Eliza Turner

The second diorama, "Setting the Stage" Who would have thought a quiet and unassuming neighborhood just off of Venice Boulevard in Culver City, California was hiding one of the most unique museums in Los Angeles? The Diorama-museum of Bhagavad-gita, or simply the Bhagavad-gita Museum as it is commonly known, is one of those off the beaten path locations that even many locals are unaware of, despite it having been there for nearly forty years. But what is it, exactly? The museum is more of an immersive spiritual experience than a traditional museum. Visitors proceed through a series of unlit rooms, demanding you give your full attention to each of the eleven dioramas. These dioramas are not just three dimensional displays; each one is accompanied by a narration and light show to enhance the effect of each scene. Each of these dioramas portray either a scene from the Bhagavad-gita or explains a concept of the belief system that has sprung it. The Bhagavad-gita is a r...

The swarm materialized suddenly as I walked along the forlorn path. A light emitted from the agglomerate, seemingly generated by their swift, graithly movements. As they descended from the black ether a buzzing became discernible that, as they approached, slowly revealed itself to be more of a cacophony of electric voices. The entity—for the glowing orbs commingled into a near solid mass—blocked my path yet simultaneously appeared unaware of my presence. The strange old woman I encountered when passing through Felgin warned me not to walk this road tonight; she muttered in her tittering way of speaking something about moving stars and the Astopards but I chalked her ramblings up to a warped mind. The sun gets to people out here in the remote corners of the Mojave. “They hunt on these nights,” she had croaked. “Minds is what they hunt for, you hear? They don’t eat like other things because they aren’t from here. The dark nights when the moon hides is when they get through.” I t...

Back in September, I went out for a short hike at the Wetlands Park one Saturday afternoon and took a few pictures. Nothing out of the ordinary, just pleasant afternoon outdoors. I didn’t download the pics until a week later, on the following Sunday. It was only then that I discovered two photos on the camera that I did not take. Both are blurry and I’m not sure what they are of; but I for sure did not take these pictures. How am I s sure that I didn’t? Because they were both taken at 10:35 p.m. that night. At that time the camera was inside its protective case and I was the only one in the house that night. As I already said, I didn’t even review or download the pics from that afternoon until the next Sunday; the camera was not even taken out of the case after I returned home earlier that day. Here is the first pic: And here are its properties and details: Here is the second: And here are its properties and details: What jump...

A few weeks ago, I decided to take my camera out one night and see if I could get some good shots in a nearby cemetery. I enjoy walking through cemeteries at night; there is a peacefulness and quiet that you just don’t find anywhere else, at least not without leaving the city. I ended up parking next to a fairly large mausoleum that I had never explored before, so I checked it out. Most of it was outdoor, but there was an interior that looked like a small chapel on the bottom floor. The doors were already locked for the night, so I was not able to go in. There was a second floor as well, but I couldn’t tell what was in there. As you can see in the video to your left, there was a nice fountain at the far end of the mausoleum; the water from it echoed through building and made it sound like it was raining—a very nice touch. Besides the mausoleum, the rest of the grounds were well kept and pretty standard cemetery look. I walked around a little, but didn’t go too far away fro...

Legend has it that, when passing through the flood tunnels between Charleston  Blvd and Sahara Avenue on Sandhill Road in Las Vegas , you can hear the ghostly whisperings of a long dead couple within them. The couple, according the story, were driving down Olive Street on a motorcycle and crashed into the construction debris from when the tunnels were being built. Their bodies were not found until hours later. The spot has long been a local legend for ages, so I decided to check it out on night. Due to the spiked fence, I did not get to walk into the tunnels. From where I could observe, I did not hear any ethereal whispering and nothing out of the normal occurred during my time there. I took a short video and a few pictures though (the video is at the top of this page; the photos are below). I got a lot of “orbs” in the pics taken around this area; however, I do not think they are anything paranormal. The orbs are likely dust reflected off the flash fr...

Photo by Osie Turner The infamous Clown Motel in Tonopah, Nevada, is one of the area’s most unusual roadside attractions. A clown-themed motel in the historic mining town of Tonopah, right in the middle of nowhere, and located next to an old cemetery to boot seems almost made up. But it is real; in fact you can’t miss it if you drive through the town. I wrote a three-part article on the history and background of the Clown Motel already, so I’m not going to rehash all of the details here (links are provided at the end of this post). What I am going to focus on is my own experience while staying at the motel. If the sign and name don’t scare you away from getting a room here, you will have to enter the lobby—where the bulk of the clown collection is to be found. Hundreds of clown figurines, masks, pictures, and various other mediums of clownery cover the walls and bookshelves. And of course the life-sized doll, Bozo the Clown , spends his days sitting in the corner greeting ...

"Truck Cab in the Desert" by Osie Turner (2014) Abandoned vehicles are a common sight on the backroads of Nevada. This classic truck cab was a great, unexpected find. I found it alongside Nevada State Route 375, also known as the “Extraterrestrial Highway” because of its proximity to Area 51, near the turnoff from US Route 6.   The remains of this truck were too nondescript for me to identify much about it; I don’t know what type of truck it was, what year it is from, or much else. I would guess that it is from about the 1960s or so, but that is, of course, just a guess. What I do know is that this rusting old shell has sat there, a short walk off the highway, for so long that it has become a part of the landscape. It was probably used by some rancher back in the day until it stopped running—possibly where it lies today. I also know that this is not just some lump of slowly decomposing metal; this truck has a story—of that I am certain. How many miles was it...

A few months ago, I got a full-access tour of the historic Mizpah Hotel in Tonopah, Nevada, and wrote a three page article for Examiner.com about the hotel. It would be redundant to go over the same info again here, so I will post a link to the article at the end of this post. The purpose of this post is to show some of the photos and share some of my personal observations that didn’t fit in with the previous article. As you could probably guess, since the hotel is well over one hundred years old, it is said to be home to a few ghosts. The Lady in Red, the ghost of Senator Pittman, and some impish children are some of the resident spirits of the old hotel. One oddity that I noticed was that my camera had a hard time focusing in certain areas of the hotel. Specifically, the shots taken in the basement and on the 3 rd floor of the hotel all came out strangely blurry. No apparitions or anything like that, but the photos were atypically blurry, sort of like an Orton-ish effect,...

I am not a paranormal investigator. I have no interest in paranormal investigating. I enjoy these types of TV shows as much as anyone else, but that’s about it. I partake of paranormal shows as entertainment. It isn’t that I don’t believe in the supernatural at all, I simply take these types of things with a grain of salt. Earlier this month I wrote an article on examiner.com about the Boulder City Pet Cemetery and got some great pictures in the late afternoon. I decided to return to the pet cemetery at night to see if I could get some good nighttime photos. The setting is perfect; rustic old graves in the middle of the desert make for a very dark, gothic subject. Just the type of pictures I love to take. This is the first photo, unedited. I took a friend with me on this outing. At the time it was mainly for company, but looking back I am glad I was not alone. I did not feel anything macabre at the cemetery during the day. Upon visiting after dark, my main concern was co...

Life has a way of keeping us unexpectedly busy.  It also has a penchant for overtaking our free time, hence, my recent absence from blogging. I do, however, have some good photos to share, which will hopefully make up for the lack of words. Last weekend, I had the opportunity to travel to Zion National Park in Utah. Most hikers prefer to take on the trails during the summer months; I, however, love the winter. The snow, fog, and even the rain all offer extraordinarily unique scenes.  The barren trees pierce into the sky like skeletal fingers grasping for something just out of reach, and the fast moving clouds offer ever-changing sights that disappear just as quickly as they come into being. The mountains of Zion offer spectacular views in any season. The peaks are only enhanced by the dark, stormy clouds. The variety of trees and foliage are so diverse that you may see evergreens intermingled with contrasting barren, leafless varieties. Another advantage to the winter v...