Initial Impressions 2.0 Blog #68: Bonfire, Odd Cemeteries, Serial Killer Training, etc.

1. Every time I think I’ve seen everything something else wacky happens. I was sitting at the beach on a beautiful sunny afternoon. It was just a perfect day and I was listening to a podcast and enjoying the spring air. I thought at one point I noticed some smoke from an area straight ahead on the sand but there were people around and I was not paying that close of attention. That was until the fire department showed up. It was then that I noticed an old lady is a red sweater and plaid pajama pants waving them over and pointing to where I had seen the smoke. According to another bystander who was explaining it to a car parked near me the lady had called the fire department on a group of people with a small fire going. Not sure if it was for cooking or just relaxing next to but the firefighters chatted calmly with them and the fire was put out. I stayed a half hour longer and the old lady and the group of people were all still there so I don’t think there was a problem after but who know for sure.

2. I am a slacker when it comes to transcribing my podcasts. I know they help people find your show in searches and such but it can be tedious and you typically need to pay for sites to do it. Occasionally I find free trials to allow me to get an episode or two transcribed but that’s it. So when I found a site that has so far allowed me to transcribe nearly 30 shows for free you bet your ass I’m just shoving the files into that site assembly line style. I’m going to go until they either shut me down or I transcribe them all. If you’re interested the link is here: https://restream.io/tools/transcribe-audio-to-text

3. There is a cemetery located near where my friend Mike and I do our Monday Runday exercise. If we get tired of running around the school track we will sometimes go for a run through that cemetery. What makes this run unique is not the cemetery itself but how the cemetery is laid out. If you run all of the paved routes in and around the cemetery you get a surprise if you are recording your run on a fitness app. It turns out that the cemetery’s lay out is shaped like a hand extending its middle finger. I wouldn’t have believed it if I hadn't seen it myself. Now it is a fun part of some runs because I can share the satellite image afterward and get some laughs.

The cemetery layout I couldn't make up.

4. The vast vast majority of people who come into my day job are great people, like 99%. It is an easy task to work with so many good people who are looking for help getting healthy. That fact makes the bad ones stand out far more. There is one guy I hope is just a memory soon. He’s vaguely racist, vaguely homophobic, and definitely creepy. He looks like a lobotomized Art Carney, with big bulging eyes and a voice that gets really quiet when he wants to say something disturbing. The best part of seeing him is the sight of the door closing behind him as he leaves.

5. A few months ago I wrote about how my recommended videos on Facebook were all hydraulic presses crushing stuff and super hot metal balls being placed on or in different things. It was an odd combo but one that was a self-fulfilling prophecy since I’d keep clicking these videos when they popped up. Well I have an update now. I don’t know how these topics first got suggested to me but currently my Facebook Reels feed is filled with people removing beehives and videos of old super dirty and gross cars getting power-washed. I also have just found out there is apparently a game called PowerWash Simulator where you play as someone who runs a power washing business. I cannot promise you I won’t go watch videos of people playing it.

Yes this is a real game

6. This week we had to move some unused gym equipment into storage at my day job. It had to be hauled outside and put into the back of my boss’ van. I am one that I have always had a sarcastic sense of humor. My Nana used to say we were ‘sharp’ on that side of the family. I try to be quick with witty and funny quips. I might have crossed a line this week though. As I walked through the lobby at work carrying a 100 pound punching bag over my shoulder I remarked to the people who were watching that I was practicing to be a serial killer, I’d already gotten the carrying of the body down. I think(hope) they knew I was joking but if I get a cop knocking on my door asking about unsolved murders I’ll know someone in that lobby took me seriously.

7. I was excited this week to see that Buzzsprout, the site that hosts my podcast, was allowing you to have a transcript of your episodes for free, at least temporarily. As I mentioned earlier, I’m a slacker when it comes to transcripts so I’m taking full advantage. The funny part of this entry is that when you get the transcript, you can go in and edit it naturally. It can divide the transcript up by different speakers which is a cool feature. That being said I host my show by myself so theoretically the AI shouldn’t be detecting any other speakers. All of my transcripts have at least 2 speakers detected with one show having 11. Eleven speakers?! I mean I can do some different voices but really. I had to go into each episode and discard the different speakers feature, but otherwise, it’s been a huge help for me.

8. This is the time of year where I am torn. Not about anything important but about getting my car washed. I have a white car and where I park it gets caked in pollen and other various debris during the spring. I always need to wash it but the issue is spending money at the car wash only to have it covered in filth again by the next morning. I don’t know what a good ratio is. Do I wash it once a week, every other week? Or do I never wash it and let the rain do the job? That’s bad news when we have a dry spell, my car looks like it’s been abandoned in a field for years.

9. I was hanging at the beach one afternoon this week. It was cloudy but you could tell the weather was shifting and the sun was on its way. Once it came out I took a nice walk by the water, soaking in the scenery. Rather than going back to my car I sat at a table near the snack bar area. It’s not open yet and neither are the bathrooms. A few minutes later, a man drove into the parking lot in a Mustang. Not a new one but an early 2000s one that looked beat to hell, including a torn-up and taped sunroof. He parked way far away and walked all the way over just to find out the bathrooms were closed. I was surfing my phone so I hadn’t paid attention until I heard him pull on the door. He then started talking to me about nearby construction and I tried to be polite but really didn’t care. I just wonder why he parked 200 feet away when there were open spots next to the bathrooms, quicker road to disappointment.

10. According to my mother, I have been on a hot streak with my gifts for special occasions over the last few years. For Mother’s Day I had to keep my streak. Months ago my mom mentioned how much she missed her butterfly bush that had been outside of the living room window for years. I filed that away specifically for Mother’s Day. Unfortunately, I have little knowledge of plants. Luckily I went to a local place, Hart Farm in Dennis, where my mom took us kids for years especially to get corn. They directed me to the exact butterfly bush I needed. My gift streak is alive and well.

The butterfly bush I got my mom for mother's day

11. Speaking of Mother’s Day I have been fortunate to have many strong female presences in my life who are mothers. My Nina and Nana, my sisters Kate and Lindsay, my Aunts Kelly, Susan, and Emma. There are also loads of friends. However, nobody can hold a candle to my mother. She has always been my biggest supporter. I feel a lot of the time that I am working hard on chasing my dreams to validate her support. She dealt with a few less-than-stellar men in her life, unfortunately, one is my father. She also went to school full-time at night to become a nurse while also working full-time and raising 5 kids between 8-15 years old. There are many times that I sit and wish I could do more for her but until that time I figure that being a decent responsible person is a fair enough tribute.

Initial Impressions 2.0 Blog: #41 - Cemetery Music, Foxy Meeting, Expired Foods, etc

1. I finally got around to taking my mini pumpkin out to get some cool, creepy photos and videos for Halloween. I went to an area just off the Cape Cod Rail Trail in Harwich. There is a cemetery that is good for running around as it’s a circular road. I was out at sunset walking through this cemetery looking for photos that spoke to me. I was way over at the far end of the cemetery after the sun went down. As it struck the top of the hour a nearby church started playing music for several minutes. It was a perfectly creepy and surreal moment as I had to walk through the cemetery as the light faded and this music played. I loved it.

2. I have seen foxes a lot living on Cape Cod. They are usually scampering through people's yards or wooded areas typically near dusk. Until this week I’d never seen a full-grown and healthy fox just standing in a beach parking lot. At first, I thought it was sick but it was a perfect specimen, like how you think a fox would look. I debated trying to approach it since it stood maybe 20 feet from my car for a good minute. Once I got done shooting a video though it ran off under a fence.

3. If you walk your dog, and it takes a dump, and you put this in a bag, but then leave the bag on the ground, you are a jerk. If I put my trash in a bag but leave the bag on the side of the road it counts as littering right? Why do these lazy selfish entitled dog owners think that putting their dog crap bags on the ground somehow counts as ‘cleaning up?’ Nobody forced you to get a dog, but you got one, learn how to be a functioning member of the human race.

4. Your reminder to always check expiration dates on the things you buy. I mentioned this in a blog post several months back well it rears its ugly head again. This time it was a 4-pack of ready-to-drink protein shakes. They were on sale (now I know why) and I figured why not save money and have breakfast ready for the next 4 days. If I had checked I’d have seen they were expired by a month. Unfortunately, I didn’t until getting ready to have one for breakfast. Needless to say, I had to skip breakfast that day or else risk whatever illness severely expired food could give me. These supermarkets really need to step it up when it comes to removing expired foods so that idiots like me don’t buy them because it’s on sale.

Do these look expired?

5. A surefire way to become my friend is by begging me several times on social media to take you on a photo trip with me. Not only did I have a strange woman essentially demand that I take her with me on a future trip, but this was the 2^nd time it’s happened. I could understand if you are my friend or even someone I’ve interacted with on social media a few times. For a total stranger to introduce herself by saying ‘you need to take me on a photo trip,’ there has to be a screw loose. No thanks, you can keep stalking my social accounts for now, unless a blocking is needed at some point.

6. My speaking events about my books are always fun. No matter the crowd size I do my best to make the event worth the while of those who come out to see me. Sometimes I end up with unique stories from these events. One I had this week was what I could only call an attempted entrapment. Speaking about my Searching For the Lady of the Dunes true crime novel I mentioned that my opinion about who was involved in the murder of the woman later found to be Ruth Marie Terry differed somewhat from what police say. Police say 1 man, her then-husband Guy Muldavin, killed her. I agree he was a part of it but that he probably had 1 or 2 accomplices. In my book, I mention a few potential accomplices but only 1^st names. A man at my event was hell-bent on getting me to give a definitive statement on who I thought was involved. Seeing as how a few potential accomplices are still alive I’d be a fool to point fingers. I might as well just beg to be sued at that point. Nice try guy, and he didn’t even buy a book so the hell with him.

7. Daylight Savings starts November 3^rd when we ‘fall back.’ On November 2^nd the sun rises at 7:15am. One day this week it was cloudy and rainy in the morning. Even though the sun had technically risen it still looked dark at 7:45am. It reminded me of the time when I took a bus from Las Vegas to Hyannis in 2001. We stopped in the small town of Ogallala, Nebraska. Inside the bus station looked like it was straight out of the 1950s. The fact that it was still dark at 8:15am made me start to think that maybe the bus had crashed and that we were all dead and Ogallala’s bus station was purgatory. My lasting memory of that small town was my Nana’s laughter every time she said the name. That was worth the Twilight Zone episode it felt like.

8. This year Halloween was a fun throwback. No, I didn’t go Trick or Treating, although if I wore a mask and pretended I had a sore throat and couldn’t talk I bet I could still pull it off. I always watch the original Halloween from 1978 with dinner. It’s been a tradition for probably close to 20 years This year I watched it at my mom’s house with my sister, nieces, and nephew which was a lot of fun. The actual Halloween scene was also a fun throwback. At first, there didn’t seem to be too many kids coming to get candy. My sister and my oldest niece were outside handing it out since it was 65 degrees at 6pm. As I was getting ready to leave and go home it was like every kid within a 2-mile radius flooded my mother’s street. It was such a great scene of kids everywhere yelling ‘trick or treat.’ I almost didn’t want to leave but I needed to get home to eat and find a different horror movie to watch.

Halloween was fun.

9. On Halloween morning, well before sunrise, I got my annual creepy photo/video shoot. I had to work early regardless so it wasn’t too out of my way to end up deep in a cemetery at 6:30am. With the sunrise close to 7:15 it was pitch black. I rolled about halfway deep into the cemetery and shot a creepy video of me with my mini pumpkin. It was odd yet perfectly normal for me around Halloween. I had to get to work otherwise I might have shot some more video out there. Don’t get me wrong it was definitely creepy but when it comes to interesting content like photos and videos my dedication to the craft sometimes takes over the normal part of my brain.

10. Birthdays in your 40’s are far different than when you’re a kid. Family and friends aren’t all readily available and without meticulous planning, you likely won’t get to see all of the people you want. That said, you have to try to make each birthday feel special, after all, it is a milestone of making it another year. For me, I filled my birthday this week with everything I liked. Foods I liked, visiting my mother, going for a secluded hike. These things are what I enjoy. No more super late nights of drinking. Low-key and fun is what I seek out in life in general. Here's to good things ahead in my 47th trip around the sun!

Medfield State Hospital and Cemetery: In My Footsteps 4K New England

Cape Cod True Crime: The Lady of the Dunes & Tony Costa

The Solemn Graves in the Harwich Woods

In My Footsteps: 4K Cape Cod - Provincetown's Hidden Smallpox Cemetery

In My Footsteps: Medfield State Hospital

            With 130 articles written during my travels I have seen a lot of amazing places.  However, as can be the case, with showcasing a town in an article some of the places can be glossed over to make sure everything fits.  I have decided to start a series of articles each showcasing one specific place per article.  There are so many that have their own story and my experiences there deserve more than just a paragraph.  Since it is the Halloween season, or was, I have decided to begin with the scariest place I have visited: Medfield State Hospital.

            Medfield State Hospital is an historic spot.  It was a mental hospital built on Hospital Rd. in Medfield, Massachusetts in 1892.  At its peak there were fifty-eight buildings located on the grounds and could house 2,200 patients.  It was a self-sufficient property, raising its own livestock and produce while also producing its own heat and power.  The property was closed in April 2003 due to a decline in patients.  The grounds have been used for films such as Leonardo DiCaprio’s Shutter Island.

            The grounds are still open for walking as of November 2012.  When I visited I had high expectations from photos about the experience and I was not disappointed.  I pulled up and parked in a dirt area directly across the street from the imposing collection of buildings.  Sure, I had read the grounds were open but I did not see any other vehicles.  There was a white trailer located at the entrance to the grounds so I approached and a security guard stepped out.  He told me the grounds were open to be walked but there was to be no photography.  I clutched my tiny digital camera tightly in my pocket and moved on past.

            The road curves slightly and soon I was out of sight of the trailer and pulled my camera out.  I was immediately fascinated by the boarded up brick buildings.  The blood red plywood over the windows made the stoic buildings more eerie.  The sunny day added haunting shadows to these buildings.  I had the grounds all to myself and did my best to soak in this unique atmosphere.

            The deeper I got into Medfield State Hospital I began to notice something.  The silence.  It was a creepy calm.  There were no birds, no squirrels running around, nothing.  When I had parked my car there was the normal buzz of nature but not on the grounds.  It felt fitting.  The silence would eventually be broken by the howls of the wind passing through cracked windows.  The first such howl sent a chill down my spine.  It was thrilling.

            So much of my time was like something out of a suspense-filled horror movie.  I felt like I was on camera awaiting a monster or killer.  Then my fears were realized.  Okay, not really, but as I was at the furthest end of the Medfield State Hospital grounds I noticed a beige sedan slowly creeping its way up one of the roads.  There was a single man driving and scoping things out.  A perfect horror movie setup, right?  I tucked my camera in my pocket as he slowly passed.

            On the eastern edge of the grounds is a white water tower which gave me a dream vibe, like it was something you would have seen in a dream sequence of A Nightmare on Elm Street.  Perhaps the creepiest part of these buildings was the ‘crying’ windows.  The window frames were painted white and the years of weather had caused the white paint to run some down the bricks looking like ‘tears.’  In a place where mental patients once roamed it again seemed fitting.

            All of these creepy experiences are not meant to drive potential visitors away.  On the contrary, I believe that these things make it a more desirable place to see.  Some of the buildings were in great condition such as the main hospital building and the church.  Other buildings were damaged and had the red ‘X’ on the façade indicating they were most likely meant for demolition.  With roads and sidewalks there were times it felt like I was walking through a haunted ghost town; I could almost hear the sounds of the former patients on the wind.  To make the creepy journey complete if you’d like there is a Medfield State Hospital cemetery a few hundred yards west of the ground where 841 patients were buried between 1918-1988.  I did not venture that far.

            Easily the most eerie spot I have visited, Medfield State Hospital is a must see for horror fans.  I heard the howling winds, saw the creepy man slowly driving the grounds in his car, and heard the silence from the birds and squirrels.  Who knows what experiences you will have when you go?  Perhaps you should bring your running shoes though.  Have fun and happy traveling!

     My first book, In My Footsteps: A Cape Cod Travel Guide, is now available at SchifferBooks.com, and Amazon.com, soon to be in stores everywhere!  Follow me on Twitter!

Medfield State Hospital: 9 Hospital Rd., Medfield, Mass. GPS (42.207954,-71.335561)

            From I-95 N take Exit 9 for Rt. 1. Take 1^st left onto Rt. 27, follow it 8.6 miles. Turn right onto Hospital Rd., hospital grounds will be on the left.

Links: Medfield Patch.com - Medfield State Hospital

The hospital grounds looked like an abandoned ghost town.

Some buildings were in relatively good condition.

This look like a something dream sequence from A Nightmare on Elm Street.

The 'crying' windows.

The creepy church.

           

           

In My Footsteps: Trip 3: Dennis, Mass.

In My Footsteps

Christopher Setterlund

Trip 3: Dennis, Massachusetts

January 16, 2010


Located in the Mid-Cape area, Dennis has many well known attractions. The beaches are famous: West Dennis, Corporation, and Chapin to name a few. There are numerous historical landmarks including Scargo Tower. As in my other travel blogs I am trying to find places not as easily found on any vacation guide.

The journey begins quite aptly on historic Route 6A. Also known as Old King’s Highway, Route 6A was the most used roadway on Cape Cod before Route 28 and the Mid-Cape highway came around. Thought to have begun as an Indian trail from Plymouth to Provincetown, it became part of Plymouth’s ‘King’s Highway’ in the late 17th Century.

A drive along this road is a rich tapestry of historical homes and monuments. So protective of the history on Route 6A is the Cape that even changing the color of ones home is subject for intense debate at town meetings. This road in and of itself is a worthwhile adventure, complete with large oak trees hovering over the road and old horse hitching posts located just off of the sidewalk.

One of the first places to see is a spot that is technically in neighboring Yarmouth by about 1,000 feet. That would be Bray Farm(right). Established in 1639, this small farm is open to the public year round. Even on a sunny January day like today one can park and walk the grounds and see the animals roaming. From the requisite sheep, goats, and chickens, to donkeys, bees, and the oddly beautiful Scottish cattle, Bray Farm will thrill children and adults alike. The owners are very friendly and will gladly answer any questions you may have. There is even a boardwalk along the back end of the property with a spectacular view facing toward Grey’s Beach in Yarmouth.

A little further down Route 6A, just across the street from Osprey Lane is another piece of Cape Cod history. Through a natural tunnel of trees sits the burial ground of the Nobscussett tribe of Indians which lived in Dennis hundreds of years ago(left). The grounds are fenced in and marked by a stone stating that the chief of the tribe was named ‘Mashantampaine.’ Also the site holds a great view of Scargo Lake at the back end of the burial ground, but there are many other spots with better access to the lake.

One of those spots is a conservation area in close proximity to Scargo Tower, named Scargo Park. The tower and park are named for the legendary Nobscussett Indian Princess Scargo who was so beautiful that legend has it other Indian warriors would come from all parts of Cape Cod just to see her and bring gifts to help sustain her people.

Dennis, like much of Cape Cod, has numerous conservation areas great for hiking and animal watching. Scargo Park is a hidden gem down a windy dirt road just off of Scargo Hill Road. With an elevated view of Scargo Lake, along with swings for children and a sheltered picnic area, this conservation area is a worthwhile stop for any visitor.

Old Bass River Road, another historical drive, leads you to another great conservation area called Indian Lands. Located next to the Dennis Town Offices, the Indian Lands conservation area is actually closer to three areas in one. There is a set of paths which lead down toward Bass River with a great view of the Highbank Bridge. The master path runs along the power lines and is a tougher hike with soft sand and stones mixed together. The other pathway is a set of defunct railroad tracks(left) almost totally overgrown with small trees and plants. Follow these and you will come to a bridge crossing over Bass River with a view of the rushing highway traffic rushing by on the right.

Not to be missed in the same parking area as the Indian Lands and the Dennis Town Offices is another piece of history. Called either Old South Dennis Cemetery or Dennis Ancient Cemetery(right), it lies behind the Town Offices in a fenced in area but is accessible. The graves contain some of the last names most associated with Cape Cod. Names like Baker, Bangs, and Nickerson fill many of the plots.

There is nothing against all of the great beaches and other historical sites that Dennis has to offer. They should all be visited as well. Once those have all been seen, or if you are trying to see the Cape Cod that locals know, check out the places mentioned above. You won’t be disappointed. Have fun and happy traveling!

Directions: Bray Farm: from Rt. 6A turn on Bray Farm Road and follow it to the end.

Nobscussett Indian Burial Grounds: from Rt. 6A, turn left on Osprey Lane, located less than ½ mi. east of the Red Pheasant Inn. Grounds are directly across the street, but parking is difficult, may be better off walking to this spot from elsewhere.

Scargo Park: from Rt. 6A, turn onto Old Bass River Road. Take left onto Scargo Hill Road. Scargo Tower is designated by a big sign; Scargo Park is the second left after the tower.

Dennis Town Offices: from Rt. 6A, turn onto Old Bass River Road, follow it approximately four miles. The town offices are designated by a green sign on the right side. There is access to both the Indian Trails and the Dennis Ancient Cemetery from the parking lot.

References: Cape Cod Gravestones

The Legend of Princess Scargo

Cape Cod Commission - History of Rt. 6A

South Dennis on Dwellable