Edgar Allan Poe Clock

2009 marks the 200th anniversary of Edgar Allan Poe's birth. To celebrate the famed writer's accomplishments, many Poe-themed events take place around Baltimore. The Baltimore Museum of Art hosts the exhibition "Edgar Allan Poe: A Baltimore Icon" Oct. 4, 2009-Jan. 17, 2010. The exhibition showcases works by 19th and 20th century artists who used the writer's characters and themes as a basis for their own works.

Poe's Obituary in The Sun

Ever wonder how Edgar Allan Poe's death was handled by The Sun? He died Oct. 7, 1849, at Church Hospital in the Washington Hill neighborhood. The note on his passing is very modest by today's standards. With thanks to Paul McCardell, who dug it out of the archives, here it is:

DEATH OF EDGAR A. POE -- We regret to learn that Edgar A. Poe, Esq., the distinguished American poet, scholar and critic, died in this city yesterday morning, after an illness of four or five days. This announcement, coming so sudden and unexpected, will cause poignant regret among all who admire genius, and have sympathies for the frailties too often attending it. Mr. Poe, we believe, was a native of this state, though reared by a foster father at Richmond, Va., where he lately spent some time on a visit. He was in the 38th year of his age.

Michael Powell, who lives in Eugene, Oregon and is an editor at Kinesiology Publications at the University of Oregon has been a lifelong student of the works of Edgar Allan Poe.

Powell suggests that the poet died from something "like cardiopulmonary collapse, resulting from exposure (malnutrition, lack of sleep, cold, shock of disorientation), a complication of the starved defenses."

So what took Poe's life? Through the years, scholars and medical experts have suggested--in addition to alcoholism--epilepsy, diabetes, cerebral meningitis, mercury poisoning, a drug overdose and even rabies.

"It has always been a topic of special interest. What happened to Poe is not a pretty picture. We wound up treating one of our best badly," Powell said. "He was a brilliant man, a real genius and under appreciated."

I have always admired the work of Poe, and in celebration of his genius, I have created this altered CD clock. It will be given away to one of my Halloween swap recipients!

Be Afraid, Be Very Afraid Clock

Legends of haunted houses are age-old. But are ghosts real, or are they merely human inventions? Some researchers have suggested that ghosts do haunt houses. I have always been somewhat intrigued by stories of this nature.

My husband once heard of a customer who bought a home a few years back and soon began being visited by the ghost of an old man who sat on a rocking chair in their den, reading a book. She was the only one who had seen him. She said she wasn't scared, but she was definitely uncomfortable living in their house. Can people sue people who sold her the house because they didn't tell them the home is haunted?

Unfortunately, you would have to prove that the seller's knew about the ghost and failed to disclose it. It's doubtful the sellers would admit seeing the grandfatherly apparition, even if he was one of their regular visitors. I suppose you really can't say this is all a figment of the homeowner's imagination.

My advise would be to contact a few local universities to see if their faculty includes an expert on the paranormal. I would also seek the advice of a priest, minister or rabbi.

It's worth noting that experts say many hauntings are only temporary--few ghosts apparently care to spend all of their time in the same place. The Haunted History Channel is always an interesting place to explore as the Halloween season approaches.

In light of specters and the unknown, I had fun digitally creating this altered clock by using an old CD. The background images are from Kirsi, and I Googled the "Addam's Family" image.

Happy Haunting!