By John Tye

In places as far apart as Norway and China claims of cryptids that could raise storms were told with such abundance that on Chinese junks one deckhand was dedicated to the task of doing a dance with a red ribbon to ward off the dreaded sea bonze. A bonze is a buddhist monk, and for whatever reason, the two unrelated cultures of northern Europe and China developed coinciding folktales of mysterious monk or bishop-like monsters that doom ships.

A 13th century medieval legend from Poland tells us of the sea-bishop. The creature was captured and brought to the King of Poland,  who showed the creature to a group of Roman Catholic Bishops who apparently made contact with the creature through the use of mutual religious gestures. The sea-bishop somehow appealed to them to be set free, prompting the Bishops to convince the King that it wasn't a good idea to keep the the thing around, so he ordered that it be released. When taken out on a boat, the creature promptly made the sign of the cross, and disappeared into the sea. This creature is thought to have probably been a squid, with its vaguely mitre-shaped head being mistakenly thought to resemble a bishop, and its flailing tentacles appearing to make the sign of the cross.  The problem is that the squid was apparently known in medieval Poland.

In 1531, off the coast of Germany, the sea-bishop reappears in the historical record. Some accounts state that it was simply sighted, but another suggests it was captured and died after three days of captivity. This has also been explained as being a squid, though once again this is problematic as the Germans of the period also knew what a squid was. In 1546 a 'sea monk' was caught off the coast of Denmark. This was different, in that at the time it wasn't seen as a supernatural omen, and was thought to be a fish that simply resembled a monk. This creature was likely a walrus or a giant squid, but its also possible that the sea monk of Denmark might have also been a type of shark.

The Japanese have the legend of the Umibozu. If a sailer encounters one of these monk-like creatures, and speak to it, the sailor is doomed. Sometimes claimed to the be the spirits of buddhist monks that had drowned, the terrifying creature that resembles the round bald head of a monk demands a barrel which it will fill with water and drown the sailors. In return, the sailors give the creature a barrel without a bottom to trick it. 

The sea-monk and sea-bishop of folklore may have been squid, or may have been skates or rays. Still, medieval fishermen were aware of skates, rays and squid and weren't likely to mistake animals they knew about for mysterious bishops that make religious signs. As to what the sea-bishop really was,  given the lack of modern accounts, we probably will never know for sure. 

 __________________

GET FREE BOOKS just for visiting (no purchases or sign-ups needed)

$3.99 & Less Books…

Occult/Magick/Health/Home/Demonology/Illuminati/Lovecraft & More

Donald Ryles PhD Bookstore

http://stores.lulu.com/store.php?fAcctID=1119130

______________________________________________________

The remains have been spirited away, some say by an old man who planned to mount and display it in his den.  Others claim two young dudes have it in a large zippered case such as a bedspread would come in, pending further examination.

I hope we see this again, but doubt that we shall...

This unknown species washed onto shore in Montauk, causing immediate speculation. Many believe it is no more than a dead turtle without it's shell, or perhaps even a raccoon. Who knows what it is. I sure don't. It is a dead something, but if it turns out to be a dead alien or an actual monster, I would rather have not found out about it at all. I will not welcome nightmares in my slumber, although they are inevitable tonight.

A 1988 report from Bermuda described a "Glob," "2 1/2 to 3 feet thick ... very white and fibrous with five ‘arms or legs,’ rather like a disfigured star. ... It had no bones, cartilage, visible openings, or odor. ..." (quoted in Ellis, 1994). In 1990, another carcass washed ashore in the Hebrides Islands, Scotland: "It had what appeared to be a head at one end, a curved back and seemed to be covered with eaten-away flesh or even a furry skin and was 12 feet long [and] it had all these shapes like fins along its back. ..." (L. Phitts to S. McLean, Hancock Museum, Newcastle, UK; pers. comm. to S. M. Carr). Definitive species identification of any of these carcasses has been impossible. Pierce et al. (1995) concluded on the basis of ultrastructure and amino acid analysis that the Bermuda carcass was the remains of a vertebrate, ...

I recently spent my Fourth of July weekend up in the Adirondack Mountains with my family visiting relatives. The mountains are massive and simply bursting with wildlife.  We took full advantage of the sunny 85 degree weather and went for long hikes through the mountains where we explored trails, streams, and found water falls over 500 feet tall.  It was beautiful.  

We later went for a boat ride on Lake Champlain, anchored down in the middle of one of it's many scenic bays and my cousins and I had fun jumping off the back of the boat and swimming in the lake.

Later that night, there on the edge of the lake, we made a campfire, roasted marshmallows while the grown ups told stories. To my surprise they began telling tales of a sea monster that was said to have lived (and still lives) right there in deep fresh waters of Lake Champlain. At first I thought they were just try to scare us kids,  but as they continued I realized that were being truthful and they were exchanging real stories based on local myth.

Lake Champlain is 109 miles long, borders New York and Vermont and is said to be the home of a giant sea monster known to the locals as "Champy".  In all likely hood if there is a sea creature in the lake, it's more likely to be a family of creatures in the lake reproducing and continuing their yet unknown species all these years.  Champy has been seen by over 300 witnesses over 100's of years.

Below is a History Channel special dedicated to Champy.  Watch it for yourself, and tell me if you think Champy is real.  I sure do.

Part 1 of 5

Part 2 of 5

Part 3 of 5

Part 4 of 5

Part 5 of 5

The remains of a monster of the deep have washed ashore on Bermuda.

The head, tentacles and mantle of a deep sea squid were discovered at Grape Bay by beachcombers on Sunday. The find is rare as the squid inhabit depths of between 240-940 metres and specimens are only found in the stomachs of sperm whales.

Today is one of those days where I can't get enough info.  I've been jumping from one subject to another.  The last subject I was reading about was how scientists believe that there are many huge creatures that are living very deep in the ocean that we are not yet even aware of.  From that, I started looking for pics of big sea creatures and came across ABC's pics of Super Size Sea Monsters.  I also landed on a site portraying the 10 Horrible Deep Sea Creatures for all you men that enjoy weird stuff like that ;)  If anything, it's good general info.

Isragirl Presents : Birthday, by Berry Sakharof and Infected Mushroom, Clip by Lenningx ©

Yes, I know its lame to post about my own birthday, but hay, you try coming up with a topic 4 times a week, and we'll see how long you get around the birthday post... So let's do it and be done with it! Tomorrow is my birthday, yap, my special day. In a galactical effort not to be seriously morbid or just plain cynical, I've chosen a song I actually like. It's called Birthday and it starts with "Today is a Birthday" (Its some what of Israeli slang...). The song, written originally as a ballad by Berry Sakharof, was Remixed few years later by Infected Mushroom and the outcome was a hit. I remember dancing this track on a friend's boat-birthday-party in the Sea of Galilee a few years back, it feels like ages ago... It was the last song after a long night and morning of trance music in the middle of the lake, and as we made our way back to Tiberias the infected version of Birthday squeezed every drop of energy still left in us. It was crazy.

I've decided to post this version that doesn't include the video clip, since this one had better sound, and after all this is the point of the post - that the song is fucking awesome. If you wish to watch the somewhat trippy video featuring Sakharof and the Mushroom boys (Erez Ayzen and Amit Duvdevani), it's on YouTube. If you are a Dony Darko fan you will like the video, I'm sure. And if you are interested in the lyrics, click on the video I've posted, you will find in the responses section that some one translated the song to English (poor translation, but what to do?).

Last year I went skydiving with The Man on my birthday and it was WoW, this year I'll settle for a gathering of friends, hopefully outside of Tel Aviv. On second thought why not jump again? Maybe, we'll see... Places I've celebrated birthdays at: New York, London Johannesburg, Manali (North India)... Oh Manali, now that WAS a birthday!!! It had nothing to do with me, but there was a party, it was on the right date, in a stunning location outside the village, the music was very happy and so were everyone there. Trance in the Himalaya - An excellent way to celebrate your birthday (even if you are passed your 20's). Actually, Manali is a fantastic place to celebrate BEING, regardless of birthdays, partying, music and even drugs. And come to think of it, this should be my lesson: birthdays are about celebrating BEING, I needn't do anything special, I just have to look around and appreciate everything I've got.

Best Birthday Song Ever by Berry Sakharof and Infected Mushroom

• Travel Israel: Guide, Travel Tips, Photos and Videos
• Women Travelling Alone in Israel
• Israel Photo Galley
• Beach Vacations in Israel
• SPA Retreats - Relaxation and Meditation

If testing my time-machine, I would travel first to 1984.  Great year, good music, good movies and fun fashion - plus it's a safe distance from the present and yet with many modern conveniences.  Following a visit to 1984, I'd pull back to 1884 for a reference and then I'd come back to the 1940s and bounce back and forth down the space-time continuum until I found a prehistoric animal or Atlantis or something that couldn't be outdone.  

Erick is obviously bored with coming home from work and not working, so he's now reading about wormhole propulsion and bending space-time:

Special relativity only applies locally. Wormholes allow superluminal (faster-than-light) travel by ensuring that the speed of light is not exceeded locally at any time. While traveling through a wormhole, subluminal (slower-than-light) speeds are used. If two points are connected by a wormhole, the time taken to traverse it would be less than the time it would take a light beam to make the journey if it took a path through the space outside the wormhole. However, a light beam traveling through the wormhole would always beat the traveler. As an analogy, running around to the opposite side of a mountain at maximum speed may take longer than walking through a tunnel crossing it. You can walk slowly while reaching your destination more quickly because the length of your path is shorter.

That said, my mind has wondered to another wormy topic...  Has anyone been reading about these feet washing up on shore in British Columbia?  I blame Ogopogo.  Would you eat sneakers?  

Secret Russian transport.

Once there was this Viking Guy named Clarence
Who set sail to find his long dead parents
He sailed high and he sailed low
I bet you wonder, just where he'll go
Out
Just where he'll go.... out

This drawing was kind of an after-thought to the song I wrote and recorded under my alias, “Silent Skies.” The song is called “The Viking and the Sea Monster,” and it can be heard by clicking on my Muxtape page. I’m performing it with the puppets today at the OLTA Art and Craft fair. Wish me luck!

"It was very strange," said Larry Nielson, who says he's seen the mysterious creature. "We watched it for quite a while and we watched it for about 15 minutes and could not figure out what it might be."

Steve Raymond shares the same story. "Now, I'm the third person who's reported it. I distinctly remember three humps, with one hump looking like a head," recalled Raymond about his experience on Lake Pepin.

The first sighting of the creature was in April 1871. An artist has tried to show what the monster, with a hypnotic red-eye and demon-like head, might look like. It's said to live within the depths of Devil's Abyss.

"So you never know what you're going to see out here," said Nielson. "There have been stories of something mysterious here.

More at 'Capture' It For $50,000

Ekranoplan ist ein spezielles Bodeneffektfahrzeug.
Durch Satellitenaufnahmen wurde erstmals das Caspian Sea Monster ("kaspisches Seeungeheuer") bekannt. Die offizielle Bezeichnung des Schiffs war "KM", eine Abkürzung vom russischem корабль-макет - "Makettschiff". Es entstand 1964 und hatte eine Spannweite von nur gut 40 m bei einer Länge von über 100 m und einem Gewicht von bis zu 540 t - seinerzeit das Doppelte der schwersten Flugzeuge.

Angetrieben von zehn Strahltriebwerken erreichte die Maschine bis zu 750 km/h bei 280 t Nutzlast.

It was the 2032nd year of Western Fable.

The United States government sold NASA to NBC Universal in 2029, and his stint as a tour guide on Universal Studios: Earth Orbit Experience paid for deli sandwiches and a room above the Paint Palace. Daily he saw the old Marble in storms of dust and wind, turning at the will of money and love, sifting it’s surface in travel and tides, and he never once in his career felt like Kate Muglrew, his grandmother, who told him in her senility that he could be whatever he wanted to be. He became a bearded man, sitting in the shuttle narrating continents and having a beard growing contest with every bearded man on earth.

On the day Joel the astronaut quit his job, the Irish heritage foundation booked the 2 p.m. shuttle to celebrate the 103rd birthday of the last natural red-head on the planet, who had a heart attack and died somewhere between seven gs and “ladies and gentleman we have left the atmosphere.” The tragedy caused the women to wail and ask why, the men to forge a bagpipe jam session, and the old men to climb into the employees only booth and beckon Joel in morbid warnings: “do not waste your days,” a rickety limey in plaid said, “have you done it all? Seen Titans? Felt the salty breeze of venture on your wretched face?”

“Not recently.”

“Then GO!” the old man charged him in freckled fury.

So the young astronaut manned the escape hatch, nodded to the plaid prophet, pressed the appropriate switches and fell at a rate of approximately 9.89 m/s/s into the southeast Pacific.

Tomorrow I will walk some of the same streets that Mary Queen of Scots rode through (did she ride a horse? some other large animal?)

I will try to stalk the hangouts of Burke and Hare (look 'em up)

And one day I will take a long bus ride north, and have lunch with the sea monster. Maybe I'll teach her to factor. (Is she a she? or a he?)

But the big deal is souvenirs. Little chintzy stuff for everyone? A few nicer things for prizes?

If I get to one of those famous Scottish golf courses, maybe a bunch of stubby new Scottish pencils.

And definitely a shiny new cup of shame to keep them in.

Isragirl Presents : Salt in the Dead Sea, Photo by dead-sea.org ©

AHAVA Festival 2008 Live Music Concerts Line up:

April 20: Achinoam Ninie (aka Noa) - Genes & Jeans

Music: World, Alternative Rock and a touch of Jazz

When: 10pm | Where: Mineral Beach

April 21: Evyatar Bannay - Night as day will shine

Music: Alternative Rock | When: 9.30pm | Where: Mineral Beach

April 22: The Nechama Girls

Music: Hip Hop, Alternative Rock, World, Reggae

When: 9.30pm | Where: Mineral Beach

April 23: Ehud Bannay - Mashina (Reunion of the great band!!)

Music: Rock | When: 10pm | Where: Mitzpe Shalem

April 24: Natasha's Friends (A reunion of the band - most recommended!!!)

Music: Rock (celebrating 20 years to the first album)

When: 10pm | Where: Mitzpe Shalem

April 25: Mosh Ben Ari - Eye Level

Music: Rock, World, Alternative Rock

When: 4am (sunrise concert) | Where: Dragot Cliffs

TICKETS: 02-6222333 | 02-6237000 | 03-6045000

More Info about the Festival: 02-9400285

Live Music Concerts on the Beaches of the Dead Sea - Rock, Hip Hop, World Music and lots of Love for Nature

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Featured links and friends’ posts » Travel Israel - Guide, Trips, Tips, Photos and Videos, US Travel Blog, Dead Sea and Masada Travel Guide, SPA Retreats in Israel, Israel Photo Gallery
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -