA contributor Richard Thomas interviews Dean Haglund of X-Files and Lone Gunmen. Haglund has interesting things to say about art, the culture's "zeitgeist of the moment," the trivialization of conspiracy theory-theory, Haglund's current projects and a lot more of course, including his thoughts on our world now vs. the world during X-Files days. 


And for more, visit Deanhaglund.com

Old News is No News: Mark Pilkington's Mirage Men

Full disclosure: I haven't read the book.This is not a book review; it's about the idea of the book's premise, from what I've been gleaning so far. From what I've been reading about Pilkington's book Mirage Men, the thesis is that UFOs are creations of our government. There are no "real" UFOs; just machines and stories about encounters made by man to confuse its citizenry and mask secret operations.

This is old news. But beyond this simplistic "revelation" about UFOs is the fact the government has been getting away with murder, both figuratively and literally, using UFOs as a convenient smoke screen. Isn't anyone curious about what's been hidden from us? Put aside "beliefs" about UFOs, they exist, they don't exist, aliens are real, aliens are fantasy -- just forget all that for now. Ask yourselves what is it the government is doing behind those flying saucers are here! scenarios.

A danger with books like this is that the mainstream culture  will think it's been offered an explanation for all those crazy UFO stories, and move on. Even some within the fringes who study UFOs will accept this. Including those "new thugs" that pose as UFO investigators or researchers but are part debunker-skeptic, part dilettante. Meanwhile, the government continues to perform often illegal maneuvers around us, and no one's questioning that. In fact, stepping beyond the line of questioning will get you quickly slapped with a Tin Foil Hat sticker and you're shoved over to the kook side. Mention chemtrails and it's all over.

Okay, Pilkington and fans, UFOs don't exist. Forgetting obviously that UFO means unidentified object and not alien from mars in a flying saucer ... oh never mind. Sigh. Yet we still have, say, spheres showing up in our skies -- these have been photographed dozens of times over -- what are they? Whose are they? What are they doing? What about the video of a sphere I saw years ago, taken by a local witness, that seemed to disappear but upon close examination was till there, merely cloaked to near invisibility? What was the thing spraying onto the residences -- and people! -- below; for spraying some kind of mist like substance it was.  Doesn't anyone want to know about those kinds of things?

Let's take my own missing time experiences, that occurred within a UFO context. And let's say, for argument, that this "UFO context" was government created. If so -- missing time, UFO -- then that means our government was doing something obviously immoral, unethical, and illegal. Which is frightening. For that means, if it's not UFOs, not mental abberation (shared by two people, two and possibly three, different times), then what was it? Why the persistence of a UFO based setting? WHERE WERE WE FOR ALL THOSE MISSING HOURS??!!

But see, now we're entering MILAB territory, which is paranoid kook fringe fantasy, so no one is going to listen to that, because UFOs don't exist, the government just uses that to . . . you see how this all becomes a circling back of absolutely no answers at all, while maintaining cover-ups? In typical cosmic joker trickster fashion, the idea of the government using UFOs as a cover for their shadow projects is a cover for the government's covering up . . . because not many are questioning beyond the initial cover.

"The C Influence: Actualizing Esoteric Discussions"

I've been invited to contribute to a new blog created by Rick Phillips and co-moderated by Bruce Duensing: The C Influence. It's a new direction for me; and I hope I can keep up! The idea is to generate discussions around truly esoteric thought and philosophies. . . a bit difficult to explain, take a look and please leave comments! The general idea is to encourage discussion around "seed posts" by other contributors. Who include: Lesley Gunter, Bruce Duensing, Bruce Duensing, Bruceleeeowe, J.S. Flower, Jeff Behnke , Lon Strickler (of Phantoms and Monsters), Rick Phillips and Tom Colucci.


There is a lot of interesting material up already; hard to choose which way to go, so much I want to delve into. We invite you to visit the blog and please, leave comments!