A Message From My Mom

Women – I have something to discuss with you today.  I just know this is going to touch your hearts as much as it touches mine.  Are you ready for the topic?  Car problems.  There you go – I heard your sighs all the way here at the Hotel Thompson.  Why do car problems bother us so much?

As a younger woman, I tinkered with cars.  Can you believe that?  But coming from a large family where I have seven older brothers, my dad made sure I knew my way around a car.  I have a fond memory of when me and Jim first started dating.  I had a Dodge Omni at the time that was unreliable as a Dollar Store pregnancy test.  One time, I was going home from his house.  His mom/dad followed us because they knew my car was unreliable.  About half way home, sure enough my car stopped running.  I pulled over to the side of the road and got the flash light out of the glove box.  I handed it to Jim where he proceeded to look at me like a deer in the headlights.  He said, “What do you want me to do?”  Without missing a beat, I opened my door and said, “Hold the flashlight for me.”  So there we were outside of the car, hood up, Jim holding the flashlight and me tinkering underneath it with the carburetor.  That’s how Jim’s mom/dad found us when they rolled up beside us… of course they were laughing hysterically and yes I got it running again.

So, I’m not a stranger to the makings of a car; however, with all of the newer electronics in cars these days, I’m not as good as I once was.  That’s when last week on Thursday my check engine light came on and I squealed like Bacon.  Really?  It’s already a tough time of the year.  I’m closing the year 2015 at work and I can’t begin to tell you that my mind is mush from all of the number crunching.  I had so many errands to run last weekend – grocery shopping, pharmacy, plasma donations, Houdini needed a bath, Bacon needed piggy chow and the purr things were about to abandon the Hotel Thompson if they didn’t get some treats and fresh litter.  So my hands were full as well as my calendar and wallet.

Being resourceful though and Jim still to this day not having a mechanically inclined touch in his entire body, I did what any solid mind girl would do.  I sat down and had me a cry.  You know one of those gut sucking the world is coming to an end cries.  Of course this was outside of the Hotel Thompson.  Had it been and the anipals heard me, I would have been licked to death 🙂

And do you know what else doesn’t work when your Check Engine light is on?  Take a guess – your remote start.  Now, remote start is one of those things that I didn’t think I would use all that often if ever and I never thought I would miss it.  Let me tell you something.  I missed it totally!  I use it to turn on the Jeep in the mornings to get the frost off the windows.  I use it running to the car in the evenings to turn on the heat before I get in.  Gosh, I was missing this!

After my cry, I hit the internet and researched the problem with the Jeep.  That’s when I learned two things.  The Jeep has a lot of extras that I didn’t know about (which is good) and I found the problem (which is better.)  You see, if the check engine light comes on and flashes – then you have an engine problem – good to know huh?  But if the check engine light comes on solid, then more than likely it’s a gas problem.  It could be either you got cheap gas, the gas cap is dirty or the gas cap is not tight.  Looking back at where I got gas the last time, I think it was dirty.  So with a paper towel in hand, I took the gas cap off, cleaned it and then put it back on tight.  Now it says in the manual that you may have to crank, drive around and park it 4-5 times before the light goes off – if you fixed the problem.

For the entire weekend, it never went off.  Really karma?  Can’t you throw me a curve?  So there I was running errands and with every re-crank begging to the Gods to fix it but it didn’t.  I had enough Sunday night so I went to bed early.  I was tired, cranky and frustrated.  I get up to go to work Monday, walk to the car, crank it and oh my glory heavens – the light was gone.  I swear I heard angels singing.  Really I did.

So my question women – why do car problems frustrate us??

 

Bacon’s Tales of Terror – Special Guest

 Squeals with piggy delight.  My friends I have scored the ultimate story for your today on my Bacon’s Tales of Terror.  Mommy has helped me to get in touch with Mr. Dave Schrader.  If you know anything about the paranormal field, you will recognize the name.  Dave Schrader does a talk show where he is the host and producer of Darkness Radio.  If you haven’t heard of his show, you *must* check it out for chills and thrills.  Dave Schrader has also been seen on television with Zak Bagans on Ghost Adventures, co-hosted the show Paranormal Challenge with Zak Bagans and has made contributions to Ghost Hunters TAPS ParaMagazine.  Dave Schrader currently lives in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

We are VERY excited to present a story from Dave Schrader today on our Bacon’s Tales of Terror.  Now, settle back and enjoy my friends!

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It was August of 2005 and our radio show was entering its 8th month on the air when I received an invitation to be a part of a psychic and shamanic exploration at Thayer’s Bed and Breakfast in Annandale, MN.  Since I have no psychic bones in my body, I thought I would check it out and see if I could learn something new and tap into some psy experience for myself. I would be surrounded in a peaceful environment with mediums, psychics and shamans at a well known haunted location.  This might be my best chance yet to witness some interesting phenomena.

I say quietly watching people mill about, discussing what they were picking up on, what spirits they sensed and generally soaking in the atmosphere. During my observation, the resident cat – a large fluffy white beastie – decided I was its new friend and would not leave my side, lap or feet. It stuck to me like I was made of tuna. I stroked the cat like an evil Bond villain as I sat and watched a fascinating scene unfold before me of shared experiences, giddy claims of ghostly presence and some chilling moments as part of the group relayed a story about the creepy man on the top floor that leapt to the wall and skittered up and across the ceiling like a Victorian Spider-Man.

Next came an extraordinary experiment. We were all going to tap into ourselves, meet our spirit guides and do a Shamanic journey. We laid upon the ground, spread eagle and not touching ourselves or others nearby while Hanakia Zedek gently beat a drum to some soothing music and in his deep voice guided us to a meditative trance. By this time, the room lights had been dimmed and the room had been cleared of all cats, kids and other distractions.  We were to just BE in the moment and experience the darkness, the music and open ourselves to contact with our totem, spirit guides or loved ones.

As I lay trying to quiet my mind and the senseless chatter that usually clutters it, I found myself getting more restless, unable to attain the nirvana our leader wanted us to achieve.  That was when my furry friend found his way back to my side.  He would nuzzle my hip and flop on my hand seeking affection and attention. I would pet him for a few seconds than push him away so I could try to slip into a deep meditation, but my kitty companion wasn’t having it. He kept purring, nuzzling and pushing against me.

After 20 minutes or so all with my eyes closed, I finally relented and began giving him the love he craved. My hands scratching the deep fur bringing about even more purrs and nuzzles. I began to wonder how much longer this foray into futility would continue with our Shamanic leader. Obviously I was not going to become more enlightened or have a profound moment.  I opened my eyes and glanced down to see which cat was so desperately in need of my attention. My eyes widened, my hand stopped mid scratch and I froze. I could feel the cat purring, pushing against my leg and hand simultaneously but to my utter amazement, there was no cat there.

 I paused assuming my eyes were playing tricks on me and that they had just not adjusted properly to the low light setting.  I closed them tightly, drew in a deep breath and began digging deep into the fur of phantom friend once more. I opened my eyes a second time and there was my hand, hovering mid-air, stroking….emptiness. There was no cat to bee seen, but I could feel and hear it. Within moments, the drumming stopped and the lights began to lift as they adjusted the dimmer switch, our journey to the ether-world was at an end yet here I was stroking an imaginary cat.

The crowd milled about in a semi comatose state. My brain raced trying to make sense of what had just happened to me. I was afraid to speak up for fear of looking like a fool despite the wild claims I had heard from other experiencers all night long. Then I heard the group begin to discuss their personal reflections of the drumming and meditation when one of the people spoke up and said, “How about the ghost cat?” Many in the group admitted to seeing a ghostly cat all night long checking us out and stalking the room. Still I stood silent.

“He was sure curious about what we were doing. I heard the owner say her favorite cat passed away a few weeks back, its nice to know he still calls this home.:”  I was astounded, did I just spend 30 minutes petting a specter? I don’t even like cats I thought to myself, why did he mess with me?

The crowd dispersed and a few days later I got an email from a girl that also attended the event. She had laid to my immediate right and she informed me she knew I had an experience and she had been petting that same cat all night. We had been ping ponging the cat between us for the evening when we would try to focus on the guided meditation and brush it off, it would move to the other one of us.
That was one of the first truly amazing experiences I ever had that was more than a fleeting moment that could easily be explained away and I will cherish that forever.

– Dave Schrader

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Friends – we hope you enjoyed our special guest today.  We would also like to throw a great huge THANK YOU to Dave Schrader for taking time to share his story.  You rock!!