neath the floorboards , like Edgar Allen Poe ’ s hideous heart .
At this point , the practical realities of the situation began to close in on me . I had a dead old lady in my house . My house which , mind you , had been specially renovated for the express purpose of grifting old ladies . If there was any sort of police investigation I ’ d be going away on a murder charge , no question about it . So I did what I ’ d done so many times before on the carnival circuit . I packed up everything I needed and left behind everything I didn ’ t and skipped town with a stack of unpaid bills and legal troubles in my wake . be going away on a murder charge , no question about it . So I did what I ’ d done so many times before on the carnival circuit . I packed up everything I needed and left behind everything I didn ’ t and skipped town with a stack of unpaid bills and legal troubles in my wake . I left Mrs . Donohue in the parlor . Maybe a few years later the sheriff pulled her mummy out of the house when he came to foreclose over the property taxes . Maybe she ’ s there still .
I wound up going back to the carnival . I never did another séance , though , or even tarot cards . Too witchy . I stuck to palm readings and horoscopes instead . Those don ’ t pay nearly as well , but no amount of money could ever get me to call on the dead again . I stuck to the straight and narrow path , for the most part , I worked hard , and eventually I retired down here in sunny California , a whole country away from Florida . But that ’ s not the end . You see , I subscribe to a lot of magazines on paranormal phenomenon . Now , I used to read that stuff strictly on a professional basis , to see what the marks were into and get ideas for the act , but in my old age I guess I ’ ve become more open-minded . I take a special interest in the stories written by folks who ’ ve had near-death experiences , car crashes and near-drownings and whatnot , and who come out of their comas claiming they ’ ve caught a glimpse of the afterlife . Almost without exception , they say that on the other side of life , they saw their loved ones beckoning them .
I wonder if it ’ s really their loved ones that they saw . When it ’ s my time to go , I wonder if I ’ ll see Charlie calling for me , or something that looks like Charlie , and what he ’ ll say to get me to come close .
neath the floorboards , like Edgar Allen Poe ’ s hideous heart .
At this point , the practical realities of the situation began to close in on me . I had a dead old lady in my house . My house which , mind you , had been specially renovated for the express purpose of grifting old ladies . If there was any sort of police investigation I ’ d be going away on a murder charge , no question about it . So I did what I ’ d done so many times before on the carnival circuit . I packed up everything I needed and left behind everything I didn ’ t and skipped town with a stack of unpaid bills and legal troubles in my wake . be going away on a murder charge , no question about it . So I did what I ’ d done so many times before on the carnival circuit . I packed up everything I needed and left behind everything I didn ’ t and skipped town with a stack of unpaid bills and legal troubles in my wake . I left Mrs . Donohue in the parlor . Maybe a few years later the sheriff pulled her mummy out of the house when he came to foreclose over the property taxes . Maybe she ’ s there still .
I wound up going back to the carnival . I never did another séance , though , or even tarot cards . Too witchy . I stuck to palm readings and horoscopes instead . Those don ’ t pay nearly as well , but no amount of money could ever get me to call on the dead again . I stuck to the straight and narrow path , for the most part , I worked hard , and eventually I retired down here in sunny California , a whole country away from Florida . But that ’ s not the end . You see , I subscribe to a lot of magazines on paranormal phenomenon . Now , I used to read that stuff strictly on a professional basis , to see what the marks were into and get ideas for the act , but in my old age I guess I ’ ve become more open-minded . I take a special interest in the stories written by folks who ’ ve had near-death experiences , car crashes and near-drownings and whatnot , and who come out of their comas claiming they ’ ve caught a glimpse of the afterlife . Almost without exception , they say that on the other side of life , they saw their loved ones beckoning them .
I wonder if it ’ s really their loved ones that they saw . When it ’ s my time to go , I wonder if I ’ ll see Charlie calling for me , or something that looks like Charlie , and what he ’ ll say to get me to come close .
Title : " Olga Knows All " Photographer : Carolyn Amanda Photography