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Could this be the Blue Skull?

By Crystal Skull Explorer



Begun on November 17th at 7:37 PM, CST
The Home of "Illinois" Shapiro, Des Plaines, IL
Completed December 17th, 1996 --( pre-edited version )



Welcome! (WAV) (RA) __






Opening Comments

( Part I )


Crystal Skull Explorer
Joshua "Illinois" Shapiro


For a long time I have had a story running through my mind of various adventures shared by a group of seemingly unrelated people from all parts of the world that through a set of mysterious and profound events begin to move towards one another around a powerful artifact known as the crystal skull.

(Editor's Note: Since this is a story being told on the web, I can take advantage of the ability to link to other pages in an effort to support our readers' comprehension about various elements of our story. Therefore, if you are unfamiliar with what a crystal skull is and would like a definition, I have created a special reference page you can link to by clicking here. This reference page (csrefs.html) also has links to other pages on the V J Web site. Thanks … and let us proceed onward with this introduction ….)

Since about 1989, I have been involved in numerous projects in an attempt to share this story in some form (as a movie or novel, as well as thinking about the next crystal skull non-fiction/research work ). But somehow, no matter how much attention and personal resources I have given, or how I excited I was to promote this project, the necessary support and interest to help get us to the next level seem to always just be out of my reach (at my fingertips if you will).

During this time, I received help from various friends in the Las Vegas area to form a non-profit Foundation in Las Vegas, known as FUND (Foundation for Universal Networking and Development). And then I thought to myself, finally at last we have a foundation to build upon and perhaps now we can focus some time and energy on this story! But as most of you know, things in which we desire and visualize in our dreams do not come easily and especially in the time-frame we believe. FUND was a good training ground to become more focused and to learn more about what is required on a practical level to accomplish such a project. Through connections with some of the board members of FUND, I had a chance to meet a Hollywood Production team and we actually worked together to come up with a first draft of a script for a crystal skull movie. In addition, via my numerous travels into the Los Angeles area to help the movie project, I met some incredibly talented and spiritually insightful people involved in this industry. It was a special time but without the proper funding, we could only go so far During this phase of my life (the Las Vegas Adventure, as I fondly call it), I also had an opportunity to work with a mysterious Hispanic gentlemen who had a crystal skull .. the only one I have seen that has Mayan symbols carved on the surface of the quartz …

Last year (1995), I made yet another attempt to get some interest going in a crystal skull book with a different approach. The idea for this book came from an editor I met who worked at the Book of the Month Club (that's right), in the heart of Publisher Heaven (Manhattan) on the Avenues of the Americas in New York City. Via my explorations of CompuServe, one of the first successful on-line commercial systems (now slowly being shadowed by the Internet and the World Wide Web), I met Paul Block, a professional novelist who responded to a message I had placed on the writer's forum, seeking a writer to help with my novel idea.

Basically how this all came about was in 1994, Joke (Van Dieten, the caretaker of "ET", a very old human-size smoky quartz crystal skull and several other ones) and I were talking about doing a book together and we tossed various ideas about from a new crystal skull update book to create an action filled novel. So Paul answered my message and we had many conversations via e-mails and some on the phone. Then in September of 1995 when we went to New York City to offer some crystal skull presentations in the area, we met Paul in Manhattan and had lunch with his editor friend. I showed my photo album of crystal skull pictures to this editor, and discussed with him various ideas I had about my story idea. What was interesting is that he felt a book about my personal experiences as a Crystal Skull investigator (or Explorer as I heard my inner voice whisper) might be received with more interest from publishing companies (as so many people today are writing novels and sci-fi type of stories). So I thought long and hard what type of book I could do and before I left with my wife for Australia (Sydney) to participate in the Body-Mind Spirit Festival ( in November -- where we would be working with our friend Joke (Yo-ka), I sent to 17 book agents (who had some interest in a New Age type of publication) the idea for such a new book.

I did get a few positive responses from some agents but either I had to pay them to be represented (which I was not in a financial position to do) or I had to start writing the book (the supporting material and general outline was not enough for them) and do a few chapters which would require I spend time writing without any guarantee of receiving some payment (i.e. a salary). I also offered to these agents that not only could I work on this current proposal (the non-fiction version) but if this book sold there were various other books that could follow including the possibility of a crystal skull movie. But if you know Aries, we always feel we will be successful and people will love our ideas. However, as stated, the responses were not flowing so I decided to re-focus my attention on doing more articles for publications and sharing information via our Internet Web Site.

I really had a choice in 1995, either I spent a large amount of time writing a new book (which if you are an author or writer, you know this is a pretty intensive process unless you are writer like Issac Asimov who can just crank out books on the fly) without any guarantee the information would be published or I could go the route of the Internet and do the best web site possible knowing that people all over the world could read the information immediately. So it is obvious which choice I made and I must say the response to our web site has been far beyond what I could have imagined. Additionally, there is no other way I know of how we could have made so many incredible new connections and for such a low cost. This year (1996) will be the first time I actually will receive money for writing an article about the crystal skulls (thanks to Alien Encounters in the UK and Mas Alla in Spain, both who found us via our web site). So throughout these last seven years my inner passion has never died and I have been thinking constantly of a way to share the story living inside of me. What to do next ….?

Then this past week Wednesday (November 13th … glad it wasn't Friday the 13th , boy that would have really been an omen), while in the bathroom (or my think tank room if you will) I was kind of day-dreaming in my mind and watched a new part of this story …. and thought to myself …. "God what a great idea (you will have wait a bit before I share what this scene was about, so hang on) … I must find a way to share this with others!" And then, like a breath of fresh air and that old familiar AHA feeling, the answer hit me point blank --- "You Dummy - do it as an interactive/serial story on the Web. This way the readers can journey with you as you are developing it and the story can finally be told!" Yes of course, how simple. Then I thought about something another friend of mine had said to me, while I was sharing with her my concept for this story/movie. Sue Taylor (Michigan) came out to our home for a session with "ET" on November 9th (as well as spent time helping me with some physical challenges) …. I asked her if she would like to hear my idea for a movie with the crystal skulls and she, of course being the typical curious Aries she is, said yes. After I gave her the quick overview of my story plot, she responded back to me, "You know Joshua, all the characters you described are a part of you … perhaps from different time periods or may other parallel earths … that is why you feel like you are living it ….. " So when I received (or was inspired with) this new approach at this time, I felt tremendous excitement and what she said kind of made sense. And one thing I can tell you absolutely, is that when a person is overcome with such a feeling of joy, this is a time when they are receiving a clear communication or inspiration from Spirit and if you don't do this suggestion, you will feel as if a part of you died. Trust me on this one, I know what I am talking (writing) about here -- oh boy. But then my human logical mind surfaces and demands confirmation for this so-called answer. Well, don't worry my friends about this one, I have a special way of receiving such insights and it has to do with numbers. Let me explain below …. as soon after … the numbers came piling in.


To continue to the next page, follow the arrow below ...


Part II
Confirmation by the Numbers




Story Table of Contents
( Plunge into the actual story! )



VJ Enterprises
Attn: Joshua & Vera Shapiro
9324 Home Court
Des Plaines, IL 60016
TEL : (847) 699-8240
FAX: (847) 699-9701

rshapiro@interaccess.com