Night Lights

– or –

Dave comes out of the ‘close encounters’ closet

It can’t possibly be. That’s impossible. How can it … how does it … just … hang there? There has to be a … a helicopter or something!

Three giant perfectly round glowing spheres cannot just hang suspended 100 feet over the middle of I-4.  It’s impossible - but there it was, right in front of my windshield.

It was a clear, warm summer night in 1976/7 and I had just left work and was on my way to an after-party. My friend and I had just finished our shift as monorail pilots at Disney World Orlando.  I had taken my train off line and parked it in the maintenance garage for the night.

After I had changed clothes and clocked out, I talked to my friend to confirm our destination and the time we were supposed to be there. We jumped into our respective cars and headed out of the park toward Interstate 4 to head north to Orlando.

It was a very typical night, uneventful, but it had been a long day and I wasn’t sure I was up for a party but I had promised a friend I would stop by on my way home. And so I found myself driving the long winding roads that lead back to I-4 and the real world. Little did I know that this night would change my life.

We merged onto the major highway and joined the usual tourist traffic headed back to their hotels and homes with their Mickey balloons and Goofy hats and exhausted family members already passed out in the back. I could see my buddy Bill’s car still behind me and silently hoped if I started to take the wrong exit, he would flash his lights to keep me from making the wrong turn.

As we came over what Floridians call a hill, I saw a strange sight. Just above the 6 lanes of traffic were three big lights that seemed to be suspended there. Now, this is probably one of the largest tourist areas in the country, if not the world, so it should come as no surprise that there are helicopters in the area.

You could, and still can, stop by a local business located directly beside I-4 and pay a few bucks to take a helicopter tour of the local theme parks of Sea World, Universal Studios, and the Disney World complex. They tell me it is particularly brilliant at night with all the lights and such.  So it is not unusual to see a helicopter in that area at most any time of the day or night.

I reasoned that it must be a helicopter or maybe one of those blimps that come around for a big sporting event. But this was different than anything I had ever seen. It was much bigger than the lights on an aircraft and it too close to the ground to be a blimp.

The movie “E.T.” had not been written yet, but I must admit that I had read Erich von Däniken’s books on the subject and the one about Barney and Betty Hill’s close encounter and their ‘lost time’ experience (The Interrupted Journey, 1966) before I was a teenager so I was interested in the subject. However, at this point, I was in my late 20’s and had long ago given up the notion that I would ever see such a thing.

Still, here I was staring at an object that had to be at least 15’ to 20’ tall and 40’ or more feet wide. It reminded me of 3 giant Ping-Pong balls, perfectly smooth and round, connected at their center so that they were three abreast. They were not shining like headlights but were instead glowing blue-white. There was no door or window, no outside markings that I could see.

As we got closer to the object, traffic slowed to almost a crawl. I was frantically looking for some guy wires or something that this thing could be suspended from and looking and listening for the sound of the helicopter that must be holding it up there. I thought it had to be some kind of joke or a publicity stunt from one of the studio’s.

Funny, how your mind searches for a logical explanation to explain something that you cannot explain.

As I came close to this object my eyes could not see anything to explain this, and although I stuck my head out the window straining to hear some mechanical noise, all I noticed was a faint humming sound and that my radio had suddenly gone all static. I looked up as I drove under the thing only to see the other side of the spheres and hear static coming from my radio.

I wanted to pull off the road but traffic just kept coming, creeping though it was, and I followed it in my rear view mirror as long as I could and never did it move that whole time.

When we arrived at our friend’s house, Bill walked up to me and said, “Did you see what I just saw?”

“Yes, can you believe that?” I replied.

 “Good” he said, “I thought I was going crazy there for a second.”

We never spoke of it again.

In the Orlando Sentinel the following morning was a story that said a UFO was sighted over I-4 and some witnesses said it moved into a nearby field and sat down. It sat there for a little while, lifted up and disappeared in a flash of sudden acceleration.

Years later I spent some time at the local library going through the files to find that story but never could locate it. I eventually gave up and until today had seldom discussed it with anyone else.

Tonight I turned on the TV and found a story about people giving details about their encounters and it occurred to me that I had never written this story and it probably was time I did before I completely forgot it … as if that might happen. Anyway, I figured it was time I “came out of the UFO crazy story closet” and let the chips fall where they may.

If anyone actually reads this and has any additional information please contact me or leave a message on this blog so that I can find that story just to prove to myself that I wasn’t going crazy.

Hope you enjoyed the story my friends … oh, and you NSA guys too. Good night.

David Green

11 June 2013

P.S. - O.K. a quick scan with my search engine showed that;

 1) Fla., according to one source, has the most sightings of any state in the union.

2) There are and have been dozens of sightings over the years around Central Fla.

3) You can see several videos on YouTube taken from this area.

4) I still cannot find a report of the sighting that I witnessed even though there were dozens, if not hundreds of witnesses that night…very strange…or, maybe I was crazy.

Benghazi

Benghazi

While the government is still trying to figure out what happened, the American people have learned this:

1. According to testimony before congress, drones and other observation “platforms” were sending live feed video to the State department DURING the attack http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2220153/Christopher-Stevens-Ambassador-pleaded-extra-security-Libya-hours-killed.html

2. Several emails were sent to the State Dept., the White House, and various security agencies DURING the attack http://www.cnn.com/2012/10/24/us/libya-benghazi-e-mails/index.html . These included one email with “The subject line reads: "Update 2: Ansar al-Sharia Claims Responsibility for Benghazi Attack." saying that this al Qaida-linked group claimed responsibility as the mortars are falling.

3. There have been several attacks on convoys, personnel, buildings (including the International Red Cross) and that same embassy earlier this year http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Attack_on_the_U.S._diplomatic_mission_in_Benghazi

4. Further, Ambassador Stevens pleaded for help and quoted reasons for concern on several occasions while the State Department removed security details from the area (see links above).

5. The attack lasted a reported 7 hours and at least 2 Americans were still alive 6 hours into the fight and air support was only 2 hours away from Sigonella, Italy. http://formerspook.blogspot.com/2012/10/options-in-benghazi.html

 Why weren’t they sent?

One would think that only the simplest mind would believe it would be OK to leave our Embassy minimally guarded in one of the hottest spots in the world on the anniversary of 9-11 especially just after America loudly and continually celebrated the death of Ben Laden.

Where is the outrage?

 Imagine this happened during a Republican administration, say, Bush, for instance. There would be a public hanging on the White House lawn.

I have to believe that America will exact revenge on this group soon, otherwise several high ranking officials will have and do have blood on their hands.

Gustav Mahler meets the New World Celts

Gustav Mahler meets the New World Celts

The third movement, a scherzo, with alternating sections in 2/4 and 6/8 metre, quotes extensively from Mahler's early song "Ablösung im Sommer" (Relief in Summer). In the trio section, a complete mood changes from playful to contemplative occurs with an off-stage post horn (or flugelhorn) solo. The reprise of the scherzo music is unusual, as it is interrupted several times by the post-horn melody.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Symphony_No._3_%28Mahler%29

The house lights dim and the crowd settles down and finds their seats. The stage is set, the musicians - orchestra and singers, are in their places. It was the opening night for the Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra. The conductor and music director had chosen an epic work to kick off their 20^th year. 

Epic indeed, the selection for this performance was Gustav Mahler’s Symphony #3. The piece calls for an expanded orchestra – larger string section, brass section with no less than 9 – count ‘em, 9 French horns, and 2 choirs (one lady’s and one children’s choir).   

To top that off, this piece has the distinction of being the longest in musical history weighing in at … wait for it … 110 minutes - with no breaks. 

At this point you might be thinking that this writer might be having second thoughts and … you’d be right. But I’m on a date night with my wife, we are with some of our closest and dearest “music” friends, and we know some of the performers on stage. Some from other groups like the Bach Festival Orchestra (which we sang with for many years) and one of our friends and fellow members of the Orlando Chapter New World Celts. 

So I settle in for a night of great music and just hope that the drink I had won’t come back to haunt me for the next hour or so. 

As the maestro talks about the performance we are about to hear, he speaks of the influences that inspired Mahler to pen these melodies. He mentions Gustav as a younger man staring out at the beautiful mountains and forests and fields of his homeland and the brisk air on his face and on and on.

My mind begins to wander as it is want to do in similar situations. It occurs to me that the composer was born in Bohemia Austria http://www.bach-cantatas.com/Lib/Mahler-Gustav.htm .

Did you know that Bohemia gets it’s name from the Latin translation of the name Boii - the great Celtic tribe  that settled in that area about 500B.C. ?  http://www.prague.net/celtic-walk

Gustav Mahler was probably descended from that great people and how ironic that here we, a couple of New World Celts, are sitting in an audience watching a fellow New World Celt on stage perform a symphony written by an old world Celt. 

I chuckle to myself at the realization and a few around me look at me like I shouldn’t have had that last glass of wine. O.K., well, maybe so, but I was all the more encouraged that this was going to be a great experience. 

During the second movement a fellow from the percussion section discretely makes his way off stage. That was a little odd but I figure there must be a really good reason he would do that in the middle of a concert. Who knows, maybe he shouldn’t have had that last glass of wine.

A few moments later, during a soft passage, we hear a snare drum from off stage right. Oh, then it makes sense and what a cool effect!

In the third movement, our friend, trumpet section 'first chair' and New World Celt member, Lyman Brody, discretely makes his way off stage.

Several minutes into the movement the music slows and gets softer.  A trio of horns and woodwinds leads on but then stops.   

Suddenly, a lone horn answers - not from off stage right - but from behind us in the cheap seats in the balcony! 

From the back of the balcony Lyman’s solo horn continues a back and forth “conversation” with the orchestra on stage till the movement ends on his final note. 

Margaret Patton beside me (the director of the Maitland Orchestra) turns to me and says, “That was beautiful!”.  It was beautiful and nearly breath-taking as our friend played his part flawlessly. 

A few minutes later our fellow Celt discreetly makes his way back to his seat and the concert continues and it was a very impressive performance indeed. All thanks to one of the greatest composers of his era and the talented musicians on stage that night, players and singers alike … and a very talented member of the New World Celts that I am even more proud to call my friend than I was before.

Now, where are the bathrooms, again?

By David Green,

Member and past Sgt. at Arms, 

Orlando Chapter New World Celts

Start here

So, here I am with a story to tell and no place to put it. 

What does a writer do when he just has to write but is limited to one particular blog that is limited to one particular subject? I still have stuff I want to say and stories I have to share but they don't fit into my family genealogy. What do you do?

You start a new blog! That's what. 

 Then, what to name this new venture?

When I was looking for a name for something - oh, must have been a new email address. The hint says perhaps, 'pick a subject or item that you are fond of'. 
As I look around my cave, I ask myself what it is that I like? 
Well, I seem to have started collections - books, various things Celtic, but the biggest collections are of ... Lions and Dragons. 
Lions - from my July birth date (Leo)  and dragons, I guess, because I have always been fascinated with anything that flies. I am also interested in my Celtic heritage and ancient cultures. Most ancient cultures have revered flying creatures - particularly dragons.
Do you know the difference in Oriental dragons and European dragons? Oriental dragons don't have wings. Check it out the next time your looking at dragons in the artwork. 
So with just a little work, I came up with a name and a home for my lost or otherwise homeless stories. I hope you enjoy them but truly, it's more of a therapy thing for me.
As my Celtic ancestors would say, "Cead mille falte'"
"a hundred thousand welcomes".