You, Your Pets and This High Heat - *off topic, but important*

I'm a meteorologist as well as a developing medium, so I thought I'd pass this information along because of the extreme HOT temperatures in the U.S. this summer.
With this dangerous heat, its easy for people and pets to get sick quickly from dehydration, heat stroke, and heat exhaustion.
What causes heat exhaustion and heatstroke?
Heat-related illnesses, such as heat exhaustion and heatstroke, occur when your body can't keep itself cool. As the air temperature rises, your body stays cool when your sweat evaporates. On hot, humid days, the evaporation of sweat is slowed by the increased moisture in the air. When sweating isn't enough to cool your body, your body temperature rises, and you may become ill.
HEAT SICKNESS - Our Weimaraner Dolly was only out for 30 minutes at a time at Daycare yesterday (in a shaded run and with water) and she came home with heat sickness. She ate dinner then threw it all up. After I rubbed her down with a washcloth and icecubes, and gave her a bath in cool water, she was fine. ... then she was hungry. That was only 30 MINUTES!!

DON'T WALK THE DOGS ON HOT PAVEMENT IN THE DAYTIME - Asphalt tends to be 20 degrees HOTTER than the air temperature (once the temps get over 85F), so avoid walking dogs on asphalt. Think about walking on 105F pavement in bare feet. OUCH! When temps hit 90F, the asphalt can be around 120-122F in direct sunshine. ***WITH THE HIGH HEAT INDICIES, DO NOT LEAVE YOUR DOG OUTSIDE FOR MORE THAN 15-30 MINUTES***
What is heat exhaustion?
Heat exhaustion happens when your body gets too hot. It can be caused by physical exercise or hot weather. You may experience:
•Heavy sweating •Feeling weak and/or confused •Dizziness
•Nausea •Headache •Fast heartbeat •Dark-colored urine, which indicates dehydration
What should I do if I think I have heat exhaustion?
If you think you have heat exhaustion, get out of the heat quickly. Rest in a building that has air-conditioning. If you can't get inside, find a cool, shady place. Drink plenty of water or other fluids. Do NOT drink alcohol or caffeinated drinks (such as soda). These can make heat exhaustion worse. Take a cool shower or bath, or apply cool water to your skin. Take off any tight or unnecessary clothing.
If you do not feel better within 30 minutes, you should contact your doctor. If heat exhaustion is not treated, it can progress to heatstroke
What should I do if I think someone has heatstroke?
If you think someone might have heatstroke, call emergency medical personnel immediately. While you are waiting for medical assistance, take the person into an air-conditioned building or a cool, shady place. Remove the person's unnecessary clothing to help cool him or her down. Try to fan air over the person while wetting the skin with water. You can also apply ice packs to the the person's armpits, groin, neck and back. These areas contain a lot of blood vessels close the surface of the skin. Cooling them with ice packs can help the person cool down.

Ronda's Encounter at Montpelier Mansion

Ronda wrote me with an experience she had, and has allowed me to share it with you. She wrote: "While reading your book I came across the section about the Montpelier Mansion in Laurel, Maryland. I use to work the "Needle Art" show there every year around July. I would get there early before all of the people arrived, open the doors turn on the lights, etc. One day while I was there alone waiting for the people to arrive, I was sitting in the breeze way (the one that goes between the house and the room with all the book shelves) cross stitching. When out of the corner of my eye I could see the bottom of a dress. The dress was a robins egg blue color and had a pattern kind of like herringbone. When I looked directly at door the where the person was standing, no one was there. This happened 3 different times, there was no doubt that there was a lady watching me sew."

I'm wondering if anyone else had a ghostly encounter at the Montpelier Mansion in Laurel, as Ronda and I have. Please write in and share them!

Entertaining Fiction Book for All: Dead Person Following My Sister""

I recently went to a Scholastic book warehouse sale with a good friend who found the paperback "There's a Dead Person Following My Sister Around" by author Vivian Vande Velde.
I just finished the book (142 pages) and although its written for kids and young teens, I LOVED IT!
I learned the Ms. Vande Velde has written others like it, which I intend to read (even though we have no children). The Publisher's Website says of the book "Vande Velde continues her string of historical ghost stories, this time focusing on the Underground Railroad. The first-person narrator, 11-year-old Ted, is certain that his house in Rochester, NY, can't be haunted because it has been in his family for generations and there have been no secrets to speak of in its past. Then his five-year-old sister Vicki's imaginary friend Marella and the "bad lady" who seems to be chasing her prove themselves to be all too real. Ted decides to get to the bottom of the mystery and finds a journal belonging to one of his ancestors that recounts the tragic story of two runaway slaves, a mother and her five-year-old daughter, who drowned in the Erie Canal, which used to run through the family's backyard."
I HIGHLY RECOMMEND this book. It was a fun and enjoyable read.

Karma- It Will Get You on the Road!

I was driving to a doctor's appointment this morning on a road that was dropping down from 4 lanes to 2 lanes (one lane going each direction) and I was in the appropriate lane for the merge to go straight. As the lanes came together a young woman in a silver sports car raced past me on the shoulder and quickly swung in front of me, cutting me off (and forcing me to brake). She startled me, and I gave a quick toot on my horn. Of course, she put her arm outside her window and gave me the finger. Lovely.
Here's where the Karma part comes in;
1) There was a truck 3 cars ahead of her, so she couldn't speed excessively.
2) When she turned off, I followed (because that was the road I had to go on), and she must've been driving about 80 mph (it was a 40 mph road). She took off like a bullet and was out of sight. A couple of minutes later, I drove past her as she was PULLED OVER by a Police Officer for speeding! KARMA!!!

Wesley's Spirit Gives Me Messages

Our friend Cynthia's dad Wesley passed this week. He was 88 and suffered from memory loss and dementia. On July 1 he was waked, and Tom and I went to the wake. As we were driving toward it, her dad came to me with a number of messages, many of which took me and Cynthia by surprise.
The first one was "Cindy Lou." That came to me over and over, and I didn't know who that was... turned out that it's what he called Cynthia. I was blown away by that! The next message was about one of her brothers and she understood what it meant.
The third thing he told me was what happened as he passed. He had bleeding on the brain, and he told me that he "heard a pop" in his head, and the next thing he knew, he (his spirit) was standing up in the hospital (ER) while the doctors were working on him. He stayed for a brief time (I believe 1-2 days) and then was ready to move on (that's when he passed). He said he feels no pain, and doesn't remember any (spirits typically don't remember any pain associated with passing).
He said that now that he's transitioning to the other side (he was still at his wake) he can think clearly now, like a great fog has been lifted from his brain. Now that he's passed he is free of the dementia, so his thoughts are clear.
He mentioned how he had missed "Honey Bun" (his wife) who is hospitalized in a different care center, but would now be watching over her.
The last thing he said was to "thank Cindy Lou" for all of the love, care and attention she provided to him, especially since he fell ill. When I told these things to Cynthia it brought her to tears, but happy tears. She's comforted to know he's okay.

BOOK: Gift : Understand and Develop Your Psychic Abilities

I just finished reading the book "Gift : Understand and Develop Your Psychic Abilities" by Echo Bodine. This is a good book for people who are developing mediums. It will give you a good sense of what kinds of messages to expect and how to interpret (or not over-interpret) them. If you're curious about what the Bible says about mediumship there's a long chapter included, where Ms. Bodine has done extensive research. She has also authored a number of other books that also sound interesting.

Airing July 5 on HBO: Mediums: "No One Dies in Lilydale"

HBO is airing a documentary tonight, JULY 5, called "No One Dies in Lilydale." The program showcases a town in upstate New York and the large number of mediums that reside there.
Whether or not you believe in people being able to cross over or communicate with the dead, you have to admit, the subject’s kind of interesting, especially when it involves a town with a concentrated population of so-called Mediums.
Located just south of Buffalo, tiny Lily Dale, NY, is home to the world’s largest concentration of mediums, people who claim to be able to communicate with spirits of the deceased. Every year, thousands of visitors from all over the world flock to this quaint Victorian community to have their questions answered and grief assuaged. Directed by Emmy® winner and Oscar® nominee Steven Cantor (HBO’s Devil’s Playground), NO ONE DIES IN LILY DALE follows visitors on their emotional quests, chronicling their mysterious and deeply personal interactions with the town’s unusual residents, when it debuts MONDAY, JULY 5 (9:00-10:30 p.m. ET/PT), exclusively on HBO.