I recently attended the first annual TAPSCON in Clearwater, FL.  At it’s foundation, it’s centered around TAPS and the TAPS family members.  TAPS is, of course, the organization that is followed around on the Sci-Fi show “Ghost Hunters”.  They were an established organization before the show, with many years of investigations under their belts.  In addition to the core TAPS group, they have family members which are other investigative groups throughout the country who have demonstrated that they follow the principles of TAPS.  There are several TAPS family member groups here in Florida.

TAPSCON was an event that gives fans, investigators and the general public the opportunity to meet and mingle with celebrities as well as each other.  It was the convention’s first year, and understandably there were some hiccups, but I had a fantastic time and met some wonderful people.  There were many celebrities on hand, a paranormal fan’s dream collection really, and I am pleased to say that they were all just as humble, charming, and approachable as you could hope for!  It was also very refreshing to meet so many like-minded, SANE, and thoughtful amateur investigators.  I really had my hestitations that, oh boy, there’s going to be some “odd” folks at this this thing, but that wasn’t the case.  I think because the “Ghost Hunters” show so strongly encourages a critical approach to the paranormal, that most of the people it attracts have a similar mindset.  I went on a ghost tour of the Belleview Biltmore Saturday night and was impressed by my other tour guests.  Everyone was earnestly trying to investigate and no one was screaming or goofing off.  It was in sharp contrast to some other tours I’ve been on.

Basically, it boils down to the fact that I felt I was among “my people” at this convention.  Nobody was judging you because of your paranormal experiences.  Everyone was exchanging ideas and approaches.  It was fantastic!

Some highlights for me were the Belleview Biltmore itself, the lecture by sensitives CJ Sellers and Michelle Torrey, the “Synergy” crystal skull, the Jason and Grant lecture, and meeting some wonderful new friends.  There were many lectures that I wasn’t able to attend, but from what I heard from other attendees, they were great as well.  I’d even say that Robert the Doll was a highlight, although I have to admit that I didn’t get too close and was too big of a chicken to take his picture!  I’d much rather face a ghost than a creepy doll!  Or a creepy clown, but that’s another story!

They’re already selling tickets and packages for next year.  I’ve already purchased a VIP package myself.  If you want more information, please check out the link on OtherTown’s Events page.

If you also attended TAPSCON this year, I’d love to hear what you thought!  Please leave a comment below.

May you find the answers you seek,
Jen from OtherTown

As the discussion over the “Ghost Hunters” episode continued, the issue was raised that a lot of investigators prefer to approach a location with no prior knowledge, a clean slate…tabula rasa.  I can appreciate the appeal of this approach because it helps to avoid planting “seeds” in the investigators mind of what they might experience.  That way, if an investigator has the same time of encounter that other witnesses have reported, it lends greater credibility to the claim.  However, to avoid a similar experience that the “Ghost Hunters” had with the Moss Beach Distillery investigation, it is probably a good idea to have at least one member of the team be fully aware of the history and current status of the location.  The team member can keep this information from the rest of team and only discuss his/her knowledge after the conclusion of the investigation.  Plus, in order to be able to debunk claims of ghostly encounters at the location, someone in the group needs to know what those claims are…

Each group likely has their own ideas of the best way to approach an investigation.  Please leave a comment and let others know your thoughts on the subject!

May you find the answers you seek…
Jen from OtherTown

Well, as anyone who watches Ghost Hunters on SciFi knows, last week’s episode was an explosive one.  The first investigation of the episode went along as usual (with a particularly interesting debunking experiment), but it was the second “investigation” that got everyone buzzing.  Apparently there was even great debate over whether or not the episode should be shown at all. 

The Ghost Hunters traveled across the country (by van, of course, given Steve’s aversion to flight) to visit the Moss Beach Distillery.  The walk around was conducted, prior ghostly experiences were relayed, and then the investigation began.  Almost immediately, at least it seemed that way with the editing, Jason and Grant happened upon multiple hokey contraptions designed to give customers “that ghostly feeling”.  Well, as most of us would be, Jason and Grant were none too pleased with this discovery which, again if we trust the editing (and in this case I do), were not brought up during the initial walk through.  Disgusted, they looked for additional contraptions in clever ways, such as Jason hoisting Grant up into the ceiling and Grant falling and hurting his ankle during his dismount.  True to his “monkey at heart” nature, Grant continued his climbing expedition and found hydraulics to shake the lamps around above the bar.

Thoroughly ticked off at this point, the team attempted to salvage some attempt at an investigation, but as they mentioned, how could they trust anything they did find as being authentic.  The final nail in the coffin was the non-repentant chef they presented the reveal to who annoyingly laughed his way through the whole thing (a bad habit when he’s nervous maybe?).  Kudos to Jason and Grant for showing a lot of restraint during that reveal.  They handled it better than a lot of people would have…

Ok, enough of the recap, let’s get to the discussion!  Needless to say, people were upset by the way things transpired and the questions started flying instantly…  Who knew what when?  And who comes out looking the worst from this?  I think that Grant getting hurt and the chef’s really unlikable performance at the reveal made the fallout even worse, but it would have been bad anyway.  Apparently these contraptions are well documented and the argument has been made that any basic research on the location would have uncovered their presence.   So obviously, somewhere along the way there was a serious failure to communicate…  If the team had known about the devices, they could have ensured that they were disabled and performed a proper investigation. 

So what does this mean for the rest of us?  I think it’s a good reminder to know your stuff before you visit a location because who wants to waste their time?  The majority of us have day jobs, right, so between organizing the investigation, doing the investigation, and reviewing the material collected during the investigation, we’re investing a lot  (time, money, and sleep), and missing out on other opportunities (did I mention sleep?).  Don’t rely on the witnesses or location’s tenant, owner, manager, or chef as the sole source of information.  Do your prep work so you can rule out things and focus your investigation effectively.  Know not only the past and present story of the location, but what’s going on around it as well (light sources, sounds from adjacent buildings, electrical interferences, etc).  We all have to be aware that there are those out there who would love to “pull one over” on us, though I’m not necessarily saying that’s what the distillary intended.  

Basically, remember to put in the effort beforehand so you have the best grasp possible on what you might be dealing with when you get there…  Because that last episode of Ghost Hunters didn’t look like much fun for anyone involved!!!

May you find the answers you seek… 
Jen from OtherTown

Welcome to OtherTown!

My name is Jennifer Sikes and I’m the founder of OtherTown.  My friends call me Jen and if you’re kind enough to take the time to read this blog then I’m putting you into the friend category, so Jen it is!  I have so many hopes and dreams for OtherTown and I’m really excited that they’re starting to be realized.  The paranormal field is such an intriguing and downright mind-blowing area of exploration that it’s hard not to be excited.  If you live in central Florida, are planning a visit to central Florida, or have ever heard of central Florida and you have any interest at all in ghost research, then OtherTown is the place to start and come back to often.   This site seeks to answer the who, what, when, where, how and why questions of all things paranormal related in the area.  There’s lots of great information on places to go, people to meet and ways to do things.  In our ”Exchange” page you can comment on other visitor’s photos, recordings and stories and submit your own if you like.  We’re also searching the web for hot articles that we hope you’ll find interesting and even pulling together some of our own.  There are some really fun OtherTown items for sale in our “Marketplace” (come on, you know you need another t-shirt) as well as tools to help you in your investigations.

And now to talk about something truly near and dear to my heart (and curled up against my feet right now as I write)…  pet rescue.  OtherTown is committed to help find loving homes for homeless pets in central Florida.  To do this, we’re teaming up with Pet Rescue by Judy, a great organization that works tirelessly to get good pets out of bad situations.  Our “Paranormal Pet of the Week” page features a new dog and cat each week that need a home.  In addition to that, we’re creating a special section of our marketplace to sell Paranormal Pet items.  I’m very pleased to announce that 100% of OtherTown’s profits from the sale of these Paranormal Pet items will be donated to Pet Rescue by Judy!  If you don’t live nearby or if you’re just looking for other ways to help, remember that there are countless homeless pets everywhere that are in need of a caring friend like you.  Petfinder.com is a great resource for finding rescues and pets in your area.

So please stick around as OtherTown continues to grow!  And if there’s something you’d like to see, just drop us a line.  It’s our goal to spark our readers’ interest in paranormal research and give them the tools to turn that interest into action.  Visitor feedback is highly encouraged!  Thanks for stopping by and check back often to see what’s new…

May you find the answers you seek…
Jen from OtherTown