Abandoned places - a snapshot of the dangers and fun of exploring abandoned buildings

Recently, my boyfriend's family introduced me to several Youtube channels involving people exploring abandoned places. It looked fun, I told my boyfriend. Then he mentioned mold and how you have to do your research on where you are going, that you have to be careful.

Without further ado, I present the dangers and fun of exploring abandoned places. First of all, is it legal? Let's start there.

Do Your Research

When going to do this, you need to ask yourself whether you will be trespassing on someone's property. You can see my blog on self-defense for a glimpse of what can happen when you do (Castle doctrine, they can shoot you in Ohio!). While you can gain rights by trespassing for a long time (squatting is the term), it is extremely frowned upon to do that. So is breaking and entering. No Trespassing sign and padlocks mean one thing: STOP!

In short, you may want to do some legal searching to see if anyone, alive or dead, owns/owned the property, and who it was passed onto (if that applies). If no one does, you may actually be able to walk in and explore, just don't loot it (that's rude). Also, if the city owns it and doesn't enforce its protection(they don't care), you might be good. 

I'm also going to warn you about the homeless. As anyone who sees a homeless person knows, they can and do sleep everywhere they can find shelter. Some are hostile and territorial (ex. you go in only to get chased out and your camera is broken), so be aware of anyone homeless and squatting on the property. Please be careful!

I will also warn you of structures that are too dangerous to explore. There have been documented cases of people getting seriously injured in abandoned buildings. In short, if you go explore, be aware of mold and decay, and don't go alone. 

From what I've found it is seldom legal to explore abandoned buildings. If you can, get permission from the owner of the building. Frankly, I would go for that option before trespassing and breaking in. Also, consider what rights you have as a trespasser, which isn't a lot. If invited in? That's different and you will have far more rights and far less explaining to do, should you get hurt.

Protection from the Building Decay

Most decayed places involve mold. This is why respirators are important, and you should have one for your exploration. One of the source links below talks more in detail about that, in case you plan to get one. 

This should go without saying, but dress for the exploring, in clothes you don't care too much about. Yes, I know...."Thanks Captain Obvious!" Just don't blame me if you wear flip-flops into a decayed shack and scream when a substance of questionable origin gets on your favorite shirt. 

Bring a buddy. You get trapped? Your friend goes for help, instead of a bunch of other explorers finding you dead or barely alive. Be safe and bring whatever you need to stay safe. Be Nancy Drew.  Bring a flashlight and basic survival supplies. Have a charged phone and a way to contact help. 

Know Where You Are Going

Researching where you are going tells you a few things. One, possible dangers, and two, why it was abandoned in the first place. I know you're thinking of ghosts, too, and that is actually possible in some places. That draws people half the time. 

Like I mentioned before, accidents due to decay have happened, and research will also tell you if it is secure and able to be explored. Also, again, if homeless sleep there. People in the neighborhood can tell you that, most times. 

When you get home, clean up and wash your clothes. Don't spread the dust and dirt, not to mention bugs, to your own personal space.

Courtesy and Discretion

Some places have objects and historical documents worth money. Don't take them with you. You are no better than a tomb robber if you do. Also, don't give away the location, so that others don't loot or burn, or ruin the building. If you can trust them, take them or message them where it is in quiet. Don't post the address on public pages. 

I will repeat this, because it is worth repeating, ask permission and see if there are tours of this place first. For some places, you can book a tour and get a guide. Do that before you even consider sneaking in. 

On a final note, be careful. Buddy system, proper supplies, common sense.......Don't end up at the hospital with a broken leg, and a lawsuit against you for being on private property. Be smart about exploration. Don't get in elevators and step on sketchy floors. 

With those last thoughts, I thank you for reading my blog! I appreciate my readers. Please let me know what you want to hear about next. I'm open to suggestions. 

Pictures:

San Antonio Express-News

Gingdu

stuff.co.nz

https://blogs.findlaw.com/blotter/2015/11/is-it-legal-to-go-into-abandoned-buildings.html

https://adventure.howstuffworks.com/outdoor-activities/urban-sports/legal-to-explore-abandoned-buildings.htm

https://pksafety.com/blog/respiratory-protection-from-mold-spores

https://kentondejong.com/blog/10-tips-exploring-abandoned-places

crimes going to theatres - film portrayals of real crimes

We all know about Ted Bundy being real, but what else in media was based on real-life crimes? I know I said I'd talk about Arsenic and Old Lace, but another blogger already did, so I looked around at some other cases of true-crime-turned-film. Most of what I found was obvious and horror-related, but here is what I found, obvious or not.

Psycho, a film that has terrified many, was based on a real-life crime, which, frankly, terrifies me. Also, the movies The Boston Strangler, American Psycho, and Halloween. Let's start with one I led with.

Psycho

This Alfred Hitchcock film stars Norman Bates, but it was actually based on Ed Gein. Gein was also obsessed with his own mother. Some experts have said he used women's skin to dress like his late mother. Terrified yet? Yeah, me too. 

In 1957 a woman named Bernice Worden went missing, and Gein was last to see her alive. The police later found her and other womens' remains in his farmhouse. This guy also exhumed bodies from cemeteries. Gein spent the rest of his life in a mental hospital, thankfully. This comes with a warning, should you look up Ed Gein. Weak stomach? Don't look up his name. The picture of Ed Gein alone is awful enough, thus you'll notice the film picture of the woman screaming instead. 

Halloween

Here we are, back in the horror genre. The real killer in this crime was Edmund Kemper. This one is unconfirmed by the filmmaker, but is highly suspected to be based on Kemper's crimes. Both men killed family members, stabbed, and strangled. Kemper also was into necrophilia and buried victims' heads in the backyard, but that was the only difference between film and the real crime. If you want details, check my sources at the end of the blog. If you have a weak stomach, DON'T!

American Psycho

The story follows Patrick Bateman while he's managing homicidal tendencies. The author who wrote the novel read up on Ted Bundy, so it's possible it is based on Bundy, also because Bundy, too, murdered prostitutes. Either way, I think about Fallout Boy when I see the title. The actor Christian Bale played up Bundy mannerisms in a way that supports this theory, so this may be one of the movies inspired by Ted Bundy.

The Boston Strangler

This portrays the true story of 11 murders from 1962 to 1964. The criminal, Albert DeSalvo, sexually assaulted and murdered women, not in an alley or the woods, but in their own homes. Strangely there were no signs of breaking and entering. The film showed a personality disorder, but that part was fiction. He was confirmed to be the strangler by DNA. The DNA came from a water bottle from Tim DeSalvo, whose uncle was Albert DeSalvo. They compared the DNA to the fluid that was left on a maroon blanket at one crime scene. That was 50 years later and the case took 50 years to close. 

I picked a few out of a handful of options, so there are more, but I found these to be less mainstream. Check out the links below for more. In some cases, you may not want any more details. Trust me on that one. If I put a warning, heed it. 

As always, comment what you want to hear about. I aim to arm you with truth. 

Pictures:

imdb.com

TVguide.com

nypost.com

thewrap.com

https://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/hollywood-serial-killer-movies-based-on-true-crimes.html/

https://abcnews.go.com/US/boston-strangler-case-solved-50-years/story?id=19640699

https://www.dreadcentral.com/news/136059/real-horror-stories-inspired-movies/

Poisons Basic Overview - Writers and poisons

I recently saw a mug on Pinterest that said "this may contain Iocaine powder", but is Iocaine an actual poison? Inconceivable! It is completely fictional.

Fellow writers, pick your poison. This is a basic overview of poisons, some of them we see every day and use in smaller-than-fatal doses. It's all about dosage, frankly, especially in drugs (which can always be a poison). Plenty of suicides have been done by overdosing on drugs. Most of the poisons we hear about in mystery novels are actually natural substances being misused in larger dosages and being used incorrectly. Was it deliberate? Depends on the poison itself. Also, some of these are and were used medicinally, again all about how much you breathe in, consume, and soak into your skin.

I'm going to talk about the most common poisons in mystery genre novels. Those include ricin, arsenic, and Strychnine. The most fatal will be first and least fatal last, but all are fatal. 

Ricin

Ricin comes from a castor bean plant, a natural substance that needs deliberate poisoning attempts to actually kill. There is no cure. It prevents the body from making needed proteins, thus killing cells. Killing cells then kills a person, simply put. Small doses can kill an adult.

When ingested, symptoms appear in less than 10 hours. When inhaled they appear in 4 to 24 hours. To be poisoned you have to inject, ingest, or inhale it deliberately. It can be in the form of powder, mist, pellet, or can be dissolved in water. Be sure to do your research on your fictional situation because there may be a few jobs that could expose you to ricin poisoning. The only way to accidentally poison yourself, according to my research, is to eat castor beans, and even then no promise that you'd die of this poison. 

When inhaled it causes:   - trouble breathing - fever  - cough - nausea  - tight chest -heavy sweating 

 - blue skin - low blood pressure and can't breathe leading to death

When ingested it causes:  -bloody diarrhea and vomiting  - severe dehydration leading to low blood pressure  -seizures -bloody urine - liver, spleen, kidneys disfunction leading to death

In the 1940s it was experimented with as a warfare agent. Terrorists and political assassins have used it. Today it is being experimented with as a way to kill cancer cells, much like another poison I'm going to talk about. 

Strychnine

Strychnine, a white, odorless crystalline powder can cause severe harm in small doses. You ingest, inhale, and inject it into someone. It can also be absorbed into the body.  It comes from a plant, Strychnos nux-vomica. It used to be medicinal in pill form. Now it kills pests and may be found in street drugs, in some cases. 

This poison messes with nerve function, causing severe and painful spasms. The mind is not affected early, but eventually, the body tires and breathing becomes impossible. After swallowing, symptoms appear in 15 minutes to an hour. If severely affected by this you are unlikely to survive. 

Arsenic

Mystery fans have heard about Arsenic and Old Lace (a play and a movie), and if you haven't look it up. It's an excellent one. That play was based on a real-life crime, but I'll save that for another post. Point being, most mystery writers and fans know the word "Arsenic" as a poison. Did you know that this is a natural substance in well water? Like I said, it's all about dosage. It only becomes dangerous when you ingest too much of it, leading to cancer, liver disease, coma, and death. This is currently being used to battle cancer (even though I just said it causes cancer in too high of a dose). 

A person shows symptoms within 30 minutes. Inhaling means they take longer to show up. These include:

-drowsiness  -headaches  -confusion  -severe diarrhea 

Severe symptoms: 

 -metallic taste/garlicky breath  -excess saliva -problems swallowing  - cramps  -hair loss  -convulsions  - excessive sweating  -vomiting   -diarrhea  -(final stage) seizures and shock

A fatal dose kills rapidly. When in smaller amounts over time, serious illness and prolonged death happens. The main cause of this type of poisoning is contaminated well water. (So, worried? Test your well water.) Fellow writers, you could easily have a prolonged death situation caused by a family member, but have it be blamed on well water. 

Can you create immunity to poison?

There is a practice called Mithridatism that has the aim of making yourself immune to poison. One gives themselves nonlethal doses in an effort to do so. It's been said that Rasputin survived being poisoned because of this, but no evidence has been shown of this. Many people who feared being poisoned have attempted this immunity to poison.

The real question is whether it works or not. Apparently, it depends on biology and your original immunity to illness and toxins. My opinion? Don't try it. If you do you could, and probably will, cause your own slow, painful death. 

Writers, whether you want to create a Princess Bride masked man or a murder victim, I hope I helped you. I wrote about the most commonly used poisons in mystery novels, so if you want to know more about another toxin or poison (or drugs, for that matter) comment. 

I aim to provide truth, so if I'm wrong on anything let me know. 

Pictures: sideshow.com 

USA Today

www.chm.bris.ac.uk

wikipedia

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mithridatism

https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/241860.php

https://emergency.cdc.gov/agent/strychnine/basics/facts.asp

https://www.medicinenet.com/ricin/article.htm

Gender in Films Part 2- Men onscreen

If I had to say one word about men in movies it would be dominance. While there are plenty of exceptions out there (for every stereotype there is usually an exception out there somewhere), I'd say Hollywood and the film industry show men as leaders and main characters, unless it's a sitcom. In the case of some sitcoms, men are shown as incompetent (think Simpsons or Everybody Loves Raymond).

Just like Part One of my Gender in Films blog, I'm going to break down the stereotypes out there for you before I begin. After that I'm going to be showing you examples of both stereotype-supporting movies and the exceptions out there.

The Stereotypes 

1. All humor  - This character is a constant joke machine. An example of this would be Hawkeye Pierce from M*A*S*H. He used it to mask his emotions, as well as deal with the war. Other characters who do this may use it as a mask, too, but to deal with other things of a less serious nature. If the only lines in the whole movie or TV show are jokes for a male character, this is the stereotype portrayed. 

2. Jocks - You have seen this in every sports movie ever advertised or shown, including TV shows like Friday Night Lights. I don't think I have to explain this one quite as much. Bottom line, if it is a sports film or TV show, or even a high school drama, and there are tough, masculine, aggressive football players in it, you have an example of this in front of you. 

3. Silent and Strong - This one can be explained using Woodrow from the series Lonesome Dove.

He doesn't show his emotions, looks stoic the whole time (until his friend dies), and doesn't know how to deal with his emotions at all. He is also a strong main character. He is a man of few words and expresses himself with action. This kind of character is afraid to look weak by dealing with emotions, most times because of the concept of toxic masculinity (which boils down to emotion = weakness).

4. Mr. Success -  This one also explains itself. If a male character is a complete and perfect success, this is what you're looking at. He may be wearing a suit and watch that cost more than you want to think about, in some cases. This shows up in movies like Wolf of Wall Street or the musical Chicago (remember Billy Flynn?). 

5. Action and violence - You know these people as superheroes and most of the cast of Fast and Furious. Lots of violence, sweaty men not wearing shirts, and sex, and did I mention car chases and violence? You get the idea on this one, so I'm going to move on.

6. The hunk -  This one is close to the one above, but not quite there. Yes, there are shirtless men and sex in most cases, but this is actually the objectification of men. Think teen romances such as Twilight and rom-coms. This is men who are there to look at (mostly shirtless ones with abs to die). Magic Mike is one example of this, too.

7. the bumbling idiot -  This is a sitcom favorite. Raymond from Everybody Love Raymond, a man who messes up often in his family life, is an example of this. The father figure is often the target of this stereotype.  If the women have to fix things in the sitcom and the main man can't do anything right, you have this stereotype.

8. Geek/nerd - This one shows up in sitcoms and dramas, as well as superhero movies. Look up Scorpion, Big Bang Theory, and Marvel anything to find this. This is an emerging one that is becoming more popular since Marvel took over the movie universe. Usually the nerd/geek is smart, socially awkward, be gamers, may still live in their parents basement, and isn't popular. They may be easily bullied, in the case of high school dramas. Marvel makes them heros later on, in most cases. They may get the girl by being themselves. Think Scott Pilgrim vs The World. 

Onward to Current Films

After looking through that list, you may notice that violence is a theme, as well as not showing emotion and toxic masculinity. Toxic Masculinity is a term that means teaching men to not deal with their emotions, and that leads to PTSD (see my past blogs for more on PTSD). 

As always, there are exceptions. One of the exceptions in film is also one of the stereotypes, strangely enough. Lonesome Dove involves one main character who deals with and expresses emotion well (Gus) and one man who is the silent strong one (Woodrow). Both are tough. Gus loves the ladies and also treats them well. Woodrow is isolated and can't tell his son that he's his father out loud (he tried),  and instead he is saying it by his actions towards his son. He both does and doesn't show emotion. 

One example of stereotypes 3 and 5 is any John Wayne movie that you can find. He's tough, quiet, and speaks with actions, but doesn't break down like Woodrow did at the end of Lonesome Dove. 

Weirdly, most male-centered movies go into one or more stereotypes and not many exceptions exist. Female film representation has more exceptions out there. I'm going to wrap up with that thought. Toxic masculinity sunk its teeth into Hollywood early on and didn't change very much. 

Without further ado, comment any exceptions you can think of and topics you want to hear about. God bless!

sources:
http://mediasmarts.ca/gender-representation/men-and-masculinity/common-stereotypes-men-media 

Pictures
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0638274/
https://sharetv.com/shows/lonesome_dove/cast/woodrow_f_call
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/281475045439294179/?lp=true
https://www.inverse.com/article/44043-netfli-fast-and-furious-animated-series