They Joined The Ride Queue (Twice)

M. Calloway reports that Shadow People — she uses the plural, and does not speculate on exact numbers, which I respect as a disciplined journalistic choice — joined the queue for the Tilt-A-Whirl at approximately 2:14 PM, and again for the Gravitron at 4:47 PM. In both instances, she reports they ‘stood in line in the usual way,’ which I find genuinely difficult to parse and have been thinking about since I first read this report at The Burrow on Tuesday morning. The queue-joining behavior was not aggressive, not disruptive, and resulted in no ride completion that she could confirm — by the time the line advanced to their position, they were, per M. Calloway, ‘no longer present in a way that required a ticket.’ The DCA notes this as ‘apparent compliance with queue social norms’ and has flagged it for further study. I flagged it in my green notebook and then transferred the note to my laptop folder, where it now lives alongside 846 other things I am getting to.

They Hovered Near The Kettle Corn Stand Without Purchasing Anything

This is the incident that has stayed with me most, professionally. M. Calloway clocked the hovering at around 3:00 PM and describes it as lasting ‘eleven to fifteen minutes, maybe longer, it was hard to keep track because I was also trying to enjoy my lemonade.’ The Shadow People did not approach the counter. They did not interact with the vendor or other customers. They simply hovered — her word, used three times in this section of the report alone — in the vicinity of the kettle corn stand, at a proximity she describes as ‘close enough that it felt intentional, but not close enough that you could say anything about it.’ The kettle corn vendor, a man named Dale Pursell who has been running this particular stand for eleven years, told the DCA that he ‘felt a little off’ that afternoon but attributed it to the heat. Dale has not been told about the report. I am not sure that changes anything, but I think about Dale sometimes.

One Of Them Won A Stuffed Animal

M. Calloway is careful here. She does not claim certainty. She writes: ‘I believe one of them may have participated in the ring toss game near the east fence, and I believe it may have won the large bear, because the large bear was gone after they left and the teenager running the booth looked confused in a specific way.’ The DCA has classified this as ‘unconfirmed but notable’ and noted that standard Shadow People behavioral profiles do not typically include carnival game participation or apparent interest in plush prizes. I would like to go on record as finding this detail wonderful. Not in a threat-minimizing way. In a ‘the universe continues to be more interesting than any of us are prepared for’ way. I mentioned it to Mr. Whiskers when I got home and he looked at me with what I can only describe as measured agreement.

They Attended The 4-H Livestock Judging

At approximately 5:30 PM, M. Calloway observed what she believes were two or three Shadow People standing at the rail of the livestock judging area during the goat portion of the 4-H competition. She describes them as ‘attentive.’ She notes that the goats did not react, which she found ‘either reassuring or more concerning, I went back and forth.’ The ribbon that year went to a Nubian doe named Clementine, owned by a thirteen-year-old named Becca Marsh, who was thrilled. The DCA has not contacted Becca Marsh. I have not contacted Becca Marsh. There is, at this stage, no reason to contact Becca Marsh. I’m just noting that Clementine won and that the Shadow People were there to see it, and that means something, even if I can’t tell you what yet.

The Mirror Tent Situation

M. Calloway’s fifth and final reported incident is described in its entirety as follows: ‘There was something that happened in the mirror tent at approximately 7:15 PM. I was there. They were there. I will not describe this in writing.’ She has initialed this section of the report, which I interpret as intentional. The DCA has logged it as ‘witness declines to elaborate — nature of incident unknown.’ They have assigned it a sub-classification of ‘Affectively Significant’ which is a category I was not previously aware existed and which I have now added to my notes in two separate locations to make sure I don’t lose it. I reached out to M. Calloway through the DCA intake form to ask if she would speak on background. She responded with a single line: ‘I would rather not revisit it, but I will say the mirrors were doing what mirrors do, and that was the problem.’ I have read that sentence approximately forty times. I will continue to read it. I do not think it will become clearer. I am submitting it to you as is, because that is what honest reporting looks like.