The new (para)normal
Story & photos by Gretchen Ammerman
Oregon Coast TODAY
The legend of Bigfoot is a pretty big deal here in the Pacific Northwest, and I have had plenty of personal sightings. In full disclosure, these sightings were of my husband, who occasionally dons the fur and feet for a reason I will not reveal, as it would spoil a surprise experience.
But just because I see behind the veil of one legend, doesn’t mean I’m closed to the thought that there are things magical and mystical that can be experienced at the right time, location and headspace.
Kat Burson of the Paranormal Nation Meetup group has made it her life’s work to create those conditions. I recently attended one of her Meetup events, which she tries to hold regularly — normally when unmasking the spiritual realm doesn’t require donning a mask.
Our group of roughly 15 met at Fishing Rock, where Kat and some other paranormal pros set up equipment used to catch those tricky sprites: electromagnetic field (EMF) meters and flashlights being the primary tools.
One of the reasons Kat holds the Meetups in dense, natural areas is that EMF meters can pick up even faint residue.
“We use these tools to both validate and debunk,” she said. “For example, we were once called to a ‘haunted’ area with a hotspot along a big wall. Sure enough, the EMF meters started going nuts, so I went and looked at what was on the other side of the wall and there was a great big clock directly opposite where the ‘hauntings’ took place. So maybe there was a true presence, but that’s not what the tools were picking up.”
The EMF meter that Kat set up in an unoccupied camp chair had five lights that would progress from green through yellow, orange and, finally, red as a disturbance in the force was detected, creating a Christmas lights effect. She also set up a flashlight that needed to be physically turned to make the light come on.
To ensure a fully receptive environment, the last step was to leave an offering for any nearby “elementals,” a category that covers elves, fairies and trolls.
“They like food and alcohol,” Kat said. “They really seem to like Fireball, but all I have right now is Pendleton.”
She began the meeting with some housekeeping about acceptable behavior, what to expect from the day, and a few stories. I can’t remember how the word “whiskey” was first invoked, but all of a sudden the lights on the EMF meter began to pulse from green to yellow. We laughed it off as the tool cooled, then Kat continued talking.
Apparently, we were being visited by a presence with a sense of humor. The words that caused the meter to glow included, “haunted,” “Burgerville,” “Sedona,” “cryptoid” and, at least three times, “whiskey.”
I’m thinking there might be a wee drinkie issue in the spirit realm.
Aware that there were all manner of reasons the meter could be acting that way, I was more amused than mystified until the flashlight, alone in a tree, turned on.
Kat said “Hello” and let the “presence” know that if it wanted to communicate, it needed to prove that the light turning on wasn’t a mere anomaly by turning it back off again. Nothing. The light stayed on. So she tried again and — it turned off.
I’ve experienced plenty of “phenomena” even as recently as the last decade while living in a house whose builder has buried the ashes of his wife on the property. I refer to myself as an “open-minded sceptic.”
But this light thing, it was hard to dispute.
Kat’s eyes were lit almost as brightly as the lights on the EMF meter.
“This is not where I normally have Meetups, but this is a rich place for spirits and elementals,” she said. “It’s pretty exciting for me to be in such an infested area.”
As I had a dog in the car and the clouds had cleared from in front of the sun, I said my goodbyes to the group. Later that evening, I received this text from Kat:
“Sorry you had to leave early, but I wanted you to know that after a short walk, we came back to pack our gear out and ALL the meters were fully pegged on the Christmas tree lights! We all laughed and commented that they were telling us they enjoyed us and didn’t want us to leave. All three meters on full, we asked if they wanted us to come back and the lights would not go off. It was crazy fun. We also saw that the whiskey in the shell had ‘disappeared.’ We passed around the shell to show there were no holes and the ground under the shell was not wet! A super fun day.”
The sprite’s drinking problem confirmed, I went to bed.
The next group event will happen on Oct. 31, location TBD. To join the group, search for Paranormal Nation on Meetup.com.