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Book Review
Dracula's Whitby by Ian Thompson
Sharpen your fangs and prepare to bite into this this new book focussing on the Whitby that Bram Stoker would have been more than familiar with. In this new book by author Ian Thompson, and published by Amberley Press, we are invited along on an exploration of old Whitby town and discover for ourselves the places and locations that Stoker, and indeed his Dracula, frequented. Read More »
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Doon Hill and Robert Kirk
Doon Hill and the Old Kirk in Aberfoyle, will forever be associated with the Reverend Robert Kirk, who wrote the Secret Commonwealth in 1691. The book is an essay on the nature and social structure of supernatural beings or fairies. Robert was a seventh son, said to have been gifted with second sight. Read More »
Xenormal's basically a fancy word for "make sure you look into all feasibilities when investigating". Importantly, this includes exploring issues you may not have come across before.
Firstly, we definitely need a word for 'stuff that appears paranormal but isn't'. It's a lot quicker than repeating that phrase, or something similar, every time. Given that the majority of apparent paranormal incidents turn out, on investigation, to be xenonormal, it would be weird not to have a word for it.
Secondly, xenonormal also refers to the fact that most apparently paranormal incidents consist of someone simply not recognising what they are experiencing. It is something natural that they either don't recognise for some reason or they've never come across it before. It's really quite amazing how many paranormal reports can be described like that.
Yes, it's very useful to have a shorter phrase for explaining these things!
In many cases, the real problem with sorting the wheat from the chaff comes when you have the xenormal mixed in with an ardent belief in spirits or suchlike. For me, alarm bells always ring when you hear a possible witness talking about sending spirits to the light etc. In these situations, the xenonormal is often interpreted to fit their personal beliefs, potentially skewing things further and making it more difficult to find from the underlying cause.
Firstly, we definitely need a word for 'stuff that appears paranormal but isn't'.
Paraparanormal?