Freaky Friday...

[Robin Carlton]

... don't worry, this is not a new feature we're doing around here or anything, I just it was kind of a fitting title so I went with it.

Ok so... growing up I have this memory of my mom telling me that I was named after one of her best friends who was taken by the Manson family before I was born. I remember her saying she was murdered / went missing without a trace, etc.

No movie I've ever watched on the Manson happenings mentions her name, at least none that I've seen, so in adulthood, I kinda thought maybe I was imagining hearing this story from my mom.

And then this morning on Reddit, I saw this post in UnresolvedMysteries...

https://old.reddit.com/r/UnresolvedM...her_car_broke/

So I'm not crazy, this is totally my mom's friend who she told me about when I was kid and whom I am named after and the story does indeed mention a member of the Manson "family".

Wild and kinda "freaky" discovery after all these years, don't ya think?

R

[nesser1981]

That's crazy!

[LynnZant]

We never thought that you were crazy. That is freaky though, but a nice way to honor her friend's memory by giving you her name.

[KristinCB]

That is freaky! Was it ever strange for you being named after someone who had been murdered/gone missing?? I would go down a bit long rabbit hole trying to find out all the information lol

[tjscraps]

Wow! Crazy that you finally found something after all this time. I would be like KCB and try to find out any and all information I could lol

[Saar]

Wow, Robin, that's creepy.
I feel so sorry for her family and friends.

[wendyp]

oh wow that is creepy crazy!

[JoCee]

yikes!! but glad you finally got a resolution on this.
scary stuff but as Lynn said, a grea way to honour your mum's friend

[Scrap-therapy]

Wow such a strange story in a way... I think the most freaky part is you finally find it for sure only now. After I will say that is probably a great way to honor your mom's best friend memory naming you like her but I guess it could be a little heavy for you discovering the true story. At least you have a lovely name and a special story to tell!

[bcgal00]

Robin - what a sad story for your mom's friend. She obviously meant a great deal to your mom and it is so special that she named you after her.

I have a terrible freaky story, nothing nice about my story.

A tv/news story about a violent unprovoked attack of a man turned out to be the father of a childhood friend. I was sickened by the senseless brutal attack, scared that something like that could happen in our little city, and then was even more devastated to learn it was my friend's father, whom I had lost touch with when my family moved away. I remember him being a wonderful, caring, quiet man who always made me welcome in their home. It was so sad that he was so severely physically and mentally brain damaged that he would not have a fully functioning life again. The family moved away and I never heard of Jackie again. Then even more devastating news, I found out months later, one of the attackers was caught and convicted, he was a friend of ours, someone we hung out with often and he would come over for dinners and vacation with us. I considered him a "gentle giant", a big guy with a sweet, kind disposition. I will never know what happened, how did he do what he did. It haunts me to this day and I think it made me more cautious about people.

[Kimberly27]

So crazy! I too would go down a rabbit hole with figuring out more info on her and the case. Glad you found some info

[TraceyM]

It's odd the kind of things you find out over time.

I was chatting with an old school friend a few years ago. And we starting laughing about our middle school crushes. After the chat I looked mine up. Really hadn't even thought of him since middle school and wondered where life had taken him. Well it turned out he was part of the company that made the animated movie Cars. He got melanoma and in fact died from it. So at the end of the movie they actually have a dedication to him since he did not live to see it hit the theaters.

Weird things.

[nietis]

[lizziej]

That is a terrible story about what happened to your mom's friend! Being name after your mom's friend was a great way to honor her. How weird, though, that you happened upon that story. At least now you know.

[Lidia G]

Oh wow, that is freaky!

[EvelynD2]

I'm so sorry to hear about what happened to your mom's friend, Robin! What a tragedy! I'm glad your were finally able to get some information on the case, albeit sad.

Rae, I am so sorry to hear about your friend's father and the senseless attack on him that left him severely disabled. It is also tragic that the assailant turned out to be someone you had trusted and thought was a friend.

Tracey, I am so sorry to hear that your former crush/classmate had died of melanoma.

[craftytam]

Wow! That's amazing!

[Dalis]

YIKES!!!!!

[aussiegirl]

Wow! So glad you were able to find information about your namesake, but sad to hear what happened to her and all the others.

Also scary that many of those are unsolved cases and happened near where my daughter currently lives.