Paratopia 113: Chris Balzano

What do ghosts, witches, Bigfoot, bad luck, giant animals, UFOs, orbs, zombies, cults, and crime have in common? According to our guest, and Dark Woods author, Chris Balzano, they all reside in the Freetown State Forest. And according to the Wampanoag Tribe, they are intricately connected to tiny, magical monster people called ''Pukwudgies.''

Christoper Balzano is a paranormal investigator and folklorist who doesn't just collect stories but is given actual cases to investigate from the police. What is going on here? Jeff and Jer consider the possibilities in new, broad, abstract ways.

Also, Jer gets Jeff to say the word ''Pukwudgie.'' And finally, Jeff admits that his home may have been visited by a creature like this if not the very being itself! (And, as you by now expect from evidence of the paranormal, he has photos that support what he's saying yet prove nothing.)

[originally aired: 04.21.2011]