The Haunting Truth

Today’s episode lands in one of our ancestral seats, Wales. Join us as we explore rap battles, horse skulls and divination in context with the winter season in this oft overlooked region! 

Sources & Reference Material: 

The Mari Lwyd | Wales.com 

The Mari Lwyd, and other Welsh festive traditions | Morbitorium 

Mari Lwyd - Wikipedia 

Welsh Christmas Traditions | Wales.com 

The unusual New Year’s traditions that are unique to Wales 

Join us as we travel to the highest peaks of the world — the Himalayas — where locals speak of a creature that has haunted the mountains for centuries.  

The world knows it as the Yeti — or the Abominable Snowman.

References & Source Notes 

• Wikipedia: Yeti – origin and etymology. 

• Time Magazine (2017): “Are Yetis Real? They’re Probably Just Himalayan Brown Bears.” 

• Nature.org: “The Yeti: A Story of Scientific Misunderstanding.” 

• Snopes: “Dyatlov Pass Incident” fact-check. 

• El País (2011): “Yeti Hunter Murdered in Hindu Kush.” 

• HowStuffWorks: “The Legend of the Yeti.” 

Today's episode includes discussion of death, suicide, emotional abandonment, wartime trauma, depression, spiritual unrest, and folklore involving ghosts and vengeful spirits- as they relate to Christmas in Japan.

Source Notes & References 

BBC News. "Why KFC Is Japan’s Go-To Christmas Dinner." 

Japan Times. "How Christmas Became a Romantic Holiday in Japan." 

National Diet Library of Japan. Historical records on post-war Westernization and consumer culture. 

Turnbull, Stephen. The Kakure Kirishitan of Japan.

Britannica. "Christianity in Japan." 

Paramore, Kiri. Ideology and Christianity in Japan. 

Foster, Michael Dylan. The Book of Yōkai. 

Reider, Noriko T. Japanese Demon Lore: Oni from Ancient Times to the Present. 

Lafcadio Hearn. Kwaidan: Stories and Studies of Strange Things. 

World Health Organization (WHO). Suicide and seasonal trends reports. 

Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (Japan). Annual suicide statistics and winter trend data. 

Japan Times. "Loneliness and Seasonal Depression in Urban Japan." 

Mizuki, Shigeru. Yōkai Watch and Collected Folklore Essays. 

University of Tokyo Folklore Studies Archive. Urban legends and modern spirit narratives. 

Journey with us to Iceland, where we discuss a towering feline menace with a taste for fashion—and flesh. Sources:  

The Myth of the Yule Cat: Iceland’s Weird Christmas Monster | The Pagan Grimoire 

Yule cat - Wikipedia 

Beware the Yule Cat, Iceland’s Child-Eating Christmas Monster - Atlas Obscura 

Christmas Cat Cost Causes Controversy 

Most of us know Jack Frost as a playful trickster. However, did you know that he is linked to a modern true-crime case?

Join us today as we explore the legend that is Jack Frost.

SOURCES & REFERENCES 

• Grimm, Jacob. Teutonic Mythology. (1883). 

• Briggs, Katharine. A Dictionary of Fairies. (1976). 

• Rydberg, Viktor. Teutonic Mythology: Gods & Goddesses. (1907). 

• Anglo-Saxon Chronicle references to winter spirits (translated editions). 

• Afanasyev, Alexander. Russian Fairy Tales — Morozko story variants. 

• Minnesota Cold Case Review (1973 declassified notes; regional historical society archives). 

• Newspaper archives from 1838 (London), 1855 (Massachusetts), and 1799 (Scotland) documenting winter deaths. 

• “Myth-Assisted Homicide: Seasonal Patterns in Rural Crime” — Journal of Criminal Psychology (1998). 

• Society for Psychical Research — Winter phenomenon case files. 

• Northwoods Folklore Archive — Frost pattern reports. 

Join us as we explore the pagan origins behind Christmas, including blood sacrifice, ancient rites, pagan gods and the beauty of the Time-Life book series.

Sources & Reference Material: 

The Pagan Origins of Christmas: Saturnalia, Yule, and Other Pre-Christian Traditions | History Cooperative 

Hidden History Of Christmas: Pagan Origins of Babylon - HubPages 

3 Christmas traditions that may have pagan roots, and 4 that (probably) don't | Live Science 

Saturnalia: Meaning, Festival & Christmas | HISTORY 

9 Christmas Traditions With Pagan Roots 

time life the enchanted world series - Search 

Join us as we journey to Europe, where the jingling of bells belongs to a creature who stalks the shadows of December searching for those who’ve been bad. 
 
His name is Krampus, the Christmas demon. Half-goat, half-man — a remnant of something far older than Christmas itself. 

The feast. The alliance. The disease. The massacre. The ghostly echoes of lives and lands lost. Today's episode explores the darker, rarely told truths about a major US holiday - Thanksgiving.

Today we are discussing cases where the family drama went just a little too far and the holiday table became a crime scene. 

TV Recommendation: 

Happily Never After - Season 1, Episode 5: “Devoured by Love” 

Deadly Women – Season 6, Episode 7: “Love You to Pieces” 

Sources & Reference Material: 

Thanksgiving Massacre Witness: Paul Merhige Ate Dinner, Sang Songs Then Executed Family - CBS News 

2009 Thanksgiving murders - Wikipedia  

[UPDATED with Victim's Daughter at Parole Denial:] Omaima Aree Nelson and the Prosecutor Trying to Keep the Model-Cannibal in Prison: Then and Now – OC Weekly 

Omaima Nelson | Murderpedia, the encyclopedia of murderers 

76-Year-Old Accused of Killing Son on Thanksgiving | Fox News 

Aylais Oliver Obituary - Colorado Springs, CO 

Join us as we head to one of the most mysterious and eerie sites in Delaware-Cape Henlopen State Park. 

 
Cape Henlopen, home to Fort Miles, is a former military installation that has seen centuries of history and hauntings. One of those hauntings lingers today- the Soldier Ghost. Today we discuss the tale that whispers from the windswept shores of Delaware.

Source Notes: 

• Fort Miles History 
  The U.S. National Park Service has detailed records on the history of Fort Miles, including its role during World War II and its transformation into a state park. 

• Fort Miles Historic Site Overview - National Park Service 

• Bing Videos 

• Delaware Paranormal Research Group (DPRG) 
  The Delaware Paranormal Research Group has conducted several investigations at Cape Henlopen, including EVP sessions and ghost hunting tours. 

• Delaware Paranormal Research Group - Official Site 

• Haunting Claims 
  Firsthand accounts of ghost sightings and paranormal experiences at Cape Henlopen come from local residents, park rangers, and ghost hunters. These testimonies can be found in online forums and websites dedicated to paranormal investigation. 

• Haunted Delaware - Cape Henlopen 

• TripAdvisor - Visitor Reviews of Cape Henlopen State Park (Haunting Experiences) 

• EVP Recordings & Field Reports 
  The DPRG’s investigations at Cape Henlopen have produced EVP recordings that are widely shared online. Some of these include the mysterious voice saying, "I didn’t mean to fall," among others. 

• DPRG EVP Recordings - YouTube