Getting “Spooky” across the USA – 10 of the Spookiest Cities in America

1. Washington, D.C. - One of the most haunted structures in all of Washington, D.C. is the Capitol Building. Specters of every type haunt the hallowed halls, including the ghosts of workers who died during the construction of the rotunda. One spirit died from a fall, the other was crushed to death when a wall collapsed. Prominent historical figures also wander from room to room, including former Presidents John Quincy Adams and James Garfield.

2. Gettysburg- Gettysburg National Park - This Civil War battlefield was on the list last year, and it’s no surprise: The battle claimed nearly 51,000 American lives, and it’s reported that nearly all 40 miles of the Gettysburg battlefields have paranormal activity.Ghosts of soldiers, Native Americans and civilians have been seen roaming the area, and visitors complain of disembodied screams and mysterious smells.

3. New Orleans - finds its way onto this list every year and has been called the most haunted city in the United States. Once a burial ground for Native Americans, the first Europeans to populate the area were French prisoners sent by their government to help build the city.

4. Savannah - Bonaventure Cemetery is considered the most haunted place in all of Savannah. Before it was a cemetery, Bonaventure was the site of a large plantation owned by Josiah Tattnall, Jr. He was known for his lavish parties that drew socialites from all over the city. One night, while Tattnall was hosting one of these galas, the enormous mansion caught fire. It is rumored visitors to the cemetery can still hear the sounds of laughter and clanking silverware, as if the party never stopped.

5. Hollywood -You might not expect to find Los Angeles on this list, but a closer look reveals another side to the city. Perhaps the most famous part of haunted L.A. is the Hollywood sign. Originally a sign for a residential development called “Hollywoodland,” the sign is now an iconic fixture in American cinematic history. It’s also the site of one of the entertainment industry’s many tragedies. Peg Entwistle, an aspiring actress in the 1930’s, jumped to her death from the letter “H” after multiple failed attempts at Hollywood fame. It is said her ghost still haunts the hills surrounding the sign.

6. San Antonio - One of the most famous haunted sites in San Antonio is Mission San Jose. The Mission was erected in the early 1700’s and used to both Christianize the natives and protect the missionaries from those who refused to convert. According to legend, the grounds are haunted by the spirit of a Native American buried there. The spirit comes in the form of a large black dog, wandering the grounds along with a headless priest and the ghost of a woman.

7. Philadelphia- Fort Mifflin, located in Philadelphia, is the only intact Revolutionary War battlefield and is rumored to be haunted by the soldiers who died there. But there are other spirits as well; a woman’s screams have often been heard coming from the Officer’s Quarters. These screams are thought to be those of Elizabeth Pratt, an officer’s wife who hung herself when her estranged daughter died of typhoid. And a faceless man has been seen knitting in Casemate 5, an area used as prison cells for Confederate POWs, while the ghost of a Revolutionary War soldier has been said to give tours of the Fort.

8. Boston - One of Boston’s most famous haunted places is the Boston Athenaeum. It’s one of the oldest independent libraries in America and the site of a famous haunting as reported by The Scarlet Letter author Nathaniel Hawthorne. According to Hawthorne, the ghost of one of his reading partners, the Reverend Doctor Harris, haunted him for weeks at the Athenaeum before disappearing forever. It is not known if Harris’s ghost ever really left.

9. Santa Fe- One of the most famous ghosts that roams the streets of Santa Fe is that of the headless horseman who reportedly rides down Alto Street to the Santa Fe River, brandishing a sword on his way. Legend has it the headless horseman lost his head after complaining to two Santa Fe witches about a love potion they gave him. His spirit won’t leave the area - many visitors report seeing the ghost on horseback at the banks of the river.

10. Salem - We all know Salem was the site of the infamous Witch Trials, and the city is supposedly haunted by the spirits of the women who fell victim to the hysteria of the 1690’s. But there’s more to haunted Salem than ghosts of accused witches. One of the spookiest places in Salem is the House of the Seven Gables. Built in 1668, the home is rumored to be haunted by the wife of the captain who built it. Employees and visitors alike have reported seeing the ghost of a woman peering out the windows, and some have heard the ghost of a young boy playing with his toys in the attic. It’s said the spirits are former residents of the home who cannot bear to leave.

Tips For Staying Warm This Winter

1    1.  Avoid wearing cotton! - Cotton traps moisture against your skin. Through convection, cold air and moisture work together to replace the heat that your body generates with cold energy. Use moisture wicking polyesters or another synthetic material that will wick the moisture away from your skin.2

.        2.  Remember to layer up! -This refers to the way you dress. Start with soft layers against the skin and finish with a nylon material that will challenge wind, rain and snow. The idea is that as the temperature changes, you can add or remove clothing that will keep you warm enough.

3.      3.  Make sure you eat -Your body will generate heat as it burns the fuel you have fed it. Eat foods that are high in fat content and calories. Remember that a calorie is actually a unit of measure that measures heat! Warm foods and hot drinks will really warm you on a cold day.

4.     4.  Drink liquids - When it is below freezing the air will draw moisture out of you. If you are dehydrated it is harder for your body to keep you warm.5

5.      5.  Wear a Hat and Gloves - If your feet are cold put a hat on. Your body will close off circulation to your fingers and feet if you head gets cold. Your head will not feel cold but your feet will. By putting on a hat you will warm up your head and the circulation will return to your cold feet warming them up.

6.       6.  Keep moving! As your body works, it generates heat as a byproduct. Use those layers to keep the heat. Much of your body heat is circulated via the blood stream. Wiggle those toes and fingers to get heat there, too.

7.       7.  Create a Personal Heater -  If you are spending the night in the cold, try boiling water and putting it into a secure water bottle wrapped in a sock. Go ahead and throw the water bottle(s) in your sleeping bag while you sleep in the tent.

Why Buying American Made is So Important

There was a time when America produced what its citizens needed and wanted. We were proud to have abundant natural resources and dedicated people to do this. Today we have squandered our ability to use these resources and put ourselves in the position of having to depend on others.

We have lost our Pride! We are losing our self confidence to believe that we can regain what we have squandered.

Near 10% unemployment, about 30,000,000 people not working; is this a lasting legacy of the movement of manufacturing and farm products to low wage countries? What is the new norm, but a euphemism for “not to expect that we will return to our previous grandeur; to settle for less”. Is the American Dream gone forever? It doesn’t have to be.

There is a real “Food Movement” starting in America. To set the path away from the multi-international corporations and the food preparation industries and the fast food companies that have created unhealthy diet, which have multiplied the number of illnesses such as Diabetes 2, heart diseases, and some forms of cancers in the American populations, toward a more sustainable and healthy food chain closer to the localities from local farms and Farmer Market distributors.

The idea of the Movement is that we can do better than what is being done now and is a prima facie case for all manufacturing and distribution. We can get our pride back and build a better America by getting back to our roots.

Small businesses do not move away to distant lands to produce its products they stay and compete. Large corporations have built well known brands in America, then move away to produce what they sell in America. What they don’t know is that they take our pride from all of us. Not only have the skills of factory workers, but also the knowledge of our research scientists and information technology, and increasingly the creative aspirations of our young people.

Loss of our pride can easily be seen when an unshackled financial industry can reap billions and cause a debacle that affects all of us more than it does them. The Food Movement needs to morph into a total reversing movement to regain our pride by doing what made us great to begin with.

Grow our own food, build our own products in our own factories, and allow our young people to have the opportunity to the creative genius that still exists in America.

To understand fully the impact of the transferring our industrial legacy, one must view the total devastation of the fiber, textile and apparel manufacturing in the US.

America was the world leader in the production of synthetic fibers. The premier researchers and developers of innovative uses of these fibers since the 1930’s. Billions of pounds of fibers were manufactured in the US providing employment for not only the factory workers and managers, but also, for the many thousands employed to creatively seek new markets and build consumer demands in the textile markets for home furnishings, apparel, automotive interiors, tires, ecosystems and many other end use products.

All the science, technology and manufacturing know how is now gone from our shores. They are now closer to their direct customers in the textiles production.

The textile industries production of yarn spinning, fabric formations, dyeing and finishing skills with its attendant technology to create fabrics to meet the needs of the American consumer who employed thousands of skilled workers in their factories have moved; forced to do so by the market forces and a system created by the political fantasy that it would be best for US citizens.

This political fantasy that apparel manufacturing would be best if it also moved to low wage producing lands pulling not only manufacturing but also the largest retailers in world to set up their procurement departments in these same low wage producing countries. There were literally hundreds of thousands garment workers that are now not needed by these factories in America.

Many of the total number of US citizens employed by these industries are now among the 30,000,000 unemployed or underemployed Americans. We have been told that this give away of America’s manufacturing prowess, believed to have been the finest in the world and to have delivered the goods to help our Armed Forces defeat the totalitarian regimes 60 years ago and then to help build the greatest middle class known to mankind is now but shell of its former self. To be replaced by what? Do you know or can you see what our political establishment vision is?

We want our collective pride back!