I just got back from vacation and I am both reinvigorated and excited for the second half of the summer in Asbury Park.  Not only has this summer been a great one for investigations, it has also been filled with new opportunities.  As many of you know, Paranormal Books & Curiosities is expanding.  It is both frightening and thrilling, and I hope you all stop by to check out our newest addition: Paranormal Museum.  We think this is going to be another fun and educational place.  The first exhibit will feature one of New Jersey’s favorite sons, little Jimmy Leeds, or as he is better known, the Jersey Devil!  This incredible and uniquely New Jersey exhibit features the relics, specimens and reports of a secret expedition authorized by President James Monroe in 1819.  

Few people know that Monroe was wounded in the Battle of Trenton and recuperated here.  During that time he heard tales of a demon child, born to a woman in the Pine Barrens. He never forgot those tales and when he sent Commodore Stephen Decatur to New Jersey to test the quality of canon balls being manufactured here, he also entrusted to him a secret mission.  This mission was to discover what he could of this “devil” and report back.  Decatur brought with him a man of unique talents and interests, Dr. James Killian.  Killian was a devoted cryptozoologist, although at the time he probably would have been called a ‘Monster Hunter.’  A dedicated group of Paranormalists have followed his career and have made some of his findings available to us.  We are both excited and honored to have been chosen by the foundation to house and display these important artifacts.

Stephen Decatur, a remarkable man and American hero, was killed under suspicious circumstances in 1820. He is reported to continue to walk the halls of his home in Washington DC, a spirit chained to this realm by unfinished business and an undying sense of duty.  His home has recently undergone significant repair and is now open to the public once again.  His journey through New Jersey is just one of many of the historically significant moments in our collective past and we are so glad to have had it revealed to us.  You are going to really love it.

I guess I was also thinking about new horizons and possibilities while on vacation.  One of the things I did was go whale watching.  It is no longer as startling to me when these enormous animals swim so close and dwarf the boats we are in, but it is still unbelievably inspiring.  They are beautiful and graceful, yes.  But more than that, to me they represent just how big and diverse our world is.  It seems silly to me say that we know all there is to know of our world when we are forever changing it and uncovering new histories and new possibilities.  We sit comfortably above, on a calm and picturesque sea, but below us is a universe unknown. That kind of sums it all up for me.   All in all, it was great vacation!

Recommended reads this week: Tales of the Jersey Devil.  It is a surprisingly detailed and entertaining book, well written and fun.  I recommended it to several of my nieces and nephews and got great feedback from them AND their parents!