The empty, imposing structure of the Sheboygan County Comprehensive Health Care Center is typically referred to as the Sheboygan asylum. The actual Sheboygan County Hospital for the Insane was located in Sheboygan and was torn down in 1960.

Built in 1940, the Sheboygan asylum served as a care facility for the elderly, mentally ill, and developmentally disabled. The building was requisitioned by the US Military in 1944 and 1945 and renamed Camp Sheboygan. It was used to house Italian and German WWII prisoners who were put to work in the fields.

The hospital became an acute care facility for the mentally ill in 1969, also offering drug and alcohol rehabilitation. In 1978, the hospital began caring for people with chronic illness and developmental disabilities. These types of facilities started being phased out in 1988, and the hospital closed in 2002.

Hospital staff experienced paranormal occurrences in the building in the years before it closed. Those rumors of ghosts in what was believed to be the abandoned asylum lead to many curious explorers being arrested and fined for trespassing. Eventually, the building was opened up for haunted tours.

Visitors have reported hearing a young girl humming a song, being touched and having their hair pulled, loud bangs, doors slamming, whispers and screams. Numerous nurses are said to have committed suicide in the hospital throughout its operation. A 2020 episode of Destination Fear explored the building, including the tunnels, surgical center, and morgue. They photographed what appeared to be a large shadow figure in one of the tunnels.

The Sheboygan asylum is private property and no trespassing is allowed. You can visit the hospital by joining one of the ghost tours conducted by the Fox Valley Ghost Hunters, who also host paranormal investigations at the Old Glenbeulah School.

All these kinds of places make it seem like it’s been ages
Tomorrow some new building will scrape the sky
I love this country dearly
I can feel the ladder clearly
But I never thought I’d be alone to try
Once I was outside Penn Station selling red and white carnations

We were still alone my wife and I
Before we married saved my money
Brought my dear wife over
Now I work to bring my family stateside
But off the boat they stayed awhile then scattered across the coast
Once a year I’ll see them for a week or so at most
I take a walk

I take a walk
(take a walk, take a walk, take a walk, take a walk…)

Practice isn’t perfect but the market cuts the loss

I remind myself that times could be much worse
My wife won’t ask me questions
There’s not so much to ask
And she’ll never flaunt around an empty purse
Once my mother-in-law came just to stay a couple nights

Then decided she would stay the rest of her life
I watch my little children play some board game in the kitchen
And I sit and pray they never feel my strife
But then my partner called to say the pension funds were gone
He made some bad investments now the accounts are overdrawn
I take a walk

I take a walk
(take a walk, take a walk, take a walk, take a walk…)
Honey, it’s your son I think I borrowed just too much
We had taxes, we had bills, we had a lifestyle to front

And tonight I swear I’ll come home and we’ll make love like we’re young
And tomorrow you’ll cook dinner for the neighbors and their kids

We can rip apart those socialists and all their damn taxes

But see I am no criminal, I’m down on both bad knees
I’m just too much a coward, to admit when I’m in need
I take a walk
(take a walk, take a walk, take a walk, take a walk…)
I take a walk
(take a walk, take a walk, take a walk, take a walk…)
I take a walk
(take a walk, take a walk, take a walk, take a walk…)
I take a walk
(take a walk, take a walk, take a walk, take a walk…)

Song by Passion Pit.

Interesting lol!

Take a walk to escape and explore!

I went to an art festival and perused art and merchandise that vendors were selling.

It was very hot so I bought a few goodies and took a pontoon boat ride to where I had parked.

It was fun but couldn’t take the heat and humidity for long,

• Diverse Artists: Browse and purchase art from a variety of Wisconsin-based artists and artisans. 
• Live Music: Enjoy live music throughout the event. 
• Family Activities: The Family Activity Zone offers hands-on art projects and other fun for all ages. 
• Food and Drinks: Enjoy a variety of food and drink options.

youtube.com/shorts/WNPR495z_ww

Take a look!

Some instruments of torture, like the rack, were real. Others were likely made up to help perpetuate the myth of the medieval ‘Dark Ages.’

Throughout history, people have used torture devices to punish their enemies and those accused of crimes. They’ve also used torture as a means to elicit confessions or convince a victim to give up other people’s names, despite the fact that torture doesn’t produce reliable information. (This is not a new finding; it’s something even Napoleon Bonaparteobserved.)

Yet sometimes, people looking toward the past have let their imaginations run away with them when it comes to torture. Ancient Greek historians have passed down some fantastic tales that they may not have intended readers to take literally. In addition, people in the modern era have accused medieval Europeans of using gruesome torture devices that probably didn’t exist at the time, perpetuating the myth of a less-than-civilized so-called “Dark Ages.” Here are some famous torture devices from history, both real and legendary.

1.

The Brazen Bull

The brazen bull is an ancient mythical torture device supposedly used by Phalaris, a tyrant who ruled a part of Sicily in the 6th century BCE. It consisted of a life-size bronze bull that was hollow on the inside and had a door on the outside. The torturer would place a victim inside and light a fire under the bull. The fire would roast the victim to death, while an acoustic system on the bull made the victim’s screams sound like bull noises to those on the outside.

The story of Phalaris and the brazen bull comes from the Greek historian Diodorus Siculus, who lived about 500 years after these events had supposedly taken place. The story, which Italian poet and philosopher Dante referenced in the Inferno, is likely a myth or at least highly embellished.

2.

The Iron Apega

One of the more fantastical tales of a torture device is the Iron Apega, also known as the Apega of Nabis. The ancient Greek historian Polybius wrote that the Spartan king Nabis, who ruled from 207 to 192 BCE, built a sort of torture robot that resembled his wife, Apega.

Polybius wrote that whenever Nabis was trying to collect taxes from someone who refused to pay, the king would invite the person to hug his wife, and point the person toward the robot. When the person embraced the robot, it would draw in its arms, crushing the victim with iron hooks hidden under its clothes. However, scholars have suggested that Polybius’ story of the tax-collecting torture robot was allegorical, and that the Iron Apega did not really exist.

3.

The Rack

The rack was a torture device used at the Tower of London, a royal palace that also served as a prison. Starting in the 15th century, the yeoman warders who worked at the tower used the rack to pull on ropes tied to a victim’s wrists and ankles. This stretched the body and dislocated the victim’s joints.

Yeoman warders used the rack on people suspected of treason and religious heresy to try to get them to confess and give up the names of other “conspirators.” One famous victimwas the English writer and Protestant preacher Anne Askew. In 1546, yeoman warders tortured her on the rack and asked her to name Protestant sympathizers. After she refused, officials burned her at the stake. Because the torture made her unable to walk, they had to carry her to her execution.

4.

The Scavenger’s Daughter

During the 16th and 17th centuries, yeoman warders at the Tower of London also used the scavenger’s daughter as a torture device. The scavenger’s daughter was a metal frame that compressed the victim’s body in on itself.

Compression from the scavenger’s daughter was so intense it could apparently cause the victim to start bleeding from the nose, mouth and other parts of the body. This gruesome form of torture could result in death.

5.

The Thumbscrew

Torturers used the thumbscrew, another pain-inflicting device from Europe’s early modern period (c.1450 to 1750), to crush a person’s fingers or thumbs.

Similarly to the rack, torturers employed the thumbscrew as a means of punishment and an attempt to elicit a confession. The thumbscrew was also known as a “thumbikin,” with many spelling variations.

6.

The Pear of Anguish

The pear of anguish is a device that early modern Europeans labeled as a medieval torture device. Supposedly, a torturer would insert the device into a person’s mouth, vagina or anus in order to widen the orifice, causing extreme pain. However, scholars have questioned whether these devices originated in the Middle Ages, a period that ended around 1450.

Existing examples of the so-called pear of anguish contain coiled springs, which suggests the people who crafted them lived during the early modern period that followed the Middle Ages. These examples have an unclear provenance, and there are questions about how functional they actually would have been as orifice-widening torture devices.

7.

The Iron Maiden

Another device with a sketchy provenance is the iron maiden, a mythical instrument of torture that 19th-century Europeans falsely attributed to medieval Europeans. That’s because there’s no evidence of an iron maiden—an upright iron casket with spikes on the inside—existing before the 1800s.

The myth that iron maidens existed during the Middle Ages was likely spread by German philosopher Johann Philipp Siebenkees in the late 18th century, who wrote about how a coin forger in Nuremberg was executed with one in 1515. The first known iron maidens were constructed in the 19th century, and passed off in museums as medieval torture devices.

I have to admit that these are terrifying but I do think that our justice system now are too lenient with murderers and rapists. Bring these back and maybe it would help deter those horrible humans!

Horses (Equus caballus) are large, powerful mammals known for their strength, speed, and intelligence. They have been domesticated for thousands of years and are used for riding, work, and sport. 

Key Characteristics: 

• Size and Appearance: Horses come in a variety of sizes and colors, from small ponies to large draft breeds. 
• Domestication: Horses were first domesticated around 3500 BC in Central Asia. 
• Breeds: There are numerous horse breeds, each with unique characteristics and purposes. 
• Life Cycle: Young horses are called foals, then fillies (females) or colts (males) until adulthood. 
• Wild Relatives: Przewalski’s horse is the only remaining wild horse species. 
• Evolution: Horses evolved from smaller, multi-toed ancestors over millions of years. 
• Uses: Horses are used for riding, transportation, agriculture, and various sports. 
• Symbolism: Horses are often associated with strength, freedom, and intelligence. 

Additional Information: 

• Scientific Name: Equus caballus. 
• Family: Equidae (includes horses, asses, and zebras). 
• Order: Perissodactyla (odd-toed ungulates). 
• Habitat: Wild horses once roamed open areas in northern Eurasia. 
• Diet: Horses are herbivores, primarily grazing on grasses. 
• Social Behavior: Horses are social animals that live in herds. 
• Horse Protection Act: This act prohibits the practice of soring, a cruel method used to enhance a horse’s gait. 

Being around these beauties always makes me smile and find some happiness. I wish they were mine but I get to visit and give treats.

I go for a horseback ride when I have the funds which I hope to do soon! I miss my horse therapy!