Call Now to go to the Free Event in Odenton!

Call 443-396-1282 to register with Inspired Events for my FREE talk this FRIDAY NIGHTm June 11 at 7pm
At 1350 Blair Drive, Suite E, Odenton, MD, Anne Arundel County.
MAP: http://maps.google.com/maps?hl=&q=1350+Blair+Drive,+Suite+E,+Odenton,+MD&rlz=1B3MOZA_enUS367US367&um=1&ie=UTF-8&hq=&hnear=1350+Blair+Dr,+Odenton,+MD+21113&gl=us&ei=SYIOTPP_FMLflgeQhdBu&sa=X&oi=geocode_result&ct=title&resnum=1&ved=0CBUQ8gEwAA
- It's on ROUTE 175, east of where 175 crosses Route 32.
- It's east of Fort Meade.
- It's near the intersection of 175 and 170 (which goes north/south and goes into Odenton).
WhenFri, June 11, 7:00pm – 9:30pm
Description This is a ghost tracking group that gets together to discuss like-minded topics, share experiences, and do some investigation work. Due to the nature of this group you must be at least 18 years old or accompanied by an adult. The Ghost Tracking Meetup group meets monthly at Inspired Events of Maryland. For more information, visit their website at www.meetup.com/inpiredghosttracking

Adventures at the Federal Hill Jazz Festival

Ghosts and vampires DID make an appearance at Baltimore's Federal Hill annual Jazz & Blues Fest Sunday, June 6. At least, I did with our friend Lynn J, whose husband Steve wrote a great parody of the book/movie "Twilight" called "Twilite: A Parody." Lynn was selling Steve's autographed books, and I was selling my book on "Ghosts and Spirits." To order "Twilite: A Parody" visit: www.twilightparody.com
We arrived at 10:10 a.m. for the 11am-7pm festival. We were armed with a table and chairs (borrowed), tent (borrowed), tablecloth, our books, bowls of candy and great signs that Lynn made for us!
Karma always plays into things and Karma didn't appear to be cooperating for the first hour. One of the other vendors took our space, so we wound up set up next to a chicken and pork BBQ tent. It smelled good, but the smoke blew on us most of the time, so we both smelled like BBQ pig. :) Nope, it wasn't a new cologne.

(PHOTO: Rob at the Federal Hill Jazz Fest)
Unfortunately, the tent we borrowed was BROKEN on one side, so it kept collapsing. In the morning a cold front was approaching so the winds kicked gusts up to 20 mph, so Lynn and I wound up holding the tent most of the first hour until we could figure out how to secure it. I did run to the truck and got bungee cords that we used to hold it together. After an hour we were able to sit down!

(PHOTO: Lynn at our book table at Federal Hill's Jazz Festival)
We talked with a number of folks, and several told me of their ghost-experiences. Some asked about the differences between ghosts and spirits. Others are also developing mediums. In the end, we learned that people don't go there to buy books, but to enjoy the great music and food, and we enjoyed each other's company.
We were happily surprised when Lynn's hubby Steve arrived at the festival. The festival was in full-swing and packed with people,good food and music. Our friend Jim from Las Vegas was in town and came by to say hello, and our friends Jim and Craig came by, too! Between their visits and spending the afternoon with Lynn, it was fun. Tom (who was sick at home with a summer cold) called me at 3pm and warned us of strong thunderstorms, so we packed up quickly and left. Four hours in the heat was enough. Besides, Lynn and I both smelled like BBQ pig!

Book Event at Federal Hill's Jazz and Blues Fest Sunday June 6

Ghosts and vampires are going to make Baltimore's Federal Hill annual Jazz & Blues Fest their favorite "haunt" on Sunday, June 6. Two Maryland authors who wrote about real-life ghosts and a vampire parody of a famous novel will be at the festival talking with humans and signing their books.
Author and developing medium Rob Gutro just published a book called "Ghosts and Spirits: Insights from a Medium," about his abilities, experiences and how entities communicate with the living. Author Stephen Jenner recently published "Twilite: A Parody," a hysterical look at the characters created by Stephanie Meyers' famous novel turned-movie.
(IMAGE: This is a promotional poster that our friend Lynn J. made for the event!)

A Presence in the Barnstable Restaurant and Tavern

Before my talk at the Cape Cod Community College last weekend, my partner and I met some others for dinner at the Barnstable Restaurant and Tavern in Historic Barnstable Village, Massachusetts. It's a fantastic, beautiful restaurant with great food and excellent service. What I didn't know is that it has a ghost... at least until I got inside. As soon as I entered the main room, I got my tell-tale headache alerting me that there is an entity in the building. Then I felt a quick burning pain in my front right temple that disappeared quickly. During dinner I continued to feel the headache so I know the presence didn't leave.
I learned from Derek Bartlett, manager of Cape Cod Paranormal Society, that the Tavern is the first stop on his local haunted tour, and that the ghost of a woman haunts it. That night, she also let me know she was there.

A Residual Energy at the Historic Josiah Quincy House

(PHOTO: Front side of the Josiah Quincy House where some ghostly imprint energy resides on the lawn).
While in Quincy, Mass. this past weekend, my partner and I also stopped by the historic Josiah Quincy House (1770 and pronounced /ˈkwɪnzi/). This was the "country home" of Revolutionary War soldier Colonel Josiah Quincy I, the first in a line of six illustrious Josiah Quincys that included three Boston mayors and a president of Harvard University.
Josiah inherited the land from his father and built his mansion on a 200-acre farm called the "Lower Farm," which had been in the family since 1635. Tom immediately noticed that the house has an unusual "monitor roof," the oldest known example of this roof style to survive from the original colonies, and includes a Chinese fretwork balustrade and classical portico. The National Park Service notes that "during the American Revolution, Quincy aided General George Washington by observing the British fleet in Boston Harbor from his attic windows."

(PHOTO: Front door of the Josiah Quincy House)
The house is only open by appointment (we didn't know that) so we walked the grounds. While walking the grounds my head was filled with residual energy on one side of the house, and vivid images of Colonial men, women and children in period garb, in addition to horse-drawn carriages coming up one entrance to the home. There's a lot of residual energy even outside of that house! It's too bad we couldn't get inside it.

Book Review: Pet Ghosts by Joshua Warren

Book Review: Pet Ghosts by Joshua Warren
This book came out in 2006, but I hadn't heard of it until I did a search on the topic recently. I just finished reading it, and I was disappointed because I was expecting insight into animal intelligence, behavior and communications with those they left behind. Having lost a puppy (who communicated with me a LOT), I hoped to read signs from others. Instead, paranormal investigator Joshua Warren focuses on ghostly animals throughout history, such as from ancient and medieval texts (including the Bible) and different cultures. The book talks about Bigfoot and the Loch Ness monster, hellhounds and werewolves. None of this made much sense to me because none of these things are "pets." I think the book should have been called "non-human and mythological ghosts."
If you've lost a beloved dog or cat and are looking for comfort from this book, you won't find it here, unfortunately. Warren does great research, but the title of the book is really misleading.

Thanks to all at the 2 Massachusetts Events!

(PHOTO: Rob (left) and Derek Bartlett of CAIPRS (right) before the talk on Cape Cod)
This weekend has been full of wonderful experiences and the two book talks/signing events were wonderful. On Friday, May 28, Derek Bartlett (manager of the Cape Cod and the Islands Paranormal Research Society (www.caiprs.com) hosted me at the Cape Cod Community College. I met a lot of wonderful people, some with the gift of mediumship that that are also trying to develop, others with after-death experiences, and others who have seen ghosts or spirits. Derek set me up for a Powerpoint presentation with a microphone, and I had a lot of great interaction with the audience. I'm looking forward to staying in touch with so many folks, and immediately felt a connection with Derek and his wife. My thanks also to my partner Tom (for always coming and supporting me), my mom, brother and friend Janice who came over from Nantucket Island.
On Saturday night, May 29, Jenn from the Coffee Break Cafe in Quincy enabled me to provide an intimate talk and signing with a great group and enjoy great coffee (http://www.coffeebreakcafe.net/). I also connected with Jenn and her mom, and my mom's best friend Jane came with her daughter and husband; and our friend MaryAnn also surprised us! Everyone at both events had great questions and it was a fantastic experience to meet and talk with everyone.
- My next event is THIS SUNDAY, June 6 at the Federal Hill Jazz Festival in Baltimore. I'm teaming up with my friends Steve and Lynn Jenner (who wrote an hysterical parody of "Twilight" called "Twilite: the Parody." Come out and visit! We'll be there from 11am-7pm!

Our Dogs Sense Sarah's Spirit

On the night we learned of our close friend Sarah's passing, our dogs could not get to sleep. So, I put them on our bed. Our Weimaraner kept looking at the corner of the bedroom near Tom's side of the bed and I got my tell-tale headache alerting me that a spirit was there. Meanwhile our Weim just stared and stared at the corner.
I'm sure it was Sarah letting me know she was okay. It was a peaceful presence, indicating to me that Sarah was indeed here, so I was able to relax, knowing she's at peace. Our dogs would not sleep on their beds after "seeing" or "hearing" Sarah, and had to sleep on our full-sized bed. That made for quite a crowded bed!
As I've mentioned before, dogs have heightened abilities that humans don't share. Spirits are energy, and they even communicate at a higher decibel range than humans can hear, although dogs can hear it. Think about how a digital recorder can pick up a spirit or ghost's voice even though it is unheard by people. Dogs also have different cones and rods in their eyes and a different visual physiology that although makes them less able to recognize colors (most colors appear gray except for yellows and blues), they have a better ability to sense motion (including spirits).

Amityville Horror House for Sale

Here's a house I wouldn't give you 2 cents for!
The Amityville Horror House is For Sale
For $1.15 million, the AP reports. The movie and the book were inspired by the case of Ronald "Butch" DeFeo Jr., who killed his parents, two brothers and two sisters in Long Island, N.Y.
"The Amityville Horror" was about a family that lived in the home for a short time after the DeFeos were murdered; the new occupants left because they claimed to have been terrorized by paranormal activity. Newsday quotes a real-estate agent who says the home has been restored and "nothing spooky about it."
Read more: http://blogs.kansascity.com/crime_scene/2010/05/amityville-horror-house-for-sale.html#ixzz0pALpMjG8

Remembering Our Friend Sarah

Last night our close friend Sarah passed away from her battle with cancer. It's always a shock when we lose someone we love, no matter how much we understand what happens after we pass.
I wanted to post this tribute to our dear friend because she deserves to be recognized for the wonderful person she was here on Earth, and is in the next stage of life.
Our friend Sarah has been a tremendous part of our lives for the last 5 years when I Rob met her at a dog event with her husband. There was an immediate connection, and my partner and I have grown to love her and Denis so very much.
On Sunday, we went to Sarah's birthday party and she was all smiles and glowing with love, despite her deteriorating condition. Sarah never lost hope. This is a photo from Sunday of Sarah with her husband. Her smile is infectious as it has always been.

Less than 6 months ago, Sarah went to the doctor to check out a stomach ache, and learned she had stage 4 cancer, although she was asymptomatic. It was a shock, but she never gave up hope. That's Sarah. She was the kindest, most loving, happy, optimistic person who always had a smile, a hug and a kiss for us. I always looked forward to her emails every week asking for SNOW, even in July Sarah LOVED Snow. Well, this winter I "gave" her 2 blizzards and record snow in the area. She was ecstatic, and still wanted more. She made me laugh when it came to my forecasts and the weather.
Sarah had a tremendous love for dogs that started through her husband. It didn't take long for Sarah and Denis to become an advocate for pet rights- and when they lost their beloved dog Shadow to the bullet of a madman in Vermont, they pushed for pets to be recognized as companions in the state, not just "empty animals." We're behind that 110%. Anyone that has a dog understands that feeling. Our dogs ARE our children. The day Sarah passed, the Vermont Supreme Court issued a decision that acknowledged dogs are more than just replaceable. Sarah told the Vermont press "It's so important for people to really recognize the relationship between the families and their companion animals." Sarah and her husband have 5 dogs and a foster dog, so their house was always full of canine companionship and love.
Sarah was very excited for us when we went to Connecticut and got married last June. When we told her about a small local reception she immediately volunteered to bake gourmet cupcakes for all of the guests! For weeks we tried her various recipes, got boxes and other things together. The cupcakes were such a hit that there were only 2 left after the reception, and people still talk about them even a year later.
Sarah is a tremendous person, so full of love, life, happiness, optimism and someone who has deeply touched our hearts. We miss her so much, but we know that she's now at peace with her loving dog Shadow.