Greetings!

Welcome to our little blog. Turn out the lights, pull up a chair, light a candle and join us in the Haunted Heartland!







Wednesday, December 12, 2012

December Musings


Well, here we are again. Winter weather is here!

It's the end of another year, and perhaps the end of the world if we listen to some of the folks who believe it all comes to a grinding stop on December 21st.  I am of the belief that perhaps this will not be the dire event that some people believe it to be, but rather a bit of an awakening spiritual for many people. I think the sun will set on December 21st and will rise again on December 22nd and life will continue on. (hopefully!)

It's been a busy year. Even though I cut my schedule down quite a bit, it was still chaotic! The last book came out in January, there were book signings to attend, haunted events to put together, overnight ghosthunts to attend, kids to enjoy, a house to plan, a husband to supervise and all while working on yet another book. 

It seems as if research is never done. I love the research part of any project to the point that I believe I must have been a project manager in another life. (that would be sandwiched between my previous life as a country singer and my other past life as a Confederate soldier LOL)



  Research on book #5 (2014 Trans Allegheny Lunatic Asylum) will continue and I hope it will be out in late 2014. Before my favorite holiday of Halloween would be ideal! 

Book #4 should be out in a week or two...and will hopefully be a great resource for lovers of West Virginia hauntings and folklore. It is called "Fireside Folklore of West Virginia"


The new book will feature 24 chapters with each chapter focusing on old, and not so old, haunting's and folklore across the Mountain State. I was very happy to have Lisa Minney, owner and publisher of West Virginia's largest independent publication, write the foreward for the book. Thank you, Lisa and thank you Two-Lane Livin'!!
 To write a book is like giving birth. Cigars, anyone?


Power outages during the Franken -Storm

Halloween this year was very odd. Never before have I seen that much snow at one time!
We had the effects of a Noreaster hit us while Hurricaine Sandys moisture added to the mix. All in all we had about 3 feet of snow in central West Virginia. The power was off for 8 days. What fun though! I DID miss hot water, but it was great to slow down a bit and enjoy life. Farm chores had to be done in daylight hours, house cleaning was minimal, and water to wash with was warmed on the woodstove. I read by oil lamp and flashlight at night. Kinda cool. On the down side of the storm, people lost homes, business roofs collapsed (8 here in Nicholas County WV) and food spoiled. Many people lost entire freezers and fridges full of food. Gas stations couldn't pump gas if they did not have electric and of course, that added to the chaos. We survived though!

Snow on the Swinging Bridge and broken trees



Website Updates!

Tour dates, festivals, conferences, and events that I am scheduling will be posted at my website this month www.HauntedHistory.net  
 I have already listed the Ohio State Reformatory dates for 2013. They will go up for sale online on Saturday January 5th at noon. The Reformatory holds a warm spot in my heart...and always will. Strange how a building can "grab" you like that. One of the volunteers told me years ago that the building picked her...not the other way around, So true!

The Ohio State Reformatory


Mobile Phone update

Our website is now a more mobile friendly website with text that is much easier to read on smaller screens and a sleeker more simple design. Check it out on your smart phone at www.HauntedHistory.net

    




As the month draws nearer to its end,
 I hope you have a great Christmas season and a wonderful, memory filled New Year!

Sherri Brake





Thursday, March 1, 2012

March already?

It's March?

Gosh.

I just got done packing away the last of my Christmas wreaths last week.






Well, not really but has time flown by or what? May be that time went by so quickly as I had my little head buried in my new little book.



The new book

Me at the "haunted" office with the first of the books rolling in. Happy day!


It published December 31st 2011, and just in time for me to celebrate New Years Eve! Actually, it's not THAT little. 618 pages and a weight of 2.2 pounds make it's a tad bit bigger than my "Birds of West Virginia"  manual. Seriously though...it was a labor of love. What is it with me and old prisons? My mom is starting to worry!



That would be me at the Pen in the "alamo" section of North Hall.

With all the hubub about 2012, polar shifts, planets aligning, and the Mayan calender, I think it'll be an interesting year for sure! How about you? I thought about planning an End of the World party on Friday December 21st and thought twice about it. Hey, why tempt fate?


So March is here and with it the arrival of spring is sure thing. Outdoor chores will start back up and oh....nice weather arrives and beckons me to explore some haunts and old cemeteries. Not that I don't mind checking out old buildings and cemeteries in sub zero weather but these bones are getting, dare I say it, old? If I can't have heated truck seats and a thermos of hot coffee, I may actually think twice about heading out anymore. HA!





Well, it felt good to stretch the typing fingers a bit today. Everyone keeps pestering me to blog more and I promise I will try harder!
I've been a bit out of commission with bronchitis this past week and it put me behind. I'm ready to open up the widows, breathe deeply, and get outside to investigate haunted locations and spooky cemeteries. Just as long as I can sit on those heated truck seats and sip my coffee outta my favorite WV Pen travel mug. :-)

 Life is....haunted.

Now how about some suggestions for places to explore???