Tuesday, June 19, 2012

The end . . .



Well, dear friends, it is time to bid farewell to this month's featured author, Cano Davy.  Cano and his work at New York State Paranormal Research has certainly been very interesting to research and write about.  I hope that you have enjoyed learning about Cano's work and are looking forward to meeting him this Thursday, June 21st at 6pm at Frank J. Basloe Library in Herkimer.  I know that I look forward to meeting him in person and picking up one of his books, Ghost Hunting in the Mohawk Valley.

You can also look forward to seeing Cano on an upcoming episode of The Haunted Collector, on the SyFy Channel http://www.syfy.com/hauntedcollector/episodes.

   Here is a picture of the crew from The Haunted Collector and Me .They came in and Investigated a very active home ,that we have investigated for 2 yrs now.This was a very interesting adventure for the crew and I...Keep a eye out for this episode.WE captured class a responses some video and a very negative energy in the home that would swear at me every time I walked out of a room.." Cano Davy.




I am taking a few days off to celebrate my daughter's graduation from High School this weekend, but when I return, I will reveal July's local author of the month and the contest.  Until then, here is a hint about next month's author:

In July, we will travel 363 miles with this author!


Until next week, happy reading my dear friends!


Monday, June 18, 2012

Throughout the month of June, I have been writing about Cano Davy, his new book Ghost Hunting in the Mohawk Valley which he co-authored with Marcus Zwierecki and Lynda Lee Macken, and New York State Paranormal Research in anticipation of Cano Davy's appearance in Herkimer at Frank J. Basloe Library and the Herkimer County Historical Society.

Due to technical difficulties, Cano will ONLY be at Frank J. Basloe Library this Thursday, June 21 at 6pm.  He will be rescheduling the lecture at the Herkimer County Historical Society for later in the summer.

As I prepare to wrap up this month's featured author and the contest, I would like to share some links for NYSPR:


WUTR feature:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HZIuUWQmq24

NYPR's myspace:
http://www.myspace.com/nysparanormalresearch

Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/pages/New-York-State-Paranormal-Research/336049929950

Website:
http://www.nyspr.us/Pages/default.aspx



NYSPR has investigated several area "haunts" including the Herkimer Jail (on the historic four corners) and the Indian Castle church.  Interesting in what other places they have researched?  Come to Frank J. Basloe Library this Thursday and pick up a copy of the book!

Interested in becoming part of the NYSPR team? They currently have two openings for interested parties, but BEWARE!  Becoming part of the team involves a grueling interview process! If you are interested, you can contact Cano Davy on Facebook by liking New York State Paranormal Research, or by contacting them through their website.

I would like to thank Cano Davy and Marcus Zwierecki for taking the time out of their busy schedules to participate in this month's contest on behalf of Frank J. Basloe Library, for their donation of their book as the prize, for the donation of a copy for the "stacks" and for coming to the library to share their book and time with the people of Herkimer.

Tomorrow:
One last peek into NYSPR and Cano Davy!


Winner of book to be announced Thursday morning!






Tuesday, June 12, 2012



Exciting? Scary? Real? Fake?  These clips from the SciFy Channel's Ghost Hunter's show the best of drama filled television.  Let's face it, without "evidence" of ghosts, there would be no drama and that would make terrible television.  The work that Cano Davy and New York State Paranormal Research is involved with looks very little like what you see on television, and it is a lot less glamorous.

Cano shared that when he and his group investigate paranormal activity, it involves not just long, tedious hours spent in incredible dark places, but it also involves countless hours of review of evidence after the fact.  However, before the hunting of the haunting can even begin, a lengthy investigation must first take place.

Co-founder of the group, Marcus Zwierecki, says that they are first made aware of a possible case by receiving a phone call from a distraught potential client.  The first job of NYSPR is to assure the person that they are not going "crazy, for lack of a better word."  Then a member of the group meets with the person to conduct a "face-to-face interview in order to gain more information."  The next step in the process, sends NYSPR off on a fact finding journey about the past homeowners and the history of the property and land.  They often find that their best resources are historical societies, local librarians, and other people who live around the property.

Once all this preliminary work has been exhausted, only then can NYSPR schedule an investigative appointment, that will usually take about "four or five hours."  The investigative appointment consists of video tape footage of the hunt, which will later be view, reviewed and viewed some more to determine whether or not there is actual paranormal activity or just something that can easily be explained.

Zwierecki says that much of what you see about paranormal activity on T.V. is about creative filming for entertainment purposes.  They take 7 or 8 hours of filming and have to cut it down to a one hour show, so of course they are going to edit the investigation to make it seems "as if around every corner something is going to jump out at you."  Zwierecki says that NYSPR's work does not resemble anything of what you see on television and the group takes their work very seriously.

"We are dealing with people's lives here in which it is not a an entertaining or laughing matter . . . We respect every client as if they were a family member . . . " Marcus Zwierecki.

Monday, June 11, 2012

Unexpected Things

"Each passing day you seem to plan things out . . .
  Plan things the way that you would like them to happen
  But it never seems to work out that way
  Things change with each passing second
  So unexpected and without even a chance to catch ourselves
  It seems that's what life is all about
  Unexpected changes
  It's what makes the world go round
  It's what keeps us second guessing
  Life's unexpected changes
  If only we knew all the unexpected changes that were about to happen
  If only we knew the unexpected changes that were coming our way
  If only we knew"
Author: Holly Trout, 2009 (www.helium.com/item/1472795-unexpected-changes)

     Unexpected changes and things were the theme for this past weekend. Plans to continue with Cano Davy's story over the weekend, among other things, were thwarted by car troubles, dispair over a child's quest for the perfect graduation dress, unexpected visits with friends from afar, changes in my personal schedule-the types of things that I could not see headed my way-some met with joy, some met with determination and others not welcome at all!

     Yet despite all of the minor inconveniences that I experienced, these unexpected things were nothing compared to the unexpected things that Cano Davy experienced.  As a young child, Cano grew up in a home where some of the adults in his life would speak of homes that were inhabited by "unfriendly spirits."  This made him aware of the existence of paranormal activities.

     The conscious awareness of spirits became even more pronounced for Cano after the unexpected death of a sibling.  He explained that "unexplained" or unexpected occurrences after this event, sparked his interest in study of the paranormal.

     I have to admit that I get goosebumps just at the mere mention of ghost, let alone this odd word "paranormal."  Once, while on our first trip to Williamsburg, Virginia, my husband and I gave into our son's request to go on one of those touristy ghost tours that are popular in historical places.  Not one of those "stupid, silly tours" was our son's criteria.  So we did some research and booked a tour that was associated with the actual Williamsburg "park people."  After about three stops along this tour, I was grateful that an unexpected thunderstorm developed (complete with several hours of torrential downpours and lightening that might be mistaken for an enormous fireworks display) and the remainder of the tour had to be cancelled.  I was scared out of my skull, and I could see the look of horror on my daughter's face as well, so as much as I didn't want to be stuck in this storm, it was a bit of a relief.  The one story that I still remember after all these years was about a young "Indian (Native American) boy" who haunted the campus of William and Mary College.  Several years later, when our family returned to Williamsburg and we walked on the campus in broad daylight, I still had the "heebie-jeebies" recollecting that story!

     I imagine that Cano Davy would have been upset at the unexpected storm, for it may have thwarted his chance at a viewing paranormal activity.  But then again, probably not, because ghost tours are not normally how one views this sort of thing.

Come back tomorrow to see how Cano Davy and the rest of the New York State Paranormal Research actually hunts for ghosts.  That is if nothing else unexpected prohibits me from doing so!




Thursday, June 7, 2012

Thank you, Herkimer Farmer's Market, for posting a reply to yesterday's question. If you were not able to see their answer to "what do you think a ghost hunter would look like?", they responded with "Stephen King."  It just goes to show you that we all have preconceived notions as to what people look like, even according to their profession or hobby.

Would you be surprised if I told you that Cano Davy is an ordinary, average guy?  See for yourself:


Oh, wait! That's not Cano! That's the New York State Paranormal Research's logo picture! My bad!  Scroll further down to see the real Cano Davy . . .









Try this one:


There, that's better.  This is a picture that Cano gave me permission to borrow off his Facebook page, of him signing a copy of Ghost Hunting in the Mohawk Valley last week in Rutger Park in Utica as part of the "Picnic in the Park" event.  Pretty normal looking, right? Nothing like Gene Wilder, Bill Murray, or even Stephen King!  He does look a bit like those television ghost hunting guys, but not really. I told you-just an ordinary, average guy . . . 

Cano Davy was born and raised in the Utica area and graduated in 1997 from Proctor High.  From there he attended MVCC and is employed as a truck driver for Budweiser Beer. He told me that his family is his "support system," and consists of his wife Alicia, twelve-year old son Jared, and mother Diane.  According to his Facebook page, he is into working out and likes the "normal" things that you would expect a guy his age to "like": The Yankees, rock music, and the Oakland Raiders.  What? No NY football teams? Oh well.  He also likes things that we might expect a ghost hunter to like: spooky movies and television shows.  However, that's where the ordinary ends and the "unexpected" begins. . .


Drop by tomorrow to hear more of Cano Davy's story! 


***** Correction: Due to circumstances beyond control, Marcus Zwierecki will not be attending the two Herkimer Events on June 21, however, I will interject some of the interview with him into this blog, but will mostly feature Cano Davy during this month.  


Wednesday, June 6, 2012

     In the last part of May, I came across an  invite on my own Facebook page from the Herkimer County Historical Society for an event later in June that sounded very intriguing, yet a bit scary.  The invite was for a presentation by two local authors about paranormal activity in the Mohawk Valley.  Since I generally get spooked very easily, I tend to stay away from anything that involves things that go bump in the night, but what caught my attention was not the actual event itself (although it does sound interesting and I am planning on attending the FREE event on June 21st at 7pm at the Herkimer Historical Society located on North Main Street at the Historical Four corners), but the fact that two LOCAL authors were involved really caught my attention.


     Since I was in need of an author for June's contest for Frank J. Basloe Library, I decided to do a quick search for one of the authors on the internet and found out that he was on Facebook.  So, sight unseen and not really knowing what to expect, I quickly sent out a friend request.  During the few brief moments that it took Cano Davy to accept my request, I envisioned a few different pictures of what a ghost hunter might look like.  I thought of  Gene Wilder's character in Young Frankenstein

taken from unrealitymag.com 6/06/12
although I have no idea why, since Wilder's character was a monster builder, not a ghost hunter.  

     Then, Bill Murray popped in my head.

taken from moviefanatic.com  6/06/12

I knew that this couldn't be right either, but at least I was headed in the general direction of where I needed to be thinking.

My last ditch effort to conjure up an image was just as weak, as it was the only other one that I could possibly think of:

taken from entil2001.com 6/06/12

Since I have only ever seen the commercials for this popular television show, I had no idea if this would be correct either.  However, I needn't use my imagination any longer, because I was now "friends" with Mr. Davy on Facebook.  Since he had accepted my request so quickly, I wasted no time to see how close I was.  

Come back to Friends and Words tomorrow for bios and pictures of The Mohawk Valley's own ghost "hunters," Cano Davy and Marcus Zwierecki.

Until then, what do you think of when you hear the word "ghost hunter"?




Monday, June 4, 2012

BONUS!!!!!!!!! In addition to Cano Davy, it will be our pleasure and privilege to host his co-author and co-founder of NYSPR, Mr. Marcus Zwierecki at the book signing event!

Save the Date!!!!!!!

Cano Davy and Marcus Zwierecki of New York State Paranormal Research and co-authors of Ghost Hunting in the Mohawk Valley will be in Herkimer on Thursday, June 21 for not one BUT TWO  great events:

Frank J. Basloe Library in the early evening Time TBA for a book signing brief introduction to their book.

Herkimer County Historical Society at 7pm.  This following is information that I received from the Historical Society's website:

GHOST HUNTING IN THE MOHAWK VALLEY by Cano Davy and Marcus Zwierecki of New York State Paranormal Research - Thursday, June 21 @ 7:00 p.m.
Davy and Zwierecki of Rome, NY have partnered with author Lynda Lee Macken for their new book "Ghost Hunting in the Mohawk Valley." They will be presenting a power point program that will feature paranormal investigations at local haunts, such as the 1834 Jail, the Fort Herkimer Church, the Stone Mill in Little Falls, and more. Their book is available for sale in our Gift Shop - $12.95.



"If there's something strange in your neighborhood,
Who ya' gonna call? (Ray Parker, Lyrics to "Ghostbusters")  
New York State Paranormal Research,  that's who!

Well, actually, not quite. According to the group's website, they are "not Ghosthunters!"  What this group does is research paranormal activity, and record the data so that others "can learn from our findings."

At this point, you may be thinking, what in the world does this have to do with Frank J. Basloe Library, local authors, or books for that matter?

I am glad you asked those questions, especially since I happen to have the answers to all three!

Cano Davy, founder of New York State Paranormal Research, is the featured author of this month's blog and contest.  As co-author of a new book released in February entitled Ghost Hunting in the Mohawk Valley (with Linda Lee Macken and Marcus Zwierecki), Mr. Davy has graciously agreed to not only allow me to provide information about himself, his group and his work with the paranormal, he has agreed to provide a signed copy of Ghost Hunting in the Mohawk Valley as the contest prize, a copy for Frank J. Basloe Library's inventory (so that if you are not the winner of the prize, you can borrow it from the library), AND has agreed to a book signing event at the library on Thursday, June 21 just prior to his other event in Herkimer that evening at the Herkimer Historical Society.

At the Herkimer Historical Society, Mr. Davy and NYSPR will host a FREE power point presentation and another book signing.  That's two opportunities to snag a signed copy of


and to meet Mr. Davy in person.  

But first get to know him and NYSPR on this blog site throughout the month of June.  Remember to review the rules so that you can be entered into the contest.  Drawing for this contest to take place on Wednesday, June 20th, so hurry and enter!