Friday, July 31

Ghostly Hitch-hiker Talked Of The Second Coming Of Jesus

Hitchhiker thumb

Following on from yesterday's post. I have come across many other similar stories of ghostly hitch-hikers.  Back in 1980, for example, it was reported that motorists in Arkansas, USA were picking up a hitch-hiker who said he was Jesus Christ!  He then disappeared from the vehicle without trace.

By 'coincidence' I saw that this hitch-hiker may well have then moved on to Sweden. The Schenectady Gazette reported:

Police [in Ekenassjon, Sweden] said that on Thursday, many drivers reported picking up a young man who talked about the Second Coming of Christ.

Then, without opening the door, the hitch-hiker suddenly disappeared without a trace, the drivers claimed.

As a result of these reports drivers are speeding down roads without regard to traffic signals police said. Or, they go miles out of their way to avoid a spot they call the ghost's favourite intersection for catching a lift.

Police have been flooded with calls asking about the mysterious traveller, but have yet to start an official probe. However, local priests are taking it seriously and pursuing investigations.

Alcohol is not suspected by the police as Sweden's strict drunken driving laws make it an unlikely cause of the mysterious appearances.

Mighty strange!

And to finish with today, my Google + pal Mike Martin sent me details of the following YouTube video - a sad ghostly hitch-hiker song.


10 Ghost Story Posts

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Thursday, July 30

The Ghostly Young Woman Hitch-Hiker

Ghost of woman

This is may be a well known ghost story, but I hadn't heard it previously. I have, though, heard similar tales, so perhaps somewhere along the line they all merge into one.

The westbound bridge near the Sumter and Richland county lines is said to be haunted by a ghostly hitch-hiker following a woman's death, near the entrance to the bridge.

The hitch-hiker waits on the bridge and requests a ride. If a driver stops she gets into the vehicle's back seat and says she is trying to get to Columbia to see her sick mother, who lives in Pickens Street. Once the vehicle leaves the bridge on the Richland County side the woman disappears.

A couple travelling to Columbia reportedly (Source: The Item Vol 112, No.17) picked up the woman in 1968. After a short time the wife turned to talk to the passenger in their back seat to find that she had vanished.

The wife fainted and it's said that while she was being revived, the husband decided to check out the address the ghostly figure had given him.

He arrived at the house and was greeted by an elderly lady who immediately said, "I know why you are here. You picked up a young lady in the swamp. My daughter was killed in an accident in the Wateree swamp several years ago, and each year on the anniversary of the accident, she appears to passers-by."

Other Ghostly Posts:

The Grey Ghost Who Walks Into A Doorway That Is No Longer There
The Ghost Sightings In London's Top Hotel
The Ghostly Ghost Photo Of The Brown Lady

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Wednesday, July 29

BMW Motorcycle Coincidence

BMW Motorcycle
Photo sourcePinterest
Another short 'coincidence' example. This one I received from montgomeryrichard as a comment.

"In 1979 I was in New York on holiday from London. I saw a man with a BMW motorcycle which was exactly the same model as the one I owned in London. We chatted a bit and I went on my way.

A few months later I was riding my BMW motorcycle in London and stopped at a set of traffic lights. Waiting to cross the road on foot was the man that I had spoken to in New York, who had the same model BMW motorcycle.

We were both shocked as I got the impression that he did not believe I had a bike the same as his. We spoke and I rode off.

Never saw him again."

Other Random Posts:
The Aston Martin Coincidence Or Synchronicity
The Black Stick Men Who Stalk Our World At Night
The White Dove As A Messenger Of The Dead

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Tuesday, July 28

Same Name Families Coincidence

Sydney Opera House
Sydney Opera House
Two families with surnames Goossens, but unknown to each other, emigrated from Belgium to Australia at different times.

One of the fathers, Eugene Goosens, liked his new country and became the conductor of the Sydney Symphony Orchestra. He had a daughter, Renee, who was also very musical.

The father of the other Goosens family became the first professor of singing to be appointed to the Sydney Conservatorium. His daughter was also called Renee and, again, was very musical. She later was also appointed to the very same position as her father.

So we have two families with the same surnames, with very similar qualities and daughters with identical names - quite a coincidence. Oh, and I forgot to mention that the fathers were both called Eugene!

Source: The Age - Oct 23, 1951

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The Mysterious Skull With The Golden Wreath Of Protection
Soldier Receives A Letter From His Daughter By Coincidence

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Monday, July 27

Her Front Door Key Returned By Coincidence

locked out of house

Here's a short but quite amazing coincidence, sort of makes you wonder if someone 'up there' is having a laugh.

Mrs. Willard Lowell of Berkeley, California discovered that she had locked herself out of her house. At that precise moment the postman arrived with a letter for her.

Inside the envelope was her spare front door key, returned to her by her brother, who had taken it home with him by mistake after a recent visit.

Other Random Posts:
Knitting Found In His Car Made Wife Think He Was Having An Affair
The Meaning Of White Feathers As Messages From The Dead
Married Couple In The Same Photo As Children

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Saturday, July 25

Knitting Found In His Car Made Wife Think He Was Having An Affair

Sexy knitting

I've published a couple of stories about people driving a car belonging to someone else by mistake. Here's another such experience I saw in yesterday's Daily Mail. In my own words:

In the 1960s Dennis Rutter was issued with a new company car - a blue mini. On that same evening he drove his wife to see her friend in his new car. After dropping her off he parked his car at a public house, where he met up with a couple of friends.

After two shandies he left the pub to pick up his wife, about 13 miles away. On the journey home his wife accused him of seeing another woman! Shocked he asked, "What makes you say that?"

His wife told him that in the glove compartment there was some knitting which wasn't there before.

Dennis jokingly said that if he had been out with another woman she certainly wouldn't have brought her knitting with her!

The rest of the drive home was icy quiet.

On arriving at their home there was a police car parked. A policeman got out and asked Dennis what his registration number was. He replied that he couldn't remember, as it was the first day he'd had the vehicle.

The policeman told him the car was a stolen vehicle!

His wife started crying and his father, who was at the house, started telling the policeman how honest his son was and how he would never steal a car.

Once everyone had calmed down, the policeman explained that Dennis's car was still at the pub!

The police had found out where he lived, as the owner of an identical mini worked at the tax office and was able to find out who the owner of the car was. Dennis's employer had then been contacted and confirmed that he was the driver, and gave the police his address.

As Dennis was insured to drive any car he was allowed to drive the mini he had, and swap it with it's rightful owner - who could not get into Dennis's car.

The two drivers met up and had a laugh about the mistake. The cars were identical and ignition keys often worked in more than one car in days gone by.

Dennis eventually arrived home in the correct car - and without any knitting in the glove compartment.

Other Similar Posts:
Driving The Wrong Car By Mistake Coincidence
Identical Cars Coincidence

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Thursday, July 23

Soldier Receives A Letter From His Daughter By Coincidence

Letter in envelope

A letter was addressed simply "to any soldier" and sent to Saudi Arabia. So when Sgt. Rory Lomas opened it, he was stunned to find it signed by his 10 year old daughter, Cetericka.

Lomas' wife Barbara told the Beaver County Times: "It's amazing if you think of the odds of him getting his own daughter's letter out of the thousands that were sent"

"My family couldn't believe it. They say it was a blessing and was truly meant to be. It's something that will be very special to us for a very long time."

The letter from Cetericka was one of thousands written by Chatham County children and addressed "to any soldier."

The letters were packed with chocolate brownies  made by more than 1,000 volunteers and shipped to 14,000 soldiers.

Lomas, a member of the 84th Transportation Company, arrived in Saudi Arabia a few weeks previous to receiving the letter.

The letter said:


Dear Soldier

Hey, my name is Cetericka Lomas. I am 10 years old, and I know you're hot over there. Well, hopefully you can get home soon.

Now we are studying Indians in social studies and studying plants in science.

Do you work hard? How high is the temperature over there? Well, we'll talk to you later.

Your friend,

Cetericka Nicole Lomas.

Other Random Posts:
Meeting At The Eiffel Tower By Coincidence
Finding Lots Of Money Coincidence
The White Dove As A Messenger Of The Dead

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Wednesday, July 22

The Fatal Coincidence

Coincidence story clipping

A newspaper clipping of a fatal coincidence story from Italy:

Imperia, Italy, March 28: An Italian farmer, Giuseppe Depetri, died in a hospital here yesterday at the same age, under the same circumstances and on the same date his father was killed several years ago,

Both men fell from olive trees they were pruning and died of spine fractures. Both were 39 at the time of their deaths which occurred on the same date of March 27.

Source: Sarasota Herald-Tribune

Other Recent Posts:
But For Fate I Wouldn't Have Been Born
Gulliver's Travels Tells Of Two Mars Moons Before They Were Discovered
The Coincidence Of Meeting Someone Many Miles From Home

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Tuesday, July 21

But For Fate I Wouldn't Have Been Born

World War 2 fighting

During the miserable wet Autumn and winter of World War II's Italian Campaign in 1943, both sides were bogged down and had to dig themselves in - in a perverse reminder of the horrors of trench warfare of the previous Great War.

Gord Young was a young soldier caught up in the circumstances which had landed him and his two buddies in that dangerous situation. Their slit trench was living room, bedroom and toilet, a human refuge. It was their home for more than two miserable weeks.

Occasionally the entrenched soldiers were permitted the luxury of a hot meal at the field kitchen some distance back from the forward lines. It was brief but very welcome respite.

On one occasion, after Gord and his pals had been out for a meal, they carefully made their way back to the trench. It was no longer there. During their brief absence, a three-inch mortar shell had landed squarely on their 'home', totally obliterating it. Had they been in the trench at the time they would also have been obliterated with it.

The workings of coincidence, fate, Kismet or whatever you may wish to call it are mysterious. My own father, during World War 2, had to go to work, leaving early in the morning. He had forgotten to take with him something he needed, so turned around to get this from where he was living.

A German bomb exploded where he would have been walking if he had continued. In a way his life was saved and mine too. If he had been killed I wouldn't be here now - I wouldn't have been born. We really are all subject to the hand of fate. Some are drawn into a situation, while others are spared.

It makes you think!

Other Random Posts:
67 Years After The D-Day Landings They Meet By Coincidence
The Unusual Contact With Her Dead Mother
Gulliver's Travels Tells Of Two Mars Moons Before They Were Discovered

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Monday, July 20

Gulliver's Travels Tells Of Two Mars Moons Before They Were Discovered

Gulliver discovers Laputa, the flying island (Surely this isn't a UFO!)
I do like old newspapers because they often show coincidences. The following is from The Montreal Gazette in 1924. It's a report on the Royal Astronomical Society, Montreal Branch, when a Professor A.S Eve gave a talk.

Mars has two suitably sized moons of its own, and Dear Swift, when he wrote Gulliver's Travels, had one of his imaginary characters mention the fact. Yet, at the time Swift lived, no one knew scientifically that Mars had moons.

"I said to a certain lady I thought this a strange coincidence," remarked Professor Eve, who lectured at McGill University last night before the Royal Astronomical Society. "She was, by the way, a lady with a strong spiritualistic tendencies. Her answer was, 'Not at all, Swift's astral body had been there.'"

The professor added he thought it a pity Swift's astral body had not traversed the entire solar system - it would have saved students of heavenly mysteries much trouble.

Just to clarify Mars has two moons, Phobos and Deimos, and these were discovered in 1877 by Asaph Hall. Jonathan Swift wrote Gulliver's Travel's in 1726 (amended 1735).

And what about Laputa, the flying Island, in Gulliver's Travels - not a UFO surely!

Other Random Posts: Meeting At The Eiffel Tower By Coincidence
The Mysterious Skull With The Golden Wreath Of Protection
The Coincidence During The Battle Of Crete

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Saturday, July 18

Meeting At The Eiffel Tower By Coincidence

Eiffel Tower 1888 under construction
Eiffel Tower under construction 1888
This continues the theme of people meeting up by coincidence or synchronicity from yesterday's post.

Sue Chapman was waiting near the Eiffel Tower in Paris while her French class students toured the famous landmark.

Meanwhile Gary Rupp had already been to the top of the tower. He got into the elevator for the return trip down. As he got off the elevator, the teacher noticed him.

"Sue saw it was her brother. She couldn't believe it," said their mother, Eileen Rupp.

Sue, a teacher in Vermillion, was in Paris on a tour with her class. Gary, who works for a large motor company, was in Paris following his business trip to Germany.

"Sue and Gary only get to see each other once or twice a year. It was so neat that they happened to see each other at the Eiffel Tower in Paris of all places," Eilen said.

Neither Sue nor Gary knew the other would have been in Paris at that time.

Source:Toledo Blade.

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Friday, July 17

The Coincidence Of Meeting Someone Many Miles From Home

Hamton Court Palace
Hampton Court Palace
We were out walking yesterday - nothing unusual there - but we met an old neighbour of ours from six or seven years ago. They had moved on to fresh pastures.

Afterwards, as we continued on our way, my wife and I both said to each other, "Do you remember ... ?"

What we had both recalled was a time those neighbours were living close to us, but we hadn't seen them for maybe seven or eight weeks.

This happens, not seeing someone, but at the time we took a visit to London, about 300 miles from where we live. While there we had a trip out to visit Hampton Court Palace - and who should we bump into, while walking round - those very neighbours we hadn't seen for seven or eight weeks.

Some will say that such meetings are for a reason. Perhaps we have some sort of information or message for that person or persons we meet, or vice versa. Or maybe it will alter the relationship in some way between those meeting up. Or you might simply put it down to a coincidence.

Either way here's another such story from Jenny.


In 2012 I was visiting London, around 9000 miles from my home in Australia. I was doing the tourist sites and was in Trafalgar Square. It was a lovely sunny day so the square was packed with visitors. I then heard a voice calling my name. I turned round and it was a friend from Australia whom I hadn't seen for several months. Neither of us knew that the other was visiting England.

If my friend hadn't have called out my name I would, of course, never have noticed her. We agreed a date when to next meet up back in Australia as she was travelling on to Paris the next day.

It is a small world.

~ Jenny

Sometimes you wonder if something out there is pulling the strings ...

Other Random Posts:
The Hampton Court Ghost Caught On CCTV
Married Couple In The Same Photo As Children
23 Funny Children's Letters To God

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Thursday, July 16

He Dreamt His Friend Had Been Hanged

Precognition or Telepathy

A story today about - well, I'm not sure. Precognition perhaps or telepathy or prophecy ... well I'll leave that for you to decide.


A writer dreamed that a well known London stage manager, a close friend, came to him with his neck bandaged and an expression of extreme agony on his face. He pointed to his bandaged neck and tried to speak, but failed.

Then the writer woke up, and strongly impressed by the vividness of his dream, related it in the morning to his brother saying, "It gave me the impression that S**** had been hanged."

During the morning he went to his friend's house, and was told that he had been in bed for two days. It appeared that while at a rehearsal he had strained his neck, and had been in great pain ever since. This was striking enough but there was more to come ...

Afterwards he said to S****'s wife: "You know I hurried round because I had a dream that S**** has been hanged."

"That's most extraordinary," was her reply, "because the doctor said he very nearly dislocated his neck in exactly the same manner that occurs when people are hanged."

Other Random Posts:
A 90 Year Old Woman's Commandments For A Successful Life
The Man From The Spirit World Made Love To Her
Anne Parrish Book Coincidence

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Wednesday, July 15

Partners Killed At Same Time LInked By A Series Of Coincidences

Pennsylvania car 1915
Vintage car 1915
I'm stepping back in time today to January of 1915. It seems there have been coincidences since the beginning of time. You could say, of course, that it's a massive coincidence that any of us are alive today - but that's a whole different theme to today's story.

Pennsylvania: Partners in life, by a curious coincidence, two men died violent deaths upon the same day and at the same hour. Following out the coincidence their executors took out papers of administration within minutes of each other, and the letters were recorded upon opposite sheets of the county bond book.

Samuel Hyslop, a blacksmith of Castle Shannon, shot himself Friday night, dying almost instantly. At the same time his partner, Harry Augenstein boarded a Charleroi car, from which he changed to a Washington car. A sudden lurch of the car plunged him to the ground, killing him instantly.

Edward Augenstein, a brother, through Attorney JW Kraus, visited the register's office and took out papers of administration on Harry Augenstein's estate of $3,000. A few minutes earlier Thomas Laird, of Castle Shannon, administration for Hyslop, took out letters for an estate of the same size. Both men were the same age.

Other Random Posts:
Being On Earth Is One Big Coincidence
Positive Thinking Creates An Aluminium Ladder!
The Meaning Of White Feathers As Messages From The Dead

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Tuesday, July 14

Happy Birthday Coincidences!

Vintage photo of a cat's birthday
Vintage Photo - 1914/15
I'm in birthday mode while writing this on July 13th as it's my grandson's 5th birthday. So here's a couple of quick birthday coincidences for today. The cutting is from the Reading Eagle


Janesville, Wis. The United States summary of vital statistics says it can't happen - but it has!

Louis Felder knows that you can have three children - not triplets - all born on the same day.

Her three children, aged 10, 7 and eight months, were all born on November 10th. According to the US government experts this is barely possible: the odds being estimated at one in 28,000,000. Mrs Felder, a union official, is said to be flattered but takes the feat in stride - guess she doesn't have much choice!

Other Random Posts:
A 90 Year Old Woman's Commandments For A Successful Life
The White Dove As A Messenger Of The Dead
Positive Thinking Creates An Aluminium Ladder!


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Monday, July 13

The Man From The Spirit World Made Love To Her

Sleep paralysis

Today's theme runs on from my post Sleep Paralysis And Seeing People Who Aren't There - Or Are They? which all started with Kate's posts - links to her stories are at the end of this post. Kindly note, this subject may not appeal to all as it has a slight adult nature.

The latest story has similarities to previous posts. It's interesting that it also features sleep paralysis, which is reasonably common. As usual, I accept such stores and experiences in good faith - I realise they are difficult for may people to accept as being true. The author wishes to remain anonymous.


"I was about to got to sleep one evening when I saw something like fog or smoke enveloping me. With my eyes closed I felt someone embrace me tightly.

Then this entity kissed me on the lips for a few seconds, then left.

At first I couldn't breathe, but I let him kiss me anyway. After the mysterious kiss and tight embrace, I felt so calm and relaxed like I'd never felt before.

A few weeks later, he came back just as I was about to fall asleep. This time he not only kissed me, he made love to me.

One thing led to another, and so I would welcome his visits. But I noticed he would only visit me when I was tired, stressed or needed calmness. Soon I could even communicate with him mentally.

Later, the amorphous fog or smoke began to take shape and became the solidity of a real man. I could now see his eyes and touch his body whenever I was in that very relaxed state you call the alpha level of the brain waves. We would make love or reunite with each other for a few seconds. I really liked and enjoyed those moments with my invisible lover. I figured he was my soul mate who'd come to visit me.

Then one time when he visited me again, he held or touched my neck. I felt he was choking me. I told him to let me go - and he did. But from that time on his visits, which previously were pleasurable for me, became a threat. I saw the sadness in his eyes when he left. After that incident he never visited me again.

I went to Japan to study (I'm from the Philippines) without any more incident. But then something happened. 

I was about to fall asleep when I felt someone crawling on my bed. At first I did not pay attention to it because I knew I was alone in the room. Then I felt him lie down beside me. I felt him adjusting his position because my bed is for one person. I felt his heavy weight and I could hardly breathe.

He wanted to kiss me but I could not feel his kiss. I only saw a grey shapeless smoke without a face. I could not move my body. But I was still in control of my mind. I was on the verge of crying.

Then I prayed the Lord's Prayer and he started to fade until he was completely gone. It was only then that I could breathe and move my body again.

Now I am afraid the spirit may come back. When I tell my friends they don't believe me. They think I'm only imagining things because I have no boyfriend."

Other Similar Posts:
Kate's Sex With A Ghost Turns To Sleep Paralysis And Thoughts Of Aliens
Kate Says She Has Sex Regularly With A Ghost
Kate Thinks The Ghost Who Wants Sex With Her May Be An Incubus
The Ghost Who Wanted Sex With Kate
The Ghost Sitting On Kate's Bed

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Saturday, July 11

A 90 Year Old Woman's Commandments For A Successful Life


I'm not much of a one for rules and commandments but I came across the story of a lady called Elodie Armstrong. She had multiple sclerosis, but lived happily for over 40 years following her diagnosis. When she was 90 she decided to share her personal ten commandments.

Some of them are perhaps nothing new, others may be easier said than done, but it's interesting to see them gathered together. Numbers 1, 3, 8, 9 are ones that I would say I try to follow but, whatever, here are Mrs. Armstrong's commandments.


1. Thou shalt not worry, for worry is the most unproductive of all human activities.

2. Thou shalt not be fearful, for most things we fear never come to pass.

3. Thou shalt not cross bridges before you get to them, for no one yet has succeeded in accomplishing this.

4. Thou shalt face each problem as it comes. You can handle only one at a time anyway.

5. Thou shalt not take problems to bed with you for they make very poor bedfellows.

6. Thou shalt not borrow other people's problems. They can take better care of them than you can.

7. Thou shalt not try to relive yesterday for good or ill - it is gone. Concentrate on what is happening in your life today.

8. Thou shalt count thy blessings, never overlooking the small ones, for a lot of small blessings add up to a big one.

9. Thou shalt be a good listener, for only when you listen do you hear ideas different from your own. It's very hard to learn something new when you're talking.

10. Thou shalt not become bogged down by frustration, for 90 percent of it is rooted in self-pity and it will only interfere with positive action.

Other Random Posts:
Positive Thinking Creates An Aluminium Ladder!
Anne Parrish Book Coincidence
23 Funny Children's Letters To God


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Friday, July 10

Positive Thinking Creates An Aluminium Ladder!

A 20 foot aluminium ladder by positive thinking

The power of positive thinking or visualisation - does it work? Here's a story which illustrates that it does. Though many will simply write it off as a 'coincidence'.

Pete Leeder had been doing some outside work on his house and realised he needed a ladder, preferably a 20 foot aluminium ladder.

Although he had most tools in his well stocked workshop, the one thing he didn't have was a 20 foot aluminium ladder. Neither did any of his near neighbours. So he drove to the local hardware store - and no, they didn't have one either.

At that point, Leeder decided to utilise the old psychic powers of the mind and zero in on the subject of ladders and his need and desire for one. Meanwhile, from the hardware store, he drove to meet his wife where she worked. During this drive he was thinking about how he could secure the ladder to the car once he had 'achieved' one.

He remembered there were some heavy ropes in the car trunk so he figured he would tie them to the ladder and then run the ends through the open windows of the car and tie them securely inside. Working on this problem kept his mind constantly on the subject of the ladder need.

Having collected his wife, Leeder now began his drive home but, instead of going the usual way, found himself taking a different route entirely. Part of the route was along a road where there were few houses and little development, so consequently there were few pedestrians and hardly any traffic.

Only two people were walking along that particular stretch of road, and they happened to be boys about 12. Between them they were carrying a ladder, a 20 foot aluminium ladder!

To his wife's surprise, Leeder pulled up alongside them and asked them where they were going.

"We've got a treehouse in the ravine down there," said one. "This is going to be part of the structure.".

"Is it your ladder?" asked Leeder..

"Sure it is," replied the boy. "My pop's in construction but he could've been killed the other day when his metal ladder went near some overhead cables. He got himself a new wooden one and said we could have this one.".

"Want to sell it?" asked Leeder..

"How much?" responded the boy.

"Ten bucks," said Leeder..

"Done," said the boy..

Leeder handed over the money, went to the trunk, got out the heavy rope and put his prepared ladder-tying-up plan into action. It worked. The boys happily pocketed the windfall and Leeder drove home with his ladder..

All in all his positive thinking resulted in fulfilment in just 45 minutes.

I know many ridicule visualisation and positive thinking, or whatever you want to call it but it does work - even for finding a car parking space! See my post How To Get A Car Parking Space Using Coincidences. If you can create a parking space then why not, well anything!

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Thursday, July 9

Finding Lots Of Money Coincidence

Many coins my wife has found

I've mentioned previously on my blog how my wife often finds money. Above are just some of the coins she has found! They aren't usually large amounts. However, she was a bit luckier when she found a £10 note (about $14).

It happened in the usual way, we were walking along together and she suddenly stooped down to scoop up the money. I never notice the coins or money myself.

I laughed when she showed me the banknote and said something like, "That's more like it, instead of all of those coins you normally pick up."


£10 note

We carried on with our walk and returned by a different route. We were nearing home when, on the pavement in front of us, there were three young boys on bikes, probably about 9 or 10 years old. One was telling the others about how his mum would probably 'kill him' when he got home as he had lost some money which he was supposed to use for some items from a local shop.

On hearing this my wife asked him what he'd lost. He told us it was a £10 note, so we enquired as to where he had been riding his bike. Sure enough he had been past the spot where my wife had found the money.

She returned the banknote to him and his face looked so relieved. He then sped off to the shop to buy whatever it was his mother needed.

It was fortunate that we returned home by a different route - a coincidence if you like - otherwise we would never have been able to have returned the money to its rightful owner.

Feels good when there is a happy ending.

There is one more small part to the story though, on the Saturday following this my wife won £10 on the UK Lottery. Not exactly the millions she/we had hoped for, but in some ways it was exactly the right amount.

Further Reading:
The Art Of Finding Coins Or Anything Else

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Wednesday, July 8

How Tips And Tipping Began


I'm way off the usual themes for this blog, today the subject is tips or tipping! In rummaging through some old archives I came across an explanation as to where the word tip came from and how tipping started.

In 1938 the Telegraph wrote:

Old English Inns are responsible for the the term. They had small boxes with the inscription To Insure Promptness, into which patrons dropped coins. Tip came from the first letters of these words.

Wikipedia states:

The practice of tipping began in Tudor England [1485 and 1603]. By the 17th century, it was expected that overnight guests to private homes would provide sums of money, known as vails, to the host’s servants. Soon afterwards, customers began tipping in London coffee houses and other commercial establishments.

That's it!

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Tuesday, July 7

Did The Medicine Man Cause An Electrical Storm In New York?

Sioux warrior and medicine man
Sioux warrior and medicine man
On Saturday my post was about a witch doctor. As often happens, I have now come across a similar story dating back to 1940, again mentioning a coincidence. As this is in the language of that period, it may not be what is considered as politically correct today.


"Natives have a firm belief in the powers of witch doctors. In one Indian tribe in America some of the medicine men became widely known to control the weather.

It was reported that they could cause rain in dry seasons and make storms cease. Scientists at once set out to see the rain makers at work.

The witch doctors used rain bundles, which were piles of sticks, and these scientists returned with some to New York. They were warned by the Indians not to open them without the usual ceremony adopted by the Indians.

The bundle, however was unceremoniously opened in the basement of a large museum.

While the operation went on one of the worst electrical storms of the season occurred. The only explanation seemed to be that it was a remarkable coincidence."

But was it a coincidence? The article from 1940 also included the following cure.


"One strange cure witnessed by a missionary in West Africa, had to do with a man suffering from tuberculosis of the bones. He had visited white doctors without success, and at last appealed to a native witch doctor.

He was cured after the treatment. Asked what the native had done to him, the man could only reply that the doctor had placed something in his sores that caused them to run for days. The cure was investigated and proved, but the witch doctor kept his secret."

Other Random Posts:
Witch Doctor Burnt Man At Stake And It Made The Rain Fall
The UFO That Came To Earth At Kecksburg
Parallel Lives Of Synchronicity

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Monday, July 6

The Ghostly Cat With An Old Man's Head


Here's a very odd ghostly experience from Virginia - apologies for my awful illustration above, but you'll get the idea from the story. So, with a pinch of salt, here goes:

"About two years ago, I left my home one afternoon to visit my sick uncle who, with the exception of his cat, Bitsy, lived alone in the country. It was a lovely day, so I decided to walk.

Upon passing a batch of woods, just short of my uncle's house I saw Bitsy emerge from behind one of the trees. I was about to call her when I saw, instead of the cat's head, the head of my uncle. I screamed and the ghostly thing disappeared.

Terrified, I ran as fast as I could the short distance to the house, getting no response to my several knocks, I opened the door and entered. What I saw send cold chills through my body. Sitting in his favourite chair, staring unseeingly at the floor was my uncle. Sprawled upon the floor at his feet, lay Bitsy. They were both dead."

~ Virginia

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Saturday, July 4

Witch Doctor Burnt Man At Stake And It Made The Rain Fall

African Witch Doctor
Rhodesian Witch Doctor
I came across this from 1923 and found it interesting as it shows how attitudes have changed - plus it mentions coincidence (but was it actually coincidence?). Southern Rhodesia became Zimbabwe in 1980.

In Southern Rhodesia, Africa, where they have summer while we have winter, the natives recently called in a witch doctor to make it rain. The whole country was parched and withered as the result of a long drought.

The witch doctor, of course, announced that a human sacrifice must be made to the rain god, Mwari.

No one was very ambitious to be the victim, so the primitive city council turned their eyes to a worthless neighbour named Mtegedi. He was notorious for his amours with his neighbours' wives, and the tribesmen gladly seized on the opportunity to get him out of the way.

Well, they tied him to a stake and burned him alive. Millions have similarly perished in the history of superstitious humanity. By coincidence, the victim had been dead only a few minutes when a terrific storm blew along. Rain fell for days, torrents of it.

Coincidence, you know, is the ally of superstition.

If you have been following the scientific news you will know that Americans have been experimenting to produce artificial rain. The most promising method is an airplane scattering electrified sand on a 'roof of clouds'.

Marconi, some months ago, predicted that rain will come and go at our own will in the future. Then we will become lords and masters of creation on this planet. We will then be able to obtain any amount of power without effort.

The contrast emphasises how man in the primitive state seeks the solution of his problems outside himself, and how in the civilised state he realises that the solution comes from within. In other words, we have to work for everything we get on earth, and progress either individually or socially is up to us ourselves.

We still seek alibis and blame our troubles on external (often invisible) influences. But we are gradually learning that the way to get out of a hole is to climb out with our own hands and legs.

Man's fate is in his own hands, with a Divine Being ready to help as we help ourselves.

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Friday, July 3

Shaving Kit Coincidence

Shaving Kit from 1940s

Attorney Robert Abendroth opened a brown paper bag and pulled out an ancient shaving kit he had just bought in an antique store.

He told his companion, "This was my father's."

Abendroth, a lawyer, was stunned when he saw the shaving kit in the antique shop because it had his father's name on it! His father had also put the date, May 1940. He had received it as a gift, at a golf course, for making a hole in one.

Now, by a surprising coincidence, it was in his son's possession.

Original source: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

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