again well said my brother,
Upir' for you I hope you understand what I am trying to say.
cadrewolf and Ryu -
While willing to at least acknowledge the logical issues raised in my posts, yet both of you pointedly choose to keep leaving them untouched and unanswered. ;)
And while you both enjoy portraying yourselves as persecuted people for labeling yourselves actual "vampires" (apologies, Ryu... H.L.V.s, if you prefer), yet your avoidance of those very logical issues that calls into serious question your emulation of and identification with the purely fictional "vampire" (again, the true "vampires" of history neither sucked blood nor drained energy) is precisely the reason why people like me cannot but question your psychological stability.
Don't worry; there's no bias or bigotry in this at all given that it would be reasonable for anyone to equally question someone else's mental state if that someone honestly believed, as do you, that emulating only a single trait of something is sufficient to have you label yourself as such.
For example: if I were to call myself Mr. Spock (yeah... I'm dating myself now) just because I can wear fake pointed-ears, pretend to neck-pinch and mind-meld with people (wow... that's THREE Vulcan traits instead of one!), I shouldn't be surprised that others might just question my mental state, as well. And to simply whine about the fact that few choose to accept me as an actual H.L.V. (Human Living Vulcan) doesn't negate the basic logical issues at stake that fully justify their incredulity.
Thus, so also mine towards you both.
OK because you like to copy and paste so shall I maybe this way I can help you understand. these are just a few on what is real about Vampyres / vampires.
No one person has all the answer sorry. even the site it self says ( This document is not intended to be a comprehensive
document of vampire fiction, mythology, or lore.) so who is to say what is what and what is not?
Definition of the Vampire
(Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, 1913 Edition)
Vampire (Page: 1593)
Vam"pire (?), n. [F. vampire (cf. It. vampiro, G. & D. vampir), fr. Servian vampir.] [Written also vampyre.]
The Vampire 1. A blood-sucking ghost; a soul of a dead person superstitiously believed to come from the grave and wander about by night sucking the blood of persons asleep, thus causing their death. This superstition is now prevalent in parts of Eastern Europe, and was especially current in Hungary about the year 1730.
2. Fig.: One who lives by preying on others; an extortioner; a bloodsucker.
3. (Zoöl.) Either one of two or more species of South American blood-sucking bats belonging to the genera Desmodus and Diphylla. These bats are destitute of molar teeth, but have strong, sharp cutting incisors with which they make punctured wounds from which they suck the blood of horses, cattle, and other animals, as well as man, chiefly during sleep. They have a caecal appendage to the stomach, in which the blood with which they gorge themselves is stored.
4. (Zoöl.) Any one of several species of harmless tropical American bats of the genus Vampyrus, especially V. spectrum. These bats feed upon insects and fruit, but were formerly erroneously supposed to suck the blood of man and animals. Called also false vampire. Vampire bat (Zoöl.), a vampire, Vampyrus spectrum
The persons who turn vampires are generally wizards, witches, suicides, and persons who have come to a violent end, or have been cursed by their parents or by the church. (Encyclopedia Britannica)
The Vampire
History of the Vampire Myth
The legend of the vampire can be traced to approximately 125 AD, where a Upir, a creature with vampire qualities, occurred in Greek mythology. The word Upir is found for the first time in written form in 1047 in a letter to the Russian Prince Vladimir Yaroslavovich. The author of the letter, a priest, writes his name as Upir' Likhyi, which roughly translates into "Wicked Vampire" or "Foul Vampire". Upir later became vampire, and some of the early legends came from the far east. Much has been lost throughout history...
The Oxford English Dictionary dates the first appearance of the word vampire in English to 1734. It was written in a travelogue titled Travels of Three English Gentlemen and was published in the Harleian Miscellany in 1745. Vampires had already been discussed in German literature. After Austria gained control of northern Serbia and Oltenia in 1718, officials noted the local practice of exhuming bodies and "killing vampires" (Vampires, Burial and Death by Paul Barber). These reports, prepared between 1725 and 1732, received widespread publicity. Vampires are similar to man in respect that no two are alike. No two men have the same physical abilities, or the same senses of hearing or sight. This is true of vampires as well. As there are several races of man, there are also many races of vampire.
Each race of vampire share similar, although not identical, abilities. Each race of vampire has different origins, unlike man. An example of one race is the Kindred, as portrayed by White Wolf. The Kindred are then further subdivided into "clans." Other examples include the Carpathian race, of which Count Dracula, or Vlad Tsepesh (or Tepes), was descended from.
Description and Appearance
It is difficult to make a single, definitive description of the folklore vampire. There are several elements common to the many European legends. Vampires are usually reported as bloated in appearance, ruddy, purplish, or dark in color. These characteristics were often attributed to the recent drinking of blood. Blood was often seen seeping from the mouth and nose when one was seen in its shroud or coffin and its left eye was often open. A vampire was often clad in the linen shroud it was buried in. Its teeth, hair, and nails may have grown somewhat, though in general, fangs were not a feature.
Other attributes varied greatly from culture to culture. Some vampires, such as those found in the Transylvanian tales, were gaunt, pale, and had long fingernails. Vampires from Bulgaria only had one nostril. Bavarian vampires slept with thumbs crossed and one eye open. Moravian vampires only attacked while naked. Albanian vampires wore high-heeled shoes.
As stories of vampires spread throughout the globe to the Americas and elsewhere, so did the varied and sometimes bizarre descriptions of them. Mexican vampires had a bare skull instead of a head. Brazilian vampires had furry feet. Vampires from the Rocky Mountains only sucked blood with their noses and from the victim's ears. Common attributes were sometimes described, such as red hair. Some were reported to be able to transform into bats, rats, dogs, wolves, spiders and even moths.
The Vampire in Literature
Numerous vampire stories were written prior to the popularization of the vampire myth in pop culture.
The Vampyre; a Tale by John Polidori (1819)
A short story that exploited the gothic horror predilections of the public of the period. It was originally mis-published under the authorship of Lord Byron (Polidori was Lord Byron's personal physician). The tale accounts the exploits of Lord Ruthven, a British nobleman and vampire. Lord Ruthven bore more than a passing resemblance to Lord Byron and became a highly influential model for the Byronic vampires of literature.
Varney The Vampire by James Malcolm Rymer (1845-47)
A Victorian-era gothic horror story which first appeared in a series of pamphlets between 1845 and 1847. Inexpensive and gruesome, the collective work was published in book form in 1847. The tale runs 868 pages and is divided into 220 chapters. The story revolves around the persecution of the Bannerworth family by Sir Francis Varney, a vampire who in the early chapters enters the bedroom of the daughter of the house (Flora) and sucks her blood.
Carmilla by J. Sheridan Le Fanu (1872)
A compelling gothic novel of a lesbian vampire, set in darkest central Europe. It tells the story of a young woman's susceptibility to the attentions of a female vampire named Carmilla. The story was to greatly influence Bram Stoker in the writing of Dracula. It also served as the basis for several films, including Hammer's The Vampire Lovers (1970), Roger Vadim's Blood and Roses (1960), and Danish director Carl Theodor Dreyer's Vampyr (1932).
Dracula by Bram Stoker (1897)
The most well known vampire story, the novel is mainly composed of journal entries, letters, and newspaper clippings. It has been suggested that the story was based on Vlad Tepes, a medieval figure of extraordinary bloodthirst. History records that Vlad Tepes impaled his enemies and cut off their heads. He ruled Walachia as Vlad III during the 15th century (modern day Romania) and signed his letters as Vlad Dracula. Dracula translates into "son of the devil".
This document is not intended to be a comprehensive
document of vampire fiction, mythology, or lore.
Vampire
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For other uses, see Vampire (disambiguation).
It has been suggested that Origins of vampire beliefs be merged into this article or section. (Discuss)
The Vampire, by Philip Burne-Jones, 1897
Vampires are mythological or folkloric revenants who subsist by feeding on the blood of the living. In folkloric tales, the undead vampires often visited loved ones and caused mischief or deaths in the neighbourhoods they inhabited when they were alive. They wore shrouds and were often described as bloated and of ruddy or dark countenance, markedly different from today's gaunt, pale vampire which dates from the early Nineteenth Century. Although vampiric entities have been recorded in most cultures, the term vampire was not popularised until the early 18th century, after an influx of vampire superstition into Western Europe from areas where vampire legends were frequent, such as the Balkans and Eastern Europe,[1] although local variants were also known by different names, such as vrykolakas in Greece and strigoi in Romania. This increased level of vampire superstition in Europe led to what can only be called mass hysteria and in some cases resulted in corpses actually being staked and people being accused of vampirism.
In modern times, however, the vampire is generally held to be a fictitious entity, although belief in similar vampiric creatures such as the chupacabra still persists in some cultures. Early folkloric belief in vampires has been ascribed to the ignorance of the body's process of decomposition after death and how people in pre-industrial societies tried to rationalise this, creating the figure of the vampire to explain the mysteries of death. Porphyria was also linked with legends of vampirism in 1985 and received much media exposure, but has since been largely discredited.
The charismatic and sophisticated vampire of modern fiction was born in 1819 with the publication of The Vampyre by John Polidori; the story was highly successful and arguably the most influential vampire work of the early 19th century.[2] However, it is Bram Stoker's 1897 novel Dracula which is remembered as the quintessential vampire novel and provided the basis of the modern vampire legend. The success of this book spawned a distinctive vampire genre, still popular in the 21st century, with books, films, and television shows. The vampire has since become a dominant figure in the horror genre
Real Vampires
by Inanna Arthen
"Real Vampires"-how can this be anything but a contradiction in terms? We all know about vampires. Stock characters of fiction, guaranteed box-office draws, the media vampire has been familiar to us since childhood. Generally speaking, our blood-suckers appear with a tongue planted firmly in one toothy cheek-from Bela Lugosi hamming it up in the 1950's, to last summer's teenage "vamp" movies, to Count Chocula breakfast cereal, the media seldom treat the vampire as truly fearsome. The stereotyped vampire traits are familiar to any child: vampires have big fangs, sleep in coffins, are instantly incinerated by sunlight, and are best dispatched by a stake through the heart. But the most important "fact" that we all know of course is that there are no such things.
Of course, in terms of the mythical, literary and cinematic conventions, we are correct: there are no "legions of the undead" stalking the unwary. We have explained the folklore with politics, misunderstood diseases, and hysteria, the literary and cinematic images with psychology, history, and sociology. We of the 20th century are confident that vampires could not really exist. But then, most of us are never forced to think otherwise. For a number of people, the concept of vampires becomes a critical and often lifelong concern. To live with, love, or befriend a real vampire is to encounter a set of problems which may demand expanding the boundaries of one's accepted reality. To come to terms with being a real vampire oneself is to face a lifetime's karmic challenge.
Some people reading this article already know this. The rest are probably thinking, "Real Vampires, give me a break! Sure, there are some pretty weird people out there, but all they need is a good therapist." Yes, there are people who take on all the trappings of a gothic novel: dressing in black, claiming or pretending to be "vampires" in the supernatural sense, wearing capes, sleeping in boxes, even getting their teeth capped. There are more frightening people who seek to torture or kill animals or human beings in order to gain power, emotional release or sexual thrill, and who sometimes call themselves (or are called) "vampires". But most of these individuals are troubled people who have been attracted by the cultural myths about the vampire: supernatural powers (because they feel powerless), overwhelming sexuality (because most of them have sexual issues and no true relationships), immortality (because they fear aging and death). Individuals like these are the most recent "explanation" for humanity's persistent belief in vampires. But beyond and behind all the folklore, the psychological theories, the role playing, even the traditional spiritual assumptions, lies the real truth about vampires.
The field of vampirology is complex and mysterious. There are many aspects to the vampire phenomenon, and they would require several books to fully explore. One aspect of vampirism which frequently troubles magickal, spiritual and other small groups, the most common form of vampire, is found among living people who share with us the benefits and disadvantages of physical existence on this plane, yet are not quite human. These people appear on the surface to be somewhat eccentric members of society, yet their outward idiosyncrasies only hint at how different they are from those around them.
Each of us incarnates for a lifetime with a certain way of relating to the physical world through the vehicle of our physical body. A vampire is a person born with an extraordinary capacity to absorb, channel, transform, and manipulate "pranic energy" or life force. She also has a critical energy imbalance which reels wildly from deficit to overload and back again. This capacity for handling energy is a gift, but the constant imbalance of her own system is the cause of the negative behavior patterns and characteristics which may be notable about a vampiric person.
Real vampires do not necessarily drink blood-in fact, most of them do not. Blood-drinking and vampirism have been confused to the extent that for the average person, a vampire is defined as something that drinks blood (such as a "vampire bat"). But when we look beyond casual assumptions to the details of common beliefs, we find something quite different. Throughout both folklore and literature, there is an understanding that vampires require energy or life force. Many old folktales accept that vampires suck blood, yet never describe this actually happening. The victims slowly decline and waste away, and the survivors assume that some evil fiend is draining them of blood. They know that the Bible says, "the blood is the life", and anyone who was losing their life force must be losing blood. Yet, in many instances the vampire's "attack" does not even involve physical contact. In others, it is clearly sexual energy which is exchanged.1
Fresh blood is the highest known source of pranic energy (life force).2 Human beings have practiced blood-drinking for many reasons throughout history, but drinking blood alone does not indicate that a person is a vampire. Only real vampires can directly absorb the pranic energy in fresh blood, and for this reason some real vampires are attracted to blood and find different means of obtaining it.3 However, it is a rare vampire who cannot absorb energy in much more subtle ways. This is the mechanism that causes real vampires to inflict harm on others and themselves if they fail to recognize what is happening and do conscious work on transforming their inner natures. Vampires are no more likely to be either malicious or spiritually aware than the general population, but without awareness, they can spend their lives making themselves and others unhappy, and will continue to incarnate in this pattern until they take action to change it.
There are a number of external symptoms of vampirism, but it is important to realize that some of them are found in ordinary human behavior. Real vampires are identifiable partly because they have a majority of the symptoms, not just one or two. But more significantly, real vampires are distinguished by a certain quality to the energy. While anyone reading a description of the symptoms and behavior patterns might find a few that apply to people he knows, or even to himself, real vampires have a way of standing out vividly to everyone who interacts with them. There are few people who do not know at least one vampire.
Physically, vampires are usually "night people"" on a biochemical level. They have inverted circadian rhythms, with body cycles such as temperature peaks, menstrual onset, and the production of sleep hormones in the brain occurring at the opposite time of day from most people. They have difficulty adjusting to daytime schedules and frequently work nights. They tend to be photosensitive, avoiding sunlight, sunburning easily, and having excellent night vision. Their vitality ranges widely, and they can be vigorous and active one day, depressed and languorous the next.
They frequently have digestive trouble. Even those with cast-iron stomachs have many issues with food that are rooted in their constant hunger for energy. Contrary to the image of the vampire as thin, many real vampires are troubled by obesity because of a hunger that makes them food addicts, and a system that is sluggish in processing physical food. They are also sometimes troubled by other substance addictions for the same reasons, but since their systems are tuned to pranic energy more than to processing physical substance, they may not be as sensitive to drugs and alcohol as an ordinary person would be.
Emotionally and physically, vampires are unpredictable, moody, temperamental and overwhelming. The major distinguishing characteristic of real vampires as opposed to ordinary people who share those qualities is the vampire's intensity. Vampires are extremely intense people. They are frequently given nicknames such as "the black hole." When others talk about them (usually to complain about them), vampires are often described by such terms as "needy," "attention-seeking," "grandstanding," "manipulative," "exhausting," "draining," "monopolizes the conversation," "jealous," "huge ego," and so on. A vampire's emotions are deep, fervent, and powerful, and she usually displays great psychic ability and has uncontrolled magickal and psychic experiences. Vampires are also empaths, and while they remain unconscious of their natures, they are frequently "psychic sponges" who simply absorb vibrations from everywhere, with the expected emotional instability resulting.
A "hungry" vampire -- one whose energy level is imbalanced to the deficit side -- becomes an involuntary psychic vortex, drawing all pranic energy in the area towards her. When the energy does not flow in fast enough -- and it is typical of vampires that the energy never flows fast enough for them -- she will begin manifesting behavior patterns to increase the amount of conscious attention she gets from others. For this reason, some vampires develop a pattern of being aggressively confrontational, or of constantly antagonizing people with whom they have relationships. Nearly all vampires, whatever ploys they use, have a talent for attracting (or distracting) the attention of everyone present.
Once a vampire overloads on energy, she reverses her behavior patterns. She may become morose, silent, withdrawn and introverted. Some vampires become maniacally cheerful when they are satiated, but even their good moods seem to annoy others, and it is more typical for vampires to be infamous as wet blankets. "Hungry" and "overload" phases can occur within a few minutes or last for days at a time. Vampires are commonly loners, in part because they feel so different from those around them, but also because they have a need to control the degree of contact they have with sources of energy.
Real vampires are not the demonic fiends of Christianized folklore, but as long as they refuse to accept their inner nature, their bad reputation is not undeserved. Unconscious vampires have a tendency to reach adulthood with less than the average level of social skill and general finesse, and tend to be selfish and self-centered. The demands of their own energy systems are so distracting to them that it is difficult for them to pay attention to the needs of others. Their relationships tend to be disasters. Different vampires develop different patterns according to what works best for them in their life situation, but several patterns are common. The "femme fatale" or "lady-killer" vampire forms a continuous series of sexual connections with one partner at a time, dropping each unfortunate lover as they become too exhausted (or defensive) to support the vampire's energy needs. Other vampires form a long-term relationship with a single person: either another vampire whose energy cycle complements their own, or a person who derives satisfaction from being a psychic servant or martyr. A common pattern, especially in young adults, is to continuously join social, religious, political and magickal groups and either blow them apart or end up being thrown out. Vampires may go through roommates, housing situations, magickal groups, jobs and lovers like so much Kleenex.
Many people find that they feel "creepy" or "weird" around a vampire. This is usually due to the effects of one's own life force being drawn towards the vampire's vortex. Most people feel uncomfortable and distracted when their energy is pulled away from themselves. In addition to this, a common result of such an energy drain is for the aura to pull in tightly towards the body, and this causes a prickling sensation on the skin -- the "creepy-crawlies."
It is no more common for vampires to be psychopaths or killers than it is for any random person on the street. However, a prolonged, or very involved, relationship with a vampire can put a severe strain on the emotional and psychic energy systems of an ordinary person. Folklore suggests that victims of a vampire become vampires themselves. In reality, people who have been seriously "drained" -- that is, have had their own energy pulled off balance into a deficit -- also become psychic vortices which pull life force away from other living things. However, they are never as powerful as a true vampire, and unlike vampires, quickly recover and stabilize. True vampires are born the way they are -- no one can be "turned into a vampire." However, years of energy depletion can lead to health problems ranging from depression and malaise to a suppressed immune system and susceptibility to serious illnesses. Most people will break off the relationship before it gets that far.
Many vampires are attracted to magickal paths. In a magickal working group, their ability to wreak havoc is increased because of the psychic openness and trust that exist there. But there can be a benefit, as well. Some vampires become aware of their true natures and choose to undertake serious work to transform themselves. As soon as they begin doing so, they become more acceptable working partners and companions. Once in control of their capacity for handling energy, they become extraordinary magicians and healers. Their ability to hold the attention of others gives them the potential to be fine leaders and teachers. Ultimately, the purpose of vampires is not to plague the universe but to facilitate its healing. Vampirism is the dark, or unfocused, side of a certain kind of psychic talent, one which has been developing for many lifetimes. It is destructive only when a vampire either refuses to face the truth about herself and work with her abilities, or when she chooses to play out a sinister role because of the illusion of power it gives her.
Because of this, many of the vampire characteristics described above are far less evident in the most powerful vampires, the ones who have done considerable work on their inner selves. Many of these are poised, pleasant, competent individuals, with great personal power. They have come to terms with who and what they are, and no longer exhibit the negative qualities associated with "psychic vampirism." 4 Unfortunately, unconscious vampires are far more common than evolved ones, and it is these troubled souls who more usually appear in magickal groups.
There is no "generic advice" to give those who believe they may be dealing with a real vampire. Those who are so inclined might try to help a friend or fellow group member explore their inner nature and come to terms with their destructive behaviors. Those who feel victimized can choose to end the relationship. Each case is different, and can only be judged by the individuals concerned. But it is important for anyone involved in magickal or psychic work to understand that vampires are a real phenomenon, and that, like all perils, they should not be greeted with fear or anger. Nothing is evil by nature -- only by choice. Terror of discovery (followed by ridicule or rejection) inhibits the self-development of many real vampires. When they reach out for friendship, they are often reaching out for help.
A person who believes she may be a real vampire herself has a long and difficult process ahead of her. The most important step on her path is complete self-awareness: of her relationships, patterns, energy levels, and all other personal qualities. The most challenging work may often be summarized in the simplest of terms. Knowledge, awareness, and control are the lessons real vampires must learn in order to harness their abilities. If real vampires are not the immortals of fiction, they can at least be confident of one thing: for better or worse, they will keep the qualities they develop for many lives to come.
(The author welcomes inquiries from readers with a personal interest in the subject of vampirism. She is available at vyrdolak@net1plus.com. Readers wishing for more information about vampire lore in general are referred to the Bibliography.)
NOTES
1. For a thorough examination of traditional vampire folklore, see the works of Montague Summers and Anthony Masters.
2. Other high sources of pranic energy include semen, fresh fruits and vegetables, and the breath of living animals. Meat -- filled with chemicals, long dead, refrigerated, frozen and "aged" (partially decomposed) as it is -- contains almost none. Many real vampires, aside from drinking blood, are vegetarians.
3. For a somewhat flawed but interesting look at blood-drinking and vampirism, see Stephen Kaplan. Leonard Wolf explores this subject from a more philosophical and personal viewpoint.
4. This is not to suggest that even evolved vampires are always comfortable to be around. They remain unpredictable, intense, emotional, and altogether overwhelming personalities. Most are remarkable sexually, and all still draw energy, although they can generally control this to some extent. Furthermore, this article is not intended to mislead -- real vampires, even evolved ones, do sometimes drink blood in order to obtain their energy. Those who understand the many ways that life "gives way" to nurture more life will see this as no more unnatural than eating live vegetables or animals for food.
PARTIAL BIBLIOGRAPHY
* Stephen Kaplan,Vampires Are (ETC Publications, 1984)
* Anthony Masters, The Natural History of the Vampire (Berkley Publishing Corp., 1972)
* Raymond T. McNally and Radu Florescu, In Search of Dracula (New York Graphic Society, 1972)
* Montague Summers, The Vampire, His Kith and Kin (University Books, 1960)
* Montague Summers, The Vampire in Europe (The Aquarian Press Limited, 1980)
* James B. Twitchell, The Living Dead: A Study of the Vampire in Romantic Literature (Duke University Press, 1981)
* Leonard Wolf, A Dream of Dracula (Popular Library, 1972)
http://www.earthspirit.com/fireheart/fhvampire.html
Geri_Berri
Real Life Vampires
Forensic nurses, regardless of their practice area, will at times come in contact with the same types of deviant behavior. Some of these behaviors may be considered rare or even non-existent. It is to our benefit that we share our investigative experiences with these cases. Vampirism is one such behavior. In the modern age, vampires have become media stars. The word "vampire" became a household name in 1897 after the publication of "Dracula."1 More recently, the vampire novels by Anne Rice have become best sellers.2 Television shows such as "Buffy: The Vampire Slayer" and movies with vampire themes are increasingly popular. However the popularity of these characters can lead some people, teenagers in particular, down a dangerous road. A 17-year-old white male was found unresponsive in his bedroom by his parents. He was on his knees, on the floor, with his head resting on the bed. A call was placed to 9-1-1 and emergency medical services (EMS) transported him to a local hospital.
He was pronounced dead in the emergency room (ER). The deceased was noted to have a history of ADD and had been prescribed Prozac and Adderral. He was a very popular teenager who was active in many high school activities. He had recently lost Internet privileges and the Internet name he used was "Vampireboy." During the scene investigation a black and white composition book was found next to his bed. In this 40-page journal, which was written in long hand, the deceased described himself as a "Vampiresis." In great detail, he described how he became a Vampiresis and instructs others to do the same. A sample bottle of Zoloft was found in his bathroom. At autopsy it was noted that the canine teeth appeared to have been filed. Sixteen ounces of blood was found in the stomach and 4 ounces of mucoid bloody fluid was found in the duodenum. There were no signs of ulceration or other cause for bleeding.
View: Full Article | Source: Forensic Nurse Magazine
El Bandito
I've heard of a couple cases of this...I work in the medical profession and you would be surprised how many cases come into the hospital to get their stomachs pumped...just sickening......It's a fad that could end in death....In no way is it safe to drink someone else's blood...that's why we do blood transfusions through the IV folks...we don't hand someone ...someone else's blood and say drink up...geez...or have a donor sitting there waiting for someone to feed off of them...LOL...
I will say that the fad is coming to a dangerous level...where people are actually having feeding parties...how gross is that...and it's not just the kids...it's adults...who the heck thought of this...????? El Bandito
http://berriclan.myfastforum.org/archive/real-life-vampires__o_t__t_694.html
Real Vampires
Welcome, visitor! Confused? Unsure of what all this 'real vampire' jazz is about? You're not alone. And you're NOT crazy! If you are the partner (or potential partner, or even just a friend) of a real vampire who has pointed you in the direction of this page, consider yourself blessed. Why? They value their relationship with you enough, or at least feel have you have an open mind, and they want you to understand the concept of "real vampires" and how it applies to them. There is a tendency in human nature to resist anything that challenges our preconceived perceptions of reality. In most cases, such an attitude serves us well and manifests itself as a healthy skepticism. In other instances, it may result in a close-minded refusal by otherwise intelligent people to consider compelling evidence--especially when that evidence seems to defy common sense or prevailing scientific theory. Many past revelations of science, for example, have met such resistance--a round earth, evolution, relativity, continental drift, quantum theory, an expanding universe--to name a few. By the same token, some of our experiences, no matter how strange they may seem to anyone else, leave us no room for doubt. As a result, real vampires, whether by nature or by circumstance, are often forced to live under a mantle of secrecy, and while that may sound very cloak-and-dagger, believe them when they say it's not all that fun or exciting. In many ways it's, well, scary to tell someone about their vampirism (ever been made fun of? Multiply that by 100 and add a big dose of fear and superstition and you get the idea), for fear that whoever they tell won't believe them or think they're a raving lunatic. Or even worse, be scared of them and/or never want to talk to them again. And it's often MORE difficult to tell someone we've known for a long time, or are very close to, because any rejection from them would hurt much worse than from say, some random person on an e-list. This is not necessarily to be interpreted as meaning that we don't trust the person enough - only that any rejection from them has much more impact and hits much harder. Not all of us feel the term "vampire" is appropriate, or accurate (Some of us use the term "Sanguinarian" instead) and "donor" sounds so clinical - many partnerships like that are between lovers.) But, these are terms that are commonly recognized - and newbie or newly awakened vampires or the vampire-curious will be able to find sites like this much easier as a result. Similarly, the term "feeding" is a catchall, an easy way to refer to the difference between eating normal food and, say, drinking blood. It's not meant to imply that we need vast quantities or an assumption that we harm the person that lets us feed from them. That's right, I did say "Lets us" - we don't "attack" anyone because of a need to feed. (Although we have been known to look at people funny when we're Thirsty, so many of us tend to avoid being around most people at these times, just to avoid difficult situations and/or unwanted questions.) This is not a role, a game, or a lifestyle for us. This is just The Way We Are. Yes, some of us DO play roleplaying games, but whether we do or don't play RPG's offline or online doesn't change the fact that we are *real* vampires. We don't automatically go around wearing capes, sleeping in coffins, speaking in bad romanian accents and attacking strangers. Many of us look like your next door neighbor - some of us are medical personnel, computer help desk staff, even church or office workers, among many other professions. Some of us gravitate to night shifts, others stay on day shift because that's the only shift for their job - office workers, for instance. And many of us DO follow some sort of religion, whether it's christianity, pagan or even buddhism. (And there's many faiths that I didn't mention, so don't think that's a be-all, end-all list of religions we follow.) Religion can sometimes cause internal conflicts within a real vampire - stereotypical vampires in many movies are evil, killing anyone just to feed. To be brought up with this image, then to discover that you are, or possibly are, a vampire yourself...well, this has been known to cause many to doubt whether they've been true to their faith, or to feel that the diety(s) of their faith have "punished" them somehow. Sometimes this can even cause severe depression because they can't reconcile this within themselves. Preconceptions and stereotypes can also cause internal conflicts - I've talked to many who believed that being a vampire meant they had to do certain things. Well, outside of finding some way to feed, it doesn't mean we *have* to do anything! I advocate self-understanding, because self-understanding will go a long way to learning to deal with the problems the vampire may or may not have - For instance, I sunburn easily and my eyes are excruciatingly light-sensitive. Therefore, I avoid sunshine as much as reasonably possible (never was a tanning fanatic in the first place, so it's no big personal loss) and I always wear sunglasses. Do I worry that someone will think I'm weird for doing this? Hell no! My visual comfort is far more important to ME than what anyone thinks of my appearance. My health is far more important to me than what anyone thinks of my appearance, as well. I wear long sleeves and pants all year round, regardless of temperature. (And I *love* to shop in places with air-conditioning in the summer!)
