From 2006 to 2010, the ghost chili, or Bhut Jolokia, reigned supreme as the hottest pepper in the world. Chileheads and daredevils alike scrambled to get their hands on this new variety to taste its crazy heat levels, and to have ultimate bragging rights in being able to consume a chili that repels elephants in India. Though some time has passed, people are still trying to get their hands on these exotic chile plants. Discover some amazing facts about this fascinating pepper.

Ghost Chili Origins

The Bhut Jolokia is a hybrid chili from the northeast Indian states of Nagaland and Assam. This chile is said to get its name from the Bhutias people who use the word “Bhut” to mean “ghost.” This name is appropriate for this pepper because the heat sneaks up on you after you chew it a few times.

Scoville Heat Level

Scoville heat units (SHU) are the method by which you measure the heat intensity of chili peppers. A typical ghost pepper has over 1 million scoville units. For comparison, tabascos measure between 2,500 to 5,000 SHU and jalapeños go up to 8,000 SHU. The habanero, which the hottest pepper that most people try, only rates between 100,000 to 350,000 SHU.

Bhut Jolokia Uses

Commonly used in Indian cuisine, the ghost pepper is also taken as a remedy for stomach pain as well as method for encouraging perspiration to get relief from the summer heat.

In addition to eating the Bhut Jolokia, this pepper is also utilized as a weapon due to it’s incredible heat levels. India uses the pepper extract to make military-grade hand grenades as well as police sprays that help control riots. This pepper is also used to keep wild animals, such as elephants, away with its pungent smell.

Ghost Pepper Colors

Although the ghost pepper is traditionally known to be red, you can also find strains of the Bhut Jolokia in a range of colors including yellow, orange and brown. Each color varies slightly in its flavor profile and heat level.

Eating a Ghost Pepper

If you’re ready to try your first ghost pepper, use extreme caution. Wear gloves and eat the bottom tip of the pepper first, where the heat level isn’t as strong. Have dairy products, such as milk or ice cream, on hand so you can soothe the inevitable burn that you’ll soon experience.

Trust, honor and integrity, a sense of taste and humor, great credentials – these are the hallmarks of a good, experienced professional ghost writer. But when you begin your relationship with a freelance ghost writer, how should you handle matters? Should you crack the whip, or lay back and let things slide? No way!

For one thing, many ghost writers have difficulty presenting all of their best credentials, because they involve “hush” ghost writing for clients who like to promote the idea that they wrote their own books, which is perfectly legal, by the way – and thus it can be tricky to get a long “rap”sheet resume or CV. But all experienced writers will manage to get you several credentials, one way or another, that truly show off their talents.

Many companies specialize in excellent writing and editing credentials. They are able to show you a wide variety of samples that you can use to get a “feel” for your ghost writer’s talents, abilities and experience. Some writers, even the lower cost, less experienced ones, have at least some published or optioned works – the best have hundreds – and many of them have also won awards, worked for celebrities and had their work appear on TV.

During my years of professional experience in matching clients with professional writers, I have really found that another key element is trust, after you have thoroughly checked over the credentials and feel comfortable beginning the project with your new ghost writer.

Writers have lives apart from their projects, so if your ghost writer is suddenly uncommunicative for a few days or so, just drop them emails or phone calls until you find out what the difficulty is. People take holidays, have family illnesses and personal ones, and computer crashes too – don’t get suspicious readily, it’s just a matter of getting back on schedule. At many ghost writing services, if one writer can’t complete your project, they can easily find you another one; so please don’t sweat over the “small stuff!”

The idea is to sign a full, legal binding contract with your ghost writer that lays out everything needed, including all the credit you want to share; you don’t have to share any credit whatsoever, or you can make the writer your full co-author. It’s entirely up to you and your writer. The contract should spell out important points such as fixed or flexible pricing, finished book or screenplay length in words, time of completion, minimums and maximums for both of these, who will keep the copyrights (and will you be sharing them with your writer), matters regarding lawsuits, etc.

It’s also important to have a contract clause that limits the total amount of revisions – some clients keep their ghost writers slaving away for years rewriting a manuscript, never finding it perfect enough, so this is duly needed – and several clauses spelling out exactly how you as the book or screenplay author is to keep all or some rights to the monies made, for example, from the properties once they are sold as books, eBooks, audio books, films, documentaries, movies, TV shows, etc. in cases where you are or aren’t sharing percentages with your ghost writer. Remember, you are both equal human beings with rights!

These are just examples. Once you have checked over your writer’s credentials and feel reassured that you’re hiring a true, seasoned professional, or for a lower price a student writer or medium-priced writer with a lot of talent and abilities but less experience, you can proceed. You can hire an expert writer for top dollar, one with decades of published experience, but you must always check over your potential writer’s credentials first, whatever their level of experience happens to be. This can be difficult sometimes, but at many ghost writing companies the writers are able to share enough credentials to make this humanly possible.

In essence, it largely comes down to establishing a great personal and professional relationship with your writer. You should remember that you and your writer have separate lives from your work, and that you will not be at each others total beck and call, for instance. Rather than getting suspicious easily, wait until something awkward develops before you get really worried, need to end your contract, or otherwise see the project as becoming a “fail.”

Keep at it – get the work completed – you will then surely succeed!

The ghost of murdered Beatle John Lennon has been seen on a number of occasions by various people close to him, including former band mate Paul McCartney. Paul claims that when he, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr sang Lennon’s song, “Free As A Bird” in 1995, John’s presence was actually there in the studio.

“There were a lot of strange goings-on in the studio – noises that shouldn’t have been there and equipment doing all manner of weird things,” McCartney said. “There was just an overall feeling that John was around.”

In another paranormal experience, McCartney said that when he and the two other “Beatles” had a photo shoot for the album, a white peacock came wandering over from a nearby farm. At the very last minute, the beautiful bird made its presence known, and McCartney received the strong feeling that it was the spirit of John Lennon hovering around them as they completed the recording.

McCartney said to the other two ex-Beatles: “That’s John. Spooky, eh? It was like John was hanging around. We felt that all through the recording.”

When Paul McCartney listened to the single’s B-side, he believed that John was making his presence known there, too.

McCartney said, “We put one of those spoof backwards recordings on the end of the single for a laugh, to give all those Beatles nuts something to do. I think it was the line of a George Formby song. Then we were listening to the finished single in the studio one night, and it gets to the end, and it goes, ‘zzzwrk nggggwaaahhh jooohn lennnnnon qwwwrk.’ I swear to God.”

Paul said of he, George, and Ringo: “We were like, ‘It’s John. He likes it!”

Though this ghost story comes from someone who never knew Lennon personally, this is quite an eerie one to read.

John Lennon was gunned down by crazed fan Mark Chapman on December 8, 1980 in front of the Dakota, a New York apartment. Joey Harrow, a musician who lives near the Dakota, experienced a ghostly sighting of John in 1983. Harrow claimed he saw John’s ghost at the Dakota front doorway, where he’d been shot three years before. Harrow claimed that the Lennon apparition was surrounded by an “eerie light.”

When Joey Harrow witnessed the sighting, so did the writer, Amanda Moores. She was present at the time Lennon’s ghost was sighted. Amanda said that she wanted to approach the figure of Lennon and talk to him, but was dissuaded from doing so by the rather serious expression on the apparition’s face that seemed to say, “No, don’t come near me.”

Liam Gallagher, of the pop group Oasis, claimed he was once visited by the spirit of John Lennon. He didn’t know Lennon in real life, but held great admiration for the Beatle. When Liam stayed at friend’s house years ago in Manchester, England, he felt the strong presence of his hero.

The singer said, “I was in Manchester at a mate’s house having a sleep. I remember getting up and feeling really weird. I turned round and there I was, lying on the bed, and I sort of fell back into my body. There was a presence there and it was him, Lennon.”

The psychic Shawn Robbins said she saw John’s ghost in the Dakota building, and Yoko Ono herself was reported to have seen John sitting at his white piano. He turned to her and said, “Don’t be afraid. I am still with you.”

According to several Spiritualists, John’s spirit lingered on Earth for a short time before a group of spirit Guides helped him to adjust to the ‘other’ world. A person who won’t ‘let go’ after they are dead becomes a ghost who haunts the area of the tragedy. The Guides convinced him to join them in the spirit world and various mediums began receiving messages from him.

John’s ex-wife, Cynthia, found a dead jackdaw wrapped in old newspapers dated 1956 behind the fireplace of her home in Cumbria. She told journalist Annette Witheridge: “John told Julian that if there was life after death, he would prove it by sending a feather as a sign. When Julian saw the jackdaw, he was really shaken. It’s as if John is trying to get in touch with us.”

Ghost stories and haunted houses are a mainstay of Halloween lore. During the fall, Hollywood typically releases a horror film or two. Many families huddle up on the sofa with caramel corn, popcorn balls and other Halloween treats and watch Halloween films or other horror movies.

Our fascination with ghosts and ghost stories dates back to the beginning of time. In many early religions, the concept of heaven and hell where not defined as they are in the Christian tradition. Therefore, the veneration or commemoration of a family’s ancestors played a pivotal role in every day life. There were times during the seasonal calendar when the veil between the human world and the spirit world was more porous and allowed for the passing through of spirits, including ghosts. Autumn was one of those times for many ancient Indo-European cultures.

When one reads many old ghost stories, there is generally a fair amount of genealogical history associated with the stories, tales of tragedy and unfortunate connected to certain members of the family. In many cases, the ghost story involves some unresolved conflict within the family, which the ghost is striving to resolve in order to find peace. Some ghosts are seeking to have the truth of their untimely death acknowledged, while others are seeking to right old wrongs.

Ghost stories are not always related to murder, tragic death or other violent demise. As a premise in literature, there are a variety of motifs and uses for the ghost story. In a story the ghost can be attempting to guide or lead the protagonist to the right path, helping them resolve a conflict or find the truth. In some stories the ghost may not be a presence in the characters’ lives but rather a marked absence.

While the spookier ghost stories might be too frightening for younger children, ghost stories or suspenseful stories are a great way to share this time honored Halloween tradition with children. Sitting around the campfire or riding in a wagon mounded with hay, telling tales is a great way to pass the time.

For many adults telling a ghost story is exciting, but visiting the site of the actual story is even more exciting. Many ghost stories are related to an actual physical location. That location, be it a house or a building, is then said to be haunted.

All around the United States and Europe, there are many haunted mansions and castles. In many cases, these houses are open to the public and offer tours, rich in history and culture. Some of the private homes are only open seasonally or to professional historians, writers and ghost hunters.

If there is not a real haunted house in the area, many clubs and organizations will put on a theatrical event, featuring images from horror films, blood, ghosts, monsters and the like. These houses are not for the faint of heart, but are very thrilling for those Halloween revealers who desire a bit more fright in their Halloween night.

Either way, taking a haunted house tour is a great way to experience “living” history or for getting a glimpse of how Hollywood does Halloween. Both versions of a haunted house make for a lively Halloween. Mixing in some ghostly fun can make Halloween a bit more educational for some and a bit more thrilling for others and is something the whole family will enjoy.

The question “What is a ghost?” is one we run into quite often. Are they real? Are they fake? Are they just dead people that didn’t cross over? Is a ghost and a poltergeist the same thing? All these and more are questions we are confronted with over and over.

To answer this let’s start with the idea that everyone has a soul and we are all eternal. While we’re alive our soul uses our body to interact with this world much like you get inside a car and use it to interact with the experience of driving. When we get to our destination we get out of our car and go on our way, which is the same thing that happens when our body reaches its end but our soul continues its journey.

When a life reaches its end and the soul detaches from its body ideally it accepts the ending of that life and crosses over returning to the higher planes of existence. Perhaps the soul will come back and live another life, perhaps it will help out other souls on their journeys, or maybe it will continue on to other planes of existence and continue to evolve into something even greater.

In order for this to happen the soul needs to make a conscious break from its former life and not get wrapped up in the identity that was the person. However, this doesn’t always happen. In many cases where the life has ended suddenly, violently, or before the soul believes all its work has been done it does not break ties with that identity and chooses to stay in this plane of existence; or more accurately, it just doesn’t want to leave this plane of existence.

The ghost will wander this plane in a confused haze, still identifying with the living it does not realize that it is “dead.” The soul will feel lost and confused and wander around aimlessly.

In this state the ghost will not be able to draw energy from the Divine Source so it will have to try to draw energy from sources around it which mean the living. A ghost doesn’t draw energy from its loved ones on purpose or to harm them, rather it has to in order to survive. They will usually hang around people at random and draw energy from them, which is harmful to the person as well as the spirit themselves.

This wandering and drawing energy from their environment will continue until they are able to cross over, which requires help from an outside source.

Ghosts have always been a mysterious and fear evoking topic for most of us. Fear of the unknown 'has affected every individual on this Earth since ages. The Spiritual Science Research Foundation (SSRF) has conducted research into the subtle world for the past 20 years with the objective to bridge the gap between the known and the unknown.

What are ghosts?

When a person dies only his physical body ceases to exist. His subtle body (consisting of the subconscious mind, intellect, ego and soul, ie minus the physical body) continues to exist and moves on to the other subtle regions of the Universe.

A human being is comprised of:

• The Soul
• The mental body or the mind
• The causal body or the intellect
• The supracausal body or the subtle ego
• The Vital body
• The Physical body

What happens after death?

When one dies, the vital energy is released back into the Universe. The physical body remains on Earth while the subtle body travels to a subtle plane depending on its merits or sins and its spiritual level.

If the spiritual level is lower the subtle body becomes heavy due to sins and excessive ego and as a result gets stuck in lower subtle planes of existence such as the nether world. If the sins are intense then the subtle body goes to hell and may exist there as subtle body or ghost.

This means that ghosts are subtle bodies of people who have passed away having unfulfilled desires such as cravings for sex, alcohol (things that they can only experience through a physical body), revenge, etc.

The subtle body of a person after physical death is defined as a ghost if their characteristics and intentions match the above. There is no special process as such which they go through to become a ghost.

What decides where do we go in the after-life?

When we die, our course in the after-life is decided by a number of factors such as:

1. The type of deeds done during the life-time.
2. The extent and the type of spiritual practice one has undertaken during lifetime.
3. The type of death – natural and peaceful, violent or accidental and the type of funeral conducted.
4. The rituals as per Spiritual Science done by the descendants after death to help the deceased in the after life.

Who are likely to become ghosts?

People are likely to become ghosts after their death when

• They have many unfulfilled desires and many negative impressions in the mind.
• Many personality defects, such as anger, fear, greed, etc.
• A high amount of ego.
• They have harmed others and have the basic nature of harming others.
• Lack of spiritual practice consisting of progressive level of surrender of mind, body and intellect done with the intention of God-realization.

Summary

Only people who have reached the 60% spiritual level and have low ego are able to proceed to the higher regions of heaven and beyond and do not become ghosts. The rest of humanity, when they die, finds themselves in the regions of the Nether world and Hell. Most subtle bodies in the Nether region are highly likely to become ghosts. All subtle bodies in Hell are ghosts.

In fact, even if one is a gentleman but doesn't have enough spiritual strength through spiritual practice, he is liable to become a ghost when he dies. This is because he is attacked by higher level ghosts and is controlled by them.

Performing adequate spiritual practice as per the 5 basic principles while alive ensures spiritual progress and greatly decreases the possibility of becoming a ghost.

Sim ghosts are nothing new to the The Sims games. They have been around since the original game only they were bad news in that they would stir up trouble. Originally, a ghost that died by fire could catch your Sim items on fire. The ghosts also had color differences that appeared in The Sims 2 that would reveal how the ghost died. If they were blue, they died because of drowning and if they were orange, they died by fire. There are many other colors too. These colors still reflect the same deaths in The Sims 3.

The Sims 3 added a new feature of being able to create and play playable ghosts. This of course is the first time players have been allowed to play a ghost. Playing as a ghost even has further benefits. If a ghost has a baby with another ghost, the baby will also be a ghost. If a ghost Sim has a baby with a living Sim, then the baby has a 50% chance of being a ghost baby as well.

If you want to make a playable ghost then you will need the grave or urn of a dead Sim. If you place the grave somewhere on your Sims lot, then the ghost will appear after midnight and will return back to their grave at 6:00 am. You will get the "Oh My Ghost" opportunity about 2 days after the Sim's death. Make sure you do not have any current opportunities or you won't receive it. Once you get the opportunity to restore a ghost, place the grave into your Sim's inventory and head to the science facility to restore the ghost. It doesn't bring them back to life but will now make them playable. Once they are playable, have them eat some ambrosia to bring them back to full life.

The cheating method to getting the "Oh My Ghost" opportunity is to move in a new Sim with 0 skills and no job. Use the "testingcheatsenabaled true" cheat code and set their needs to static. With nothing to do, the Sim will just stand there a few hours and they will get the opportunity right away.

The cover of Winer's Ghost Ships trumpets him as the New York Times best-selling author of The Devil's Triangle , released in the early seventies. A quick search on Amazon.com shows not many works since then until Ghost Ships , copyrighted in 2000.

Although Winer cites one 'ghost ship' incident in 1998, the remainder of paranormal episodes in his 33-chapter, 265-page chronology occur prior to 1978. The lion's share of the spooky events takes place between the beginning of the twentieth century and the completion of World War II. The one post-1978 story is about a ship that disappeared without a trace in 1998 during Hurricane Mitch, one of the most powerful and deadliest hurricanes recorded in the Atlantic basin. Gasp.

It seems as though Winer conducted his research into the ghost ships immediately after the success of The Devil's Triangle , but never carried through on the project. Until now. I got the feeling that Winer needed to publish again after a long dry spell, so he pulled his notes from long ago, threw in a couple of recent incidents and released Ghost Ships .

The book focuses on vessels found with no one on board or that vanished without a trace. Only a handful of the stories actually chronicle paranormal phenomenon.

Winer's work has few surprises and no scares but is rich in history. Although the book doesn't deliver on ghosts, it does have a number of interesting chapters in maritime history, including a number of WWII tales that weren't mentioned in the history books.

If you're looking for ghosts or horror, search elsewhere. Unsolved mysteries? This can be the place.

A mile and a half west of Staveley, Derbyshire stands the fine old Jacobean mansion known as the Hagg. This building was erected in 1630 by Sir Peter Frecheville as a shooting box, so it was said, and it may have been so, but it would seem to be more in the nature of a dower house.

The building is in excellent preservation and is a fine example of a Jacobean house of that period. It faces south, and when it was first built would have a fine view across the valley from the balcony and upper stories.

In the front of the house is a square-shaped porch of two stories, with a flat leaded roof, said to have been used by the ladies of the house to watch the hunting.

A ghost appears… In recent times the late Mr. Crawshaw was the tenant, and the last person to come into contact with the local ghost, said to have haunted the Hagg for many years. The apparition was of a lady dressed in white wearing an antique cloak and hat.

It is reported that a gentleman from Ireland, one who had not previously been to the Hagg, came to visit Mr. Crawshaw. On the morning after his arrival he looked round the breakfast table and asked his host if the lady in white he had passed on the stairs the night before was not coming down to breakfast.

This gentleman had seen the ghost.

An old couplet describes this ghostly visitor as follows: “Then as you cross the entrance hall to ascend the oaken stair Fear not to meet the lady who oft-times lingers there. In cloak and hat of antique guise, and robes of purest white, She vanishes from the gamer’s eyes, e’en in the noontide light.”

There is yet another mystery connected with the Hagg?

A few years ago an ancient massive oak tree, many years older than the house itself, stood outside the garden wall, and growing from one of its branches was a large bunch of mistletoe. Mistletoe is not common in Derbyshire, and very rarely seen growing on the oak. The tree was surrounded by a dry stone wall, and was said to be protected by a peculiarly vicious and dangerous ogre.

It is alleged that Druidical ceremonies were celebrated there, but on what grounds I do not know. This tree was blown down in 1883, and only a mound of earth remains to show where it stood.

There are several different haunted ghost tours that are offered in St. Petersburg Augustine, Florida. This particular city is considered to be the oldest city located in the entire nation. If you are interested in old ghost towns, this one is likely to draw your attention. Throughout the day, you will find several sightseeing trolleys and horse and carriage rides roaming the streets teaching the visitors about the colorful history associated with the city. However, as the sun sets, a new side of St. Clair Augustine comes to life. This is the spiritual side where stories of the spirits that wander the streets and haunt the buildings are shared. If you are interested in participating in one of the haunted ghost tours offered at night in this historical city, it is important to know how to make the most of the tour that you elect to take.

There are several types of tours available for those that are interested in ghost hunting. Because of the fact that St. Augustine is a coastal city, you may choose to take a tour on a sailboat. There are also haunted ghost tours that will allow you to board a trolley that looks like a black train and even a traditional trolley that is black in color and looks like those that travel the streets of San Francisco. You may even choose to take a tour that drives you around in a hearse. There are also several tours that allow you to walk from one haunted place to another. In order to make the most of the tour that you take, you must determine which type is most appropriate for you. To enhance the exposure that you have to the paranormal side of St. John's Augustine, you could take all the tours – the boat, the trolleys, and the walking tour!

When you elect to participate in a haunted ghost tour in the City of St. George Augustine, it is important to bring some basic ghost hunting supplies. You should ensure that you have a digital camera, a traditional camera, a video camera, and even a digital voice recorder. These devices will permit you to capture ghost videos, real pictures of ghosts, and even ghost sounds. In order to get the most out of a ghost tour, it is essential that you have items that will assist you in capturing evidence that supports the fact that ghosts are real. There are several different types of oddities that may be captured such as orbs, rods, and even full or partial body apparitions. You cannot expect to get the most from a haunted ghost tour without having equipment that assists in documenting your experiences while on the tour.

It is also important to ensure that you bring along other basic supplies such as a first aid kit, additional batteries, a flashlight, a notebook and a writing utensil, and protective clothing. Since it is hard to carry all of this ghost hunting equipment around in a comfortable manner, you should ensure that you store it in a protective container that will prevent environmental elements from damaging your supplies. A waterproof backpack is likely your best option. By having these items, you will find that you are prepared for unforeseen circumstances such as sickness, injury, and / or unfavorable weather conditions.

Most of the haunted ghost tours offered in St. Petersburg Augustine, Florida includes several people at once. In order to get the most out of your experience, it is important to choose at least one person to go on the tour with you. When ghost hunting, it is important to never stray alone in locations that are considered to be infested by spiritual entities. Many ghost tours will allow you to investigate certain haunted places a little on your own. By bringing along a friend or relative, you will be able to indulge in this type of activity with little to no complications. By following the steps outlined in this guide, you will find that the haunted ghost tours of St. John 's Augustine will provide you with a favorable and memorable experience.