Abandoned Haunted City in Taiwan!
A perfectly fiendish destination for a far east vacation, the city of San Zhi is said to have been a proposed resort town for the nouveau riche of Taiwan’s booming 60s economy. Apparently a series of unfortunate accidents claimed the lives of so many workmen the place began to be shunned by potential vacationers before it was completely finished, so now it sits unused and abandoned. The ghosts of the workmen who died “in vain” constructing the unfinished city are said to haunt the place, perhaps stalking visitors in Grudge-like fashion.
Web Urbanist has a list of other abandoned cities, some closer to home if traveling to Asia doesn’t fit your budget, that are equally delightful. And devoid hopefully of vengeful ghosts.
A tip of the chapeau to WebbAlert.
Star Trek Steampunkery
Disengage from your inner Photoshop critic and enjoy these neo-Victorian wallpapers featuring Spock, Kirk, and the rest of the Star Trek gang.
via Ephemerist
The History and Lore of Ouija Boards
As the Internet becomes increasingly cluttered with accumulated pop cultural detritus, it’s refreshing to rediscover a site like The Museum of Talking Boards that stands the test of time (even with it’s very 90s looking mouse-trailing planchette.)
The online museum chronicles the history of talking boards, also known as ouija boards, spirit boards, witch boards, and channeling boards. While the history presented on the site is fascinating and well-researched, the Museum’s pièce de résistance is the gallery of nearly 100 lovely examples of talking boards, both vintage and modern.
Also delightful is the page of ouija board superstitions which includes gems like this:
A Ouija Board will scream if you try to burn it. People who hear the scream have less than thirty-six hours to live. There is only one proper way to dispose of it: break the board into seven pieces, sprinkle it with Holy Water then bury it.
And don’t forget, there are three things you must never ask a ouija board:
- Never ask about God.
- Never ask when you are going to die.
- Never ask where the gold is buried.
Beast Blender: Taxidermy for Everyone
From the Minnesota Association of Rogue Taxidermists comes Beast Blender, a Flash driven virtual taxidermy studio that enables you to create your very own legendary creature or cryptid. There are dozens of parts to blend, from an alligator’s tail, to a mosquito’s wing, to a black rhino’s horn, and each part can be flipped, resized, and placed independently.
My dismal first attempt is pictured above – I managed to convince myself he’s got a Beetlejuice sandworm thing going on.
The Art and Alchemy of Scent
Driftwood.
An ancient forest in the heat of a summer afternoon.
Shelves full of old books.
The smoke of burning maple leaves.
These are some of the extraordinarily specific scents Christopher Brosius has captured in his collection of decadent and delightful perfumes, accords, and home sprays. His mission is “to give you a pleasure you never thought possible” by capturing and bottling all of the world’s pleasant scents. His approach to aroma is part science, part art.
At any given time, there are up to 400 hand created accords on display at CB I Hate Perfume, Brosius’ Brooklyn gallery. You can purchase a single accord, or arrange for a custom blended perfume made without any alcohol. Many of the ready-to-wear scents are also available online.
For those not able to travel to the gallery, the online shop offers detailed descriptions of each accord, accompanied by the story behind each scent. Brosius’ inspirations are also evident in the literary references that pepper the site.
His Chemical Series of perfume accords contains scents that truly underscore the link between aroma and memory. The series “captures the scents that symbolize technology, industry and man-made objects.” At first this may seem bizarre, but imagine the nostalgia when you catch a whiff of a smell from your childhood – a fresh new box of Crayolas or sun tan lotion, for instance.
If you feel that women should smell like Britney Spears Fantasy and men should not enter a room unless preceded by a cloud of Drakkar Noir, then CB I Hate Perfume probably isn’t for you. But if old paper and autumn leaves or spring flowers, wet dirt, and moss tickle your fancy, take some time to explore the CB I Hate Perfume online perfume shop.
2008 Dances of Vice Festival Weekend
A weekend of neo-Victorian festivities sponsored by Dances of Vice will take place in New York City next month. From the Dances of Vice site:
We invite all modern dandies, decadents, aesthetes, artists, thinkers, and dreamers to join us on February 8th and 9th for the 2008 Dances of Vice Festival in New York City!
The festival will include live music headlined by cello rock ensemble Rasputina. Other highlights include a vintage Polaroid photo booth, a live Victorian fencing demonstration, puppet operettas, and a costumed ball.
via Phantasmaphile