Giant Footprint in Africa

Recently, a fellow explorer in the realm of strange and unusual sent the following link for a YouTube video (Giant Footprint).  In the video, Michael Tellinger, an author and explorer, is standing next to what appears to be a giant footprint in, according to Tellinger, solid granite.  The footprint is upright, seemingly the work of some past geological upheaval, and appears to show where a massive foot (belonging to someone over 7 meters tall) stepped in soil in the past and left this fossilized record.  The imprint even seems to depict where the toes had dug in and pushed up the mud at sometime in the past.  So, the question is... Is it Real?

To begin with, before we answer the first question, let's back up and ask a more fundamental question:  Is it at all possible that giants existed?  Now, that is a much more wizardly topic... is it not?  Ok... so, let me adjust my glasses to the end of my nose and appear more scholarly...  there... now...

Oh... let me just state that, for clarity's sake, a mythology, to me, is a religion that has, for all intents and purposes, failed.  Otherwise, it is a religion with extant believers...

Anyway...

We can look at a number of mythologies/religions to show that, at some point in the collective memory of humanity, giants imprinted themselves on our minds, suggesting that there may be some basis of fact for our large, hominid cousins we think of as giants.  For instance, Judeo-Christian scriptures speak of giants in the book of Genesis, and Norse mythology speaks about the Frost Giants (or Jotunn) from Jotunheimr that intermarried with, but often stood in opposition to, the Norse gods.  In Greek and Roman mythology, we have Titans, Cyclopes, Laistrygonians (or Laestrygonians) and myriad of other gigantic hominids revealing themselves.  Pangu (or Pan Gu) appears in oriental mythology, and in Celtic mythlogy, The giant/god Bran led the giants of Wales in battle.  Finally, giants also appear in Native American and Mayan/Incan myths as well.  I will not go into anything specifically here, unless I get asked to.  However, I think the concept of giant hominids is pervasive enough to suggest that they once walked the earth.  Perhaps they still do (bigfoot, sasquatch, yeti, that guy who played chewbacca...oh forget that last one.)  Anyway, I think we could safely argue that it is possible that giants existed.  Now, let's get back to the footprint and our first question... Is it Real?

Ok... (putting on my Science Hat).  To begin with, if the footprint is real.  It could not be in granite.  Why?  Well kids, granite is an igneous rock (and you thought third grade science would never come back to haunt you...).  It forms from magma in the very belly of the earth (ok at least a mile deep).  So, if this giant existed and the rock is granite, the giant must have put its foot in cooling magma a mile or so deep in the earth's crust (I know... a thousand hollow earthers just punched the sky).  Or, the giant had the ability to produce extreme heat as it walked (titans?).  Either way, it is somewhat doubtful that the rock is granite.  Sadly, then, this opens up a great deal of speculation since most other rock is fairly carve-able and can erode quickly (in relation to granite).

Secondly, if the print is real and depicts where the toes pushed the molten magma up... why didn't the years pushing up through the surface flatten the overhang?  Again, maybe if it was granite... but granite can be carved as well (Stone Mountain and has been for centuries, almost as long as we had senses of humor and wanted to play practical jokes.).  So, I find myself believing in the possibility of giants, but... I do not think the footprint is real.

Of course, I don't believe in Donald Trump either... I mean, his hair is more gravity defying than the toe-push in the giant footprint.

Fee Fi Fo Fum....

Defining Magic



Ok... so I promised that, as a Wizard, I would give tips and tricks here and there to all of my would-be apprentices on magic, mysticism, and the like.  Well, I am not your Dumbledore.  So, don't expect me to answer ridiculous questions about love potions, moneymaking spells, or enchantments to help you get ahead.  However, I will, from time to time, post some good information on the mystical, and this is one of those occasions.  Of course, I am going to rant a bit as well... good with the bad and all that... anyway...

One thing that tremendously irks me is when people lump everything out there into the category of "Magic."  It muddies the waters for true seekers and irritates the snarf out of those of us who know what we are talking about.  So, before I let anything else out of the bag, I wanted to set the fundamental paradigm in your heads as to what Magic (capital M intended) is.  However, to do that, I will start with what Magic is not.

Magic, the real stuff, is not legerdemain or sleight of hand.  Now, admittedly, a good deal of what a great stage illusionist can pull off appears magical (don't get me started on the Statue of Liberty trick) and, some magic folk, mix real stuff into stage acts just to be annoying, but while a tremendous skill and hard to develop, stage illusion is not real Magic per se.

Curses are also not magical in the true sense of the word.  Curses are, instead, a supreme act of willpower.  Basically, the person performing the curse focuses the entirety of their will on sending malignancy toward the intended sufferer.  There is no magic involved, but there is a definite cost to the performer's soul as the life of the curse is directly tied to the ongoing will of the enacter.  This is why curses, like the Evil Eye (Malocchio in Italian) are often done when the enacter is enraged or grief-stricken.  The enacter literally channels all of that emotion through their soul and uses a piece to harm someone.  She or he also pays the price in return, and it is non-refundable, so to speak.

Witchcraft and Satanism are also not Magic.  In fact, any arcane system that requires that practitioner to invoke spirits, demons, otherworldly forces, ancestral ghosts, etc. should not be lumped in with Magic less you offend crotchety, old mages like me.  Real wizards do NOT use energy from other sentient beings or animals in any way.  So, I suppose this would also include anything that involves animal sacrifice and voodoo.

Similarly, blessings, prayers and faith magic, OF ANY RELIGION OR MYTHOLOGY, are not magic.  Again, you are calling on forces outside of yourself for results.  These are acts of faith rewarded or divine intervention.  They are not magical, but may be considered mystical.

Ok, so, what is Magic with a capital M?  Magic, real magic, is an innate ability to tap a preternatural power supply within the user to achieve results in reality.  In other words, systems that speak about the focusing of Chi, or Animus, and the like would fall into the realm of real magic as long, and this is important, as the user is simply using her or his own abilities.  Magic is also quite transient for the most, and truly dies with the user.  So, the spells on Egyptian tombs?  Not magic, but acts of faith, calling on old spirits and deities to guard a tomb.

So, how do you find real magic?  You do not.  You are born with it, and you know, from some dim racial memory, exactly what I mean.  It is something in the very bloodline you carry inside of you.  It rings when certain things happen.  It reacts when the conditions are right.  It feels the pull of the storm and the deep welling of the ocean.  It grows in the face of these things and you feel that buoyancy intimately. 

You can sense ghosts with it and spirits.  It can give some glimpses of true insight and others what is ahead.  It can tell you the history of place just by setting foot on its soil or floor, and it flows from a complete agreement of heart and soul.

This then is real magic.  Play with it at your own risk.

The Language that Texters Cannot Speak

I'd love to say that this entry focuses on how texting is destroying the English Language (which, by the way, it is!), but I have an actually greater concern regarding texting that I need to get out there.

Now, I am certain that there are probably psychological or critical articles out there that address this, though I truly did not perform any research to confirm it.  Regardless, something I witnessed, not too long ago, convinces me that we (being humanity) are in danger of losing our ability to converse in our most basic method of communication: body language.  Moreover, I blame it all on texting.

Now, I know what you are thinking.  "He's just some old, grumpy wizard who hates modern technology."  Not so, I say!  In fact, when the abacus came out, I was first in line.  I think I still have it around here somewhere with my Green Acres lunchbox.  But, I digress... texting... evil.  Got it.  I think that, more and more, people are going to lose the ability to recognize the subtle changes or abrupt alterations in body language, because they are simply no longer able to understand them.  Don't believe me?  Here's what I observed.

Several months ago, I was in a video game store, GameStop actually.  It is one of my favorite stores because it carries games for multiple systems and puts great bargains on used items.  Also, the employees are all a bit crazy, and that makes them perfect for avid gamers.  (See I do like modern technology).  Anyway, I was in the store, perusing the new and used Wii games, when the manager, a friend of mine, left for his break.  In doing so, he left the store in the hands of a gentlemen who was very knowledgeable, but who loved to text, even at work.

At the time, there were two young boys in the store and another gentleman, who was viewing the Xbox games.  I went back to looking over the games the store was offering, and after a few moments, a couple came in.  Now, I worked for some time in a retail store, and you pick up the ability to read people if you pay attention.  This couple was easy to read.

She was dressed to the nines, and he was wearing a tweed jacket and jeans.  She was unhappy, obviously so, and he did not care.  You could clearly see it in the way she moved and the way he ignored her.  Any smart person would have the couple on their own, but the eager, young clerk decided to help.  He was missing all the clues. 

The gentleman was going through the games, even multiple copies, one by one, glancing up to make sure his partner was still there and wearing a smirk as he did so.  She was tapping her foot loudly enough for me to hear it, and it was quite clear she did not want to be there.  Again, the clerk missed it all as he approached them.

"Can I help you?"  He asked politely.

"No." She said, narrowing her eyes (a signal for him to back off).

"Sure.  I would like a game."  He partner said.  "Something exciting."

I could see the train wreck coming, but could not stop watching.

Soon, the clerk was pointing out various games, while the woman became increasingly agitated.  At that point, he made the fatal error.  He noticed a book she was clutching.  The cover showed a beautiful young woman with half a zombie face.  I believe it is called Pride, Prejudice, and Zombies.  Anyway, the clerk says "Oh, from looking at your wife here, I see you are into Zombie Horror."  Unfortunately, due to his accent, of sorts, the last word sounded like an unpleasant word for a call girl.  Sadly, that is what the woman heard.  She rounded on him, and the argument exploded.  In the end, the clerk missed the sale, got a slap on the face, and hid miserably behind the counter after calling mall security.  What an adventure.

Later, the store manager confronted the clerk as to what happened.  As the clerk was explaining, I wandered back into the store, and the clerk told the manger "ask that guy, he was here."  The manager asked me, and I related what I had seen.  The manager then asked the clerk if he had noticed how upset the woman was.  The clerk admitted he did not even see it.  He then said that he was not sure he would have know what to look for.  When we asked the clerk if he paid attention to body language, he told us that it was not something he noticed, and stated clearly that he spoke to most of his friends and family via texts.  "So," he said shrugging, "body language doesn't mean much to me."

Believe it or not, I have heard this and seen it several times since then in various circumstances.  It is scary to behold, and it makes my concern rise.  Body language is key to our interaction and understanding, losing it would be bad indeed. 

Anyway, I am done with my rant at this point.  But, you can get another cool take on body language by looking up the show "Lie to Me."  The show provides a dramatic-comic view of how a person can use body language to almost read your mind.  It is awesome, though it is going off the air.

Well... until we are all just numbers, I'll be watching from all angles.  So, let me know your thoughts, or make a gesture... that works too.  At least for now... (cue scary sequel music).



We Need a New Godzilla!

Growing up, some of my favorite movies were, or are, the original Godzilla movies by Toho.  I am not talking about the miserable, misbegotten film with Matthew Broderick.  Nor am I talking about any of the most recent (3rd gen maybe?) films by Toho.  I am talking about those awesome movies where you know the cities are made of balsa wood and the monsters are just people in rubber suits.

There is a near wholesomeness of destruction and lack of contrivance when you watch the campy action (remember the flying Godzilla kick in the movie with Megalon?) and watch the disparity between the original script and the badly dubbed English.  It makes each film worth seeing just to marvel at how Toho threw these together but still managed to make a great film. 

So, why do the new monster movies (Super 8, Cloverfield, atc.) fail to measure up when they have an infinitely bigger budget and access to CGI?  One word, focus.

Now, I am not ranting over camera focus, but over the movie itself.  In newer monster movies, even some of the later Toho features, the script becomes more about the humans involved than the monsters themselves.  For instance, compare Godzilla vs. Mothra to Cloverfield.  In the classic Godzilla, you see and hear more of the monsters than you do the people running around trying to stop them.  You don't get to care if these two firends make it out alive, or if the boy gets the girl.  You are watching the movie to see Tokyo, yet again, trashed.  You are watching to see monsters fighting monsters or crushing buildings.  The human aspect is ancillary.

My kids can watch early Godzilla movies becuase they are fairly clean, and when they do, they don't ask me about the school teacher or the scientist who is running around.  They ask me why Godzilla is using his fist instead of his breath, or why the one baby Mothra moves differently.  The monsters become the actors.  They gain personality and, in some sense, a cause for the viewer to rally behind.

Bring me more peple in rubber suits, less CGI, and kill the humanity in the script.  What audiences want are monsters who act.  And, I am not talking about Cruise or Sheen folks.  Can the FX and bring on the Latex.  Wow, that sounded almost as obscene as the script for the last Superman movie.  That, however, is another rant altogether.

No Autographs, Please.

I know a lot about a lot.  Not bragging, trust me, it's the truth.  I can talk exponentially on just about any topic.  Just ask my family, friends, co-workers, etc.  No one likes to play trivia with me.  I've been accused of everything from memorizing all the answers in the trivia deck to reading the answers in the person's glasses or contacts.  I also like to talk.  Hence, the blog.  Oddly enough, I am not a fan of the digital world, as I feel that the written word (i.e. books for you kindle-addicts) have a near mystical embuement from the ink being pressed into the pages.  Not to mention that at some point, humans are going to cease to be able to communicate in person and grow text pads instead of tongues.  Regardless, I decided to go online.  Why?  So I can share my rants, raves, schemes and dreams with all of you eager apprentices.  Read my blog and I guaranty three things.

1. You will gain a ton of information on a wide variety of subjects.

2. I will offend you at some point.

3. There will be truly mystical passages hidden throughout the blog.  Find the right lines of text, and you might find real magic hidden here.

So, on with motley...