We'll leave the lights on

Where can you see ghostly orbs in the night sky and Stay in a Haunted hotel?  Follow me to West Texas and I will tell you.

Transcript

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Hello, Maya Doers. How are you doing tonight? Well, this afternoon. I'm doing well. Life is going well. My mental state is back to normal. I'm happy go lucky again. I never realized how much your mental health suffers when your children move out. I know when my son moved out, I had kind of a mental thing go on, but I had two others to take care of. When my middle daughter moved out, I know my mental health took a hit, but I had one other to take care of. Well then the baby moved out, and I had no other to take care of. However, looking now at the positives, it's just me and my husband, and we have a whole new life to learn together, and I'm excited for it. So, parents, if you're going through the same thing, it's a season. And like any other season, it'll change. And I hope it's a better season for the next one. So don't get sucked into the mental breakdown that is empty nesting. Be positive about it. Know that better things are to come and your children are doing exactly what you raised them to do, which is leave home, leave the nest. So without further ado, it's gonna be okay. Let's head to a small West Texas town filled with eccentric buildings, including a Prada non-functional store. It's filled with actual Prada shoes and bags inside. They call it art, and who am I to judge, especially since I'm really no artist. And we all know this podcast isn't about art, it's about creepy, scary things that go bump in the night and things that nightmares are made of. Let's learn a little bit about MARFA. Established in 1883 as a water stop and freight headquarters for the Galveston, Harrisburg, and San Antonio Railway, the town model is motto is Tough to Get To, Tougher to Explain. The West Texas town got its name from a character in a Jules Verne book, Michael Strogoff. The character's name is Marfa Strogoff. The name was suggested by a railroad executive's wife who was reading the book at the time. When you get to Marfa, wait until close to dark and head about nine miles east of Marfa on Highway 90. As the darkness blankets the desert landscape, you may begin seeing ghostly orbs of light dancing in the sky. These orbs are distinguishable from headlights by the way they move and the changing colors. Imagine being able to see Texas's greatest unsolved mystery. According to Judith Brooke, the best place to view the lights is a widened shoulder on Highway 90, about nine miles east of Marfa. The best time to see the lights is on a clear night from late fall through early spring, particularly after dark around sunset. The lights are most often reported as distant spots of brightness, distinguishable from ranch lights and automobile headlights on eat on Highway 67 between Marfa and Presidio, to the south, primarily by their abnormal movements. Many visitors suggest that the lights can be seen at any time during the night. Some have reported that even early morning hours, like 1 a.m. to 3 a.m. can be particularly active for sightings. On the Travel Channel, there was a show called Port of the Hill, hosted by Jack Osborne and Katrina Wideman. In season three, episode 11, they do an episode about the Marfa Lights. If you can find the show, make sure to watch it. Something to keep in mind, avoid crowds. If possible, go on a weekday, not a weekend. Also, you may want to rent a car or arrange some sort of transportation as Ritechair services may be limited. The Marfa Lights slash the Marfa Mystery or Marfa Ghost Lights, the extraordinary lights have intrigued visitors and locals alike for well over a century. After researching the Marfa lights, I wanted to know, are there other places in Marfa that are haunted? And the answer is yes. As we arrive in Marfa to see the lights, it's a bit early. We don't want to drive home late in the evening after experiencing these ghostly orbs. So hey, there's a hotel. Let's check in. And here we are, the haunted Paisano Hotel. The Paisano is known for being one of the most haunted hotels in the Lone Star State, Texas, for those that don't know. Built days before the stock market crash of 1929, Hotel Paisano persevered and opened its doors in 1930. It was dubbed the most elegant hotel between El Paso and San Antonio. Its popularity surged during the filming of Giant in 1955, when stars like James Dean, Rock Hudson, and Elizabeth Taylor stayed there. The movie was released November 24th, 1956, after James Dean's death. You can book the room that James Dean stayed in. Rumor has it that his spirit lingers in that room. I am not sure how, since he died in California in 1955. Maybe it's an imprint of his stay there. Or, like my husband says, a way to increase tourism? Hmm. The world may never know. The rooms that are recommended for the haunts are rooms 206, where a headless woman screams in pain, waiting for her husband. And then room 211 is linked to eerie events such as flickering lights, unexplained whispers, moving objects, and sensations of being watched. There's also cold drafts and shadowy figures in the hallways. Things that are not officially confirmed by many guests and staff experience are restless energy in certain rooms and near the lobby. There have also been sightings of a woman in a white dress and an elderly man. From earlier, Jack Osborne and Katrina Wideman, from those paranormal enthusiasts I mentioned, they've actually investigated the Hotel Paisano and both reported supernatural experiences. As per usual, I like to include some movies that talk about Marfa or the Marfa lights and the Hotel Paisano. I've not watched any of these movies, but I would love to check them out. The first one is Destination Marfa from 2021. The second one, this is more of a drama drawing on the eerie atmosphere of Marfa, but it's called Marfa Girl and it's from 2012. Movies that are set in Marfa andor kind connected to the Hotel Paisano, but not necessarily about it, is Giant from 1956, Return to Giant 1996, and I didn't know this one, but No Country for Old Men. So I have a question. What are your thoughts? Do you think that the lights are real? Do you think it's gas lights? Like, you know, um lights of gas that methane or whatever they call it? Do you think it's aliens? What do you think it could be? Um, do you think James Dean's spirit could be hanging out in a room? And why and how is a headless woman screaming? And am I really thinking about this way too much? I don't know. I got my sources from American Ghost Stories, Wikipedia, as usual, the tourist checklist, hauntedrooms.com, cron.com, and visitmartha.com. So what I'd love for you to do is join me on my for my next time uh of podcasting, which I hope is soon. Uh y'all are my favorite adoers. So without further ado, I'm going to sign off with Shh, it's gonna be okay.