The F Files aka Paranormal Activity In Florida & The Society That Has Begun To Investigate

Florida is known for many things among them sun and surf as well as a club scene that is pretty vibrant. It's also a place where many seniors stay in the winter, among them lots of Canadians.

However I did not know that Florida was considered to be among one of the hotter spots for paranormal activity, that is until I read a press release asking for people to come forward if they have been the victim of an alien abduction or an encounter with said aliens.

The release from the Florida Paranormal Society got my attention and I contacted Evan Pedone, the founder of the organization to find out more.

Evan thanks for doing a Candid Conversation today.

Evan P.: Hi Cliff: I would like to say thank you for doing a story on our society. It is a privilege to be here with you today.

Cliff T.: The Florida Paranormal Society, interesting what do you do?

Evan P.: Hi Cliff: The Florida Paranormal Society is a research and exploration organization that focuses on the Paranormal. We consider our members modern day explorers. When we perform an investigation, we refer to them as expeditions. Our mission is to uncover the truth in the mysteries of the world. The name Paranormal means outside the range of normal experience…or scientific explanation. Where science ends…we begin. Science and the Paranormal can be friends, however we can’t limit ourselves based on the shortcomings of science or what we believe to be fact at this given time. If humanity did that, we might still think the earth is flat.

Cliff T.: How long has the FPS been around for?

Evan P.: FPS has been a dream of mine for quite a long time. However, it did not come into fruition until last year. In 2013, I decided…it is time to live the adventure.

Cliff T.: I often ask this question, what led to the creation of the organization? The reason I ask is that it is not only interesting to find out the origins of an entity like yours, but the personal background. Was there an event in your life that sparked the decision to create the FPS?

Evan P.: What led to the creation of the society was a culmination of passion, curiosity and a desire to explore. I decided that it was time. I grew up dreaming of traversing this world, searching for lost cities, cryptids and myths and legends. I studied UFOs as a kid, and into my adult life and believed that there had to be something more. I began to expand my horizons and delve into the history of past explorers such as Percy Fawcett. I became a Cryptozoologist and released my theories on the Yeti in my fictitious novel "Expedition Everest". My aim is to take the Florida Paranormal Society beyond what other research organizations will do to uncover the truth. As for life events that would steer me in this direction, I would just say that I was made this way. My wife Ashley and myself are really a lot like Scully and Mulder from the X Files. It is quite funny actually. We are creative thinkers.

Cliff T.: Does the society work in a particular part of Florida or do you go state wide?

Evan P.: Our society will go statewide, and actually we are looking to go international. Our focus is to travel any location, no matter how remote, and bring our expertise and passion for exploration. One of my planned expeditions is the Lost City of El Dorado. It is something we are in development with, and is my dream.

Cliff T.: Evan I am curious about the members or the society, are they from all walks of life? And, how do you deal with children who encounter the paranormal.

Evan P.: In our society, individuals come from all different walks of life. You can be an ardent skeptic, or a devout believer. You can be a scientist, you can work at McDonalds. All are welcome to join. As for dealing with Children and the Paranormal, depending on the age, will greatly determine our approach. Moreover, I think you have to use good judgement on the information you provide. Our main focus of the organization is uncovering the truth, at the same time, we have to be responsible on how we present that information, especially to kids.

Cliff T.: Is there a membership requirement for those wanting to join the society?

Evan P.: To join our society we require a $29.99 annual membership fee. This entitles them to a membership card that we will send them in the mail, and will allow them to join us on our expeditions. We do an interview with the individual to get a better feel of qualifications to make sure they are a good fit for our society. This is actually done by our senior members. Anyone is welcome to join, however we also want to protect the integrity of the society. Both skeptics and believers are welcome.

Cliff T.: in your press release you mentioned that there has been an increase in UFO sightings and alien encounters, your asking people to contact you via the society's web page. What exactly has happened for you to reach out to the public?

Evan P.: We are reaching out to the public because there have been a lot of documented sightings in the Coral Springs area this year.

Cliff T.: I am going to assume that the activity is state wide, is that correct?

Evan P.: There has been activity state wide, in fact as you may be aware the Gulf Breeze sightings of years ago are some of the most well documented, and controversial UFO sightings of the modern era. However, right now we are focusing our energies on the Gulf Coast, and the recent sightings in Coral Springs.

Cliff T.: What kind of detail do you need to know regarding a sighting or an abduction?

Evan P.: When we perform an expedition, and there are witnesses to an event, we perform the expedition in a manner that would be able to withstand scientific scrutiny. It is important that we get as much information about the individual as possible, ranging from basic information such as name (can be kept confidential) and age to the events that unfolded. Moreover, we attempt to collaborate this with other witnesses that might have not come forward, and preferably would not know the initial witness. Furthermore, we attempt to gather any type of physical evidence such as video footage, recordings, to weather that day, and were there any type of weather phenomena. It is imperative that we get as detailed information as possible, and sometimes these can be very personal questions. This is not meant to discredit the individual, but quite the contrary...it is meant to corroborate it.

When FPS gives credence to a story, the world can know that the event is real, has been verified, and that it is the truth. We cannot risk the integrity of our society at any point. If a story cannot be verified we label it inconclusive, however that doesn't mean we don't continue the search, and that the case is closed. It just means we haven't verified it...yet.

Cliff T.: Evan are you looking to speak with people from a particular age range or anyone who feels they have had these experiences?

Evan P.: Anyone who has had these experiences.

Cliff T.: And, you are asking that they contact you via your website?

Evan P.: Absolutely. The best way to reach us at the society is through www.floridaparanormalsociety.com

Cliff T.: Since the press release has gone live have you gotten any responses?

Evan P.: Surprisingly...no. This is really odd. We expected to get some responses. However, it is not uncommon. Individuals often don't want to come forward because they are afraid of what others will think if the story got out. Moreover, we have to document the event. It is what our society does. Now we are willing to keep the individuals identities confidential, but we still have to document the event to make it scientifically sound. Most cases of the paranormal, we believe, go unreported because of fear.

Cliff T.: Once you have collected enough interviews with people what will you do with the information, are you planning to shed the insights you gain with the public?

Evan P.: Absolutely. As you can see on our website. All future expeditions are now being documented via video and are released in a documentary format free for public viewing on our website. In fact, we are getting ready to host a weekly radio show. Therefore, anyone interested in the Paranormal can follow us and see regular updates via our Blog which is at our website.

Cliff T.: Evan it's been interesting to learn more about what you do and I appreciate your taking time to do a Candid Conversation with me.

Evan P.: Thank you. It is my pleasure.

Evan Pedone, founder of the Florida Paranormal Society joined in a Candid Conversation from his office in Florida.

The website http://www.floridaparanormalsociety.com/home.html if you are in Florida and want to contact them about any paranormal activity, or if you want to respond to the request about an abduction by aliens or UFO sightings.

My Single Peeps, The New Way to Match Make Online

Have you ever been on the receiving end of this question. Hey can you get me a date? Seth Menachem has. He decided to “Fix” the problem by creating a rather unique site. Www.mysinglepeeps.com. The idea is simple tell people about your single peeps and hopefully they will get a hook up. Seth joins me in this Candid Convention to talk about the new way to match make.

Cliff T. Seth thanks for jumping in on this topic. I never would have thought someone would put such a site up on the net.

Seth M: I’m glad you like it. Wait, you’re saying you like it, right?

Cliff T.: I love the concept, obviously having so many peeps, as you call them, asking for a date drove you to set up the site. What was the tipping point or was there a particular peep that finally drove you to go online with this idea?

Seth M: I have a lot of single friends—and they all ask me for advice. I write some of their dating profiles and help them respond to emails. But that’s when they’re being proactive. Often, they’re frustrated by the difficulty in meeting a great person to date. So one night, while deciding what to write about next, I got a text from a friend lamenting his single status. I decided then and there if they’re not going to do something about, I would. So I started writing bios of my friends—I wanted them to be real—the kind of stuff they wouldn’t say about themselves, while also reading funny, and charming. I thought of a name for the site, put the first one on a blog, and posted a link to it on Facebook at around midnight. By early the next morning I was flooded with comments and emails.

Cliff T.: How did your single friends react when they found out you were posting about them?

Seth M: I started with Yitzy. He’s my best friend, and I knew he would go along for the ride when he saw what I did. He loved it. So did the girls who wrote to him. Soon I was getting requests from people to write about them.

Cliff T.: From what I read the idea is simple. A post is put up about a peep on the mysinglepeeps.com site not by the peep but, by the person who is a friend of the peep. Then any responses are forwarded by you to the person who the post is about. I would assume some like the idea, others do not. How do you deal with the ones who say uh this is not what I need from my friends?

Seth M: Well, that’s a newer idea. Initially I would write about everyone. A couple of local papers hired me to write about strangers for them so I started building the site that way. But I knew it was limited. So I created a way for people to write about their friends and add them to the site. I’m not a techy so it’s a bit glitchy right now. Hopefully I can find someone to volunteer to help me with the tech part of the site as it needs it.

Cliff T.: I am assuming that the majority do not mind the posting how often do you get asked to remove a person?

Seth M: It’s happened a couple of times. One friend got engaged and said it was time to come off of the site, rather than simply writing TAKEN across his picture. The other was someone who was very happy with her profile—she took the jokes in stride, and thought she looked good—but she is from a conservative Persian community and she got a lot of flack from them to take it down. I felt badly for her that the pressure from her community was so strong, but she didn’t feel it was worth the problems it caused, so I removed her from the site.

Cliff T.: Is the gender ratio the same or are they're more of one sex than the other who get on the site?

Seth M: I’m guessing it skews more female heavy, as they seem to be more open to the experience.

Cliff T.: It's a question begging to be answered, have you ever found out that a peep is still married?

Seth M: There are a few who are married—and if I wasn’t directly involved, I was tangentially involved. For example, one friend dated a girl, and when they saw they weren’t a match, she began dating his friend. They’re now happily married. Or at least married. How do I know how happy they are?

Cliff T.: For the most part I am assuming here that the site is for men and women seeking each other out. But, do people of other sexual orientations get posted on mysinglepeeps.com?

Seth M: I have gay peeps, as well. Take a look. One of my first gay peeps was Rex Lee, a great guy, and a talented actor, who was extremely revealing to me in his profile.

Cliff T.: Seth it sounds like you have a lot of fun with mysinglepeeps.com I bet maintaining the site keeps you pretty busy?

Seth M: It does. Too busy, to be honest. I just took a break from writing for the papers as the weekly columns were getting to be too much, while still balancing my acting and writing career, and my family. I have two kids—one and three—and that alone will tire someone out. So I’ll keep posting peeps when I have time, and the site is still open to other people who want to put up profiles on their single friends.

Cliff T.: Well I want to thank you for sharing the story behind mysinglepeeps.com.

Seth M: You’re welcome. Thanks for reaching out!

Seth Menachem is the man behind www.mysinglepeeps.com you can visit the site and check out the peeps that are on it out for yourself or post a peep and of course find a peep yourself.

For more information about Seth Menachem himself visit his page at http://www.sethmenachem.com.

Seth Menachem wrote us from Los Angeles California.