Issue No. 15︱Monday, June 17, 2024

But are ghosts even real?

It was a cool, crisp December afternoon when Y/N made it to Gettysburg National Military Park. They had been looking forward to this trip after learning all of the spooky history of this area. The Battle of Gettysburg was the American Civil War's bloodiest battle. There was so much death that it was considered the turning point in the war. Thousands of people lost their lives in this one concentrated area.

Because of this dark history, this town and its surrounding area have been considered one of the most haunted places in America. With so much death, how could it not be an eerie place to visit? Y/N had always loved ghost stories and haunted locations for as long as they could remember. This trip was going to be a real treat for them.

It started with a little drive around the battlefield until they finally made a stop at a little place known as Devil's Den. This name was appealing to Y/N, who wondered why this place would be named as such. It was later found out that the name was given to this rock formation years before the Civil War even took place. The locals in the area believed there was a giant serpent that lived within these rocks, but now the area is known for a darker reason.

With the car finally parked, Y/N started their journey, exploring all around these boulders. Enjoying learning the history but not feeling on edge or frightened by anything, Y/N continued to peacefully enjoy the area. They had their phone out, recording video, hoping to catch some kind of entity, and taking photos of locations where others had seen entities in the past, but came up with nothing.

Eventually, they came across the area they had been looking for. They had seen this location and many photos, and finally, it was right there in front of their very own eyes. One of the most famous photos taken from the battles of Gettysburg shows a deceased soldier lying next to a pile of rocks. Y/N stood there in amazement, thinking how odd it was to be standing and looking at the very spot where, just about 200 years ago, there was a deceased man. Of course, Y/N wanted to capture a photo of this area, hoping to capture some kind of entity.

Y/N pulled out their phone, but as soon as they went to take the photo, something odd happened. Their phone, which had always been perfectly fine before, suddenly shut itself off. Y/N tried turning the phone back on, but when they did, they saw that the battery had completely drained. Before, they had a fully charged phone, and now it was at 3%. Y/N thought this was odd, but they tried taking another photo before the phone could die again but were unable to. Again, the phone died, and this time when your name tried turning it back on, the phone was at 20%. It somehow had regained its battery, so Y/N tried one last time to take a photo and was finally successful.

Right after this success, Y/N's phone died once again. They gave up and headed back to the car to see if they could charge their phone. Once leaving that spot, their phone went back to normal and charged up, and after that, they continued to take photos perfectly fine. Y/N thought this was very strange, but it was nothing compared to what they were going to experience later that evening.

After driving around some more and taking more photos again without problems, your name stopped at the top of a hill, which they later found out to be called Little Round Top. At the top of this hill stands a small castle-like structure. As the sun was setting, they made their way inside. It was cold and uncomfortably dark. The carefree feeling from earlier is now gone. Y/N turned on their phone flashlight, looked around, and saw names written on the walls of this stone fort. Behind them, they noticed a small corridor with a narrow staircase spiraling up. Naturally, they chose to climb them.

There were a few people in front of Y/N as they made their way up, but it seemed there was something else behind Y/N. Just as they made it halfway up, Y/N was convinced they heard someone walking behind them, but when they looked back, they saw nothing but darkness. They swiftly made their way to the top of the structure and could barely stand. Was a ghost just walking behind them? Y/N now looks back at this event with a skeptical mind, but it still stays with them.

I Am the Carbon Queen

Everyone loves me, and you should too!

Bow down in my presence. Fill your lungs with my essence, my delicious CO2. I am the carbon queen, and you will obey my every command. No one can stop me. I have an army of raging followers who will crush you at the very moment you insult me. If you even think about me in a disrespectful manner, they will be there to correct you. I am the almighty, the powerful, and the wonderful carbon queen.

One day, I will rule this planet. I will rule your countries. I will rule your governments. Every thought you have will be about me. There is no stopping me. My loyal followers will always stand by my side. They love me. They adore me. I can do no wrong in their eyes. I have them right where I want them, and they don’t even know it. With their help, we will eliminate anyone who is against me or stands in my way.

My followers and I won’t stop until every last living thing on earth is breathing in my poisonous smoke. There is nothing you can do to stop me. I will be awarded for all of my work. If you don’t believe I deserve it, you are wrong; my followers will make sure you know it. I am able to blindside those around me. There is nothing you can do to stop me. I will reign supreme!

They think I love them, that they’re not just another number to me; they’re not just part of my elaborate scheme and my quest to dominate the world. As my following grows, so does my business. I am worth so much that I could be considered an entire company just as a single person, and they still think they’re important to me. Nothing I do will ever be held accountable. I am beyond the law. One day, I will be the law. I am the carbon queen, and everyone loves me. If you do not, you are wrong and will be forgotten and never forgiven.

“So Much to Learn”

There’s just so much to learn; it’s overwhelming. You could spend an entire lifetime learning new things, and you still won’t know it all. What if you could just have the knowledge of everything pumped right into your brain? I know that would end up backfiring on you, and it’s a good thing that we don’t have knowledge of everything. It’s better for us to learn as we go, but sometimes I just wish I could easily gain knowledge at a quick pace. Just when I learn something new, there’s more to it, and I have to dig even deeper for more. Every single thing you learn about then has about a million different branches of even more information.

Learning feels like a tree. You have the trunk with the base information, and then the branches go off everywhere with more knowledge. The roots grow in your brain with everything you need to know. I wish I could have an entire forest of information, with different types of trees everywhere. I guess I already have my own forest with the knowledge I currently have, but I want to expand my forest. Now I’m just yapping about brain forests. I’m not sure if any of it even makes sense. I just want to learn more.

It just gets a bit overwhelming at times when I find something new and have an interest in it. Then I know that there’s going to be more I have to learn and will probably never have the full extent of it. I’ll never be an expert in any knowledge field. I’m like a jack of all trades, but instead of having skills in different areas, I just have beginner-level knowledge of various different subjects. Sometimes I envy the people who seem to know what they want and what they want to learn; they're experts in one subject. I just can’t be that way with my interests varying across all sorts of topics. It seems I can never settle for just one thing; I need more elsewhere.

Yoga in the Daylight

We have a lot to appreciate this day, and we will do it while stretching ourselves with some yoga. Head outside or near a window for some yoga while appreciating the daylight the sun provides us on June 21st.

National Watch Day

June 19th

This may look like a clock, but it is not. It is a watch. Back in my day, watches ticked and were made of, um, metal? Not like you young folk with your digital screens attached to your wrist. Back in my day, we knew how to read a clock! What? Is it 8 and 3 1/2 o’clock? No! It’s 8:17! What are those little lines moving around, you ask? Get out of here!

Cherry Tart Day

Do you like tarts? Do you like cherries? Do you like cherry tarts? Well, if so, then today is your day! Celebrate by making yourself a cherry tart or just buying one from a local bakery. Either way, get your cherry tart filling this June 18th.

Time to Eat Your Veggies!

See how dull and lifeless your life is without vegetables? Look at all of them. So gray and sad. Just like your diet without them. Make your plate and gut happy by adding some delicious, colorful veggies to your meals on June 17th for Eat Your Vegetables Day!

Thank you for reading the blugg newspaper.