An Evening With The Lemps

The Dahli Lama says that each year, I should visit some place new. To take him up on this, I plan on visiting the Elvis Cafe in Wright City, MO, very soon with my friend Jennifer. When we go there, we are going to dress up and try to look like we just stepped out of the 1950's. I can't wait!

Last Monday, I went some place I have wanted to go, ever since I found out it was haunted. This place is the Lemp Mansion in St. Louis, MO. The Lemp Mansion is listed as one of the top ten most haunted places in North America. On Monday night's tour, I learned that it was just bumped up to number two, for having the most paranormal activity. This house is a ghost hunter's haven. It is also a popular hangout for other spirits who are just wandering about the earth, not yet ready or willing to "cross over." This doesn't suprise me, as the Lemp's were known to throw great parties for the elite businessmen and their wives back in the day (mid-1800's). Of course, there was always cold beer around, because the Lemps were known for their refridgeration techniques and owned a vast cave system underneath the city in which to store their brew. This cave system even has its own theatre, which is still very much in-tact. The mansion itself is amazing and has been almost completely restored to the way it looked in the mid-1800's to the mid-1900's. It is open to the public during the week for lunch and dinner and is also a bed and breakfst.

I started out my tour in a large candlelit room, which could have been used as a sitting room or study back in the day. After welcoming everyone, the tour guide proceeded to give us a history of the Lemp family brewing business as well as details on all of the suicides that took place in the house over the years. There were also some deaths by natural causes, like two children who died at birth or from childhood diseases, and an adult who died of cancer. Then, the guide used dousing rods, which are copper rods that can detect energy masses of the living and dead, to try and make contact with a spirit. These rods are sometimes considered a form of lower magic and are one of the best ways to talk to a spirit or spirits, though you have to know what questions to ask. The spirit can be asked to move the rods one direction for "yes" and the other direction for "no." The guide asked that if there were any spirits there that night, to please let us know. Once she established that there was a spirit there, she set the guidelines for the spirit to answer her questions- move the rods to the left for "yes" and to the right for "no." She asked if Billy Lemp was the one communicating with her and the rods moved to the left. She then asked other yes and no questions, and Billy answered yes or no. Now, to an outsider, this probably looked pretty funny, like "Carol Ann, go towards the light" kind of funny. Sure, she could have been moving the rods herself, but I tried to keep an open mind and attempted my own communication. As the guide kept talking more about the history, I felt like something hopped upon my lap, like a child or cat, and the hairs would stand up on my neck from time to time, though I was not cold. I felt a presence to the left of me, but when I would look over, no one was there.

My group began the actual tour in what used to be the Lemp office and was where one of the Lemps commited suicide. As the guide was talking, some of us, including the guide started to get extremely hot, for no reason at all. Even the guide was a bit freaked out and found it hard to speak in that room and hurried us out of there. She then took us to the bar, another sitting room, where dinner guests sometimes comment on how nice it is that cats can run about freely. Of course, there are no cats at the Lemp mansion, only cat ghosts! We went to a dining room, where a mother and child in period clothes appear and disappear from time to time, while other guests are eating, causing some customers to freak out and flee the premises. Then, we went into some of the bedrooms and finally on to the attic.

The Lemp attic is where the most paranormal activity takes place in the house and why not? From the looks of the place, I would think it is one of the best places for a ghost to hang out. The guide took us to the attic and made us stand in a circle around the room. She then blew out some candles, which was the only source of light in the room. The guide then proceeded to call upon the spirits to join us. I closed my eyes and cleared my mind. All of a sudden, my heart rate almost doubled and I felt as though something was pushing me forward. Now, I have had anxiety attacks before, and this was no anxiety attack. Then, the dark became dark, and what looked like a large dark mist and a smaller dark mist started circling around the room, going from person to person, as if these mists were checking us all out. One of the mists seemed to really like my friends Angie and Heather, because it lingered in front of them for a while. Then, a faint white mist appeared in front of me, and I could barely make out a face. Then, just like that, it was gone. While all of this was taking place, one of the other guests felt something tugging on her pants leg. This could have been the ghost of Selva, one of the Lemps canine companions. After we were allowed to turn our flashlights back on, some of us continued to explore the attic. The attic was drafty, but there were also some cold spots. The attic was the last stop on the tour, before we were "let loose" so to speak, to go off on our own and take pictures. We were not allowed to stay in the attic, however. I, of course, could have stayed up there a lot longer!

Now, at no time did I ever feel like there was anything malicious there that night. I never felt scared or nervous, even though I did get the feeling that I was being followed down some steps one time, when I was clearly the only one around! All I can say is that everyone in my group got something from going on this tour. Some got pictures in which orbs were visible. Others just got a good laugh and some interesting history. I got another reason to believe that there are spirits around us all of the time. Some of us just choose not to see them. After all, we are all just energy occupying something tangible, until our physical bodies deteriorate, then that energy is set free once again.

Check out some photos: http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/guitargirl63376/

Get Happy For Only $20.00

On Thursday of last week, I was suffering not only from the effects of eating a 10oz steak for the first time in ten years ( It seemed like a good idea at the time.), but also from sticker shock as I left the financial office at Lindenwood University. You see, I am taking that giant leap from the nice $65/credit hour community college to a $250/credit hour private university and I refuse to take out a student loan at this time. I cannot stand the thought of still paying on a student loan when I am fifty years old. I hate owing money, period, unless it is for a home loan. I do not want to dip into my savings, because I am trying to save 20% for a down payment on a home. I do not qualify for financial aid from the government, since I don't have any dependents. What about me? I'm dependent on me. Fortunately, my parents are wonderful and don't mind me living with them for the next few years. It looks like That 80's Band (www.that80sbandstl.com) will be paying for my education!
My pint, I mean point is ( I am thinking about beer already) I was feeling depressed and stressed out about money all day last Thursday. I almost broke down in Target, threw up and passed out. I was having second thoughts about attending Lindenwood. So, what did I do? I did what I always do when I have to make important decisions. I bought a Pizza Hut, Veggie Lover's pizza and a six-pack of Michelob Light, all for under twenty bucks. Then it all became clear to me- Let the bottle cap decide! Logo up, I go to Lindenwood. Logo down, I go back to community college. The Michelob Light bottle cap decided I should go to Lindenwood, so to Lindenwood I shall go! Besides, I would rather spend more money to get more credits in a less amount of time. I feel so silly stressing about money. After all, I can manage money like it's my job. I am too practical for my own good. I have little to no debt, but now I have to wait to purchase my house. I suppose I will just have to trust that everything will all work out for the better. It always does, doesn't it?

On a lighter, spookier note, I am heading to the Lemp mansion tonight. The Lemp mansion is one of the most haunted places in the U.S. My worst day is still better than a good day was in the life of a Lemp. Hopefully, I will have some great pictures and stories. This place is kind of like another pyramids of Giza or Petra was to me a few years ago. I have wanted to go to the Lemp mansion for a long time. I can cross Giza and Petra off my list. Now, I can cross the Lemp mansion off as well. Although, I have to go back to Petra, but that is another entry!

The New Laws For Song Writing

I cannot stress how long overdue the music world is for a Song Writer's Law Book. This book will also include the punishments for breaking these song writing laws. Here are some excerpts from this not yet existent book:


06-194A A song's lyrics must not include "yeah, yeah, yeah" followed by "no, no, no" or vice versa. The word "no" must never follow "yeah" and "yeah" must never follow "no." Which is it? Yes or no? Make up your mind! Otherwise, pay the fine of up to $1.6 billion and face the possibility of a public stoning for your stupid filler words. What are you, five?

02-1234 Rain must not appear in a song in any way, shape, or form. We are tired of hearing about how your "tears fall like rain" or how you were out "walking in the rain". I hope you slip in some rain and fall in a puddle and drown. The punishment for using this poor excuse for a poetic metaphor is first, to be continuously dunked in a tank of rain water, then to be tied to a flag pole during a hurricane, followed by a fine of up to $1.6 billion.

01-1621S No more super hero references! No, if you go crazy, I will not still call you "Superman." If you "wonder what it's like to be a super hero", don't tell the world about it, keep those creepy thoughts to yourself, man. For anyone who so boldly writes another song with a super hero reference, the Incredible Hulk himself will crush your skull and charge you a fine of up to $1.6 billion.

My Backstage Demands

Every diva/pop star/rock star has his or her own unique backstage demands. I am neither of these as of yet, but if I were, I would request peanut M&M's, only the peanuts have to separated from the chocolate candy shell. I like the hint of peanutty taste with the chocolate candy shell, but I don't want the whole peanut to be inside the M&M. I want the peanuts in a separate bowl, and I want to be able to taste a hint of chocolate candy shell on the peanuts. I do not want just a bowl of plain M&M's and a bowl of peanuts. I can tell the difference! I would also like a miniature pony named Shemp.

My Pet Spider and My Out-Of-Print CD

Boy, my head is just full of b.s. just dying to break out of my skull!

My Pet Spider

I decided to further honor the "Thou Shall Not Kill" commandment and stopped killing spiders. Now, I have a new pet spider. I didn't actually go out and buy her. She just appeared one day, a little bitty thing, spinning her little web under my window, next to my antique trunk. I decided not to kill her, because I didn't have the heart. She was so cute and I found that watching her labor over her web was fascinating.

Two or three months later, she is still there, only a bit bigger. Last night I caught her in the middle of preparing her dinner. She must have found a bug, because she was wrapping something up, possibly to save for later. I felt so blessed to be witnessing nature in action and in my bedroom. My bedroom doesn't get much action otherwise. My only fear is that I will have hundreds of little baby spiders in the spring. I haven't found an egg sac, but I know that spider has to be a she. Only a female would be smart enough to find her way inside out of the cold weather and survive this long. My other fear is that she will want to borrow my clothes and steal my man.

My Out-Of-Print CD

On one of my earlier entries, "The Strangest Dream I've Ever Had and My Manic Phases", I mentioned buying an out-of-print CD, The Best of Tim Curry. I paid about $70.00 for it, because I wanted a copy that was in perfect condition. I got it in the mail a few weeks ago and it was, indeed, in perfect condition. The only problem I have with paying that much for a collector's item, is that now I am paranoid. I absolutely love the cuts on this disc! It is worth every single penny I paid for it. I'd also like to think that I helped someone buy Christmas presents or pay for a trip to Europe with the money he made off of selling the disc to me. However, I am afraid that if I leave my disc in my car, my car will get stolen, taken for a joyride and I will get everything back when my car is found but my Tim Curry disc. It's like in The Big Lebowski, when the Dude's car got broken into. The Dude was worried about getting back his CCR tapes. I also worry that if I get into a car accident, my favorite CD will go flying out the window into a field somewhere, only to leave behind the other discs that can so easily be replaced, like Michelle Branch's, Hotel Paper. I could go out and buy a thousand copies Michelle Branch's disc. I can't say the same for the Tim Curry disc. In addition to car thieves and car accidents, I also worry about my house catching fire. I would grab the cat and The Best of Tim Curry, and if I had time, the photographs. Hey, I think the disc is that good. Sure, I may get burns all over my body trying to save my kitty and my out-of-print CD, but I can listen to "I Do The Rock", "Paradise Garage", and my favorite, "Simplicity" while I am healing.

So, the lesson here is, "Don't buy a collector's item, unless you are prepared to defend yourself against thieves, bad drivers, and house fires, because you might really enjoy it."

Laters!

The Art of "Dorking Out"

So, apparently English is my second language, Dorkian is my first.
A few months ago I was at Bellacino's. The girl at the counter asked me what kind of chips I wanted. Instead of saying "Baked Lays", I said "Baked Legs". I thought the girl would just start making fun of me and laugh with me. She just stood there and gave me a blank stare. I proceeded to make the situation worse by trying to say "Baked Lays" again. Again, it came out as "Baked Legs". I started to laugh at myself and became instantly autistic and continued to say, "Baked Legs? No, Baked Lays. Baked Lays. Legs? No Lays, not legs." The girl still stood there staring at me while I rambled away to myself like Chevy Chase at the lingerie counter in National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation, then finally caught on and got my chips. She never did crack a smile. Maybe she has an autistic relative and felt sorry for me.
The same thing happened to me today. I was returning a call to a talent management business in New York. The poor man who had to talk to me asked me about my availability and when I answered him, it must have been in a language he understood, because the only words I could make out of my answer to him were "January" and "in". Maybe New Yorkers are good translators. I can just see him writing in his appointment book, "Do not waste your time with this one, she speaks like an idiot savant, and does not yet have a grasp on the English language. Hopefully, she can read scripts. Next time she calls, let it go to voice mail."

I think in trying not to take up too much of the person's time on the other line, I tend to rush myself, and my thoughts get jumbled up. Hopefully, I will do better in talking to my potential new manager than I did with her assistant. I need to learn to not get so excited about what could potentially be an important step in my career as a performer, and just take it one day at a time. I need to remember to concentrate and most importantly, breathe! I need to look at it the same way I do when I get ready to walk out on stage with my band, or when I am doing a solo gig or duet- focus on the task at hand, whether it be in talking with an agent or auditioning for a casting director. If I don't, it will be more impossible to find work. I know pilot season is approaching though, and I have been dying to get into some auditions for pilots! Will I? We shall see!

My alter-ego, Valerie, at Blueberry Hill's Duck Room, March of 2004 show 

Chocolate Robbers

After craving chocolate for two days in a row, I finally decided to get my fix and buy some M&M's out of the vending machine. I feel better now. I tried to satisfy my craving by trying some diet hot chocolate. There are two words that should never go together: diet and chocolate.

I got into work this morning and learned that three financial institutions have already been robbed, all before 9:30am. Everyone is more vigilant where I work anyway, since we were robbed about a month ago. The local police are awesome. They are making their presence known around here and they have given us vehicle descriptions from the robberies this morning. I guess our area robbers are getting an early start on their Christmas shopping this year.
I will never understand bank robbers. The guy who robbed us a month or so ago hung out in the lobby and made a cell phone call to his kids before he hit us up for the cash. We think he was talking to his kids, because he told whoever he was talking to that he would be home soon, he just had some errands to run on the way home. He finished up his call in line. Now, this is not a good idea. It's like, let's give the teller plenty of time to look at me and get ticked off because I am talking on my cell phone in line. Oh yeah, he also filled out his robbery note on one of our transaction slips, in big black marker, so anyone filling out their slips nearby could have seen him. All I can say is, these guys (the majority of them are guys) are idiots and they have balls. There's a comforting thought; Idiots with guns and balls.
I dreamt last night that I was on "Little House on the Prairie." Only, it was more like, "Little House Meets Science Fiction," as there was murder and mayhem and a disruption in space and time. Then, I went on to my first college clas of the new semester, only it turned out to be a religious cult. The professor kept trying to get me to eat red cupcakes with white icing and red sprinkles on top. When I refused, I was kicked out of class. On my way home from class, I was flying over the Blanchette bridge and witnessed a horrible earthquake. What would Freud say about this dream? Would he say, "sometimes an earthquake is just an earthquake"?
I am going to go case my workplace on my lunch break. Laters!