The Cornettsville Dust Devil

(AI Illustration)

The last time I visited the Cornettsville Cemetery, I was a teenager. This time, my mother had decided to catalog the entire cemetery for her genealogical research. A long, lazy summer drive from Indianapolis south to Daviess County, Indiana; the cemetery is only slightly smaller than downtown Cornettsville itself.

A winding access road though the middle of farmland took us to a parking place next to an old fence. There, we drank from an artesian well, the distinctive “rotten egg water” that supposedly has health benefits.

My folks, my sister and I took an orderly approach this time, working a grid to document all the graves, including that of an ancestor, William R. Baker. In chapter 7 of The History of Daviess County,
it states “Among the business men of the place are William R. Baker, general store and post office; John N. Killion, blacksmith, and Dr. J. M. Achor. The handsomest public school building in the county, outside of Washington, is located at Cornettsville.”

Baker was a Civil War veteran, and I’ve restored several photos of him. One in particular, I remember from my childhood, because it hung for years on the wall by our front door, in a flaming pink frame. Baker, posed proud and stiff, in full Union Army regalia; the photo caught sunlight and had faded significantly before I had a chance to bring it back digitally. No matter how many times my father teased my mother about relegating the poor fellow to the pink frame, she never relented.

I remember this as an enjoyable excursion, though it took most of our day to catalog the cemetery. Shortly before we were planning to leave, I was standing at the northeast corner of the cemetery, looking out over the patchwork quilt rectangles of crops neatly laid out among the southern Indiana hills; it reminded me of photos I’d seen of the British countryside, arranged in peace, grace and order.

It was a sunny summer day, not too hot, perfect for this kind of outing. As I looked out over the farmland, I saw something odd stir a couple of rectangles over to my right – at the ground, something began to churn the dust and detritus up from the cornfield, and spin it up into the sky in a tight spiral; a dust devil formed in front of me. It seemed completely out of place – there had been a light breeze, but no wind, and there were only a few wispy clouds far up in the sky that day. It seemed as if the dust devil had started from the ground and moved up.

I watched with fascination as it began to move, and then hop towards me like a miniature tornado. It bounced up the hill and paused right over me – I was in the center, and watched the leaves and dust just spin around me. It was eerie – in the eye of this “storm” it was peaceful, and yet there was this energy completely surrounding me. No noise, no wind except for the rustle of the spinning leaves. Just to describe my feelings – I was suddenly cold, as if from the inside out, and I felt as if I were being touched, scrutinized perhaps, by something intelligent. Just a subjective description, yet…

It moved off from me, and then stopped with my sister at its center. Then it hopped again, visiting my parents exactly the same way. As it left them, we all started to follow it, as it approached our car.

On the hood of the Chevy was one of the notepads, filled with details transcribed from the tombstones. As all of us watched, one by one, the top three sheets were torn from the pad, left to right, as if an invisible hand were ripping them off methodically; the pad itself stayed stationary on the hood.

From there, the dust devil made one more hop, about 20 yards past the car. We stood there utterly amazed as we watched those three pages circle around and around, up and up, until they were out of sight. Then just as suddenly as it had begun, it simply stopped. The heavier leaves and dust just dropped straight to the ground, while that which had been spinning ever upward, fluttered down in random trajectories.

We split up and ran in different directions, 20 or 30 yards out from the epicenter, trying to catch a glimpse of the missing pages, in order to retrieve them.

Except, they didn’t come down.

When it made the last hop past the tree line, the dust devil spun the pages up, out of reach, but we could see them for a while. There was nothing but open ground, and the pages did not reappear. We walked another grid, and never found a trace.

By now, all of us were spooked, and it was a long drive home.

Other people have since cataloged the names at the Cornettsville Cemetery, but it seemed at the time, that something didn’t want us to have that information. Yes, it is an irrational, even superstitious, emotional reaction; one that made its own kind of sense to us, in the moment.

From the below Google satellite map, not much has changed there in all these years. And somehow, that’s a comforting thought.

View map of cemetery

A more recent view of the cemetery, by Steven C. Guy.

Below: Mary Jane and William Riley Baker.

Find-A-Grave Memorial

 

William's father Jabez

Dumpsite Diving UFO

(Photo Copyright John Stanton 2006)

Over the past six months, while culling through approximately 40,000 photos for my first photography book, I’ve scrutinized both mutts and gems. Shots I’ve overlooked while working on a deadline, as well as favorites I’ve simply not been able to find a home for, are making the cut for “Parallax,” scheduled for release this summer.

Some photos possess their own unique points of interest, such as IMG_3185, which was shot the day before Thanksgiving, 2006, at an undisclosed industrial dumpsite.

According to the EXIF info, 3184 was shot at precisely 3:27:00 P.M.; the subject in question was photographed at 3:27:06, and the next frame at 3:27: 22. Frames 3184 and 3185 were both landscape orientation - 3185 was zoomed-in a bit more than the previous shot. 3186 was a zoomed portrait shot of the vaguely humanoid form of concrete and rebar.

There is an object in frame 3185 that does not appear in the adjacent frames. The insets in the photo above depict the object at 400% and 2000% magnification.

It appears to be a solid, ovoid or disc shaped object, of unknown configuration, composition and purpose. It doesn’t appear to be motion-blurred, as best I can tell, and seems to be too detailed, solid, stable and high-up to be merely a passing insect. The photo was taken at 1/1000th of a second.

The previous frame, 3184, was shot at a wider angle, from the same position I took 3185. There appear to be no wings, fins or aeronautical stabilizers on the object. Since only 6 seconds elapsed between exposures, I think it is fair to rule out balloons, clouds and blimps as possible explanations. Frame 3186 captured less of the sky than the previous two shots, but still, there is no such anomaly present.

What it isn’t seems to be apparent: what it is, is not. Hence the term “Unidentified.” Make of it what you will.

April 5, 2015

Experimenting with an HDR-simulation filter brought this one out a bit brighter; from a different shoot. You can click on this one for a larger version.

Both were shot in the pre-drone era :-)

Another odd whatchamacallit in the sky, Oct. 20, 2017, while out on an infrared shoot. Not a clue what that could be. This seems to be turning into a running theme.

Witchwire

After an evening of unseasonably warm rain, storm squalls and high winds, the skies quieted around midnight, the morning of February 12. At 3:50 A.M., I was at my computer and online when the power went out. I fumbled around for about a minute, lit a candle and located a flashlight. Flo came in, and we checked out front – some lights were on, but the street light was out, as well as a row of homes to the south. I looked out back: the power line to our house was still intact, and the security lights were on at the school. I went to the phone to call in our outage – DOA. Since the phone company generates its own electricity, it seemed reasonable that a downed pole took out both power and communications, somewhere near where underground phone lines become airborne.

Six hours later, power company trucks and cherry pickers circled our block, and the power came back on. Still no phone – might have to call that one in. This being the sixth phone outage since last June, I knew the drill, and I took a phone and a screwdriver out back to our terminal box. When I plugged the phone in, I got a nice clear dial tone – so the only possibility – the wiring between the box and our house decided to fail at the precise time that the power went out. It only took about ten minutes to rig a temporary line, but the odds of the simultaneous failures struck me as yet another anomaly to add to my ever growing list.

Here we are, now, on Oscar night, Feb. 22. Watching the last few minutes before William Holden gets shot and stumbles into the pool in “Sunset Boulevard,” when we hear a strange scraping sound, almost as if somebody is shoveling snow right outside our front door. No, the sound is wafting its way up from the basement. The paper shredder has turned itself on, lurching and gagging on nothing. It has never misbehaved before, and it has been a month or so since I last used it. I’m back up stairs in time to see Holden get plugged.

Once again, electrical anomalies appear to be the Motif du Mois.

"Traps" Released November 11

TRAPS

baited, set and ready

edited by Scott T. Goudsward
Introduction by T.M. Wright

The sound of the snare, the scream of an unsuspecting victim—the deadliest part of a trap is not knowing you’re in one until it’s too late! Featuring top-shelf terror and a rogues’ gallery of twisted tales by some of the genre’s best writers.

CONTRIBUTORS INCLUDE:

P.D. Cacek
Del Howison
Nancy Kilpatrick
Rhys Hughes
Paul Finch
Hal Bodner
Wendy Brewer
L.L. Soares
J.M. Heluk
David Simms
Tracy L. Carbone
Scott T. Goudsward
K.K.
A.E. Martineau
T. Rex Armés
John Dimes
Mark Rigney
Caroline Allen
Dan Foley
Lorne Dixon
Gregory L. Norris
Cody Goodfellow
Lisa Mannetti
Elizabeth Blue
Martel Sardina
Lyn C.A. Gardener
Flo Stanton
Sarah Totton

Get your copy!

No such thing as "Orphaned Works."

(Please scroll down to read my reply)

From the Office of Senator Evan Bayh
Monday, August 18, 2008 11:56 AM
From: "noreply@bayh.senate.gov"
To: johndstanton

Dear Mr. Stanton :



Thank you for contacting me regarding S. 2913, the Shawn Bentley Orphan Works Act of 2008 . I appreciate your thoughts and concerns on this issue.



Innovation, creativity and hard work have fueled the growth of our economy and created countless jobs. I believe that our country's success in a globalized world depends largely on its ability to protect its innovations and breakthrough designs. Yet today, American businesses lose an estimated $250 billion a year to intellectual property theft. One of the most important steps Congress can take on behalf of our content creators is to ensure that adequate protections are in place so that they will be compensated for their work. That is why I authored the Intellectual Property Rights Enforcement Act, a bold new strategy for protecting Americans from criminals bent on pirating or counterfeiting their products. My bill would improve enforcement by elevating the government's response to IP offenses to the same level as money laundering and other black-market crimes. This legislation would also enhance cooperation between the myriad federal agencies responsible for carrying out the protection of intellectual property rights. We need this reform to establish a focused, aggressive coordination plan for our domestic and international efforts to protect our best and last competitive advantage in the global economy: American ingenuity.


I am pleased that nearly all of the ideas embodied in my legislation have been incorporated in a new bill introduced by leaders of the Senate Committee on the Judiciary and myself on July 24, 2008. The Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights Act of 2008 will protect American innovation by addressing the shortcomings of our current enforcement regime. This bipartisan, measured compromise represents the best components of a number of intellectual property proposals introduced in Congress. Key among the legislation's provisions are: authorization for the Attorney General to enforce civil copyright laws; enhancements to civil intellectual property laws; enhancements to criminal intellectual property laws; coordination and strategic planning of federal efforts against counterfeiting and piracy; and increased resources for key programs within the Department of Justice to combat intellectual property theft. I am proud to cosponsor this comprehensive approach, which will equip our Government with the tools it needs to investigate and prosecute those who violate the intellectual property rights of American citizens. I look forward to working with my colleagues on the Judiciary Committee to move this bill towards enactment into law.



As you may know, S. 2913 was introduced in the Senate on April 24, 2008. This legislation would limit liability for the use of "orphan works"-copyrighted works whose owners may be impossible to identify and locate. The bill would provide a means for anyone to make use of copyrighted material whose owners cannot be identified. Opponents of S. 2913 are concerned that the bill does not contain protections such as requirements that a user file a notice of use with the Copyright Office in order to claim orphan works status with respect to a work and that an archive of the notices be maintained by the Copyright Office.



S. 2913 was reported out of the Senate Committee on the Judiciary on May 15, 2008, and placed on the Senate Legislative Calendar. Please be assured that as it makes its way to the Senate floor, I will keep your views in mind.



Again, thank you for contacting me. I hope the information I have provided is helpful. My website, http://bayh.senate.gov , can provide additional details about legislation and state projects, and you can also sign up to receive my monthly e-newsletter, The Bayh Bulletin, by clicking on the link at the top of my homepage. I value your input and hope you will continue to keep me informed of the issues important to you.


Office of Senator Evan Bayh
(202) 224-5623
Russell 463
Washington, D.C. 20510

My Reply:


Dear Senator Bayh,

Thank you for your reply, and your concern. I did sign the online-petition opposing S. 2913, but I would like to take this opportunity to express my vigorous opposition, not merely in regards to the fear that “protections such as requirements that a user file a notice of use with the Copyright Office in order to claim orphan works status with respect to a work and that an archive of the notices be maintained by the Copyright Office,” aren’t provided, but to the entire concept of “Orphaned Works.”

First off, the very concept of “orphaned works” is in violent conflict with both the letter and the spirit of the international copyright convention of 1977, in which it was asserted that your creations belong to you the moment they exist.

To give you an example: I was commissioned to produce an illustration for a short story that was published online. My work, as well as the author’s, were credited there. The author subsequently copied and posted my illustration on his web site, promoting his story – however, he failed to credit my illustration. I contacted him – he lives in New Zealand – simply asking he add my credit to his page. As of the last time I checked, he had not complied. Now – if someone else comes to his site, notices my illustration and captures it, he has no idea of who originated it and owns the rights.

You cannot presume this is an “orphan” work simply because a third party overlooked crediting me. NOR should I have to pay some bureaucracy more than I earned for creating it, just to keep someone else from stealing it.

The very concept of “orphaned works” is thievery, and equates the finding of it on the Internet to garbage left at the curb – finders, keepers. An easier concept? If it doesn’t wear a sign saying it’s free, it is NOT. Would you eat an apple in a grocery store, assuming it was free, because it lacked a price tag?

The problem here is that dishonest concerns are trying to railroad through legislation that legalizes the theft of intellectual property, simply because of easy access, due to the openness of the Internet.

It would be like passing legislation that makes it legal for me to walk off with your lawnmower, simply because it was “abandoned” in your front yard while you went into your home for a drink of water.

The law is very clear. What I create is MINE from the moment I create it, until I sell or license it otherwise. There is public domain work, there is free work. In the software world, there is even what they call “post card ware,” meaning you can have this for free, but I’d just like to get a post card from you. Not too much to ask, right?

But WHO so desperately needs my art, my writing, my music so much that he has the RIGHT to claim it as his own and PROFIT from reselling it, that the law should support this thievery? Can’t the individual create it himself? Can’t he afford to commission the work from someone who has the skill? The law is clear – if it isn’t yours, HANDS OFF.

There is NO SUCH THING as “ORPHAN WORK.” If there is, then everything we create is simply garbage on the great cyber curb.

Please, do not in any way support such a vulgar concept. Once such a law is passed and entrenched, it is nearly impossible to undo the damage.

Thank you for your consideration,

John Stanton

Of Shadow and Substance...

- A new Anthology, with cover art by Yours Truly.


Of Shadow and Substance

Things That Go “Uuuungh” In The Night

Last Monday AM, around 1:50, Flo was sitting at my computer, and I was in my chair, about 10 feet away. She’d been doing some online research, and turned to chat with me – we’d been talking for a few minutes, and she was mid-sentence when a loud noise practically drowned her out.

It was a very load moan or groan, “Uuuungh,” deep and resonant. The best I can describe it: as if someone had plunged a butcher knife into the gut of a large, robust old man. To me, the sound appeared directly between us. Flo told me that she thought it might have come from out back, though the window and door in that direction were shut tight. Still, we checked both out front and back, and found nothing whatsoever to account for the sound.

Sounds rarely rouse me when I’m asleep (my Brown Noise track drowns out everything), and if they do, if I can’t find anything to account for them, I write the experience off as an artifact from dreaming. But, when something like this happens when I’m awake, and there’s a witness, that shines a different light on the phenomenon.

Micro-anomalies are for the most part overlooked, I think, because there is simply nothing of value that you can extrapolate from them, at least not individually. If, say, tens of thousands of fish or frogs dropped from a clear sky into your neighborhood, it would provoke mass speculation; theories would abound, and range from freakish weather to black holes to Biblical plagues.

We’ve lived in this house for a number of years now, and while we’ve had a fair share of these micro-anomalies, the “groaning old man” is not a regular occurrence; nor am I inclined to call TAPS and report a haunting. If the groan appeared regularly, I’d be sure to record and time it, and stake out various possible entry points – but I doubt he – whatever “he” might be, will cooperate.

The natural tendency is to toe-tag such happenings and file them away in the “unexplained” drawer. The event is neither broad nor significant enough to make any useful speculations about – and if you dwell on it enough, you will look like a nut to everybody else.

I once approached an ATM just as the woman ahead of me left; the machine displayed “Thank you, Mrs. Stanton” for a few seconds, and I turned to see her climb into an elegant white car with an Ohio license plate. I never saw her before, and had no idea if she was related to me – in fact, the happenstance is only significant if I feel that it is to me – yet it is not a commonplace occurrence. How often might I have stood behind or in front of another Stanton in some line somewhere, and simply not known it? What were the odds that I would have noticed this time?

Synchronicity can be incidental – such as a name or verbal pun – or a physical event – something tangible beyond syntax and the coincidences of language.

One Thanksgiving when I was a teenager, we heard the screech of tires, and an ensuing ruckus out front – a child had bolted from our next door neighbor’s front yard, and a middle-aged woman had almost hit her – in fact, she had run over the very tips of the little girl’s shoes; the child was unharmed, but both she and the driver were almost in shock from the near-tragedy. The driver was rushing home after making a last moment purchase for the holiday dinner. She wanted everything to be perfect, because her son, who lived out of state, was visiting for the first time in years.

Almost exactly an hour later, another screech, another ruckus out front. Another neighborhood child, about the same age as the first, bolted into the street, from the same place in the same yard. This time, she was hit, and her leg was broken. You guessed it – this driver was the first driver’s son, who didn’t want to be late for Thanksgiving dinner.

This was on a quiet side-street, not a thoroughfare. There was no geographical reason why a child would choose to cross at this point over any other, and neither child had been visiting next door. Both had just been walking along, and for no understandable reason, had chosen that place and moment to run across the street.

Micro-anomalies – the eerie confluence of implied purpose and possibility – if you catalog enough of these, they just might be sufficient to entertain a dinner guest or two, but they also have a cumulative, disquieting effect. Like a pixel-glitch, a video-hiccup in the face of the person across from you.

At the signpost, up ahead…


While you're at it, check out the publications below - I have an article and three photos in Twisted Dreams, and a photo on the title page in NexGen Pulp.

Order Twisted Dreams Magazine

NexGen Pulp Subscription