Gotta be better than that vampire flick

I am a a tad bit embarrassed to admit that I was really excited to see Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter last summer.  I had enjoyed the book so I was expecting the movie to be pretty darn entertaining.  I found the movie to be simply just ok.  It was well made and had good production values but they left out too much to make it truly enjoyable.  What was up with changing the ending?

Anyway, I have much higher expectations of Steven Spielberg's new movie about Abraham Lincoln, titled simply "Lincoln".  It is based upon "Team of Rivals" by Doris Kearns Goodwin and chronicles the last 4 months of Lincoln's life. 

Check out the theatrical preview below!

A little AWWWWWW at Shiloh

Today while visiting Shiloh Battlefield I was really excited to see their new film in the visitors center that replaced the depressingly outdated one that they had been showing since the 1950's.  I'm sure that there were quite a few purists that were upset that the old film was scrapped but honestly it was pretty laughable even though I'm certain it was a labor of love for those who made it.

Anyway, as I was sitting there waiting for the film to begin a little kid that was at most 5 or 6 ran in with his grandparents.  To be perfectly honest I was secretly praying the kid would not sit anywhere close by because I have had many a movies be spoiled by crying or talking kids.

They sat down right behind me and I was easily charmed by the little guy's sheer enthusiasm.  He had the map out and was excitedly pointing to all the places they would go to on the battlefield.  In his ultra thick southern accent he kept asking "Paw can we go here?".  His grandfather just smiled and nodded each time, obviously enjoying the boys happiness.  When the film began he got so excited that he practically bounced out of his chair.

After the movie I saw all of them again in the museum exhibit area.  As if the kid's energy was not already infectious enough, the little guy was wearing a smaller matching version of his grandfather's boots and clomping around in them looking at all the guns and other artifacts.

I never saw them again on the actual battlefield but I can pretty much guarantee that he wore his grandparents out.  I am also sure that when the grandfather goes to bed tonight, he will do so with a big smile on his face knowing that he shared a memory that the little boy will resonate with him the rest of his life.

Spooked at the Myrtles Plantation

I have always had an interest in staying at unique and bizarre places on my road trips.  I have long wanted to stay at the Myrtles Plantation just outside of Baton Rouge, Louisiana since it is notorious for being one of the most haunted places in America.

Built around 1796, the Myrtles has had its share of tragedy, hence the hauntings.  The most famous story involves a house slave named Chloe who would constantly eavesdrop on conversations.  Some say she was very paranoid about being put into the fields and was  listening in to see if her master was planning on doing so.  At one point she was caught listening in on a top secret meeting and the master of the house not only sent her into the fields, he also sliced off her left ear as punishment.

To try to win back the favor of her master and also be put back into the house she concocted a scheme to make the family sick and then nurse them back to health.  Basically she would make herself indispensable.  One afternoon she baked a cake but added in some boiled down white oleander leaves to poison them just enough to cause them all to puke up their guts.  Well sadly for Chloe and especially the family, she added too much of the lethal concoction and she ended up killing the two small girls and the wife of the master.

After messing up royally she took off but the other slaves at the Myrtles caught her and turned her in.  the slaves thought that if she escaped then they would be held responsible for the crime.  The master of the plantation ordered that she be hung from one of the trees on the property.

It is widely reported that Chloe and the little girls haunt the grounds.  Chloe is often seen walking outside the porch area and the little girls are notorious for "playing" with the guests by bouncing on the ends of beds or pulling covers off people as they sleep.

I arrived at the Myrtles Plantation mid afternoon and was a little scared to learn that there was only one other couple staying there that evening.  I figured there would be lots of guests just hanging out.  There is always strength in numbers with these kinds of things.  What made it worse was the other couple took off and did not return till almost 10:30 so I was basically alone walking around and jumping at every single freaking sound.  When the other couple finally got back we stayed up chatting for a while until finally retiring at 1:00.

Strangely enough I fell asleep fairly fast due to being so tired.  Luckily I am also virtually blind without my glasses on so any shadows or figures in my room honestly did not have much of an audience.  After conking out for a couple of hours I was awoken by the sound of a door opening and footsteps in the hallway.  At that point I almost lost it including making a big old puddle of pee in my bed.  I waited and waited for about 15 minutes before I got up to investigate.  I opened the door and peeked out into the hall and saw no one there.  Feeling pretty confident, I slipped on my shoes and walked outside to look around the grounds a bit and it turned out that the noises I had heard were the other couple taking off in the middle of the night.  Something must have freaked them out because their car was gone.

These stupid things didn't help much

By this time it was close to 5 in the morning and there was no way I could get back to sleep being totally alone in the house.  I took out my phone and turned on every single light I could find.  I checked Facebook and of course Fruit Ninja since nothing calms an angry ghost like slicing and dicing.  Close to 5:45 I looked up toward the bathroom and saw a small dark blob that looked like the shape of a small child.  All of a sudden it darted across the floor and disappeared at the bedroom door.  Now I am sure that there are quite a few skeptics out there, but there is ZERO chance of me imagining this.  It wasn't like I saw it out of my peripheral vision or anything like that.  I stared dead on at the thing and then it darted right beside me and out the door.

Anyway, at that point I decided it was time for me to leave too.  I quickly packed up and took off into the rising sun.  I like to say that I did survive the entire night since I left right at sun up.  According to the owners quite a few people do not make it through the night.  Oprah apparently left very early one night after having an experience and just a week or so before I got there a woman fled out into the courtyard screaming because she rolled over on her bed and saw the two little girls at the side of the bed.  The night guy had to go in and pack up all her things for her.


Regardless of what time I left, I am sure that the owners got a nice chuckle since no one showed up for breakfast.  Myrtles Plantation strikes again.

I caught this very creepy pic.  Check out what looks like a figure of a woman.  Her head is very distinctive.  Chloe?

Beyond the moon

Today we lost Neil Armstrong who was a true pioneer and hero of American history.  Although he was labeled that in life, he always remained humble about walking on the moon.  I remember learning about the Apollo program in grade school and was so inspired that I saved up several weeks of allowances in order to get my first model rocket building kit.  I spent hours building and painting those rockets and then finally launching them.  With each launch I felt somehow connected to those astronauts that I so admired.  Rest in peace Mr. Armstrong and thank you for the inspiration.

The Crossroads of Revolution

One of my favorite places has always been Concord, Massachusetts.  Naturally, as a lover of history I would be drawn there for its rich history regarding its role in the outbreak of the American Revolution, but I am also fascinated with its literary history as well.

When I lived up in Rhode Island about 12 years ago, I made a number of pilgrimages to Walden Pond known most famously as the setting for Henry David Thoreau's observations and musings about life.  I remember reading "Walden" as a high school student and it made a profound impact on me.  It has been one of my greatest joys as a teacher to take my students there for a moment of reflection regarding the teachings of Thoreau.

A moment of reflection at Walden Pond

For the past several years we have connected both the outbreak of the American Revolution and the birth of transcendentalism, a revolution of thought, by going to Concord where both occurred in two very different time periods.  One of my favorite stories to tell is how Louisa May Alcott was appalled that centennial commemorations at Old North Bridge were closed to women unless they were in the company of a man.  She defiantly gathered women in the town square and marched down and forcibly entered the festivities with her followers.  We reenact that by marching to Old North Bridge ourselves rather than taking the bus.

The Old Manse is one of my favorite spots and I have spent a lot of time on the "Thinking Rock" looking out upon Old North Bridge and then contemplating how the transcendentalist movement was basically started started on the same property.   The Old Manse was the home of Ralph Waldo Emerson who drafted "Nature" in the residence.  "Nature" became one foundations of the movement.  It truly is a crossroads of revolution.

Little Paul on the Thinking Rock

Cassadaga

I have lived in Florida for about 12 years now and I am constantly amazed at just how quirky the state is.  Beyond the beaches and Disney are some towns that really should be the basis of a new reality show.

I had always heard of Cassadaga from others and decided this past weekend to finally visit the town myself.  It is more commonly known as the "Psychic Capital of the World" and draws mediums, spiritualists and psychics from around the globe.  

Spiritualist George Colby founded it in 1895 after being led there by one of his spirit guides.  Through the years it has drawn all kinds of people seeking out some clues as to what lay ahead in the future.  Cassadaga is REALLY tiny but they managed to really pack in tons of psychics and mediums who are very willing to sit down with you.......well, as long as the price is right.  Below you will find a very short video of the experience.

Digging up the Lincoln Conspirators

I know that it might be a bit odd but cemeteries have always been fascinating to me.  I think the interest began when my fourth grade class visited the local Confederate cemetery.  Ever since, whenever I visit a cemetery I will wander among the tombstones and read the epitaphs.  They can often tell a remarkable story.

One of my favorite lessons that I have taught involves doing a cemetery investigation in Concord, Mass in which students try to piece together how people wanted to be remembered, or at least how other people wanted to remember them.  Among some of the most robust statements there is one lady whose epitaph simply says "She was very punctual".  Boy, they must have been really reaching for a compliment for that lady!

When I embark on one of my road trips, a visit to a cemetery is sorta a given.  Having spent the summer in and around DC giving tours, I decided to spend some time hunting down the final resting places of some of the Lincoln conspirators.  It turned out to be a much more difficult process than I had imagined.    An insane line of thunderstorms moved through the area that weekend, knocking out power to millions and uprooting thousands of trees.

John Wilkes Booth was the one I really wanted to find and I set out early one morning to find his grave, or at least the Booth family plot at Greenmount Cemetery in Baltimore.  After battling the insane traffic I arrived and was greeted with a "closed" sign.  Throughout the entire cemetery there were many downed trees and they closed it due to safety issues.  Luckily, one of the office workers saw me standing outside the gate and I convinced her to let me in.  Yeah, I pulled the sad teacher card.  No shame though......it DID work.

I was under strict instructions to not go anywhere else in the cemetery which was really hard to abide by since 2 other Lincoln conspirators are also buried there.  Nonetheless, I decided not to disobey them and found the Booth plot.  I found it a bit strange that people have covered some of graves with Lincoln pennies.  Not really sure of the meaning, but I found the same type of remembrance left at the site where Booth was caught and killed.

On the journey, I also found the graves of David Herold, Mary Surratt and Lewis Payne(Powell).  Check out the video to take a look at the hunt.