16C
BASKETBALL PREVIEW
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 25, 2007
Nine former Jayhawks are in the NBA, two of whom have become NBA champions. Paul Pierce, top left, joined the Boston Celtics in 1998. Drew Gooden, top center, was drafted to the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2002. Kirk Hinrich, top right, joined
the Chicago Bulls in 2003, and Nick Collison bottom left, was drafted to the Seattle Supersonics in 2003.
in the NBA
BY BRYAN WHEELER
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BY BRYAN WHEELER Four former Jayhawks have gone Currently there are nine
wheeler@ancap.com
JAYPLAY = 1
balloween...
WHO YOU GONNA CALL
A reporter's search for the paranormal turns up some information leads to a
ALL PHOTOS BY MINDY RICKETTS
Corbin Residence Hall, an all-women dormitory, is rumored to be haunted, possibly by dead Tuberculosis patients from long ago.
The rain is coming down hard, pounding against the windows of Corbin Residence Hall. Every few minutes lightning crashes, sending a flash of white through the dim and empty hallways. Two of the dorm's residents are escorting me. We are making our way to the fourth floor of the south wing, which is notorious among students for being haunted.
One legend says that the floor was a Tuberculosis ward long ago, indicating that many patients died there. Another legend tells of a girl who took her own life in a room on the floor. As a result, future residents refused to occupy the room and it was turned into a trash closet. However, historical records show no evidence of either of these claims.
We enter the south lobby on the fourth floor and take a seat to talk about the different spirits and specters who have supposedly made their way through the dorm.
Almost all the women who live in Corbin have left for the four-day fall break weekend and in the absence of the laughter of girls returning home from bars and parties, there is only the tapping of the rain and the occasional roar of thunder. Suddenly, a muffie scream cuts through the rhythmic tapping. My escorts and I stare at each other with mixed expressions of curiosity and fright. Our
"Some of us just have a special talent to hear and care for spirits who are earthbound," she says.
She continues with stories of girls who have heard a man singing at all hours of the night on the third floor of the north wing at GSP which is connected to Corbin, and resident assistants who have heard seat seats slamming in an
shocked looks quickly fade as one explains that a resident assistant is watching a movie in her room, just feet from the lobby.
She and her sister experienced many paranormal happenings in the two western Kansas homes they grew up in. Though many of the experiences scared them, they decided to use their gifts to help not only those who are plagued by spirits, but the spirits themselves.
Margaret, who asked that her full name be withheld for fear of being harassed, says a gift passed down through her bloodline has given her a special ability to communicate with the deceased.
empty bathroom.
My mind wanders back to a conversation I had with Margaret, a Lawrence resident and paranormal investigator.
"I if can be a tool to facilitate sad souls to light, so be it."
Margaret has conducted
The investigations are conducted by a group including Margaret, her husband and her sister. They usually are found by word of mouth by people who feel they are living in a bad paranormal home. The equipment the crew uses includes a gauss meter, which picks up anything with an active electrical current. Margaret says this is helpful for detecting spirits because, much like living beings, they emit a lot of electricity. They also use a 35-millimeter Canon digital camera to capture things they might have missed such as faces or orbs, which are circular traces left in photographs.
Margaret has conducted six investigations and five sences over the past two years. The sences often involved trying to contact abducted children. At one sence, Margaret and a group contacted Nicole Brown Simpson; she said she knew who her killer was, but felt that the group was being too nosy to divulge any names.
and voices missed during recording, but which are audible during the
Another important piece of equipment in investigations is a tape recorder. It can pick up sounds
"The camera never lies," she says. "But it also picks up a lot of dust in the air, so you can't believe that every little thing is an orb."
tape playback. This process is referred to as electronic voice phenomena, or EVP. Margaret and her sister played me a tape they had left recording in the basement of a house they were investigating. Upon playing the tape back, they heard a Native American song and dance. In the short clip she played for me, I could hear the sounds of shuffling feet and various rattles.
Margaret isn't sure why the spirits stay with us, but has a few theories. She believes that the sadness keeps them earthbound, as well as the guilt produced by the tears of the living. She also believes that some spirits might be here as punishment in the afterlife.
"What if they have to watch the enjoyment of life as their hell?" She says. "You can see it, but you can't have it."
As long as there are people being plugged by spirits, Margaret will be helping them. "I operate out of respect and love," she says. "I try to usher the spirits towards vacating."
Margaret understands why people might not believe in spirits, but she also thinks that nonbelievers could see the light.
"Just one brush of your shoulder or one breath on your back will
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