Clocking in on Highway 118

Chapter 7: Strange Happenings

Chapter 7: Strange Happenings

Art clears his throat emphatically. It is dusk as he begins a calisthenics routine off camera. He is in charge of the Strange Happenings paranormal team. His co-investigator Brian is drinking from a reusable aluminum water bottle. Art turns to Randy, the cameraman, and asks, "Are we on?" Randy replies, "Give yourself five, I still gotta get some stock footage of the town. Where are we again? Persistence?"

Brian pulls Art aside, "You need to learn to chill, bro. It's just another investigation in BF nowhere. You know, all this paranormal investigation business, it's just entertainment. Strange Happenings doesn't even air in prime time." Art turns on Brian in an instant, "Don't call my investigations entertainment. I intend to enlighten the public on the paranormal. If you want to make something trivial. You need to find another show. Now if you would be quiet I need to focus. Trust me, these spirits want to reach me, and I will do my best to make contact with them."

"Alright, we're ready to shoot Art. Just step in front of that yellow house there, right on the porch . That's our first location." Art strides over to the porch and climbs the steps. He now stands alongside the porch swing which sways with the night breeze. "Good evening, ladies and gentlemen," Art begins. "Tonight we shall investigate very curious happenings occurring inside the all-American town of Constance. The citizens here have been tormented by spirits and we are here to capture those spirits on camera."

"As you all know by now my team of paranormal investigators made up of myself, Brian, and our cameraman Randy, do in-depth investigations of anything suspected to be paranormal. We have the latest advances in investigative technology at our disposal. And we will use these instruments to capture paranormal activity in Constance, if it is at all present."

"First up we have this lovely home owned by the Primms. They are newlyweds in need of answers. Hopefully our night vision cameras and high-frequency sound recorders can bring them some answers." The Strange Happenings crew spend a couple hours in the Primm's household. The hours spent inside yield no evidence, absolutely none. Dean is at work and is unavailable at the house. This is terrible for ratings, of course, so the editing staff working on Strange Happenings cut the segment down to five minutes.

"As you may well know folks, we don't capture evidence at every given location. Next on our list of must see places in Constance we have Flaherty's Irish Pub. This pub has been plagued by poltergeist activity. We are sure to capture some evidence here." The team presses heavy, dark, wooden doors to enter Flaherty's Pub. They must rely on their night vision cameras to find their way around. The paranormal investigators are hardly in the door when Art screams, "Bros did you catch that? Do you hear a jukebox playing?"

Art pulls out his digital sound recorder and begins to record. Playing it back he can distinctly hear a rockabilly song. The song is distinctly, The fifties top 40 hit performed by Bill Haley and his comets, Rock Around the Clock. Art replays this clip a second time for the camera. The words Evidence Found flash on the screen during the replay for the home audience. Art slips his digital recorder back into his pocket as he hears Brian scream. Randy's skilled camera work catches the action.

The pool balls are seemingly racking themselves for a game of billiards. Art runs backward. In the process, the paranormal investigator nearly trips over himself. "Whoa dude, did you guys just see that?" Randy asks of the paranormal team. This segment is shown precisely three times on the show, Strange Happenings with the words Ground Breaking Evidence flashing on the screen. The clip is shown a few more times in slow-motion, for dramatic effect.

Art is standing near the dartboard; when the spirits inhabiting the pub do not want to interrupt their game. Especially, since there is money riding on the next throw. More importantly, the bank robber's own money. The short man takes aim for the bulls eye and misses. The dart whistles past Art's ear. The bank robber swears as he hands over money to another patron. Every single investigator inside of Flaherty's Pub screams and runs outside. This part is edited out of the episode Season 2 Episode 3 Constance. The dart throw, however, is used in the Strange Happenings television commercial.