Blog- a.k.a My weird adventures

Intro Do you believe in curses? A myriad of people do, and other staunch skeptics do not. One peculiar string of coincidences led some to believe otherworldly things played a role.  The town of Salem, Massachusetts, had an unusual string of deaths with the sheriff's dating back to the post-Salem Witch Trial years. Many sheriffs who held a position in Salem either died or came down with a heart or blood-related ailment. Many theorize it goes back to one particular victim of th

One of my many odd curiosities is exploring old cemeteries. The photos in this article are documented graves I took photos of over the years.  Today I will be using visual aids to mainly give a brief history of the iconography of early graves.  The term  headstone  is believed to have originated from Jewish tradition, where a stone was left at the head of a grave.  Early American Settlers to Colonial Times   The earliest burial ground to be established by English colonists wa

Loco Coco tells the story of The Bewitched Statue.

As an annual tradition since 2020, I have liked to go on fall trips where I look for places that are haunted or have spooky significance. I decided to do a road trip with my mom and sister to the oldest part of early America and part of the original 13 colonies. Being the oldest part of the nation, it is bound to have many ghost stories, whether actual sightings or works of fiction. My first stop will be in Sleepy Hollow, New York, a tale of a suspenseful chase of a headless

To kick off my favorite month of the year, I thought I would talk about an obscure fact about the known town of Sleepy Hollow’s cemetery. This would involve a vampire( well, fictional). After all, vampires go well with Halloween, like chocolate on pretzels.  Do not worry; I will address the obvious elephant in the room in the following article. While I was on a cemetery tour for Sleepy Hollow, the tour guide took us to an empty crypt and told us an interesting fact. Remember

Sixteen years ago, a fifteen-year-old Marisa went to California with her family for a wedding. We visited San Juan Capistrano’ Mission. I vaguely remember going through the convent and ruins of the chapel and its beautiful gardens.  Present day-actually a month ago, my mom, sister, and I were in the state to visit for a meetup group. Before meeting up with the Carpenters fan groups in Downey, we revisited San Juan Capistrano’s Mission.  On that day, there was an event going o

Months back, when I was in Downey, California, I was doing a walking tour of Richard and Karen’s hometown for the Karen Carpenter tour. Going down one street, we passed a very bizarre statue. Many people, including myself, stopped to take pictures. It was a banana with feet and was wearing roller skates. This athletic fruit stands at 6 feet tall.  This bizarre sculpture was made by sculptor Jack Hill and was donated to the city of Downey as part of a series of art installatio

A few months ago, while in California, we stopped in the artsy seaside town of Laguna Beach. While walking, I noticed a really friendly statue of a man waving. Doing some digging, I learned that it was a memory dedicated to one of Laguna’s friendliest residents, Eiler Larsen.  Elier Larson was a Danish immigrant born in 1890 who came to the United States in 1916. He would go on to serve the 8th Infantry for the United States in World War 1. During the war he sustained a leg i

On the outskirts of Ohio University, an old hospital casts the shadow of its gruesome past.  It opened in 1874 with good intentions, but budget cuts and unethical patient treatment led to its dwindling reputation.  So, this story starts like a few blog stories from before. When I was little, I saw an episode of Scariest Places on Earth about Athens, Ohio. The show dramatically brought up the cemeteries forming a pentagram and a college student who did a Satanic ritual gone wr

One July day, my mom, who is a Breaking Amish  fan, suggested going to Sugar Creek, Ohio, to go shopping and visit Der Dutchman. The Amish pride themselves on their carpentry skills and baked goods. For those who do not know what that is, it’s basically the Amish version of the Golden Corral chain.  Aside from the Amish, it is also known as Little Switzerland. Sugarcreek is dubbed the Little Switzerland of Ohio. As the name suggests, there is a Swiss community as well. Cultur

This cute little college town is about forty minutes from where I live. It's a nice little artsy place hidden away from big cities. It’s even a little cozier than Kent, Ohio. It also has unusual landmarks like the giant 3-way plug statue and Stratus the Deer (mentioned in the previous article). There are also ghost stories. Today, I wanted to tell you about a few dorms supposedly haunted on campus. Some of these stories are documented by students, alumni, or older articles re

(Author of Mercyhurst Ghosts : Alicia De Roma (a.k.a The Wandering Loco Coco) Today, I want to tell some stories about unique exhibits at six campuses. These can make excellent ice breakers when talking to other classmates on campus or at parties.  1. The Lone Tombstone- Kent State University - Kent, OH I would first like to start this with one bit of quirkiness from Kent, OH, as I spent a few years in that college town. On East Main Street, along the row of frat houses, ther

In Fall 2021, I decided to throw together a haunted road trip. I take a road trip to a specific location and back while trying to find conveniently haunted places. It's not really to ghost hunt, but it gives an exciting spin to what kind of road trip it is. If a restaurant happens to be haunted and I need to get lunch or dinner, I eat there, or if some place is on the path of travel that is of interest, I go there.  When I stopped at the campus, it was bustling that day, as i

Have no fear, community college students; I have an oddity for you. Before attending Kent State University, I attended Cuyahoga Community College for a couple of years. I attended one of the campuses, Parma or Tri-C Western Campus. All the time that I attended, I had no clue that the Tri-C campus’ land was once the grounds of a military hospital and  German POW barracks. I even somehow missed the historical marker. As an alumni of Cuyahoga Community College (a.k.a Tri-C), I m

In high school, I was flipping through my favorite literature, Weird Ohio, to find oddities around Ohio. One section about abandoned places brought up an amusement park called Chippewa Lake. I asked my mom about this, and she mentioned going there as a kid. Over the years, I have searched online through Wikipedia and YouTube videos to discuss the park. I even thought about driving down to Chippewa to see for myself, but I still need to do so.  Chippewa Lake is probably one of

My mom would tell me stories about going to Euclid Beach Park when she was young. My grandma would also make references to the park in passing conversations. She would often tell stories of her summers there. The Euclid Beach fountain is on my wall in my vintage amusement park collection.  Like Luna Parks, Coney Island also catalyzed Euclid Beach’s existence.  Investors from Cleveland wanted the park to be patterned after New York’s leisure area. The 75-acre land was leased t

Years ago, I bought vintage postcards of amusement parks in Ohio. I have always been fascinated by vintage postcards, especially amusement parks, since they look like something out of one's dreams, with bright lights decorating the pavilions in the evening. The fountains from Euclid Beach, the dock to the ferry that used to run to Cedar Point, the windmill from Idora Park, and a pavilion from Luna Park, Cleveland, lit up at night.  What is unique about that last park mentione

Growing up, my go-to places for summertime amusement were Cedar Point, Geauga Lake, Sea World Ohio (before they closed), and Memphis Kiddie Park. Those were the only parks I knew of, but later, I learned Northeast Ohio had more amusement parks in the area. One of these parks has faded into obscurity, with only small homage reminders near the once-occupied lot. Throughout the years of driving through Puritas Road up from the Rocky River Reservation, I never realized that there

Before I tell its tale, I would like to start with a pop quiz. What is going to be mentioned in this article? Is it A-Charlie Chaplin, B-SuperMan, C-A&M Records, D- Muppets  E- Ghosts, or F-All of the above. If you answered all the above congrats, you get a gold star!  So after the Death Museum and my hike back to the tour bus, it drove a little further down Hollywood Blvd. The bus turned down a street to Jim Henson’s Company Lot.  Perched atop the main gate is a statue of Ke

Walking back from the Death Museum, I went down Hollywood Boulevard on the Walk of Fame. Across from the Chinese Theatre, hidden around...

Disclaimer: This article contains references to details of murder, suicides, and other graphic material that may upset some readers. No photos were taken inside the museum, as not only is photography prohibited, but to maintain respect for the deceased individuals who will be mentioned in the article. While no depiction of anything graphic will be shown, I will do a walk-through description of what was there for educational and documenting purposes. I will spare specific deta

We were in downtown Hollywood to look for the Carpenters star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame with the Carpenters fan group. As we were...

On the third day of the Carpenters tour, we visited LA to see the Carpenters Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. After an hour of getting through congested LA traffic, the Hollywood sign appeared on the hill, and everyone took pictures of the iconic sign.     Going way back in 1887, LA first only drew in people seeking opportunity in wealth like many other pioneers heading west. The first movie studio would not come around until 1907 when a silent movie company from Chicago w

On my recent odyssey in California collecting weirdness, I somehow made my way to the artistic seaside town of Laguna Beach. Laguna Beach is known for many local fine dining and boutique stores. Many local artists also set up shop.  My mom and sister wanted to dine at Selanne Steak Tavern. I did not think much of the place until I got a story from our waiter, Mariano.  Marinao was an amiable waiter who not only gave great recommendations on orders but also gave us a juicy sto