Haunted by Gender and Phantoms...

Dark spirits can be buried deep inside the darkened corners of our psyche. What we hide within is often more terrifying than shapeless forms in an old spooky house. When you're gay, lesbian, bisexual, or even transsexual there's an invisible reality within your life, only revealed when you intentionally show your true self to other people. Before that moment you're a hidden ghost haunted by your sexual identity. Perhaps, as one author revealed, you can be haunted by real ghosts at the same time.

In Jennifer Finney Boylan's book I'm Looking Through You: Growing Up Haunted: A Memoir the transsexual English professor writes about her early life in the Lemuel Coffin House outside Philadelphia. Coffin and his business partner Joseph B. Altemus purchased 400 acres around 1881 to create the town of Devon along the Pennsylvania Railroad route. Lemuel passed away in 1895. Boylan's family moved there in 1972. I'm looking Through You chronicles her early life in the haunted house as well as a 2006 return visit to what remains her mother's home with a paranormal investigator named Shelly from Batty About Ghosts whom she found on Meetup (where, as we know, all knowledgeable ghost busters can be found).

In her youth (then known as "James"), Boylan had experienced several unexplained phenomena in the house. The tower, removed in 1944, had been the sight of the death of "some kid" according to a neighbor. There were footsteps coming from the creepy attic, a woman she dubbed "Mrs. Freeze" who appeared in the bathroom mirror before impending disasters, foggy forms, and doors opening and closing by themselves. As a teenager it proved less frightening than humiliating to explain to friends staying overnight, "Now don't worry if you see a blob come out of that closet. Usually it will go away if you whistle Beethoven's Fifth Symphony. If that doesn't work, try the Ninth."

During the revisit with the ghost hunter they may have discovered the ghost of her father in the bedroom where he passed away. Even with all she has experienced, Boylan does not believe in ghosts. "You don't have to believe in ghosts to know what it means to be 'haunted.' I think we all have ghosts of one kind or another. When we're young we're haunted by the people we may become; when we're old we're haunted by the children we used to be." Her book draws parallels between growing up a gender-confused youth seeking acceptance internally as well as societally and the ghostly glimpses from the past making their presence known to a few people. It's a look at what "haunted" truly means.

I'm Looking Through You is a delightfully humorous and fascinating read. For many of us who know less about transsexuals than we do about hauntings it proves to be very educational as well. Watch a brief video tour from the author here:

Ghosts and Goblins Get Down and Dirty...

Everywhere you look these days, paranormal and supernatural themes are quite popular. Some of the most talked about books and movies feature ghosts or vampires. Even on television, the inundation of witchcraft, hauntings, and monsters is extremely obvious. As a society, we love the mysterious, the unknown, and the surreal. And it reflects in everything... including subjects of a more adult nature.

Yes, believe it or not, even pornography has crossed over into these supernatural realms in the past few years.

I debated for a long time whether to touch on the subject here at Spooked! I've always tried to keep subjects humorous yet not too risqué. But in all honesty, we tend to be very sexual beings and at the same time, you can't help but laugh sometimes as these films. So now, I'd like to take a moment to finally give those of you who enjoy such things a little interesting insight into the world where porn meets the paranormal. And for those of you who wish not to subject yourself to such material, feel free to stop reading now and skip along to a different post.

Continue Reading...

Creepy Queer Photo Ops...

It's been too long since I posted any interestingly delightful images. So here's a little something to disturb or brighten your day...

Panic and the Disco

Sexuality and its origins have always been a fiercely debated subject. Is it genetic? Is it a learned trait? Is it both? Even though science has discovered several possibilities, no one can agree.

I heard a stand-up comedian once discuss a German study involving stress and homosexuality. It turns out, her routine was based in fact. The Dresden Study, as it has become known, noted that during World War II, a higher-than-normal percentage of infants born during the bombing of the city ended up being gay or lesbian. Dr. Günter Dörner published his findings in 1982 (Archives of Sexual Behavior, Vol. 11, No. 5, 1982, pp. 445–450). Researchers in America and the United Kingdom confirmed that the stress chromosome cortisol may lead to a decrease in testosterone, causing infants to become homosexual.

Lately, there's been a rise in researchers trying to find physical differences to "weed out" gays and lesbians: the length of ring fingers, left-handedness, number of older brothers, hair patterns, fingerprints, etc. In most circumstances, the traits apply to "many" gays and lesbians, but not all.

So, where do I register on the plethora of scientific babble floating around in cyberspace? Well, my mother suffered from panic attacks during her pregnancy. Check. I am left-handed (supposedly, gays and lesbians are more inclined to be left-handed... us south paws are better with spatial tasks, i.e. art, science, math, architecture, and everyday life). Check. My index finger is shorter than my ring finger. Oops. My hair has a clockwise whorl. Oops. I have no brothers. Oops. I didn't dress like a girl as a child. Oops. I played with toy cars and trains as a child. Oops.

So, science hasn't quite figured things out. Hopefully, they never will. Why do I say that? very simple: it would create a basis for discrimination and extermination. Mothers could choose whether or not to abort a child who might grow up to be homosexual. People with certain key features could be ostracized or excluded from activities and society. Though the world would not instantaneously become an intolerant place, it would be a better breeding ground for people with malevolent intentions.

My sister is pregnant with her first child. With all the dysfunctional genes and health issues running in our family, it will be quite interesting to see how he or she turns out.

I'll try not to stress her out too much to test the hypothesis.

Divination Is the Sincerest Form of Flattery...

Fortune-telling has been around for centuries. People seek out an explanation for why they are the way they are and why their lives follow a certain path. From tasseography (tea leaf reading) to tarot, countless versions exist. Practically anything can be used to gain insight into the client as well as predict their future.

Including body parts.

Most people are aware of palmistry (the ability to tell information of someone's past, present, and future from lines on their hand) and phrenology (reading someone's head shape). But what about other, less-considered physical features? Believe it or not, it's all been done. And I do mean everything.

I thought I'd share a few of the most amusing ones with all of you.

First comes rumpology. Yes, it sounds like the fictitious work of a dirty mind. It is what it sounds like: divination of the buttocks. Ulf Buck of Meldorf, Germany caused quite a stir several years ago when the media picked up on his abilities. Buck, who happens to be blind, claims that the lines and wrinkles on someone's posterior tell a lot about a person. And he's not alone. In the US, Jacqueline Stallone will read your rear for a reasonable US$125 (126 Euros).

Next (surely a favorite for many people) is phallomancy. Yes, you heard me right: divination of the penis. Believe it or not, some people believe you can judge a man's character by it. Of course, I tend to believe you can tell a lot about a man without having him drop his trousers... but if it's in the name of science...

To be fair, there is also mammomancy or mastomancy: divination of the breasts. Obviously a perfect excuse for straight men and lesbians to feel up their girlfriends.

Believe it or not, all of these techniques have existed since ancient times. They aren't simply modern creations brought on by a lustful society. At one time, they were very much accepted and widely practiced. In our modern society, they tend to be met more with a chuckle and a little disdain.

As a society, we strive to move forward while accusing our ancestors of being incompetent and crude. We view ourselves as superior. More advanced. Better educated. We're slowly learning that the ancient world was far less archaic than we've assumed. Perhaps our blushing and tittering at these practices shows us to be far more childish than our predecessors. Or perhaps we are right to scoff at these "bizarre" practices.

Whichever it is, we can all agree that it's quite amusing.