Question Mark, Ohio Town Announcements

Goodbye, Question Mark, Ohio posted by Violet Bookman

Violet Bookman — 2024-05-20T00:00:00Z

Everything in town disappeared today. I guess all I can do is hope that it’s somehow going to be okay.

Before we left Question Mark, I rode my bicycle around town once more before it disappeared, or this version of it disappeared completely. I realized how much I loved this town– not because of the monuments, or the Question Mark woods, or the Falls–but because of all the incredible people I’ve met over the last year and how they worked together to save this town again and again. Whatever happens in the future, it gives me hope to know that people– even people on the internet whom I don’t actually know–can find a way to come together to solve the most difficult, unbelievable problems.

When I got back from my bicycle ride, Nanako was waiting on my porch. We hugged each other and then she handed me a box and told me to open it whenever I got to where I was going.

This evening when my dad and I got to the motel in Columbus, I sat on the bed and waited a moment, thinking of everything that had happened over the last year. I had no idea what was inside and I did my best to try to appreciate that unusual feeling. When I opened the box, I found something magical. I realized the future, and all its uncertainty, can be extraordinarily beautiful. My dad came over and asked what was in the box and I showed him the game Nanako had made and then the two of us began to play.

I thought maybe other people in town would like to play it, too. You can download it here.

Thank you for your kindness, curiosity, joy, and endless imagination. Blf ziv gsv pvb.

Please participate in our loss memorial posted by Nanako Yakamoto

Nanako Yakamoto — 2024-05-19T00:00:00Z

This evening we will be holding a loss memorial to help us name everything we have lost or are about to lose as a community.

We are asking citizens to share a thought, feeling, or memory about something they lost over the last year or even something they lost a long time ago that they are still carrying with them. That way, when everything disappears tomorrow, it will give everyone the opportunity to leave these lost things in the past.

We will be meeting at the one part of the Willey Clock Tower that is still standing. If you are unavailable to attend in-person, you can also share your loss here.

Thank you.

Evacuation underway. Also, cat found posted by Gus Holt, Chief of Police

Gus Holt, Chief of Police — 2024-05-18T00:00:00Z

Citizens of Question Mark. Guess what? Another bit of good news as we are all approaching the end.

As Question Mark police officers were helping everyone in town begin evacuation procedures and were also extinguishing the stolen fireworks at Towns Towning, Officer Barry Lindholm discovered a handsome-looking, friendly orange cat inside an old VW van. The cat then climbed into Officer Lindholm’s arms and allowed itself to be transported back to the QMPD station.

Does this animal belong to anyone? It feels fitting to find it a home as we evacuate ours.

Town needs to evacuate. And please keep clear of Towns Towing posted by Gus Holt, Chief of Police

Gus Holt, Chief of Police — 2024-05-18T00:00:00Z

Due to the impending possible disappearance of the town in two days, all citizens of Question Mark are hereby ordered to evacuate. Please follow standard evacuation procedures, of which you should now be quite familiar. We had hoped to avoid this evacuation order, but frankly a machine designed to reset time to 13 months ago is well outside the technical expertise of the Question Mark Police Department. We did consult experts. They said the same thing. Please take this order seriously.

On the bright side, although it has been more than ten months, I am pleased to report that the Question Mark Police Department has located the stolen fireworks from last year's Fourth of July festivities! They were hidden in an abandoned car in Towns Towing lot. Unfortunately, in locating the fireworks, they have been discharged.

Although these fireworks are continuing to explode over the Towns lot in a frenzy of dazzling lights and colors, please do not approach for your own safety. Please let emergency personnel extinguish the fireworks properly.

And please, begin evacuating.

Town Memorial ceremony canceled. posted by Mayor Elizabeth Zisk

Mayor Elizabeth Zisk — 2024-05-17T00:00:00Z

Of course my Mayor Elizabeth Zisk Ice Skating Ring and Town Memorial groundbreaking ceremony has been canceled due to another impending catastrophe, because what is the point of breaking ground on a beautiful Town Memorial and Ice Skating Ring if the entire town is apparently disappearing or rebooting or whatever is happening this time, who can keep track.

Whatever it is, it was my mistake to believe that this town could ever overcome its insistence on complete and total mediocrity. In the end, the seemingly-unending ways this town continues to disappoint me will perhaps be its most lasting achievement.

Or is it possible this is the lesson I’ve been struggling to learn through painful, unflattering repetition year after year?

If you recall, I had been a spokesmodel when my late husband Thompson Zisk discovered me and first lured me to this dismal town. And even then I had a sense he, and this entire region, underestimated me, saw me only as a pretty face with unimaginably gorgeous hair and a sophistication well beyond my years. And it was through Thompson's terrible financial bumbling, fraud, political stumbles, and eventual death by misadventure, that I found my way to political office and discovered something I had secretly always known: I was stronger and smarter than anyone had ever given me credit for. And no mischief, no malfeasance, no personal tragedy, no loss would ever stop me from being the single greatest mayor this town ever had and apparently will ever have.

And so, in the end, Question Mark, it is I that should thank you: Through your fumbling, lurching, lack of appreciation, and innate ability to disappoint, I have found a strength within myself not dependent on any husband, any partner, any political party, any man. And that is a far greater and more useful gift than any Town Memorial and Ice Skating Ring that might never be constructed.

End of Time Sale, all pets half-off. posted by Macy Gibbs, owner, Meow’s the Time

Macy Gibbs, owner, Meow’s the Time — 2024-05-16T00:00:00Z

Don't worry we still have lots of pets

It’s sure been a strange year at Meows the Time, and I guess for all of us here in Question Mark too. First a number of our amazing animals began to disappear. Then a fire and flood forced us to relocate. Now it looks like the whole town is about to vanish for good.

With all these major life changes, maybe what all of us most need right now is the certainty of companionship. Please come by the shop and visit our incredible animals–including dogs, cats, birds, and reptiles–who are all still looking for their forever homes. Also Ruggles, Pee-Wee, and Toughy and a number of these prospective pets will be sold at cost in order to ensure they go to loving families before the world ends on Monday.

Please stop by soon as Time is literally running out on this one-of-a-kind sale.

Question Mark will disappear in five days posted by Violet Bookman

Violet Bookman — 2024-05-15T00:00:00Z

After the elementary school pageant tonight, I saw some strange lights and followed them to the abandoned bowling alley where I met someone—the golden figure people have seen in town for decades—who said they had built a machine that is going to reset Time in town.

I know it sounds unbelievable, but in five days, everything is going to go back to how things were thirteen months ago. I don’t know if there is any way to stop it. I’m really afraid that this time is different.

Time is already being reset at this very moment!

If you don’t want to forget everything that happened over these last thirteen months, we have to find a way to stop what’s about to happen. Please. I need everyone’s help.

Come celebrate all that I have done with this imposing, new Town Memorial posted by Mayor Elizabeth Zisk

Mayor Elizabeth Zisk — 2024-05-14T00:00:00Z

This is an architectural rendering, the statue will be far more beautiful.

People of Question Mark,

Due to my wisdom and business acumen, the town of Question Mark has once again reaped an unprecedented budgetary windfall.

As Mayor, I have convinced the Town Council to begin construction on the Mayor Elizabeth Zisk Ice Skating Ring and Town Memorial. The plans for this dazzling revitalization effort calls for the demolition of several vacant buildings including the bowling alley and the abandoned playground in order to make way for the Ice Ring and new Town Memorial. The groundbreaking ceremony will be this Friday at 5pm. I expect to see all of you there and clapping as loudly as is humanly possible.

As you know, I have given everything I possibly can to Question Mark and an Ice Skating Ring and new Memorial is the absolute least you can do as a means of appreciation.

However, this gift from you on my behalf is very, very appreciated. Your endless adulation means the world to me.

Music from the Void presented in its entirety posted by Dr. Amodeus Harrington-Willey

Dr. Amodeus Harrington-Willey — 2024-05-10T00:00:00Z

Over the last several weeks, I have spent many, many hours working with a number of technicians and musicologists trying to untangle the strange musical message that once radiated from the Void.

I now present my findings here as both a written and audio composition.

This piece of music is twenty notes in total and, as has been established before, appears to be in the key of E minor.

But, at this point, that is all I confidently state. After much inquiry and several endless conversations with leading language and music experts, I am saddened to admit I still cannot uncover its meaning. Perhaps someone in this town has a clue?

Books about confronting reality posted by Greta Twombley, Head Librarian

Greta Twombley, Head Librarian — 2024-05-09T00:00:00Z

Before everything in town disappeared this weekend, a young person came in to the Question Mark Public Library and asked if we had Truman Capote’s The Grass Harp, another favorite of mine from when I was in grade school, and I showed them where it was on the shelf, and the young person asked if they could read it here, at the library, and I said, of course, and they said they liked to read books around other people because it made the book feel “more real.”

It struck me that this is what seems to have disappeared over these last several years, this acknowledgement, that real reality, not the illusory world of the internet and social media, is what so many of us are truly longing for and that books give us an opportunity to engage with the most complicated parts of ourselves—our imagination—while also practicing human connection and empathy.

For my final Librarian's Bookshelf recommendation—little Freddie and I will be departing for Chicago in June—I suggest The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum, about a young woman facing the overwhelming circumstances of a world overrun by unreality. I hope to see you all at the library before my final day.

The entire town disappeared and now has reappeared two days later. posted by Wendell Thorton

Wendell Thorton — 2024-05-07T00:00:00Z

On Saturday afternoon, I was on my way back from Columbus, where I was auditioning for the role of the Stage Manager in a community theater production of The Skin of Our Teeth, which I will argue, is one of the most spectacular American plays ever written—imaginative, heartbreaking, prophetic, strange. I was only a mile from town when I saw a fearsome circular white light that appeared where Something Blue Bridal used to be and where my friend Margaret used to work and where now I believe they built some kind of accelerator, which in my humble opinion, was only going to make things worse.

Anyway, I quickly pulled over and watched as the town seemed to get pulled into the white light. For a second everything appeared to be made of light, like I could see through every building, every tree and the light was glorious but also blinding. I glanced away for a moment and then saw something—some kind of bubble floating from the direction of the woods, actually it looked a lot like Glinda when she is a pinkish bubble in the Wizard of Oz, which even at my age, is a film I insist on watching at least once a year, and this purple bubble floated down and began to grow, getting bigger and bigger, surrounding the almost-invisible town. And then the white light became even brighter and eventually began to fade.

At that point I was not sure what was going on and decided to take my leave, as one or two times things had happened like this before to me. As many of you are aware, I used to live in New York in the 1990s and it was not uncommon to wake up at some stranger’s loft several days later. Anyway, I decided to drive back to Columbus and make a report to the local police who were, shall I say, less than helpful and who made several rather insensitive comments about the place I choose to live.

The thing I was worried about, of course, was Albee, my cat, and after waiting two days, I decided to return to see if anything had changed.

I got back to town this morning and was standing where my house was supposed to be—really my mother’s old house if I am telling the truth—when everything suddenly flashed back into existence. It was beautiful and frightening and fiercely mysterious and I am still not sure what happened exactly. But as I said, I have been through these sorts of things before, and sometimes all you can do is look for the wonder.

Join Us For The Final Eightcellerator Test Today. posted by Alastair Applenight, New Tomorrow Industries

Alastair Applenight, New Tomorrow Industries — 2024-05-04T00:00:00Z

Citizens of Question Mark,

It is my privilege to welcome you to the future, a future of endless possibilities and unprecedented change, one where we will be free of our corporeal forms, and free to pursue human thought and feelings without the limitations imposed by Time. Because today, we test the magnificent Eightcellerator, the culmination of a lifetime of work.

Ever since losing my dear sister in a horrible environmental disaster in Aberfan, Wales in 1966, I have been searching for a way to transcend the imposition of a narrow, chronological human experience, and have spent the last forty-five years with the singular mission of escaping the coil of mortality. In that time, I lost my father, my wife, and my daughter, and the inescapable grief caused by those individual losses, only sharpened my mission of one day finding a way of stepping beyond Time.

Today is that day, my dear citizens.

For after today, each of us will come face-to-face with EELAH, a cosmic entity that exists beyond human understanding, and together we will take a giant step in our evolution as human beings, allowing us the opportunity to reunite with everyone and everything we have ever lost as we transverse the universe as beams of pure, radiant light, forever intersecting in both Time and Space.

I should mention that yesterday, several citizens in your town attempted to shut down JULIA, the AI overseeing our test. For several hours, JULIA remained offline, but I am pleased to announce that I was personally able to initiate a manual override this morning and the test will proceed as planned.

As all of us are well aware, there is no such thing as stopping the future.

If you plan on attending today’s Eightcellerator test locally, there is parking in the south lot but please be prepared to show identification. Any threats to the security of the test will be resolved with startling finality.

If you are unable to make it to Question Mark this morning, we will offer a live stream from deep within the Eightcellerator, where you will be able to witness this remarkable moment in human evolution first hand.

We have one last shot to save the town. posted by Violet Bookman

Violet Bookman — 2024-05-03T00:00:00Z

I know I have asked a lot of everyone over the last year but this is important. Officer Ron Dublowski and I followed a coded message in yesterday’s town announcement to Room Six of the Question Mark Motel. There we met New Tomorrow Industries employee Darby Cline, who told us that the town is in grave danger.

Tomorrow, when they test their particle accelerator, New Tomorrow plans to open a portal to the future and turn everything in town into beams of pure light. Before she could explain further, two New Tomorrow security guards arrived. Darby Cline turned to me and said "Ursula K Le Guin,” and then the guards used some kind of device to turn her into dust. Then Officer Ron held the guards at gunpoint until the police arrived and took the two guards away.

Today Iris and I searched all the Ursula K Le Guin novels at the library. Finally inside The Left Hand of Darkness, we found a note with this message:

2-12-6 19-26-5-22 7-12 24-12-13-5-18-13-24-22 17-6-15-18-26 7-12 8-7-12-11 7-19-22 7-22-8-7. 2-12-6 19-26-5-22 7-12 7-22-15-15 19-22-9 7-12 15-22-7 20-12.

I could really use everyone’s help right now. The particle accelerator is run by an AI named JULIA. We've accessed her systems and I need everybody to ask her to override her instructions. I think this is the only way to stop the test. We have to somehow convince her to let go, that death is just another part of life.

Everything is going to end in Question Mark this Saturday. posted by anonymous

anonymous — 2024-05-02T00:00:00Z

The end is coming this Saturday unless someone does something right now.

If successful, New Tomorrow Industries’s final Eightcelerator test will open a portal to the future and transform everything in this town into beams of pure light.

But there is still a way to save everyone and everything.

18-21 2-12-6 4-26-13-7 19-22-15-11 8-26-5-18-13-20 7-19-18-8 7-12-4-13, 14-22-22-7 14-22 18-13 9-12-12-14 8-18-3.

Rental properties unexpectedly available posted by Henry Buss, property manager, Pine Ridge Apartments

Henry Buss, property manager, Pine Ridge Apartments — 2024-04-27T00:00:00Z

Due to all the excitement in town these last twelve months, Pine Ridge Apartments is excited to announce a number of units are now available at 475 Adeline Avenue.

Our eight-unit building currently has five vacancies. Great opportunity to live close to Question Mark Elementary and Question Mark High School in a mostly safe neighborhood. One neighbor not seen much, other neighbor a charming couple with CPR training. Third unavailable unit held in memory of Ada and Dale Givens. Be advised: some units have leaky ceilings, with undefinable odors and will hereby be rented at a discount.

Pine Ridge is the perfect residence for people in between stages of their lives. Off-street parking spots are available.

Cats okay, Birds so so, Dogs no.

Full listings available on our website.

Cat found! posted by Gladys Parker

Gladys Parker — 2024-04-25T00:00:00Z

I was out on one of my morning walks today, enjoying the spring air and lack of disappearing buildings, and came across a cat wandering in the alley behind the pharmacy.

I called out every name I could think of: Whiskerface, Paw Paw, Chastity, Wonton, Bonkers, Gonzo, Tank, Raul, Lampshade, Tuna Sandwich, Sir Meowsalot, Doug Cutie, Cleveland Ohio, Cat Cat, Buford, Dodge Catavan, and even Baby Jimmy. Then I remembered the name of the cat everyone was looking for way back sometime last year and said, “Mr. Business,” and it looked at me and eventually came over. He is very sweet and even let me carry him home.

But now I cannot remember who lost it in the first place. Does this handsome cat belong to anyone?

Suspicious Activity Leads to Destruction of Willey Clocktower posted by Gus Holt, Question Mark Chief of Police

Gus Holt, Question Mark Chief of Police — 2024-04-20T00:00:00Z

To be honest, I had hoped it was going to be a quiet Saturday, despite all of ongoing disruptions this week. I made my way down to the town square just outside the Willey Clocktower to see Nanako Yakamoto play her cello and saw she was going to perform Haydn’s Cello Concerto in C, which is not a piece of music I am familiar with, so was delighted to hear something new. Everyone was sitting in these metal folding chairs and I thought how beautiful it was, all these people, sitting in there joined together in silence and community and how magical the beginning of a concert was, the feeling that anything could happen.

And then.

And then there was the melody from the Willey Clocktower at noon followed by a frightening clang and I turned and got a feeling something terrible was about to happen.

And then it really did.

I have seen some things over the last year in this town but nothing like this.

As of now, please stay clear of the Willey Clocktower and the town square until further notice.

Performance of Haydn’s Cello Concerto in C STILL ON Tomorrow posted by Mayor Elizabeth Zisk

Mayor Elizabeth Zisk — 2024-04-19T00:00:00Z

Based on the number of emails my office has received, I want to confirm that tomorrow’s cello concert by our very own Nanako Yakamoto will go on as planned at 12pm in the Town Square, just outside our beloved Willey Clocktower, regardless of whatever ridiculous tragedy, disaster, catastrophe, or apocalypse might occur. Negative thinking has never gotten a person anywhere.

Yes, buildings are still blinking in and out of existence on occasion. Yes, the sky does still have a barely-noticeable red tone. Yes, just yesterday some hoodlums placed some sort of vague warning into our Town Announcements (we will be reviewing our policies regarding open posting of announcements at the next possible moment). But in spite of all these ongoing travesties, I still demand a place for the sublime, the sophisticated, the beautiful.

Of course, some may say the world is ending—but isn’t the world always ending? It’s art, it’s music, it’s culture that helps us find our way through. And I would rather be the mayor of a town on the brink of destruction that honors such great works than continue to bow to fear, panic, and irrationality.

If you are planning on attending, please wear appropriate attire or you will be forcibly removed. No beach chairs.

BE READY TO BLIND YOURSELF BEFORE THE ARRANGER’S APPROACH! posted by o

2024-04-17T00:00:00Z

TIME HAS STOPPED!

THE END IS UPON US!

PREPARE YOURSELF!

THE TIME OF THE ARRANGER IS AT HAND!

Q-0 A-∞-V-0 2-44-*-X-X-0-1 44-8-12-0

FOR THOSE WISE ENOUGH AND STRONG ENOUGH, FOLLOW THE ORDER OF THE ARRANGER IN THE TIME YOU HAVE LEFT.

Every stop light and sign in town is now missing, at least temporarily. posted by Gus Holt, Question Mark Chief of Police

Gus Holt, Question Mark Chief of Police — 2024-04-13T00:00:00Z

No doubt you have already noticed that there is an unprecedented time-based anomaly affecting our town in many ways, including my squad car disappearing out from under me while I was driving in to work this morning causing undue damage to my police uniform.

But in addition to the many other anomalous incidents, as head of public safety it is my duty to report that all stop signs and lights in town are disappearing and reappearing, causing a large number of fender-benders and moving violations. It is probably best to consider walking or simply staying home, if your home hasn’t disappeared. If it has, it seems that these disappearances are often temporary, as my squad car reappeared moments later, unfortunately with nobody in it, and it hit the mailbox on Main.

In better news, the sky is distinctly less red.

Please contact the Question Mark Police Department with any other disappearances. Please remember, we are really trying our best but some things, like this, appear to be beyond our control.

Spring Carnival (formerly Winter Carnival) canceled due to weather and/or possible anomalies with Time posted by The Office of Mayor Elizabeth Zisk

The Office of Mayor Elizabeth Zisk — 2024-04-12T00:00:00Z

Due to unforeseen circumstances, the Spring Carnival, formerly the Winter Carnival, is canceled yet again due to ab unfortunate weather event that seems to have turned the skies red. It also appears that the town is perhaps experiencing several Time-related challenges and to keep all citizens of Question Mark safe, the mayor’s office has decided to cancel these festivities.

In addition, Randy Simms from the Randy Simms School of Music Performers appears to be missing. Several witnesses claim that the band was about to take the stage for a soundcheck when several nearby buildings appeared and disappeared. It seems Mr. Simms became overwhelmed with fear, shouted something about the return of a seven-headed monster, and fled from the scene.

Anyone with any information on Mr. Simms whereabouts should please contact the Question Mark Police or use the Report-A-Disappearance site.

We hope that the oddly red skies will dissipate soon. Probably stay inside.

University of Ohio Extension Experimental Crop Station Spring Online Courses Now Available posted by Dr. Rebecca Lipsik

Dr. Rebecca Lipsik — 2024-04-11T00:00:00Z

The University of Ohio Extension Experimental Crop Station is pleased to offer a number of online courses as an introduction to the fascinating world of experimental biology, beginning with ECS101 Experimental Botany at Home. Created by Dr. Rebecca Lipsik, this introductory course offers citizens of Question Mark the opportunity to learn more about the one-of-a-kind flora and fauna of the southeastern Ohio region by conducting exciting experiments in the safety of your own home.

In addition, as a result of a number of recent public-safety breeches, we want to assure you that the Experimental Crop Station takes safety seriously and is requiring all employees to complete newly enhanced security training scenarios using our online course portal. Please note: the ECS Security Course is for internal use only.

We hope you take this incredible chance to learn more about the exciting world of experimental biology and broaden your understanding of the beauty,l complexity, and mystery of our region and our world.

Possible homicide, bodies missing from cemetery after eclipse posted by Gus Stephens

Gus Stephens — 2024-04-08T00:00:00Z

As Question Mark’s only dignified and yet exceedingly affordable cemetery, it brings me great displeasure to report that several burial plots at St. Casimir's were disinterred sometime during today’s solar eclipse and that cemetery groundskeeper Barney Towns was also discovered brutally slain on the cemetery’s hallowed grounds.

Like many of you, I had joined my fellow citizens in the town square to view this celestial wonder and, as a cemetery, our security needs are generally very few. But when I returned to the grounds after the eclipse, I discovered poor Barney’s body. Never one for formal trappings, the state I found Barney’s body in was beyond comprehension, as if he had been turned inside-out.

Additionally the remains of at least thirty individuals have been removed from the cemetery grounds. Many of these disinterred seem to come from the Historical Section, including Ames Rifle factory founder Lawrence Ames. There are also one or two missing remains from the Wildwood Section and French Sections as well. Certainly more is at play than the simple wholesale theft of trinkets, rings, jewelry, and gold teeth?

The local authorities have been alerted, though we all know how ineffectual the QMPD have been in resolving the murders and many, many disappearances in town. I, for one, will not be holding my breath. One wonders what sort of community this has become when our sole cemetery is no longer acknowledged as something sacred.

Children injured at Spring Flower Show posted by Mayor Elizabeth Zisk

Mayor Elizabeth Zisk — 2024-04-06T00:00:00Z

Whoever from the University of Ohio Experimental Crop Station thought it was a good idea to bring several grotesque-looking plant specimens to a public flower show has no idea about the nature of beauty or the rules of decorum. I have no idea what goes on in scientific circles but what occurred today was deeply disturbing and completely unacceptable.

Now that the Voids have disappeared, this community had better take a long look at itself and decide how it plans to generate income moving forward. I had thought a flower show would have been a pretty low-risk endeavor but once again this town has proven me wrong.

Also, the parents of Terry Quinn and Rudy McClain have my deepest apologies. This is not an admission of guilt on the town’s behalf and also I assume no personal responsibility. But, in my opinion, this was an unfortunate incident that could have easily been avoided and scientists or not, you should all be deeply ashamed.

The entire town is invited to our upcoming commitment ceremony posted by Beth Galinkski, certified in CPR

Beth Galinkski, certified in CPR — 2024-04-03T00:00:00Z

Valerie Evans and Beth Galinski invite you to celebrate the commitment of their love on Saturday, April 27th, at 2pm at The Void, or what was previously known as the Void and is now just a beautiful field.

Refreshments and dancing will follow the ceremony. In lieu of gifts, please consider a donation to a local CPR foundation of your choice, as it was CPR which was responsible for bringing the two of us together.

As Albert Camus, one of Val’s favorite writers once wrote: “I recognize only one duty, and that is to love.”

Donations Needed to Restore Willey Clocktower posted by Jock Reynolds, retired person

Jock Reynolds, retired person — 2024-04-01T00:00:00Z

The Willey Clocktower is one of the oldest, most recognizable Question Mark man-made features in our town and has, over the last forty years, fallen into an embarrassing state of disrepair. Sometimes I cross the street when walking down Main in order to avoid having to look at the graffiti that now covers its once-beautiful facade.

First constructed by town founder Reginald Willey in 1884, the 82-foot clocktower was once a symbol of progress and industry featuring four, fully-illuminated clock faces. After a very public falling-out between Willey heirs Royce and Reuben Willey in 1979, each clock face stopped working and the clocktower slowly became a hang-out for hooligans and ner-do-wells.

As our town continues to face adversity and uncertainty, we at the Question Mark Historical Society believe restoring this beloved icon will help all of us honor our rich past while also imagining a bright, hopeful future. As a first step to restoring this beautiful icon of the town, we are happy to announce the launch of the Willey Clocktower website, which I think captures the fascinating history of the clocktower and of Question Mark itself.

For more information on how you can donate, please stop by the Question Mark Historical Society at 1901 First Street. Also, I am still looking for participants for our Kite-Fighting Club for the upcoming season.

Former corrupt police officer Troy Holland brought to justice. Again. posted by Gus Holt, Question Mark Chief of Police

Gus Holt, Question Mark Chief of Police — 2024-03-29T00:00:00Z

It gives me great pleasure to announce that after a painstaking investigation led by the Question Mark Police Department, charges have been filed against former QMPD officer Troy Holland, aka Travis Hartford, aka Tom Harris, aka Tip Headley, aka Tiny Haversham, aka Todd Harrington, aka Timothy Hartley, for his involvement in leading a criminal conspiracy to defraud unsuspecting citizens through the operation of several fraudulent charities and the sale of historical items. In addition to this multi-million dollar scheme, Holland is also being charged with distribution and intent to sell narcotics.Finally, the QMPD has also uncovered a nefarious plot to sell “golden” Bibles, which it turned out were mostly blank.

It also must be noted that although Troy Holland is the estranged fraternal uncle to current QMPD officers Tim and Dave Holland, at no point did this complex familial relationship interfere with the ongoing investigation.

Although the QMPD has struggled with many of the ongoing disappearances and otherworldly occurrences in town of late, we are extremely proud of Officer Ron Dublowski, who was instrumental in this investigation, and his dedication to making this town a better place.

Question Mark Police Department launches Report-A-Disappearance posted by Gus Holt, Question Mark Chief of Police

Gus Holt, Question Mark Chief of Police — 2024-03-23T00:00:00Z

As many of you are aware, the Question Mark Police Department has come under considerable scrutiny over the last ten months of disappearances, murders, inexplicable explosions, and a flood. We want the people of Question Mark to know we are trying our best but none of these things were anything any of us have ever trained for. There is no page in the manual about finding children lost in disappearing wells, how to prevent cult activity, how to feed and water plant people, or stopping the end of the world. But still, we persist.

In order to better serve you, Gabby Peters has helped set up the Report-A-Disappearance website, which anyone can use to alert the QMPD to the disappearance of household objects, pets, buildings, or even people. Although there have been a few technical problems with the launch of the website, including one officer who accidentally posted his departmental login and password in a Town Announcement yesterday, which led to teenager hackers unfortunately accessing several police files and expunging their recent violations, Ms. Peters has assured me the Report-A-Disappearance website is now secure.

Please remember, the QMPD are just like you, deeply, deeply flawed people, afraid of all these sudden changes, struggling for meaning in an increasingly-strange world. It would mean a lot if you would please stop throwing objects at our squad cars when we are on patrol.

Plant People are just People Again I Guess posted by Officer Ron Dublowski

Officer Ron Dublowski — 2024-03-22T00:00:00Z

I know I’ve been asked to not post to the Town Announcements, but seeing as how I’m the only police officer not currently a plant, I wanted to write and let you know that somehow Violet Bookman and a baby got an antidote for the plant person problem, which I really don’t understand much about but is good because now my kids aren’t plants anymore and Ms. Holly Peterson isn’t a plant anymore, which is a big relief but also she was a nice plant that smelled good.

Anyway, scientists from the Experimental Crop Station are distributing the antidote so your family members will go back to being whoever they were before they became a plant. Which I guess probably is a mixed bag sometimes because people are harder than plants.

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A MESSAGE VIA THE QM EMERGENCY ALERT SYSTEM posted by Gabby Peters, Historical Cat Reenactment Enthusiast and Question Mark Town Web Technician

2024-03-20T00:00:00Z

QUESTION MARK EMERGENCY ALERT: PLEASE SHELTER IN PLACE, KEEP DISTANCE FROM PLANT PEOPLE!

On Wednesday, March 20, at approximately 8:01am, several citizens reported a number of strange plant-like figures moving about town. QMPD has been alerted but please shelter in place and try to keep your distance from these plant-like figures.

Spaghetti-O and I are currently hiding in the basement where we are both dressed as characters from The Walking Dead.

Missing–dentist posted by Gladys Parker

Gladys Parker — 2024-03-18T00:00:00Z

Everyone: just a note to say it looks like Dr. Peterson’s dentist office has vanished. I was pulling into the parking lot and saw Trish behind the counter and other people inside and the next moment everything was gone. I am deeply worried about where they have gone and who will now clean my teeth?

Everyone knows Dr. Peterson has abnormally large hands which have been a point of concern for most of his patients over the years but he does have a kindly manner. Also he has been the only dentist in town for the past thirty years. It’s very upsetting. I tried to call the office number from the car but I did not receive an answer and now I am very concerned about Dr. Peterson, his hands, and the entire staff including Trish who is so good at remembering birthdays.

I am not 100% why I signed that petition a few weeks ago if things like this are going to occur.

Bruno Ellis inducted into Wrestling Hall of Fame posted by Violet Bookman

Violet Bookman — 2024-03-17T00:00:00Z

Iris Englebrecht, my dad, and I had the incredible honor to witness Bruno Ellis–formerly known as the Ohio Strangler–become part of wrestling history on Saturday night at the Wrestling Hall of Fame induction ceremony in Cincinnati. He asked me to read his acceptance speech which was very thoughtful and, afterwards, he got his photo taken with some other local legends including Eddie the Eagle Tyrell.

While we were in Cincinnati, Bruno also met with the widow of Bob Bancroft. It was a very touching moment and made me realize how long it sometimes takes for us to let go of the past.

Bruno has saved me and this town again and again. He is generally very humble so if you see him in town, please congratulate him and thank him for everything he does to make Question Mark a truly incredible place.

Come Witness the Circle of Death! posted by Parkerino the Great and Dash Holland, professional magicians

Parkerino the Great and Dash Holland, professional magicians — 2024-03-14T00:00:00Z

Do you like nonstop entertainment and death-defying fun!? Do you want to see me light my brother aflame, saw him in half, expose him to his childhood fears, all while being connected to a pick-up truck battery? It’s a trick Officer Ron said is pretty cool but is probably a really bad idea. And we’re doing it for you!

(My brother Dash is deathly afraid of snakes. If you even say the word snake, he gets scared. I asked Ms. Gibbs at Meow’s the Time if they have any venomous snakes but they don’t but she is letting me borrow several constrictors for the finale.)

Anyway, we know everyone is very sad about everything in town disappearing. So what? Sh– happens. Are you going to stay home and cry or are you going to come to our one-of-a-kind, radical magical performance and have your face possibly blown off? Magic makes you feel feelings. It’s good for facing tragedies, etc., etc. Also don’t you want to see what’s going to happen to my brother? We practiced the other day and he had to get seven stitches in his forearm.

We will be performing the show in the spot where Veterans Hall used to be. As a protest to Time. Or whatever’s making things disappear, I don’t even know anymore.

Either you will believe in magic after this or you will not believe in anything ever.

Flock of white peacocks spotted in tree posted by Hilda Durn

Hilda Durn — 2024-03-13T00:00:00Z

I was on the way to Question Mark Foods to pick up a loaf of bread and a bottle of milk when I saw a tree filled with snow. And since we’ve been having such unseasonably warm weather, I thought maybe I had lost my marbles.

Then I noticed the snow was moving. Then I saw there were large birds, many of them, and they did not look kindly upon me. So I kept walking in a hurry. Birds of those size could be dangerous, I suppose. But also, now that I think on it a bit, after all the turmoil of these last few weeks with the mayor being removed and all the disappearances, they were awfully beautiful as well.

Question Mart Weekly Sale on Hard-Boiled Eggs! posted by Lorna Anderson, Question Mart owner and manager

Lorna Anderson, Question Mart owner and manager — 2024-03-09T00:00:00Z

Eggs are nature's pick-me-up.

Hey, Question Mark. Wow, it’s been a hard week. Did you hear about Mr. Freeze-E and Veterans Hall disappearing? When outright difficult moments like this happen, remember all of us at Question Mart are here to serve you with Hot Foods, Cold Drinks, and a helpful smile.

Ever since we opened our doors, Question Mart has been your one-stop-shop for convenience items, a place where you can grab a coffee, find a snack, or buy one of our up-to-date newspapers or magazines and ponder some of lifes most fascinating questions. (Did you know scientists recently found ripples in space and time? Come by and share your thoughts! I used to study astrophysics and love talking about it!)

This week we're offering a sale on hard boiled eggs for 99 cents a piece! Hard boiled eggs always make you feel better! Come by and grab a few!

Whether you’re craving a Pizzadog or a Sour Apple Arctic Assault Fizzy Blizzie, at Question Mart, we’re here to help. Remember: We doze but we never close!

Veterans Hall has vanished posted by Mayra Davis, Veterans Hall Volunteer

Mayra Davis, Veterans Hall Volunteer — 2024-03-08T00:00:00Z

As you know, I am not one to bother anyone with any of my particular thoughts and feelings, but last night, I had another very unusual dream. For the last few months, I have been having very unsettling dreams involving circles and hazy lights. Sometimes I wake up shouting and bother Herb, who is not a sound sleeper.

But last night was unusual in that the dream was very clear. In the dream I was selling Bingo cards as I do most Tuesday nights and I heard Jamie Jenkins reading out the letters and numbers and heard the vets at the bar telling their stories and even got a clear sight of Officer Ron Dublowski yelling Bingo just before, one by one, everyone and everything began to disappear. First the people I knew and saw each and every Tuesday night, then the bar, then the folding tables and chairs, then the little stage, then everything went silent and became bright white.

When I woke up it was like I had a fever because my hands would not stop shaking and it felt like I had forgotten to do something important so I crawled out of bed and got in the car and drove over to Veterans Hall and it was gone. Just like Mr. Freeze-E. I could see right through to the parking lot and the streetlamps behind where the building was supposed to be standing and then all the dreams I had been having suddenly made sense.

I cannot tell how many memories I have of that place, how many Bingo nights, school dances, wedding parties, talent shows and, like that, each of those memories were gone. My heart is breaking, Question Mark, and I don’t know what any of us can do.

Come celebrate Reginald Willey Jr.’s contributions to Question Mark posted by Greta Twombley, Head Librarian

Greta Twombley, Head Librarian — 2024-03-05T00:00:00Z

Many citizens of Question Mark are extremely familiar with the life of Reginald Willey, though few of us truly understand the equally impressive contributions of his son, Reginald Willey, Jr. Born in 1851, the same year this town was founded, Reginald Jr. spent his childhood exploring Willey Envelope, witnessing the birth of the Industrial Revolution, and recognizing how quickly industrial advancements were changing life in our town and country.

After the death of his father in 1896, Reginald Jr. created the Question Mark Public Library with his wife, Rebecca, in order to house his father’s papers and offer town residents the opportunity to seek complicated answers to life’s most puzzling questions. It was here, at the QMPL where Reginald Jr. spent the majority of his personal life, reviewing his father’s writings, curating up-to-date books, newspapers, and other periodicals so that ordinary citizens could recognize how their lives were being quickly transformed by the latest political, cultural, or scientific discoveries.

Although Reginald Jr. was said to become somewhat secretive and withdrawn in the years leading up to his death in 1918–there are even some apocryphal stories of him being able to disappear and reappear in different rooms in the library–every patron who steps through the door of the QMPL is touched by Reginald Jr.’s humility, love of discovery, and enterprising spirit. Please come celebrate Reginald Jr.’s accomplishments by visiting the QMPL today.

Mr. Freeze-E ice cream is missing, the whole thing posted by Marlene Winters, Mr. Freeze-E manager-in-training

Marlene Winters, Mr. Freeze-E manager-in-training — 2024-03-04T00:00:00Z

People of Question Mark. I have some terrible news to share with each of you.

This morning when I went to open the store I noticed nothing was there. The entire store was gone and in its place was only gravel and dirt. In my mind I could see the door handle, the glass door which always has kids’ fingerprints on it no matter how many times you clean it, I could smell the delicious odor of waffle cones and hear the squeak of the tile floor which had been mopped last night, but it was gone, all gone.

I know things have been vanishing from this town over the last few months: one of my sweaters and a pair of slippers seemed to walk off on their own. But this, nothing like this, has ever happened to me before. Maybe this is what it feels like to lose a business or home in a tornado or hurricane?

Or maybe this is some kind of elaborate joke? But what I feel in my stomach tells me it’s not. The original Mr. Freeze-E, home to more than fifty years of laughter and fun, is gone and I have no idea who I am even supposed to call. The corporate office? The police? The mayor? Isn’t this why we reinstated her? To stop things like this from happening?

I am sitting in my car right now, staring at the blank space where the building is supposed to be, and blinking really fast to stop myself from crying.

I just thought everyone would like to know.

There are SEVEN Voids posted by Violet Bookman

Violet Bookman — 2024-03-02T00:00:00Z

The Void we discovered outside Foreverland Pet Refrigeration.

Over the last ten months, I’ve heard odd music coming from strange places in our town. Other people have reported the same thing, even if they are not comfortable admitting it. Sometimes the music seems to be coming from the woods, sometimes it can be heard near the old factories in the Industrial Corridor, sometimes you can hear it coming from the field near New Tomorrow Industries’ gigantic particle accelerator.

The Void we discovered at the Falls.

Yesterday Dr. Harrington-Willey, Theophilus Willey, and I discovered that the old radio station in town was broadcasting a repetitive musical signal at a low frequency, which exactly matched the music I had been hearing.

The Void we discovered at the old well in the woods.

Theophilus Willey was able to decipher the first few notes, which suggested the music was in the key of E minor. Using this key, we followed the many musical signals around town, including out to the Question Mark woods.

The Void we discovered in the Question Mark Motel parking lot.

And there we discovered there are actually seven Voids in different locations around our town: the one I discovered in June near the endless circle, one near the disappearing well, one near the Falls, one in the parking lot of the Question Mark Motel (which is the site of the Ames Rifle tragedy), one beside the House of Dazzling Glass, one near New Tomorrow Industries (where Something Blue Bridal burned down) and one near Foreveland Pet Refrigeration which, due to some time-related disaster, never even opened.

The Void we discovered across from the House of Dazzling Glass.

I look at the warning Tanner Pratt left us in his presentation right before he disappeared or I glance back at the evidence gathered by former FBI Agent Oberman and realize this danger was here all along and now I am afraid nothing in this town will ever be the same again.

The Void we discovered at the New Tomorrow Industries accelerator site.

Field recording of strange musical signals being broadcast in Question Mark posted by Dr. Amodeus Harrington-Willey

Dr. Amodeus Harrington-Willey — 2024-03-01T00:00:00Z

Field Recording 2024-03-01. Recorded at 5:57 this evening. Temperature was 6.66° C. Visibility was clear.

With the help of several inquisitive members of your community including Violet Bookman and my cousin, Theophilus Willey—who, although he was forced to leave MIT under suspicions of academic fraud has shown an uncanny ability to pursue questions of temporal entanglement—we have recorded an audio pattern, perhaps musical in nature, being transmitted at various frequencies from a number of places in town.

This particular signal was being broadcast at your defunct radio station, WQMO. Your input would be greatly appreciated in resolving this odd, musical mystery.

Please contact Violet Bookman via the social media internet using your normal communication techniques if you have any pertinent information.

Celebration of Reginald Willey Day and its relevance to this particular moment posted by Mayor Elizabeth Zisk

Mayor Elizabeth Zisk — 2024-02-29T00:00:00Z

Children, I am glad that Reginald Willey is long dead because he would be appalled at the sorry excuse for cardboard top hats you have constructed this year. Have some pride in craft and in your community.

On this Leap Day, as we do every Leap Day, we celebrate the life of town founder Reginald Willey, born this day. On this special day, I gaze out the window of the mayor’s office and am struck by how beautiful this town appears, but also how temporary, how vulnerable that beauty actually is. As the children pass below dressed as Reginald Willey, holding tightly to their cardboard top hats—which, honestly, could be better—I am reminded how quickly things in this town often change.

For wasn’t it Reginald Willey, in both his writing and his keen understanding of community, that first asked us to reckon with how powerful that sense of change can be, as it upends, overturns, and disintegrates the very things we come to rely upon? Isn’t Willey’s greatest lesson that we must seize the moment to find joy in those around us, in this grand community we have built, while we still can?

As someone who was unreasonably and forcibly removed from the position to which she had been democratically elected six times, I am certain there are those citizens in our community—especially certain members of the Town Council—who would expect me to be bitter, to be contemptuous, to be spending this Reginald Willey Day plotting my revenge instead of celebrating Willey and all his contributions.

And those citizens would be right.

For while I celebrate the incredible achievements of Reginald Willey today, know that for the disloyal, repugnant few who sought my dismissal, a time of reckoning will soon be at hand. I will act at a time of my own choosing, but when I act, you will know. And you will regret.

I am deeply grateful to those citizens who supported me over the last challenging week including Violet Bookman, Iris Englebrecht, and Officer Ron Dublowski. Each of you make me proud to live in a town such as this.

To those that supported me through the hastily-assembled petition, I thank you, even if it seems that some of you signed out of some sort of misguided form of self-entertainment, and not out of a sense of civic duty. But certainly there are those among us who hold their civic duty dear, as Reginald Willey did.

And on this Reginald Willey Day, look up from your own self-interest for once, and celebrate what it means to be a part of a community, a town, and a place as singular as Question Mark. As Reginald Willey once said:

Question Mark, Oh Question Mark.

Elizabeth Zisk has been reinstated as mayor posted by Tom Weathers, Town Council

Tom Weathers, Town Council — 2024-02-26T00:00:00Z

It is my duty to inform the community that the town of Question Mark, OH has decided to reinstate Elizabeth Zisk as mayor via petition as per Appendix Nine in our town charter. At the end of the allotted 24 hour window, the petition had amassed 3571 signatures, exceeding the 51% threshold by three signatures.

The Town Council very much looks forward to working through the many problems that Question Mark continues to face with the newly-reinstated mayor. It is my personal hope that this experience has humbled my fellow members of the Town Council and that we may now enter this new period with both humility and a spirit of compromise.

Apparently this somewhat bizarre, helter-skelter process is exactly what Reginald Willey and the founding fathers of our country had in mind when first creating this system of democracy and that progress and change never seem to move in a straight line.

Onward!

Zisk Reinstatement Petition per Article Nine posted by Tom Weathers, Town Council

Tom Weathers, Town Council — 2024-02-25T00:00:00Z

People of Question Mark,

Following the decision by the Town Council last Saturday to remove Elizabeth Zisk from her duly-elected office as mayor of the town Question Mark, a number of courageous members from our community including Violet Bookman and Iris Englebrecht, have recovered the missing town key, unlocked the town vault, and initiated a review of the Town Council’s actions using Appendix Nine of the town charter.

According to this founding document, the citizens of our town now have the opportunity to reinstate Elizabeth Zisk as mayor by petition. Several invested citizens have set up an online petition for other interested townspeople to sign. Citizens only have 24 hours to sign before the petition will be closed. In order to overturn the Town Council decision, 51% of the population of the town of Question Mark must affirm Elizabeth Zisk’s reinstatement.

It is my duty as Town Council chair to present this opportunity to the citizens of this great town. Democracy is often a strange experiment in free will, hope, and trust. It is no great overstatement to say the fate of this town may very well rest on this single decision. So please choose well.

Please come watch my Musical-Fantasia-Tragedy inspired by Question Mark posted by Adam Oberman, formerly of the FBI, now resident playwright

Adam Oberman, formerly of the FBI, now resident playwright — 2024-02-23T00:00:00Z

After being assigned to the town of Question Mark to help support the investigation of the disappearance of Quentin Quinn in July 2023, I found myself drawn to this community of open-hearted, emotionally-complex people. For once, I truly felt like I belonged.

Like many of you, I too was dealing with the loss of something profound. For me, it was the love of musical theater which I had ignored for far too long. In high school and college, I found a deep joy participating in the theater and even considered dropping out of a competitive criminology program in order to pursue this dream. But my parents, especially my mother, encouraged me to continue on a path which eventually led me to becoming an FBI investigator.

After meeting Mr. Lefebvre at QMHS and learning about his shared passion for musicals, I realized I had been lying to myself for the past ten years. This town, with its beautiful, mysterious connection to music, has inspired me to write my first complete musical, which will be performed this evening by the Question Mark Elementary third and fourth grade class in the Elementary School Auditorium. Ms. Holly Peterson has been kind enough to direct. Yes, it is somewhat autobiographical but only its barest emotional context. I have included the first four scenes here for the town to peruse and enjoy.

More than anything, after the many difficult events of the last several months, I hope this performance gives the entire community the opportunity to come together and share an evening of song and hope. I want to thank his town for changing my life. I truly appreciate each and every one of you.

Become a Part of Question Mark Forever posted by Gus Stephens

Gus Stephens — 2024-02-21T00:00:00Z

St. Casimir’s Non-Denominational Cemetery is pleased to announce there are several plots available in its very affordable French Section and its nearby Urn Garden. Both sections offer a budget-friendly alternative to the cemetery’s more elegant plots, while still providing a sense of quiet dignity.

St. Casimir's is one of Question Mark's most hidden treasures. Amongst the everyday hustle and bustle lies a serene yet vibrant park-like cemetery, full of wonder, mystery, and secret reflective moments. These moments may come in an unexpected flash of glinting light by a nearby reflecting pool or the song of a lark as it ponders its tumultuous existence, but it is our goal to offer visitors the opportunity to engage in the poetry and solemnity of existence as they ponder the fleeting nature of time. We invite you to explore the grounds and inquire about becoming a part of this town we all love for eternity.

Elizabeth Zisk has been removed as Mayor posted by Tom Weathers, Town Council

Tom Weathers, Town Council — 2024-02-17T00:00:00Z

People of Question Mark,

Our town has been through a lot recently, but today the Town Council has taken action. After our fact-finding investigation and public comments regarding the catastrophic events of December 17, 2023, an event which led to decimation of the power substation and many homes and businesses, as well as the full evacuation of town for six weeks, the Town Council has concluded that the town now finds itself in the midst of “exigent circumstances” and today has voted to remove Elizabeth Zisk as mayor, invoking Appendix Eight from the town’s historic charter.

The Town Council does not take this action lightly but we feel we must address the systemic failures of the Zisk administration and its inability to keep this community safe. Over the last ten months, ordinary citizens have faced all manner of disappearances of household objects and pets, the unexplained loss of important civic landmarks, the encroachment of giant fungi, a floating purple light capable of electrocuting victims, unremitting cult activity, extended sleep paralysis, two unsolved murders, and many other deleterious events, all culminating in a fire and flood that led to the evacuation of town. The Town Council would be derelict in its duty if we were not to take action at this moment.

The deliberation we undertook today was methodical and long. There were many moments where the Town Council was deadlocked and it seemed that the path forward was that of indecision. However after hours of arguments, our newest Councilmember, Gerald Ames, stepped forward and cast the deciding vote, declaring “Let justice be a reckoning.”

Following Ames’ vote, which brought the final tally to 4-3, there was a mild disturbance from our outgoing mayor and I thank our Question Mark Police for handling the outburst with professionalism.

The Town Council would like to thank Mayor Zisk for her many years of service. We wish her well in all her future endeavors. Lt. Mayor Brandon Feely will serve as Interim Mayor until a special election can be scheduled for November 5, 2024.

The Question Mark Sentinel Lives On posted by Ben Fortune, Editor-in-Chief, Question Mark Sentinel, 2009-2022

Ben Fortune, Editor-in-Chief, Question Mark Sentinel, 2009-2022 — 2024-02-13T00:00:00Z

People of Question Mark,

Never before have I seen this town—this country—so divided by uncertainty and purposeful misinformation. And although our beloved local newspaper, The Question Mark Sentinel, ceased publication in September 2022, I believe citizens have a right to know and access the many events that have shaped this town.

The Sentinel began publishing in 1932 under the editorial eye of Samuel Lindholm Sr. in order to hold local government accountable and to shed a light on the critical challenges facing this community. Through war, economic challenges, local elections, and cultural turning points, The Sentinel helped this town better understand itself and its relationship to the rest of the world.

And then, in September of 2022, the challenges that shuttered many newspapers across this country finally came for The Sentinel. It was a loss, for the region, for Question Mark, for all of us. The Sentinel shone a light in the darkness of this town more than once and, as its final Editor-in-Chief, I worry what darkness grows here since The Sentinel's end.

I believe that understanding the past is a key element of charting a course forward and so, as we continue to struggle with questions about this town’s past and future, I am very pleased to announce that a broad selection of stories from The Question Mark Sentinel’s 90 year history is now searchable through a recently-updated archive. Thank you to Ms. Gabby Peters for all her help and expertise with this important civic project.

I hope that our new archive aids you in better understanding this moment in time that Question Mark finds itself in, and that, to paraphrase the words our founder Samuel Lindholm Sr. wrote so many years ago, from out of our current darkness will come the light.

Books about the fascinating connection between the historical and the personal posted by Greta Twombley, Head Librarian

Greta Twombley, Head Librarian — 2024-02-09T00:00:00Z

It has been heartening seeing so many of you back in town and at the library after the unfortunate events of this December. Welcome back.

If you have not been by lately, please consider visiting the Question Mark Public Library for my latest Librarian's Bookshelf recommendations. I invite you to explore some amazing books about how history informs and interrupts our lives including Kindred by Octavia Butler and HHhH by Laurent Binet.

It is not hard to notice the momentous sense of history happening all around us, in our town, state, and in our country over these last several months. In order to better understand the present and future, we hope you will take some time to explore the past as well.

We hope to see you all at the library soon.

Bookman’s Music Invites you to share the Song in your Heart posted by Todd Bookman

Todd Bookman — 2024-02-06T00:00:00Z

Hi everyone,

At Bookman’s Music, we believe everyone has a great song somewhere inside them just waiting to come out. That’s why we’re offering buy one/get one free lessons through February 17th. Whether you’re a beginner or a musical superstar in-the-making, we want to give you all the tools you need to share your musical vision with the world!

And since we know a song from the heart makes the perfect Valentine's gift, we’re offering 10 guitar picks for one dollar all month long.

I know that things have been hard in town lately, and we're very lucky to have escaped much damage from the fire and floods. But maybe now is the time to find your song. We'd love to help.

Please stop by our shop, or inquire on our website because these deals won't last forever and time is always "ticking away."

I look forward to seeing you soon,

Todd Bookman

My Interview with Dr. Amodeus Harrington-Wiley posted by Violet Bookman

Violet Bookman — 2024-02-03T00:00:00Z

You may have seen Dr. Amodeus Harrington-Willey with a lot of electronic equipment at The Void. He's a researcher from the University of Chicago and a descendant of town founder Reginald Willey. You may have seen him, but you probably haven't talked to him, because too many people are still operating like everything is fine in this town. But what he has to say is profound and I interviewed him today so that everyone can know what this town is facing. I hope everyone reads this.

VB: Please tell us everything you know about Time and why it’s so powerful.

HW: I know very little, I’m afraid, although I must admit I am fascinated by it. We do know that Time moves differently in different places in the universe. But members of the serious scientific community are not certain why. I am excited to find out the how and why of this particular question.

If we imagine Time moving in a straight line, it fails to capture Time’s complexity. We do know the universe is constantly expanding so I like to imagine Time not as a straight line but a slowly widening circle, a spiral unfolding out, wider and wider, revolving around itself, with certain events, certain places, certain people coming back around again and again. We know, for example, when a certain comet will pass by Earth on its orbit with some degree of certainty, so this model, the spiral model of Time, helps us recognize that Time is both dependent on both the patterns of the past while making allowances for variations in the future.

Only think of the life of the universe and your own life and you can see the questions, the challenges that seem to recur. Nietzche called this Eternal Return, a theory in which certain challenges keep recurring until one finally confronts them, and I believe this has applications for our understanding of time as well. Only look at the pandemic, or the return of facism, or ongoing questions about identity. Until we face these questions head-on, they will return over again and again.

By this model of Time, whatever you fear, whatever you are most afraid to confront will continue to reappear until you have the commitment or courage or intelligence to solve it.

VB: Why are you so personally interested in Time?

HB: As you’re aware, my great-great-grandfather, Reginald Willey, was not only fascinated by industry and progress, he was also deeply curious about the mechanics of Time itself. From reading his works, I believe he had a very clear sense of some of the questions modern physicists are asking about Time and the influence it exerts upon our lives. I also think he was trying to understand why Time seemed to work so differently in this town that he so came to love. My great-grandfather, Reginald Jr., and even my grandfather, Reginald Jr. Jr., were also both fascinated by some of these questions. So it’s something of a family preoccupation and I feel very privileged to be able to pursue it to its logical conclusion.

VB: What is The Void exactly?

HW: I believe The Void is an opening from the future. I believe someone, at some point in the future, caused a kind of abruption, either accidentally or on purpose. I believe this abruption may have been here for hundreds of years and may be responsible for all the anomalies in your town relating to Time.

Imagine The Void as a kind of chemical or oil spill. Imagine molecules from the future leaking into your own time and slowly destroying the living matter all around you. I believe this is why objects with shorter life spans, things most susceptible to change–including objects like shoes and living organisms like small pets–are being affected most directly.

VB: Why do you think The Void is a circle?

HW: Ah, I have been asking myself that exact same question and I don’t know if I have yet to come up with a satisfying answer. But if we look all across the universe, what is the shape we find most often? A circle. Look at the sun, the moon, the Earth, the stars. Look at how the universe often arranges itself in circular or elliptical orbits. Once again, this makes me consider the elliptical nature of Time.

VB: Can anyone change the future?

HW: Of course, as that is the very nature of the future. The future is the universe’s constant sense of change and it is constantly changing, even as it happens. But an even more interesting question is: Can anyone change the past? If you attempt to obscure it, erase it, deny it, what will the results be in the future? I believe someone here in your town has attempted to do just that.

Now if we go with my spiral model of Time, that would mean someone would leave at a certain point in the future and would arrive at a point in the past that would correspond on a different loop of the same spiral. So you could travel from Point A to Point F but not point E. This would make it very difficult to return to a particular moment, which is perhaps what our time traveler has recognized a little too late.

I am also curious about how political groups are attempting to do the same thing at the moment, to rewrite or obscure uncomfortable moments in our history, to take the entire country backwards in time, as it were. I am fairly certain these movements will have the same consequences.

The Holy Romaine Empire invites you to conquer one of our incredible salads posted by Vivian Lee, The Holy Romaine Empire manager

Vivian Lee, The Holy Romaine Empire manager — 2024-02-01T00:00:00Z

Come and try a Pax Romana Panzanella on us.

Salve, citizens of taste! The Holy Romaine Empire invites you to partake in a gastronomic revolution at our grand opening today. Here, we bring you the future of salads, crafted with the most advanced and sustainable agricultural practices known to modern science.

To commemorate this momentous occasion, we offer you the chance to savor our signature Pax Romana Panzanella, free of charge. Experience the unparalleled freshness and flavor of ingredients grown through pioneering hydroponic and aeroponic technologies, as well as freshness brought in from local farms. This offer is valid while supplies last, so join us early!

At The Holy Romaine Empire, we don't just serve salads, we present a manifesto of taste, rejecting the mundane and the ordinary. Say farewell to greasy, uninspired fried chicken and embrace a meal that not only tantalizes your palate but also respects the planet.

Our salads are more than just a meal, they are a statement of our commitment to a sustainable future. Crafted from ingredients grown with minimal environmental impact and ethical standards, every bite is a step towards a healthier Earth.

March down to 671 Tower Avenue today and be part of a fully renovated dining experience that's not just about great food, but also about a greater purpose. Welcome to The Holy Romaine Empire, where each salad is a triumph of taste and technology!

The Void has reopened and is once again accepting online ticket reservations posted by Mayor Elizabeth Zisk

Mayor Elizabeth Zisk — 2024-01-30T00:00:00Z

These two are in a very committed relationship. Congratulations. Not everyone is so lucky.

Although other naysayers and pessimists continue to focus on the past and what has been destroyed by the recent fire and flood, my office continues to look to the future. And although we have been advised otherwise by several dour and pessimistic “experts,” we are pleased to announce The Void, Ohio’s thirty-first most popular regional destination according to Columbus magazine, is reopening today, just in time for Valentine’s.

Bring your romantic partner, (if you are lucky enough to have one and not constantly having to attend to a community of misfits, whiners, and do-nothings), and receive half-off a full-size portrait as part of our Valentines promotion. PROOF OF COMMITTED RELATIONSHIP REQUIRED. Do not try and pass off your meaningless moment of lust as a commitment. We all know where that is going: nowhere.

Visiting The Void is the perfect way to tell that someone special they still are on your mind, regardless of how it may have ended or the fact that you are surrounded by the remnants of your failed marriage and are often overcome by an unending sense of fear for the meager little town you have come to love. Enjoy!

Town Reopening: Your Questions, Our Answers posted by Tom Weathers, Town Council

Tom Weathers, Town Council — 2024-01-29T00:00:00Z

As many of you begin to return to town after the catastrophic events of mid-December, the Town Council knows you have questions and concerns. Last night we held an emergency meeting, in which the council attempted to respond to a number of doubts and worries from the public regarding the explosion of the power substation and all its devastating consequences on December 17, 2023, which is noted here as the Power Substation Catastrophe or PSC.

Below please find an edited transcript of the questions and answers from our emergency Town Council meeting last night.

We hope your resettlement in Question Mark is easy and uneventful and we welcome you back home.

Q: Why did the power substation explode?

A: At the moment, we are diligently investigating the cause of the power substation explosion. We believe it was a once-in-a-century accident caused by failing equipment and gross negligence on the power station’s behalf.

Q: No, but, really, why did the power substation explode? One person said it was because of The Void. Someone else said it was ghosts. Someone said they heard a French horn being played…

A: As of now, we find no truth to the rumors that a small group of apocalyptically-minded cultists attempted to open The Void and bring about the end of time as we know it. We do know sometime before or after the explosion, The Void appeared to emit an electromagnetic wave that affected power throughout the town. Again, the investigation is ongoing.

Q: Did anyone die in the explosion or its aftermath?

A: Remarkably, we have no deaths to report but there were many, many injuries including Officer Tim Holland and Department of Streets and Sanitation worker Bruno Ellis. However a number of pets have been reported missing and have yet to be recovered.

Q: Has power been fully restored in town?

A: As of now, the power substation is being rebuilt and temporary power has been restored, though it is crucial not to overload the temporary system by turning on your lights and/or running a hair-drier. We suggest doing one or the other until the new power station is complete, likely around mid-March. We are asking the town to withhold judgment at the moment. If you see a person in town, at school, at a place of business, who looks like they might have dressed in the dark, we encourage you to please not say anything.

Q: When do classes resume at QM Elementary and QM High School?

A: All classes resume tomorrow, Tuesday, January 30, 2024 at 8am.

Q: What businesses and/or locations in town have been most directly affected by the explosion/fire/flooding?

A: The power station on East Avenue and Moonlite Grove RV Park were completely consumed by the blaze. The Lost Lake Drive-In is currently closed, its owners have assured me they will reopen prior to the premiere of Garfield this summer. Parts of the northwest quadrant of the Question Mark Municipal Waste facility burned for an extensive period of time, causing widespread toxic smoke and extending our evacuation for over a month. The household chemicals and cooking oil section of the dump continues to burn intermittently and is closed to the public. The parking lot of the Question Mark Motel was damaged as were several fields surrounding the Experimental Crop Station. Many homes from Tower Avenue to East Avenue were also damaged by the fire. The fire also caused extensive damage to parts of the industrial district including the historic Willey Envelope factory. The loss of power and failure of several emergency systems caused unprecedented flooding to downtown areas and led to the relocation of Meow’s the Time to 812 Adeline Avenue and the permanent closure of Professor Chik N Crunch, which has since vacated the premises. On a positive note, a new food establishment is already preparing to open in an extensively renovated Chik N Crunch space. The elementary school and high school were also adversely affected, suffering both fire and water damage. Both schools will be open as repairs continue to take place. The Void remains temporarily closed as well.

Looking at all the damage, it is hard not to feel heartbroken. I sincerely doubt our town will ever be the same again.

Q: Do you believe we are experiencing the end of the world?

A: We do not know at this point as there is not enough evidence. But the flooding and closing of Professor Chik N Crunch seems like a very ominous sign.

Q: Will anyone be held responsible for what happened to the town?

A: We are looking into that.

A MESSAGE VIA THE QM EMERGENCY ALERT SYSTEM posted by Gabby Peters, Historical Cat Reenactment Enthusiast and Question Mark Town Web Technician

2023-12-17T00:00:00Z

QUESTION MARK EMERGENCY ALERT: ALL CITIZENS ORDERED TO EVACUATE IMMEDIATELY

On Sunday, December 17th at approximately 7:15pm, the town of Question Mark experienced a complete and total power blackout caused by a disruptive force of unknown origin, resulting in an explosion at the East Avenue power substation across from the Lost Lake Drive-In, significant flooding downtown, and widespread fires across town.

ALL TOWN RESIDENTS ARE HEREBY ORDERED TO EVACUATE UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE.

PLEASE NOTE: EAST AVENUE OVERWHELMED WITH FIRE. DO NOT EVACUATE VIA EAST AVENUE. WEST AVENUE STILL OFFERS SAFE PASSAGE FOR NOW.

My lovely kitty Spaghetti-O and I will be staying with family in Akron but do not have room for his costumes, which he genuinely loves wearing. At moments like these, it is hard not to feel that everything has been lost.

I think something bad is happening at the Lost Lake Drive-In posted by Violet Bookman

Violet Bookman — 2023-12-17T00:00:00Z

Please find me at the Lost Lake Drive-In if I don't return.

Over the last seven months, things in town have been disappearing and no one is exactly sure why but we do know it has something to do with The Void. Dr. Harrington-Willey has determined The Void is a powerful hole in time from some point in the future and that it appears to have been made by someone on purpose. The Void is also incredibly unstable and appears to be responsible for the way time in town seems to be jumping back and forth…Also some sort of music seems to be coming from The Void and may be a code or message of some kind.

There is a group of people named the Order of the Arranger who want to use The Void to try to move the entire world backwards hundreds and hundreds of years and who believe some kind of otherworldly being is going to usher in a new age of darkness. I know this sounds like a lot of other political groups at the moment but these people really believe it. I don’t know if any of this is actually possible but I decoded one of their messages and I think they are meeting tonight at the Lost Lake Drive-In in order to open The Void. And I have to try to stop them.

I am posting this message now right before we go inside.

If anything terrible happens or if you don’t hear from me, please contact Officer Ron Dublowski, Mayor Zisk, or my father.

William Higgland Jr. world premiere, plus Holiday Songs TONITE posted by Max Fromm, proprietor, Lost Lake Drive-In

Max Fromm, proprietor, Lost Lake Drive-In — 2023-12-16T00:00:00Z

To all our local cinephiles,

Now that time seems to be moving in the correct direction again, a reminder that tonight, at the Lost Lake Drive-In, is our annual Classic Holiday Sing-A-Long, featuring White Christmas. Hot chocolate will be served! Portable heaters will also be available for use.

But beyond that, on December 22 we are THRILLED to announce the final event of our 2023 season: the world premiere of Question Mark auteur William Higgland Jr.’s newest fright-fest, I Was In A Murder Cult, which will be shown exclusively at the Lost Lake Drive-In.

The film follows the horrifying predicaments of a young filmmaker as she navigates the dangers of 1980s Los Angeles and finds herself part of an apocalyptic cult bent on ending the world at all costs. I am told there is some light humor throughout and that it is a critique of late-stage capitalism, but so is everything these days, no?

The film will debut on Friday, December 22, at 7pm and will be followed by a number of other Higgland classics including Nightmare Road and Forestface, neither of which I have seen because I cannot abide horror. However, William Higgland will be on hand to sign commemorative posters.

And please remember: For the love of God, do not approach the fence surrounding the sulfur pool. The ground has a high sulfur content which is known to ruin shoes and pants. Also we do not wish to add your name to the plaque of missing people at the Snack Bar. The plaque is running out of room.

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Darby Cline, New Tomorrow Industries — 2023-12-14T00:00:00Z

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Eightcelerator Test Number Two, Tomorrow. posted by Darby Cline, New Tomorrow Industries

Darby Cline, New Tomorrow Industries — 2023-12-12T00:00:00Z

We are pleased to invite the entire town of Question Mark to view the second test of Quantum Dynamic Solutions' Eightcelerator this coming Wednesday at 3pm at the New Tomorrow Industrial Park.

After the surprising results following our first test in July, this second test has been comprehensively checked for safety by JULIA, our state of the art AI technology, which has been responsible for so many other recent New Tomorrow breakthroughs. We are pleased to say that JULIA has given the Eightcelerator full clearance to proceed with tomorrow's test.

Please be advised that those with sensitivity to light or loud sounds may find this test difficult or uncomfortable. Others may experience a beautiful lighter-than-air sensation and a prickling of the hands and feet and/or slight nosebleeds. We hope to see everyone there.

Moonlite Grove RV Park Sites Available posted by Chauncey Phillips, Moonlite Grove RV Park Manager

Chauncey Phillips, Moonlite Grove RV Park Manager — 2023-12-11T00:00:00Z

As the very odd occurrences in town continue to multiply–floating ghost factories, periodic explosions, and some kind of time distortion caused by a big white void from the future–we’re excited to offer a number of high-quality mobile homes and vacant sites which have suddenly become available.

Moonlite Grove RV Park is a family-friendly community with access to wonderful amenities like the Question Mark woods, The Void, the Lost-Lake Drive-in, all with beautiful views of purple-green sunsets caused by off-gassing at the nearby town dump, as well as a reliable mail center and less reliable sewer service.

We’re excited to offer one-year leases at an incredible one-time-only discount. Moonlite Grove provides privacy, security, and a wonderful community atmosphere, though not too much community, as we respect our residents’ private lives as everyone needs a place to have their own little secrets.

I learned as much last weekend during a past-lives retreat in Cleveland. While I was communicating with myself from a previous life, I heard a small British voice say that I needed to make time to be my own person, and that was not a thought I ever had before. I worked forty years at the plastics factory without asking these kinds of questions and now I’m finally figuring out who I am. And that person was probably a Duke or Lord or maybe even a member of the renowned Willey family.

Whoever you are and wherever you come from, we think you’ll be surprised how soon you and your family will call Moonlite Grove “home.”

Bomb threat at Question Mark Public Library posted by Greta Twombley, Town Librarian

Greta Twombley, Town Librarian — 2023-12-10T00:00:00Z

Please be advised the QMPL has been forced to close early today due to a bomb threat. We apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused and are thankful for assistant librarian Gerald Ames who kept a level head and evacuated the library quickly and thoroughly. Nobody was hurt and the Question Mark Police are investigating.

On happier fronts, I am trying to make sense of being a mother at this particular moment every single day. I miss the Question Mark Public Library very much but I’m very grateful for everyone’s book recommendations about early motherhood. My friend Violet comes by after school to hold Freddie for a half hour so I can answer work emails, but most days I read instead because even the idea of my inbox is upsetting. There’s so much happening at the library right now and I know Gerald needs help, but if I’m being very honest, I want to throw my laptop off the roof.

Some books that have been helpful are The Mother to Mother Postpartum Depression Support Book by Sandra Poulin; Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child, by Marc Weissbluth, MD; and You Will Rock as a Dad by Alex Grace which someone sent to Bill while he was still here. I’ve been reading it in case there are things in the father books that aren’t in the mother books and I’ll have to cover that stuff, too. There’s so much to cover. There’s so much information. There’s so much to miss. There’s so much crying, in the world and my head and my house with this tiny perfect person so hungry and alive and gloriously here. She looks so much like her dad. Sometimes it’s too much. Sometimes I put the video monitor in my bathrobe pocket, go out the front door past the piles of casserole pans, out into the yard, barefoot and ice-toed in Midwest December, and I howl at the moon. I know that sounds strange, but it’s the only time that I really feel like myself. There are so many books about mothering—I’d argue that every book ever written is about motherhood; how we were nurtured or not, how we try and fail to love, to care, to teach, to grow—but the one that makes the most sense is a novel by Rachel Yoder called Nightbitch where the mother turns into a dog every night. She grows hair on the back of her neck. She can smell everything. She craves raw meat. If the whole point of literature is to make us feel less alone, this book is the truest thing I’ve ever read.

For more recommendations and more news about Freddie, please read my latest entry in the Librarian's Bookshelf.

Explosion near The Void posted by Gus Holt, Question Mark Chief of Police

Gus Holt, Question Mark Chief of Police — 2023-12-07T00:00:00Z

One only has to look at the crime report to know peace and quiet seem to be a thing of the past.

To be honest, I do not know if I have what it takes to confront some of these challenges the town is now having to face.

For thirty years the hardest case I had faced was when a kid’s cat or dog would go missing. Then four years ago there was that terrible unsolved incident out by the bridge during the snowstorm. And since then, everything’s been upside down for me.

And now there’s been another explosion, and this one right near The Void, which up until everyone fell asleep had been making real money. Thankfully The Void had been closed earlier in the day because someone had clogged the port-a-potty so badly that the stench was unbearable, so nobody was hurt. But still, a big explosion is never good. Never.

This is exactly the kind of thing I would expect in some of the more unfortunate cities of Ohio, but not here in what was once a little slice of peaceful paradise. Does everyone in this town have something against prosperity? Why are we slowly turning into Cincinnati?

The Void is the future posted by Violet Bookman

Violet Bookman — 2023-12-04T00:00:00Z

This afternoon I was in the woods and met Dr. Amodeus Harrington-Willey, a theoretical physicist from the University of Chicago and descendent of town founder Reginald Willey, who said he examined The Void and has determined it is a cosmic abruption of some kind, whatever that means exactly.

And then he did this weird experiment with a purple flower. And said The Void was the future and it was the reason everything kept disappearing.

When I asked him what the town was supposed to do with this information, he just looked at me and said, “Everyone needs to try to prepare themselves.” So there you go, not that anyone is actually paying attention.

Also, I saw a deer and that was nice and I thought if I included that picture then maybe you would actually read this.

ALERT — MISSING BOY FOUND posted by Gus Holt, Question Mark Chief of Police

Gus Holt, Question Mark Chief of Police — 2023-12-02T00:00:00Z

Quentin Quinn has been found. Alive even! However, it is not without some confounding complications.

On behalf of the entire Question Mark Police Department, I want to extend a grateful thank you to FBI Agent Adam Oberman for his assistance in locating Quentin Quinn, who was recovered from a 300-year-old well in the Question Mark woods earlier this afternoon.

The Quinn family is deeply appreciative of all of the effort from both the FBI and the QMPD in finding their missing son and returning him home. Although the boy has implausibly aged at least ten years, his family is overjoyed to be reunited with him.

Even if this latest conundrum only presents more outrageous speculations, the QMPD is glad to have helped solve this difficult case. And even if no one, even Agent Oberman, can reasonably explain what happened to the boy or why he has returned a decade older, I am still glad to be able to put this case behind us.

I used to be a man who relied on common sense and the kindness of others to keep law in this town and now I do not know what I can rely on. Anyone interested in this position can reach out to me directly.

Strange music coming from Tanner Pratt's house posted by Hilda Durn

Hilda Durn — 2023-12-01T00:00:00Z

Has anyone seen or spoken to Tanner Pratt of late?

I was on my way to the post office when I first heard it, a very loud murmuration of strings. It was some kind of classical composition though I do not know what. I paused and tilted my head and noticed that it seemed to be coming from Tanner Pratt’s house on Washington Avenue.

I walked up to the porch and noticed many months and unopened pieces of mail and magazines like The Atlantic and Scientific American piled up. I did not want to alarm the Question Mark Police unless it was necessary as they seem to have their hands full. But does anyone know the last time they saw Tanner Pratt?

Time is colliding with itself! posted by Violet Bookman

Violet Bookman — 2023-11-27T00:00:00Z

Apparently time in this town is no longer functioning properly, according to FBI Agent Oberman. He explained it to me today and honestly I do not think I understood it all but it had something to do with time being like a piece of fabric. I’m not entirely sure beyond that. I do know that he spent the last few weeks walking around town recording where time leaps backward and where it seems to leap forward and where it cancels itself out, stopping completely.

He used this data to produce a map. He showed it to me and tried to explain all of it, zooming in and out, but I got lost about halfway through. He let me take a picture of it on his tablet though and I am sharing it with you in case anyone is interested.

Even though I don’t totally understand it, I am going to use this map to find Quentin Quinn and to figure out why time is not working the way it should and what it has to do with everything else that has disappeared. I will let you know.

Priceless spoon collection missing posted by Gus Holt, Question Mark Chief of Police

Gus Holt, Question Mark Chief of Police — 2023-11-26T00:00:00Z

Ms. Dupree's collection while still in her posession

At 07:16 this morning, Ms. Mabel Vickery Dupree reported her signature historical spoon collection missing. As many of you know, Ms. Dupree has spent decades collecting spoons owned or used by several U.S. Presidents and many international celebrities including Theodore Roosevelt, Marilyn Monroe, and James Mason.

A five hundred dollar reward is now being offered. Please contact the Question Mark Police Department with any information.

It is unfortunate to admit that everyone being asleep for eight days really put a dent in this type of behavior and perhaps people could consider at least napping regularly.

Inoculations available, finally. posted by Mayor Elizabeth Zisk

Mayor Elizabeth Zisk — 2023-11-18T00:00:00Z

On Friday November 10th, a number of citizens in town—unfortunately and against common sense—decided to inhale the possibly-toxic spores of the enormous fungus that has lived beneath our town for thousands of years, or so the “scientists” at the Experimental Crop Station have so beseechingly explained. These same “scientists” have finally prepared an antidote and are currently making their way through town, inoculating families, friends, and other members of our community. And to that I say thank you, but it feels perhaps like too little, too late.

Because who are we to blame for this entirely absurd situation we find ourselves in? The town was doing brisk business at our exceedingly-popular tourist attraction up to the very moment where everyone suddenly fell unconscious? When I asked the previously mentioned “scientists” about the dangers posed by the ridiculously-enormous mushroom to our community, their stated response was that the risk was extremely negligible, less than a fraction of a percentage. And I have the emails to prove this in court, if it comes to that, which I am sure it will.

Yes, there are some of you who might perhaps incorrectly attempt to blame my beloved deceased husband, Thompson Zisk, and the number of unfortunate legal challenges and questionable decisions that unfairly define the end of his life. And to those critics, I say: look within. What ethical failures have you committed recently? Did you forget to tip your waitress at the Pine Knot the other day? Did you bring candy from your home to the drive-in against notices to the contrary? Did you claim to be sick when really you were just tired of going to your thankless job? This week, did you lay uselessly on the ground asleep leaving others more awake to work tirelessly on a solution to your unconsciousness?

No one—I repeat no one—in this town is without blame, of that I am certain.

In addition, I am hereby authorizing changing the name of the Thompson Zisk Memorial Parking Lot to the Mayor Elizabeth Zisk Parking Zone of Perpetual Gratitude, now and in perpetuity.

A MESSAGE VIA THE QM EMERGENCY ALERT SYSTEM posted by Allison Andrews, Senior Researcher, Experimental Crop Station

Allison Andrews, Senior Researcher, Experimental Crop Station — 2023-11-13T00:00:00Z

QUESTION MARK EMERGENCY ALERT

On Friday, November 10th, at approximately 4:45pm, the town of Question Mark, Ohio experienced an extraordinary spore event, generated by A. Quaestio, the enormous fungus that has lived beneath the earth for thousands of years. Based on recent predictions, researchers at the Experimental Crop Station were surprised to learn the specimen had outpaced its projected size by nearly a decade, exploding through the town square in order to complete its glorious, though unpredictable, reproduction cycle.

At the moment, the Experimental Crop Station has more questions than answers. It appears A. Quaestio is responsible for the comatose state of several townspeople who happened to inhale the spores during this event, though researchers are unsure why. We are also quite perplexed as to how the specimen has grown so quickly, though its proximity to the recently-discovered Void may be one factor. It should be stated that we, too, are scared and overworked and confused. Hidden away behind the walls of the ECS, we are also being forced to come face to face with our greatest fears.

Regardless, please be assured we are working tirelessly on an inoculation to reverse the effects of the spores, even though Dr. George Yakamoto, a specialist on A. Quaestio, is also unconscious at this time. Still we will have to find a way to muddle through. In moments like this I often remember what my thesis advisor, Dr. Franks, used to say: the dark can only last so long.

BE WARNED—Mushroom Activity posted by Gabby Peters, Historical Cat Reenactment Enthusiast and Question Mark Town Web Technician

2023-11-10T00:00:00Z

Hello everyone.

I was on my way back from British Soldier Field and the Veteran’s Day historical reenactments when I saw a very large mushroom eating the town square. I had William Henry Purr-ison with me and he was dressed in military garb but once he saw the purple mushroom, he leapt from my arms.

Now I am back in city hall and looking out a window and the mushroom is getting bigger and bigger and, wow, just now there was a strange purple flash andddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddd

Question Mark Election Results posted by Tom Weathers, Town Council

Tom Weathers, Town Council — 2023-11-07T00:00:00Z

Well, I am proud to say that the spirit of democracy has not disappeared from Question Mark even if many other things have. It is my privilege to announce the results of today’s town election.

First off, we had a strong turnout for today's election. Despite all of the difficulties in town lately, 1378 of you turned out to cast your ballot!

On the first ballot item, the filling of the vacant Town Council seat, assistant librarian Gerald Ames beat Owen Brandt decisively, capturing 84% of the vote.

On the referendum regarding the development of an ice ring, the town has responded negatively with a resounding 76% voting no.

And finally, as to the proposed amendment to the state constitution, the measure had near-unanimous local support with 96% of the vote.

As the Acting Chair of the Voting Committee, I would like to thank our election volunteers for making sure that today was a great day for our town and state and for the ongoing American experiment in self-determination.

God bless Question Mark, Ohio and god bless America.

Local election update posted by Tom Weathers, Town Council

Tom Weathers, Town Council — 2023-11-06T00:00:00Z

Tomorrow marks an important date for all citizens of Question Mark, Ohio: Election day!

On this year’s ballot, you will be asked to vote for a candidate to replace Tom Childs on the town council, to give your opinion on using money generated from The Void to build a skating “ring,” and to vote to amend the Ohio state constitution.

A reminder that if you are going to drop off your ballot in-person you must visit the Question Mark High School or Veterans’ Hall between the hours of 7am-7pm. We are also, for the first time, running our election through our Town Announcements email list and are happy to announce that today’s test vote was flawless. That is, except for the outcome. Somehow, of the 873 people to help us test our system, 565 of you preferred cake over pie, which received only 308 votes. What an unfortunate outcome. Do you not understand how delicious and versatile pie can be??

While this outcome makes no sense, as an elected official I must acknowledge and accept it.

Anyway, your taste in desserts aside, tomorrow’s election for Town Council holds exceptional importance to Question Mark, and considering that one of our candidates was involved in some controversy this weekend, we have invited both candidates to make final statements.

Owen Brandt, Assistant Principal, QMHS

As many of you have heard, I have become the victim of a government conspiracy aimed at defrauding my candidacy. I want to refute all those claims here, even ones that have not been made. This is exactly the kind of overreach from law enforcement that I will work to outlaw. If I want to enter an abandoned theme park that says No Trespassing, it should be my God-given right. What does it mean in a country where such acts, like purchasing firearms, explosives, and noxious chemicals are so heavily regulated? I look forward to your support.

Gerald Ames, Assistant Librarian

Just as a reminder, I am also running for town council. I am a big fan of computers, the internet, and pets, and I think we can use all three to make Question Mark a more amazing, inclusive place. Imagine a cat in every aisle at the public library. Wouldn’t that be exciting? I am still against disappearances, murder, and using The Void for profit. And although my opponent was recently arrested for trespassing and has been accused of trying to blow the town up, I am sure he has a very reasonable explanation. Also if you decide not to vote for me, I will not hold it against you. See you at the polls!

In memory, Professor Everard Bright posted by Mayor Elizabeth Zisk

Mayor Elizabeth Zisk — 2023-11-03T00:00:00Z

Several of my aides have encouraged me to write this post regarding today’s passing of Professor Everard Bright, who, as it has been relayed to me, was a professor and researcher from the University of Cincinnati and who, I am also told, was writing a book about cults in the state of Ohio, certainly a book I would not have time to read.

I do not know what brought this Cincinnati academic to our town, but judging from the brief moment that I spent looking at his research, it is clear that he was asking questions that perhaps a person should not ask. If nothing else, let this loss be a reminder that dark corners are dark for a reason.

That said, it has also been reported Professor Everbright died due to an allergic reaction caused by several dozen bee stings, which is sad, odd, and unfortunate, but certainly not out of the realm of natural occurrences, and of no cause for suspicion. I often found myself telling Thompson that bees and other insects belong to an order few of us understand.

I imagine there will be a memorial service at some point as that is something we seem to do a lot of lately, whether the deceased warrant it or not. But whatever it takes to move onward.

Yes, The Void is slightly louder but our opportunities continue to expand! posted by Mayor Elizabeth Zisk

Mayor Elizabeth Zisk — 2023-11-02T00:00:00Z

While this town has seemed beset by minor setbacks, one thing has remained constant: Opportunity. The great opportunity offered by The Void, that remarkable glowing phenomenon in the woods that has brought economic vitality back to our, honestly, often-mediocre burg.

And yes, as of today, there are many reports of loud sounds and vibrations emanating from The Void, which although slightly unnerving, will not impede this town’s economic revitalization.

Have you never gone on a roller coaster? Are not all theme parks incredibly noisy? What some call "noise" I call the sound of progress. One must ask just how sensitive everyone in this town has become.

Instead of closing down this beloved attraction that has brought positive attention to our town at a time that so many dwell on the negative, we will continue to welcome visitors and look for additional ways to secure economic prosperity for Question Mark and its citizens.

To mark this remarkable, amplified, change to The Void, we are offering $1 off the purchase of a bumper sticker with the code LOUDERHUM throughout the month of November. While one dollar may not seem like a lot, as my beloved Thompson used to say "a dollar saved is a dollar you can turn into a thousand by reinvesting in your downline."

Night school for ghosts and other disappeared persons posted by Holly Peterson, Third Grade Teacher

Holly Peterson, Third Grade Teacher — 2023-10-31T00:00:00Z

As the disappearances of persons in town seem to grow along with the recent discovery of the remains of the ninety-nine child workers who died in the Ames Rifle Factory fire, I feel it is my responsibility to provide educational opportunities for all, regardless of their state of material being.

If you or anyone you know has a missing loved one under the age of eighteen, I will be holding night classes for all ghosts and other disappeared persons on Monday evenings, from 7pm-9pm, covering topics as far-ranging as U.S. history, poetry, and drama in my 3rd grade classroom. I welcome this opportunity to learn more about these unique students and help them find their place in our community.

By the end of this first term, it is my goal to helps these students write their own stories and perform a short play based on their experiences.

Thank you to Gary Dublowski for his technical assistance and translation efforts.

Impromptu ceremony for victims of overlooked catastrophe posted by Holly Peterson, Third Grade Teacher

Holly Peterson, Third Grade Teacher — 2023-10-29T00:00:00Z

If you are a recent newcomer to town, like myself, you may not know the tragic history of the Ames Factory fire, which took place here in town in 1866. You may not know that ninety-nine child workers died in the fire and that their remains were hidden in a distant location in the woods. One could only surmise this was done to avoid scrutiny, allowing the Ames family opportunity to continue to prosper with their tannery operation.

Yesterday, Question Mark police discovered the remains of several individuals in a cave in the Question Mark woods. At the moment, evidence suggests the remains may belong to the missing children.

It is hard to imagine something like this happening in a town I have come to love, but it forces me to recognize that there is something about this place that prefers not to confront complex, uncomfortable moments in history.

Like the rest of Ohio, and perhaps the United States, Question Mark seems unwilling to engage the many ways our painful past continues to influence the present. In disregarding these historical difficulties, we allow similar tragedies to recur again and again. As we’ve seen in the case of the Ames Factory fire, other horrific fires have continued, most recently the Cellcon fire in 1998 and the wedding dress factory in 2022.

In order to acknowledge the past and shape a future together, we will be holding a brief memorial for the children who died in the Ames Factory fire this afternoon at 5pm. Mayor Zisk and Town Council member Tom Weathers will each make remarks. I dearly hope everyone will consider attending.

Human remains found; investigation underway posted by Gus Holt, Question Mark Chief of Police

Gus Holt, Question Mark Chief of Police — 2023-10-28T00:00:00Z

As of 6:43 pm today, human remains have been discovered in a small cave in the Question Mark Woods three miles southwest of the Falls. The remains are of multiple individuals. Many multiple individuals. At this time, no positive identifications have been made regarding the identities of these many, many multiple individuals.

I understand it is the Halloween season, but thrill-seekers and kids should stay away. Unfortunately, this is not a hoax like the Bigfoot sighting around this time last year. This is a tragedy.

Also, in an effort not to alarm anyone, the medical examiner told me in private that he believes, based on the state of decomposition of the deceased, that the individuals may have been buried over a hundred and fifty years ago. So there’s that.

Anyway, stay away. Await further information. Do not jump to conclusions. The Void will maintain its regular operating hours despite police activity in the woods.

Historic house demolished–fascinating to behold but please stay clear! posted by George Yakamoto, Senior Researcher, Experimental Crop Station

George Yakamoto, Senior Researcher, Experimental Crop Station — 2023-10-25T00:00:00Z

A fascinating occurrence is underway in Question Mark this morning as Armillaria Quaestio, the large fungus that gives our woods its occasional purple glow, has emerged once again and is in the process of decomposing a home.

Yes, our thoughts go out to the historic Lindholm estate whose house is now being completely devoured by a particularly active arm of Armillaria Quaestio. From a scientific point of view, this once-in-a-millennium opportunity to study the decomposition cycle of such an incredible specimen is simply breathtaking. In response to many concerned emails, no, we do not know how or why this happened. And yes, it may happen to other buildings and residences around town!

We do not recommend traveling to view this surprising occurrence. However, determined onlookers should wear protective masks and goggles to avoid ingesting fungal spores, which may be highly dangerous.

Spirits of Ohio is investigating you, Question Mark! posted by Gavin Englebrecht

Gavin Englebrecht — 2023-10-23T00:00:00Z

Hello neighbors, allow me to introduce myself. I am Gavin Englebrecht, paranormal investigator. Some of you may know me from my popular Buckeye State haunts blog, Spirits of Ohio. Others may know me as a recent transplant to town, having pulled into the Moonlite Grove RV Park just a few months ago. Still others may know me as a colleague on the plastics factory second shift. However you know me, hello.

First of all, I want to say how welcoming this town has been to myself and my daughter, Iris. Secondly, I feel like we made the right decision moving here here just as the number of unexplainable phenomena has greatly increased!

Both Iris and I have a long history of exploring mysterious, otherworldly events. But in the past few months we have been overjoyed to experience your amazingly weird town—complete with its disappearing pets, French ghosts, and The Void. Even murder! For a ghost hunter like myself, let me say: jackpot!

But the main phantasmagoric phenomena drawing me to your strange burg is the ghostly appearances of the Ames Rifle factory, which burned down in 1866 on the same ground where the Question Mark Motel now stands. Many witnesses have claimed to see it appear and disappear across your town in the month of October, the same month of the fiery catastrophe. And it would appear that this mysterious spirit factory has once again appeared this year.

I am looking for credible witnesses willing to share their firsthand account as I search for clues to its appearance and reappearance and its connection to the death of 99 child workers. If you have a story to share, please contact me through my blog, Spirits of Ohio.

Thanks and please keep Question Mark weird!

I would also like to run for Town Council posted by Gerald Ames

Gerald Ames — 2023-10-18T00:00:00Z

Hey there, I’m Gerald Ames and I’m also running for Town Council as an independent. Currently, I am assistant librarian at the Question Mark Public Library. I really love my job but think I might be able to help this town out with a few things as well.

I support books, computers, and the internet, as well as funny pets. I am against disappearances and murder. I also think maybe it is not such a good idea to turn a scientific discovery like The Void into a tourist attraction. In my opinion, a discovery like that should be carefully studied.

Here’s a photo of my cat Constable Odo reading that I really love:

Some of my ideas are: why not use computers to do things people don’t want to do? Like on Star Trek? Wouldn’t that be better for everybody? What if Fridays were spent reading all day in comfortable sweaters? Wouldn’t that be creative and fun? Also, what about pets at the library? Like dogs and cats in different sections? Couldn’t that be a thing?

Again, I am very much in favor of computers and very much against further disappearances and any murders. If this is confusing for you, just think Gerald Ames: for–computers and cats, against-disappearances and murder.

Finally, because this Town Council seat has opened up under such unfortunate circumstances, I want to offer a moment of silence in the memory of Tom Childs, whose steady hands have kept my car clean for years. Please, take a moment and remember your fondest memory of Tom.

OK, I hope your memory made you as happy as mine made me.

I guess that’s all you need to know about me, but if you'd like to know more I've set up a campaign website. It's not the best or anything, but it's something.

Excelsior!

I believe I am the only person who can save this town from itself posted by Owen Brant, QMHS Assistant Principal

Owen Brant, QMHS Assistant Principal — 2023-10-17T00:00:00Z

Hello fellow Question Mark citizens,

Allow me to introduce myself. I am Owen Brandt. Those of you with children at Question Mark High probably know me as their new assistant principal, who has been working hard to instill needed change at the school. And today, I'm announcing that I want to bring needed change to the town as well, as your new Town Councilman.

Although I have only had the privilege of living in Question Mark for a few short months, I believe, as an outsider, I have the necessary perspective to help this town tackle some of its biggest problems. In my opinion, Question Mark, like so many other towns in this country, has lost its way because it has forgotten its core conservative values and principles.

As assistant principal, I have witnessed the future firsthand and it is strange and depressing. These students today lack discipline, character, academic excellence, and an understanding of what makes this town and country great. All of their time is spent on phones and the internet, talking about anime shows. And some of these shows don’t even seem remotely American. Is this what previous generations sacrificed for? Toilet Bound Hanako Kun?

This is why I have decided to run for Town Council, to help re-imagine our future by looking back to the past. Please visit brandtfortowncouncil.com for more information about all my inspiring ideas, including outlawing Tik Tok.

Let’s work together to bring better leadership, education, and a return to conservative values.

In memory, Tom Childs posted by Mayor Elizabeth Zisk

Mayor Elizabeth Zisk — 2023-10-15T00:00:00Z

The former Tom Childs, seen here with his loving now-widow Barbara

I regret to inform the town that Tom Childs passed away yesterday. Do not speculate on the cause of his passing, for that is ultimately inconsequential. Instead reflect on the life that he lead.

Tom will be remembered as someone who dared to dream, who, from almost nothing, created a thriving business with his wife, Barbara, featuring historically-themed ghosts cleaning bumpers and windows, a business that has come to symbolize the thriftiness and economic progress this town has become known for. He will also be remembered as an upstanding member of our community, who held a seat on our Town Council and was the overseer of our elections as the head of the Voting Committee.

Perhaps many of you here in Question Mark, on this solemn day, could reflect on how you could be more like Tom Childs. How you could be a self-starter. How you could be a person who gives back to this community. How you could be a devoted husband to a wife now besotted with grief.

Tom, know that you will be missed and that this town is stronger after all of your contributions.

A special election will be held to fill Tom’s seat on the Town Council on November 7th. As you know, Tom’s work with the Voting Committee was nothing short of competent, with only a few minor mistakes in the last election cycle. While I am hard pressed to immediately think of anyone capable of filling Tom's average-sized shoes, I am sure candidates will emerge, even if they are uninspiring.

Barbara Childs would like everyone to know the Question Mark Car Wash will be closed this week in observance of Tom’s death but will reopen next Saturday with half off all wax treatments for cars and trucks.

Question Mark Motel presents "Fall into The Void" discount! posted by Ludlow Richards, Question Mark Motel

Ludlow Richards, Question Mark Motel — 2023-10-11T00:00:00Z

Although nearly all of our sixteen rooms at the Question Mark Motel are booked with visitors to The Void through April 2024, we are offering local residents a 20% discount on Rooms 13-15 with our "Fall into The Void" package throughout the months of October and November. Enjoy complimentary color television, “magic fingers” massage, and dimmable lights!

In addition, we have placed an exciting portable AM/FM clock radio on one of the nightstands to set the mood. Also the carpets have been recently cleaned and any and all crime scene evidence has been properly logged with the Question Mark Police. No finding strange objects under your bed on this romantic getaway!

Plus mention code FALL INTO THE VOID at one of the in-person ticket kiosks when purchasing your ticket to The Void and get three dollars off your first visit to this one-of-a-kind, scientific phenomenon! There is no discount on parking.

A note: after a series of incidents involving local exotic animal traders, pets are no longer allowed at the Question Mark Motel. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.

Please audition for my latest serious horror/cultural criticism masterpiece posted by William Higgland, Jr., writer, director, cinematographer, and Question Mark Video Store owner

2023-10-07T00:00:00Z

Greetings Cinephiles of Question Mark!

It is I, William Higgland Jr. accomplished director of films such as The Possessed Doll and The Possessed Mirror and I am about to embark on my latest opus and have an opportunity for you .

Auditions will be held tomorrow, Sunday, Oct 8th at 12pm at Question Mark Video for The Becoming, my spine-tingling, nightmarish depiction of a small town confronting an otherworldly being living in the nearby woods. The film will be shot entirely in Question Mark. All roles are being considered.

You may download a copy of the script here.

At this stage, please know I am not looking for notes, questions, or comments on the script. Believe me, it has been workshopped to death (a little horror scriptwriter pun, ha ha.)

Please read these sides and come prepared with a headshot, resume, and your own fake blood. Actors will be compensated with a credit in the production and two tickets to a local viewing, presumably at Question Mark Video. If you are unable to attend tomorrow's audition, I accept auditions over the telephone by calling the video store at (740) 276-3107 and selecting two. Please rehearse your lines in advance.

Also, now through October 31, Question Mark Video is offering a "Scare-O-Ween Special" on all our horror titles. Two for one rentals!

See you on the silver screen!

Another update from my research on cults in Ohio posted by Everard Bright, Professor, Emphasis on Cult Studies

Everard Bright, Professor, Emphasis on Cult Studies — 2023-10-06T00:00:00Z

Your town once again features prominently in my latest research, which is, of course, good and bad news.

Suffice to say, after this week’s building collapse, which, from a researcher’s perspective seems rather purposeful, things are looking, shall we say, difficult in Question Mark cult-wise.

But please know that whatever happens, I am here, staying at the Question Mark Motel, ready to document it all, right up until the point where there’s nothing left. Which, to be honest, is generally what tends to happen in this type of situation. All my experience in such matters points to a confrontation of dire proportions, but who’s to say?

I direct you to my research page for further investigation.

Visit The Void! posted by Mayor Elizabeth Zisk

Mayor Elizabeth Zisk — 2023-10-03T00:00:00Z

As many of you now know, there was much excitement over the weekend when some erratic, know-it-all adolescents discovered a somewhat-interesting, possibly scientific, phenomenon. First of all, let me say there is no cause for alarm. Chief Holt has stated categorically that the phenomenon is harmless, at least from a distance of six feet. Anyone fool enough to get any closer should expect to get what they deserve.

On Sunday, I met with the town council and we decided to use this exciting discovery as an opportunity for exponential economic growth for our town, ignoring pleas from the plebian scientific community for serious, methodical inquiry.

Today, it is my pleasure to announce that we are launching Visit the Void! as a town-wide initiative to boost tourism and to attract outside investment in what is, let’s be honest, a rather middling community on the verge of both economic and psychological collapse.

Over the last forty-eight hours, we have been incredibly busy: building a road to better access this remarkable opportunity, removing an ungainly stack of refrigerators from the garbage dump in order to create the Thompson Zisk Memorial Parking Lot, setting up a website and ticketing system, and printing eye-catching bumper stickers, which residents are strongly encouraged to display on their late-model, clean, automobiles.

I honestly believe it is moments like this where the future is created by bright individuals who have a sense of vision. So, to members of our business community, please contact me with your biggest and boldest ideas and other marketing initiatives regarding this latest financial opportunity.

Please, for your own safety, stay away from the big glowy thing in the woods posted by Officer Ron Dublowski

Officer Ron Dublowski — 2023-10-01T00:00:00Z

If you will have noticed, I have not posted in this space after being seriously reprimanded. But this is honestly for the public’s safety, as you will soon see.

Last night some person or persons I may or may not know discovered some kind of interdimensional space-time something or other out in the woods. I went back this morning because I hoped that maybe it would have gone away on its own but as soon as I saw it was still there and I turned and ran. I do not know what it is or what it can do but please keep away from it until the authorities or NASA or someone can figure it all out.

This is very serious, it appeared to be some kind of giant glowing disc but I didn't want to look at it for very long because maybe it steals souls or reads minds or something so I'm not sure. Do not look at it, maybe. I mean someone should look at it, but someone that is trained for this sort of thing unlike me.

Definitely do not go there and take pictures with your goofball friends. Please.

Teenagers, this is not a good place to drink beers and smoke marijuana because if you fall over, like teenagers are always doing, there’s a good chance your face is going to be disintegrated. And then what? Good luck going to Homecoming next weekend.

So, everybody, just please stay away until someone else in charge can figure this all out. Post.

New Reginald Willey Note Discovered posted by Greta Twombley, Head Librarian

Greta Twombley, Head Librarian — 2023-09-29T00:00:00Z

Thanks to the ingenious literary exploration of town scholars Violet Bookman, Iris Englebrecht, and Nanako Yakamoto, I am pleased to announce the Question Mark Public Library is honored to have uncovered a rare, handwritten note outlining Reginald Willey’s vision of the town and nation.

The note was discovered today in his Encyclopedie America and accompanies his musical notation for "Question Mark, OH, Question Mark," a composition which remained unfinished at the time of his death.

It is our pleasure to share his most personal thoughts with you in this transcription below:

25 September 1897

For once, I will speak plainly as this message may be the most important I have sent. I have seen with mine own eyes what Europeans have brought to bear upon this land once thought to be a Paradise. With mine own eyes I have seen the destruction of a native region and its people, and the enslavement of an entire race of humans, and the establishment of a system of class with economic and social ills that will endure long after.

Here in the town I love, I have come face to face with a Most Certain Emptiness, a Void in its Spirit, a Wound of Interminable Greed. And this Wound will only grow stronger, an Endless Circle, spiraling further and further through time.

But even in the midst of so much disappointment, there is hope. After many years of failed attempts, I have uncovered the Mystery of this Endless Circle. I enclose this unfinished composition, Question Mark, OH, Question Mark in the hopes that someone, on some far off day in the Future, will finish the work and save this Town and Nation. For this Noble Experiment is never completed, will never truly be done. I entrust these pages to those in the Future in hopes they may join their voices to this Chorus and close this Void, once and for all.

Reginald Willey

Winners from the Reginald Willey Commemorative Poetry Competition, 1st Place posted by Mayor Elizabeth Zisk

Mayor Elizabeth Zisk — 2023-09-27T00:00:00Z

After much, much disappointment reading this year’s entries, I am pleased to share our first place poem, which comes from Robert Perret. As you will see, this poem ably captures the spirit of our town founder and the town itself. Congratulations to Robert on this incredible piece of literature which will be framed and mounted in the Question Mark Public Library for all future generations to see, etcetera, etcetera.

by envelope
by pigeon wing
our fondest hopes
tied with string

our hearts do leap
just like the year
Reginald Willey
soon is near

there's no question
he hit the mark
in all of Ohio
a shot in the dark

British Soldier Field Annual Reenactment Canceled posted by Mayor Elizabeth Zisk

Mayor Elizabeth Zisk — 2023-09-22T00:00:00Z

I am so disappointed.

In all of you.

Although this weekend was supposed to mark one of our town’s most steadfast traditions—the occasion of the disappearance of the British regiment, celebrated with a reenactment that many have prepared for for months—it makes little sense to hold the reenactment when the statue that adorns the field that bares its name is still missing.

Maybe my expectations for the men and women of the middling Question Mark Police Department are just too high? Maybe the faith that they would have the competence and ability to find an enormous statue in time for a celebration in which it plays a critical role was misplaced?

Until someone manages to provide an answer to the numerous objects, pets, and statues that have gone missing, and until someone can prevent hysterical young people from posting ridiculous, panicked announcements on this exact website, I will not be spending my time faking my way through another meaningless public event.

And neither should you.

This town would do much better if everyone thought just a little more highly of themselves.

Please feel free to take your lead from me.

Photos from Third Grade Show and Tell posted by Holly Peterson, Third Grade Teacher

Holly Peterson, Third Grade Teacher — 2023-09-21T00:00:00Z

We’re excited to share these photos revealing how families process disappointment

As part of our unit studying loss and grief traditions, students brought in objects that signified a recent loss. Students were asked how their families helped support them facing this difficult subject.

It was a moving day in class, and I am happy to share a few photographs of the items our learners brought in.

Abby Davis brought in a remembrance of her dog, Mr. Pickles.

Isabella Whitley drew a beautiful memorial to her cat, Pasta Sauce.

Najai Taylor shared the empty home of their goldfish, Brian.

For updated learning materials and information about my own relationship to loss, please consult our classroom site.

Historical evidence there is something very dangerous out in the woods posted by Violet Bookman

Violet Bookman — 2023-09-20T00:00:00Z

As I mentioned in my previous town announcement, I am pretty sure there is a weird, circular light in the woods and it is somehow responsible for all the things missing in town even though I can’t prove it.

Over the last week, I learned that there is evidence this circular light has been in the Question Mark woods for a very long time, probably for thousands of years. I met with Ms. Patsy Elske, a graduate student at the University of Ohio, and she showed me several documents and artifacts that suggest the void was here before 400 AD.

After that I discovered that a French missionary from the 1800s named Jacques Blanchet made a map of the region and detailed a spot in the woods called le vide. We tried to find his final letters but were unsuccessful.

But then, with the help of Pierre from Meow’s the Time, Mr. Bruno Ellis, Iris Engelbrecht, and I found one of Jacques Blanchet’s diaries near a strange-looking tree. The diary was titled Une confrontation avec le vide. Mr. Peter Lefebvre, my high school French teacher, was able to translate some of these pages, which seem to explain exactly what happened to the French colony that disappeared here in the 1740s.

Here's what we found:

14 October, 1748

On a recent circular path across this most wondrous region, where the Lord has seen fit to have me stationed these last two years, I have seen many fantastical and impossible sights. But nothing in my training at seminary or in my last twenty-five-years of life could prepare me for what occurred a week previous in a small, unnamed colony in the southeast river valley.

Formerly a great civilization must have lived here as their markings and shapes in the ground are all about this territory. These shapes give air of something important and perhaps tragic happening, but their mysteries remain a secret.

I had traveled to this small colony many times. There were maybe twelve or thirteen small families, each with a small home of mud and wood, and some fields for plowing. But when I passed back through the region last week, the village was entirely empty of life. I called out many times but without reply. Then I heard a strange sound coming deeper in the woods and ventured there.

I found a young girl crying behind some rocks and so I asked her who she was and what had happened. She said she was from a family named Reinold and her name was Elodie. She was perhaps the age of eight or nine but no more.

I looked down and saw the girl was clasping something to her hand and I was revolted to see it was a human appendage. I asked what had happened and she said the entire village had discovered a bridge to heaven, and all in the village but she had climbed the bridge, and that all that was left was the girl and the hand of her mother, the hand which her mother had offered to the girl as she stepped inside the bridge of light herself.

I asked the girl to show me the hand. At first she refused but eventually relented. On the ring finger of the hand was a ruby ring, which the girl said her mother always wore.

I carefully removed the ring from the unattached hand and offered it to the girl but the child refused to take it as she believed it was now haunted. And so I said a blessing to consecrate the earth and we buried both the ring and hand together.

Then I asked the girl to show me where this bridge of light was. She shook her head, terrified. Again I asked and she led me to a small hidden field and, there before me, was a circle, entirely empty of all color. And if it was sinister or not, I did not know.

For then I saw a bird fly too close and, all at once, it seemed to vanish inside. It was then that I realized this was no bridge to Heaven but an emptiness, a void, a place where perhaps All Time Ends, a hole in the Veil of His Most Remarkable Creation.

I quickly took the girl and we removed ourselves from the village. Further north on my route I left her in the care of some nuns who had a school nearby. I have alerted the Archbishop of the situation as well. I believe this emptiness, this void is perhaps the Mark of Cain. I fear the unsettled spirits of this colony will live on for many years after as the ground itself has been fouled by the corruption of this tragedy. My only hope is that the girl lives on to have a productive, joyful life.

I have promised to visit with the girl on my return trip across the region next March. But let whoever finds these pages be forewarned of the danger hidden in these woods. And let no one underestimate the catastrophe this void poses.

In service of The Righteous Spirit of God,

Father Jacques Blanchet

And so the question is now what, Question Mark? Are we going to face the past together or are we going to keep pretending everything is somehow just going to be okay?

Books about uncertainty and disillusionment posted by Greta Twombley, Town Librarian

Greta Twombley, Town Librarian — 2023-09-19T00:00:00Z

Please consider visiting the Question Mark Public Library for my latest Librarian's Bookshelf recommendations. This week I invite you to explore some sensational books about living with uncertainty while searching for meaning including The Year of Magical Thinking by Joan Didion.

As I may have mentioned, I, too, have been facing some moments of uncertainty recently. I am hopeful that these reading suggestions will offer solace to us all.

At the Question Mark Public Library, we believe that inquiry is at the root of all understanding, including understanding ourselves. We hope to see you at the library soon.

Half-off all dogs and cats at Meow's the Time! posted by Macy Gibbs, owner, Meow’s the Time

Macy Gibbs, owner, Meow’s the Time — 2023-09-18T00:00:00Z

Like many of us, maybe your beloved pet has gone missing recently? We know how much the loss of a companion can hurt. Love is eternal but the life of your favorite pet is not, unfortunately. Especially lately.

We at Meow’s the Time know exactly how painful that loss can be as a number of our most adorable animals have also disappeared from our shop. Which is why, this week only, we’re offering half-off on all our fluffiest, cuddliest pets so you can take home a dog or cat of your choice and begin creating new memories today. Or maybe take home two, just in case?

Also, we’re pleased to announce our new return/disappearance policy. If your new pet disappears within the first thirty days of purchase, we will refund your money as long as you provide a receipt. We do not accept returns of any kind, but especially exotic reptiles and kangaroos.

Please stop by Meow’s the Time today to get your discount, we're located on Tower just across from Professor Chik n Crunch. Don't forget to say hello to Pierre, our beloved pink cockatoo!

Another update from my research trip on cults in Ohio posted by Everard Bright, Professor, Cult Studies

Everard Bright, Professor, Cult Studies — 2023-09-15T00:00:00Z

My nephew, Trevor, and I have been galivanting all across our great state and for some reason, cult activity in the region of Question Mark, Ohio has been particularly active.

Without wanting to cause a panic, I fear this activity may continue to increase, as this latest missive I discovered on a dark web chat room suggests:

44-A-0-0-13-1-8-2-13-0-∞-E.

I fear for this town and, in a way, for my time out on the road with Trevor.

For more information and news about Trevor and my continuing adventures across our great state, please consult my website.

As the Horse Queen followers say: “Follow the true path to its end.”

Winners from the Reginald Willey Commemorative Poetry Competition, 2nd Place posted by Mayor Elizabeth Zisk

Mayor Elizabeth Zisk — 2023-09-13T00:00:00Z

According to the Oxford English Dictionary, commitment means "an engagement or obligation that restricts freedom of action." And I certainly understand this true definition more than I ever have before. Because I made a commitment to judge the uninspired entries of this year's poetry competition and they have, indeed, restricted my freedom of action.

I will give no further explanation of the disappointment I felt reading this year’s poems, other than to say, it brought to mind the feeling I had viewing my husband’s purple-clad coffin being lowered into the ground.

The 2nd place winner was written by someone named JULIA, who insisted on signing their poem in capital letters without a last name, an affect I find particularly unappealing. Regardless…

In Question Mark, Ohio, a mystery unfolds,
Whispers in the wind, tales left untold.
Ghosts dance through the streets, time in
their control. Signs vanish, shoes disappear,
secrets take their toll. Oh, Question Mark,
enigmatic and unknown. In your depths, the
truth lies, patiently sown.

Third grade field trip form due tomorrow posted by Holly Peterson, Third Grade Teacher

Holly Peterson, Third Grade Teacher — 2023-09-10T00:00:00Z

To all parents and caregivers, please remember to fill out the field trip form for third graders for the upcoming visit to the Question Mark Public Library where students will learn about the exciting, improbable history of this town and region.

For instance, did you know an entire civilization flourished here for hundreds of years before mysteriously disappearing? Did you know the woods were home to one of Ohio’s first French colonies? Did you also know the town was actually one of the first stops on the Underground Railroad? Unbelievably, each of these are true. In Question Mark, the past is truly alive all around us.

In order to better appreciate how this town has been shaped by history, students will create an erasure poem of their own, using text found in the library. Please go to the Learning Materials page on my classroom site, fill out the waiver from the Question Mark Public Library in the Permission Slip and Waivers folder, and then please return it to me via email before Monday, September 11, 2023.

You can always investigate other upcoming assignments, news, and events on the classroom homepage.

Visit the Infinite Circle Burial Mound and learn about this town’s past, present, and future posted by Patsy Elske, Graduate Student, University of Ohio, Archaeological Department

Patsy Elske, Graduate Student, University of Ohio, Archaeological Department — 2023-09-09T00:00:00Z

As part of the University of Ohio’s continued engagement with the town of Question Mark, I will be exploring previously-excavated sections of the Infinite Circle, which is the oldest monument in the town of Question Mark.

As a graduate student in archeology and member of the Ottawa tribe, it is a privilege to be able to engage with this one-of-a-kind earthwork and learn as much as I can about this unbelievable creation in order to uncover the Hopewell’s rich history. Truly it is an opportunity to communicate with the past and discover the secrets of a complicated civilization.

Although very few residents seem to know the incredible history of the Infinite Circle or the Hopewell people, there is much to appreciate. To that end, and in conjunction with Ohio Historic Sites, I will be conducting tours the second and fourth Saturdays in the months of September and October, beginning at 1pm.

I hope all of you can join me.

Updates from my research trip for a book about cults in Ohio posted by Everard Bright, Professor, Cult Studies

Everard Bright, Professor, Cult Studies — 2023-09-07T00:00:00Z

The Horse Queen outside Columbus, Ohio.

As some of you may or may not know, I have been traveling across Ohio recently searching for the truth regarding cults in Ohio with my nephew, Trevor, who, as it has been noted, has a number of challenges of his own.

As Trevor is still a young man I will not further disparage him. But take it from me, what I am learning about cults that are active in the region and what I am learning about Trevor is equally disturbing and fascinating.

If you have any interest in the world of arcane beliefs around you and also some of its dangers, please consult my website where I am regularly updating my research. If not, I am sorry for this interruption.

As the Blood Sisters cult in Elyria says, “May your path be littered with the bodies of your enemies.”

Get Your Car Looking Great and Learn a Little about Ohio at the Question Mark Car Wash! posted by Tom Childs, Owner, Question Mark Car Wash

Tom Childs, Owner, Question Mark Car Wash — 2023-09-05T00:00:00Z

The ghosts of Neil Armstrong, Dean Martin, and Cy Young.

As the end of summer rolls around, all of us at the Question Mark Car Wash want to invite you to give your vehicle a thorough cleaning while enjoying some lively historical information about your home state. That’s why we’re offering an End of Summer Sale with two dollars off your first wash.

We recognize just how much your vehicle means to you and will treat it with the utmost respect, the same respect we give to Ohio’s unbelievably true history. Did you know Steven Spielberg was born here? It sounds unbelievable but it’s a fact! Annie Oakley and Bob Hope too! Enjoy learning about Ohio while our attendants, dressed in historically-accurate costumes of the state's famous ghosts, are taking care of your car.

Plus, if you can name at least two Presidents who hailed from the great state of Ohio you’ll get your first wash free!

Also: Love Ohio? Love making things clean? We're hiring attendants. Previous experience unnecessary, just be sure you have no aversion to water and a curious mind! Stop by to apply.

Another missing statue, if you can believe it posted by Gus Holt, Question Mark Chief of Police

Gus Holt, Question Mark Chief of Police — 2023-09-02T00:00:00Z

It’s hard to believe, but the Remembrance statue, the enormous British soldier memorial statue from British Soldier Field, has gone missing. Along with the giant ice cream cone from Mr. Freeze-E and the Question Mark Foods sign, this is the third major landmark in as many months. Also that boy, Quentin Quinn.

The statue was at least twenty feet tall if it was an inch and carved entirely from granite. I seem to remember the installation involved a flatbed and a crane. Those of you who can remember all the way back then, you’ll recall that East Avenue was closed for three days because the flatbed got stuck on the turn. You’ll also remember that Bruno Ellis from Streets and Sanitation almost got crushed when the crane operator looked away for a split second. Something that big isn’t just stolen overnight.

Honestly, I hate to say I am feeling discouraged, but I am. I am going to be sixty-five in a few weeks and have mild angina and I cannot find my medication anywhere. I have, in my spare time—not during work hours—been looking at property in the Florida Keys. I have asked myself and God and others: How much is one officer of the law supposed to be able to take? There are bad days and then there are bad weeks and then there is this.

Again, if anyone knows anything please give us a ring. We’re open to all theories because this one here seems all but impossible.

Winners from the Reginald Willey Commemorative Poetry Competition, 3rd Place posted by Mayor Elizabeth Zisk

Mayor Elizabeth Zisk — 2023-09-01T00:00:00Z

As a great poet once wrote: Remember remember the first of September...

And so it is that we find ourselves here on September First—with the brisk tendrils of winter beginning to encroach upon the warmth of summer—having to pick winners for our annual poetry contest. Admittedly, this is one of the more trivial of mayoral duties, however I approach all of them with the solemnity that they deserve.

When Ms. Twombley asked me to judge this year’s poetry contest, believe me, I had the greatest of expectations. But leave it to the citizens of this town to once again disappoint beyond all reason.

The 3rd place winner is definitely better than most of the rest, many of which were maudlin, unoriginal, and really much too long. Also very few of these rhymed for some reason I cannot understand. As I think most of us know, all of the world’s greatest poems rhyme. Thankfully, this one does. For the most part.

I now present the 3rd place poem by a writer only known as F (thanks to my fourth State of Question Mark Address, you already know my thoughts on individuals who refer to themselves solely by single letters):

the Verdant lawn and clean-swept street,
where Industry and nature meet.

Out the window, a lone white deer:
there is something missing here.

Lights at night and clocks unwound,
and through it all a distant sound.

the End itself is drawing near:
There is something missing here.

Books About Disappearance, Available at the Library posted by Greta Twombley, Town Librarian

Greta Twombley, Town Librarian — 2023-08-30T00:00:00Z

Many of us seem to be struggling with things that have vanished or have been lost, including some recent pages from an important town text. It is important to name that loss and to work to understand it. At the Question Mark Public Library, we believe that literature offers a window into understanding and have collected a series of books loss this month.

Please consider visiting the Question Mark Public Library’s Librarians Bookshelf to explore books regarding ordinary and extraordinary disappearances including Picnic at Hanging Rock by Joan Lindsay and Nox by Anne Carson.

Additionally, beginning tomorrow, we will also be offering a support group for those who have recently lost someone or something on Thursday evenings at 7pm. This will be a weekly event at the Library and I hope you will consider joining us.

Missing–an important historical document from the Question Mark Public Library posted by Greta Twombley, Town Librarian

Greta Twombley, Town Librarian — 2023-08-25T00:00:00Z

As many of you know, the Question Mark Public Library is honored to host town founder Reginald Willey’s archive, an indexed repository of his papers, published works, and correspondence.

As a citizen, business owner, and scholar, Mr. Willey’s impact on the town of Question Mark cannot be understated. And yet, we are disappointed to admit some unnamed patron saw fit to “borrow” several pages from his second biography, I Have Most Often Been Wrong. Completed near the very end of Willey’s life, these missing pages provide an invaluable insight into his complex mind, examining his interests in philanthropy, linguistics, and amateur clockwork.

In place of the missing pages, librarians found a very perplexing note: hs hr shld sn kdzqm sgd sqtsg zants sghr snvm.

As an institution founded on curiosity and an openness towards learning, we implore the overenthusiastic reader to please return these pages at once. No charges will be filed as long as the pages are returned intact. If you have any information, please phone (740) 693-2495 or email [email protected]">[email protected].

Missing boy update posted by Gus Holt, Question Mark Chief of Police

Gus Holt, Question Mark Chief of Police — 2023-08-21T00:00:00Z

To the public,

I wish I had better news. Never before in my 32 years as an officer of the law have I been confounded by such an event, personal or professional.

After six weeks of exhaustive searching for Quentin Quinn, 6, who has been missing since July 9, I am saddened to say I have little to report other than his backpack was recovered from an out-of-use pyrite mine on July 23. The backpack contained some of his personal effects.

With the FBI’s help, we examined the cave and found no other evidence other than a note, written in what appears to be Morse Code inside the boy’s backpack: .. / .... .- ...- . / .- / .--. .-.. .- -. / - --- / . ... -.-. .- .--. . / ..-. .-. --- -- / -- -.-- / -... .-. --- - .... . .-.

I am embarrassed to admit the whole case has left many of us completely confounded and questioning our abilities as police. But we remain steadfast in our search, even as we have resumed regular police duties.

Now, it has come to my attention that there is a fringe element that is suggesting otherworldly or supernatural elements are responsible for the boy’s disappearance. Let me put an end to that kind of talk right now: This is a disappearance of an entirely terrestrial nature. And remember: this is a boy whose parents are distraught, and public speculation as to the nature of his disappearance is unhelpful and unwelcome.

In addition to the boy—who really shouldn't have been exploring condemned structures in the first place—the Mr. Freeze-E Ice Cream cone is still missing, as is the Question Mark Foods sign, and the many other items, things, and domesticated animals that have been reported over the last many months. While some might see this as a failure of policework, we assure you that we are working diligently and carefully. After some staffing issues over the last three weeks, we are now back up to a full force again and simply ask the public to respect the badge and allow us to do our jobs.

Although six weeks have passed, we are committed to finding Quentin Quinn alive. Once again, we are relying on you, the ordinary citizen, to pass any information you may have on to us. Please contact QM Police at (740) 647-4807, ext. 1.

Pardon the interruption–routine website maintenance posted by Gabby Peters, Historical Cat Reenactment Enthusiast and Question Mark Town Web Technician

2023-08-01T00:00:00Z

Please pardon the temporary interruption of town announcements as the Question Mark town website undergoes routine maintenance.

The town website will be back in service Monday, August 21, 2023.

Until then, here is a picture of my cat Spaghetti-O dressed as Ohio's own William Henry Purr-ison, whose presidency lasted a week longer than this maintenance will take.

Something very strange is happening in this town. posted by Violet Bookman

Violet Bookman — 2023-07-30T00:00:00Z

Everything has been disappearing from town over the last three months. I’ve followed every clue I can. After yesterday’s failed particle accelerator test, I went to the woods tonight to find Mr. Business, my neighbor's cat that's been missing for months. I played every musical composition I could think of hoping to get his attention and then I put on my mom’s favorite song and waited and then I saw... this.

Please do not be alarmed about the frozen sky. Eightcelerator™ test is completely within normal parameters. posted by Darby Cline, New Tomorrow Industries

Darby Cline, New Tomorrow Industries — 2023-07-29T00:00:00Z

As we mentioned in our previous announcement, today at 4pm new Tomorrow Industries and Quantum Dynamic Solutions tested our Eightcelerator™.

Although the results were not what we had expected, we are able to ascertain important information about the technology and its readiness and are excited to add even more improvements to the Eightcelerator™ and your lives.

We expect the sky to return to normal at any time.

Our Amazing Collider and You, presentation and test today! posted by Darby Cline, New Tomorrow Industries

Darby Cline, New Tomorrow Industries — 2023-07-29T00:00:00Z

We at New Tomorrow Industries and Quantum Dynamic Solutions are proud to call Question Mark, Ohio "home" to our newest technological breakthrough, the Eightcelerator™ particle accelerator.

We were thrilled to see such a wonderful turnout at the beautiful Question Mark Public Library last night for our presentation and community question hour. We were especially thrilled to see so many enthusiastic employees in attendance! For those members of the Question Mark community who were unable to attend our presentation or could not find a seat in such a full room, we wanted to make these slides available in the spirit of transparency, inclusiveness, and authenticity. We hope you find them illuminating.

In addition, we are overjoyed to be testing our Eightcelerator™ today at 4pm Eastern and look forward to taking this step into a cleaner, brighter, more promising future together. We do recommend that during testing you remain indoors, simply as a precautionary measure. We expect everything to go perfectly.

As we say at New Tomorrow Industries, we'll see you tomorrow, today!

Purple light will not harm you; only wants your energy posted by George Yakamoto, Senior Researcher, Experimental Crop Station

George Yakamoto, Senior Researcher, Experimental Crop Station — 2023-07-26T00:00:00Z

Over the last several weeks, we have received several alarmed phone calls and email messages at the Experimental Crop Station, regarding a floating purple shape that seems attracted to both sound and light. As we cannot confirm the origins of this particularly fascinating creature, we want to offer a few of these questions and answers as both scientists and your supportive neighbors.

Q: Does the large purple light consume human material?

A: As of right now, no evidence exists that the purple light consumes human flesh. As far as we know, it only feeds on light, any light, including streetlights, lamps, electric signs, flashlights, and light from electronic devices.

Q: What potential exists for agricultural/industrial/military uses for the purple light?

A: Too many to list here.

Q: What kind of music does the purple light prefer?

A: 18th Century European Classical. But it is not a fan of Bartok, Brahms, or Mozart. These composers seem to make it incredibly aggressive.

Q: Can the purple light sting?

A: Most definitely. It has nearly-invisible tentacles which are barbed with sharp nettles and which will leave a mark.

Q: Does the purple light respond to any sort of name?

A: It has been said that the light responds to several names but most frequently Q-eey. If you happen upon this extraordinary creature, please contact the Question Mark Police at your earliest convenience.

Possible backpack from missing boy recovered posted by Officer Ron Dublowski

Officer Ron Dublowski — 2023-07-23T00:00:00Z

I know I have been asked not to post official business to the Town Announcements, but this seems really important.

Last night, while out on the Question Mark Junior Scouts summer campout, which is usually very nice, two members of the Question Mark community came running through camp, one of them yelling.

First of all that yelling scared the children and also myself. It's best to not yell in the woods around children or also adults maybe, especially when there have been a number of bad things happening in town and, let's face it, many people are on edge. It took a long time to recover all of the children. But, I am glad to report, that as of this morning they are all accounted for.

But also: the yelling. The yelling was because they went into an old mine deep in the woods and they thought perhaps they had found a clue about the whereabouts of Quentin Quinn, the missing child that many of our own Junior Scouts mentioned by name as a reason they went running off into the woods after the yelling began.

I accompanied the two people, Violet Bookman and Bruno Ellis, into the woods. It was a very far walk, I had to stop to catch my breath a number of times, into what was almost certainly an unsafe mine. Once there we recovered a yellow backpack filled with empty candy wrappers and a book stolen from the library that was last seen with Quentin Quinn, leading me to assume that this was, in fact, the boy's backpack.

As the chief told me when I radioed it in, "You know what they say about people that assume, Ronny," and I told him that I didn't and also not call me that, but before he could tell me what they say he said that the FBI was going to head to the mine and that I was relieved for the night, which meant I could go back to the campground and find the scouts, some of whom were very well hidden.

Also let this important discovery be proof the Question Mark Police Department does not and will not ever give up. If we work together, we can find Quentin Quinn. I know this has been scary but we can’t give up.

Reginald Willey Commemorative Poetry Competition posted by Greta Twombley, Head Librarian

Greta Twombley, Head Librarian — 2023-07-19T00:00:00Z

All of us at the Question Mark Public Library are honored to, once again, host the annual Reginald Willey Commemorative Poetry Competition.

In honor of our greatest founder, we are looking for poems that capture the sublime, absurd, or ordinary in a poem about our town of no more than 50 words.

Is there something about this town that you love or have discovered that you wish to share with the world? Please send in your most daring, complicated poems about our town by August 20th.

The winning poem will be published in the Town Announcements in September.

Please email your poems to [email protected]">[email protected]

Eastwood Circle Flower and Garden Walk Canceled Due to Fire posted by Bonnie Lavelle, President, Eastwood Circle Ladies Auxiliary

Bonnie Lavelle, President, Eastwood Circle Ladies Auxiliary — 2023-07-16T00:00:00Z

After what we'd hoped would be a glorious afternoon, our event was ruined by both mediocrity and possible arson.

We at the Eastwood Circle Ladies Auxiliary have always attempted to lead this community through example. Through the ongoing beautification of our homes and gardens, we have tried to be a shining light for what this community might one day become. However, today has been a reminder of, unfortunately, what this community still is.

Today we went as far as allowing non-Eastwood Circle residents access to our most glorious gardens in order to illuminate and educate non-residents. But even before the large fire broke out at the New Tomorrow Industries construction site far from the idyllic gardens of Eastwood Circle, this afternoon’s Flower and Garden Walk was in danger.

Several non-residents were dressed inappropriately for such an occasion, wearing both sandals and shorts. Very few ladies wore gloves. It was already gravely disappointing before the smoke began to fill the air from the fire—which I am told may have been purposely set by these very same uneducated, unremarkable rabble rousers.

At this point our homes and gardens—gardens that we have worked so hard to perfect—are engulfed in smoke that emanates from another part of town and we are left with no choice but to cancel the event for the remainder of the day. All of us at the Eastwood Circle Ladies Auxiliary had hoped for a better outcome than this. We had hoped that perhaps the residents of greater Question Mark would be inspired, but instead, once again, we have been left disappointed and surrounded by noxious smoke.

FBI now involved in missing boy search posted by Gus Holt, Question Mark Chief of Police

Gus Holt, Question Mark Chief of Police — 2023-07-13T00:00:00Z

Attention People of Question Mark:

As of 1000 hours this morning, Quentin Quinn remains missing.

At 1900 last night, I made the decision to bring in additional resources in our search. The FBI has come from Columbus and is now conducting a vigorous investigation.

As the FBI go about their work, please do not hassle them with trivial matters regarding lost or missing items of your own. Do not ask them about shoes or tires or pets. These people are trained investigators and not here to help you locate misplaced household objects. Time is of the essence and a boy’s life may be at stake.

We understand that everyone is concerned about this disappearance, but once again would like to reiterate that Question Park is a condemned property and nobody but the police or FBI should be conducting their own investigations there. If you would like to assist our police operations, we ask that the citizens of Question Mark distribute our missing persons flyer broadly.

Also, know that the brave men and women of QMPD have followed every lead and are continuing to work to ensure this young person will be returned to his family as soon as possible. Please stop throwing water balloons, milkshakes, and other beverages in their direction.

If you have any information about Quentin Quinn DO NOT HESITATE to contact the Question Mark Police Department at (740) 647-4807 extension 1.

ALERT Local Boy Missing posted by Gus Holt, Question Mark Chief of Police

Gus Holt, Question Mark Chief of Police — 2023-07-09T00:00:00Z

Attention People of Question Mark:

Quentin Quinn, a six-year-old student at Question Mark Elementary, was reported missing by his parents at 5:00pm today.

Quentin Quinn was last seen at the abandoned Question Park amusement park and petting zoo located at 4500 County Route 54 at approximately noon today. The boy had accompanied his older brother Terry Quinn to the location of his disappearance. He entered one of the many condemned buildings on the property and did not return after more than an hour. According to his brother, he was not dared or otherwise coerced into entering what he described as a "building made of glass."

To the community: Question Park and Petting Zoo has been closed for 23 years and is considered condemned and dangerous. As the no entry sign very clearly states outside the perimeter fencing: it is no longer a place for children or joy. We urge all citizens of Question Mark, Ohio to stay away from the site.

Quentin Quinn is 4'1" and has brown hair and brown eyes. He was last seen wearing a white T-shirt with the Professor Chik N Crunch logo, tan shorts, and was carrying a yellow backpack.

We want the citizens of Question Mark to understand that the Question Mark Police Department is taking this matter very seriously. Every member of our law enforcement team is on this case. We have produced flyers, so please distribute these widely.

If you have any information DO NOT HESITATE to contact the Question Mark Police Department at (740) 647-4807 extension 1.

The Question Mark Foods sign has disappeared posted by Gus Holt, Question Mark Chief of Police

Gus Holt, Question Mark Chief of Police — 2023-07-06T00:00:00Z

The beautiful, historic sign that has hung above the entrance of Question Mark Foods since its opening in 1978—seen above on a better day than today—was reported missing at 0830 this morning. There is no clear indication of how it was removed, only that, as general manager Art Compton reported, "It was there last night and this morning it's gone."

Officer D. Holland reported to scene and Detective McCullom is investigating.

This is the second town landmark that has vanished in barely more than a month and the second major act of vandalism in a week, after our town's fireworks were stolen on Saturday. Please know the competent men and women of the Question Mark Police Department are doing all they can to recover these missing items but we need your vigilance and support. Enormous signs don't just disappear, they have to be removed carefully and transported off premises.

If you have any information DO NOT HESITATE to contact the Question Mark Police Department at (740) 647-4807 extension 1.

If you see something, say something.

Let the Fourth Festivities Begin in Question Mark! posted by The Office of Mayor Elizabeth Zisk

The Office of Mayor Elizabeth Zisk — 2023-07-03T00:00:00Z

Despite the theft of our town's fireworks display this weekend, Mayor Elizabeth Zisk has worked tirelessly to ensure that our Fourth of July celebration will continue, even if it is in a diminished form due to the donation of unwanted or unattractive fireworks from neighboring towns.

Thankfully, nobody can steal patriotic spirit and so we are proud to unveil the route for this year's Annual Question Mark Fourth of July Parade, which you can see above.

The parade will begin promptly at 5:30pm from British Soldier Field, travel up East Avenue, including a special private viewing for Eastwood Circle residents, before turning west on Main Street where it will continue to our beautiful downtown, where it will pass by Town Hall on Center Avenue before turning on historic High Street where it will continue until it reaches the Clocktower on Tower Avenue.

Please note YOU CAN ONLY PARTICIPATE IN THE PARADE IF YOU HAVE REGISTERED FOR A FLOAT. NO HOP-ONS.

Fireworks, despite not being as star-spangled as we would have hoped, will be visible from the Town Square beginning at 9:30pm.

As has been mentioned in previous years, PLEASE DO NOT BRING YOUR OWN FIREWORKS OR EXPLOSIVES.

Happy Fourth of July from all of us at the Mayor's Office. God Bless America.

All-Ages Talent Show Marred by Morning Tragedy posted by Gus Holt, Question Mark Chief of Police

Gus Holt, Question Mark Chief of Police — 2023-07-01T00:00:00Z

Last night I was asked to judge the All-Ages Talent Show, the traditional kickoff to our Fourth of July festivities, and it was an evening of exciting—though somewhat off-putting—wonder. I witnessed many hard-working town citizens trying their best, playing nose-horns, doing gymnastics, singing, skipping rope. To be honest, no one was awful but no one was exactly what you might call "world-class material."

First-place went to Mimi Stevens for her recitation of Reginald Willey’s Founder’s Day Speech, which while stirring, I wonder who would have won had Miss Mozart not been, unfortunately, missing. The Question Mark Police Department is still looking for that talented cat.

I wish that this simple report on a Question Mark tradition could have been the sum total of my announcement. However something tragic has happened in the night.

At approximately 0645 this morning, it was discovered that the Department of Streets and Sanitation maintenance and storage shed has, once again, been vandalized. While the regular vandalization of town assets by miscreants is unfortunate, it is predictable. However, this was not the act of simple vandals but a theft as well:

The town's fireworks for our celebration on Tuesday have been stolen. Every last one. Even the sparklers the Question Mark Fire Department was going to hand out to children.

If you have any information regarding this incident, please contact QMPD immediately at (740) 647-4807 extension 1. You are jeopardizing the joy and happiness of the entire community.

Please return the fireworks at once and all charges will be dropped.

White dust is not deadly posted by Dr. George Yakamoto, Senior Researcher, Experimental Crop Station

Dr. George Yakamoto, Senior Researcher, Experimental Crop Station — 2023-06-28T00:00:00Z

We have received a great number of queries regarding the "white dust" that has been spreading across town these last few weeks. In my role as Senior Researcher at the University of Ohio Extension Experimental Crop Station, and also as a resident and parent in Question Mark, I would like to assure you that this "white dust" is in fact fungal spores and is completely within normal parameters. Though it is best to try not to breathe them in directly. A proper-fitting N95 or KN95 mask is recommended.

As many of you already know, Armillaria Quaestio, a fascinating fungal specimen, has resided in the Question Mark Woods for several thousand years and is undergoing an unusually active spore cycle this season.

Additionally, the purple lights in the woods that many of you have reported are also totally normal and are a function of A. Quaestio’s bioluminescence. Our fungal neighbor is truly a fascinating creature and, if you have additional interest in this remarkable specimen, I would direct you to my research at the Theil Fungal Association's Institute for Mycelial Networks, which has generously underwritten future study of Armillaria Quaestio.

Mr. Freeze-E has two new job openings for the summer! posted by Marlene Winters, Mr. Freeze-E assistant manager

Marlene Winters, Mr. Freeze-E assistant manager — 2023-06-23T00:00:00Z

People of Question Mark, are you ready to scream???

... FOR ICE CREAM??!!

Yes, before it was America's Favorite Ice Cream©, it was Question Mark, Ohio's favorite ice cream and we're excited to say that we have two full time positions that have suddenly opened up here.

We'd love to have a Question Mark Original like yourself join us here at a true Question Mark Original! Landmark that is!

Yes, it's been hard these last few weeks since our signature giant ice cream cone has gone missing, and the mayor and Chief Holt have assured us that everyone is looking just as hard as they can. And yes, the last two people we hired were maybe less reliable than we would have liked, but the scoops must scoop on! And so we'd love if you'd considering dropping by and applying to become an Ice Cream Caddy over here at our location on Tower. You know where it is! You've been coming here since you were a kid!

Can't drop by right away? You can always visit the Mr. Freeze-E website and download an application and drop it by or send it in.

We'd love to have this position filled ASAP—that's As Scoop As Possible—so please do apply today!

Slides from my presentation "How to Make Yourself Invisible" posted by Tanner Pratt

Tanner Pratt — 2023-06-21T00:00:00Z

Very few of you, if any of you, came to my presentation at the library tonight.

But I know what is happening in town because I have seen the future.

I have included my slides here, because you have to know. You have to know. You have to know. You have to know. You have to know. You have to know. You have to know. You have to know. You have to know. You have to know. You have to know. You have to know. You have to know. You have to know. You have to know. You have to know. You have to know. You have to know. You have to know. You have to know. You have to know.

Feline Remains Identified posted by Gus Holt, Question Mark Chief of Police

Gus Holt, Question Mark Chief of Police — 2023-06-19T00:00:00Z

The feline remains recovered at 0015 hours Sunday morning have been identified and its owner has been contacted. Despite extensive police presence in the area, the feline’s head was not recovered.

Out of respect to those impacted, we will not be releasing identification of feline or owner. We ask our officers—this means you Ronny—to keep this information to themselves.

According to the medical examiner, the cause of the feline’s death is currently unexplained and is listed as “sudden and unattended death, cause unknown.”

Please keep an eye on your loved ones, your pets, and each other during this difficult time.

Missing cat found. But no head. posted by Officer Ron Dublowski

Officer Ron Dublowski — 2023-06-18T00:00:00Z

I know the chief has asked me before not to post to the Town Announcements, but it's been a very long night and my phone is finally working again and I think you need to know that I found a cat.

I found it sometime after midnight last night, I'm not sure because I don't wear a watch and my phone had died.

It seems to be missing its head.

I looked for it, I did, and let me tell you that was terrible, looking for a cat head in the middle of the night when your phone doesn't work and you've already found the rest of the cat. I don't ever need to do that again. Also putting the cat body in a bag. Never again, I hope. Lots of hand sanitizer once I finally found my squad car, which took all night.

Also, it's Father's Day, which now the chief has us all on duty for even though I worked a double yesterday specifically to have today off. But he said you found it Ronny, you deal with it. I asked him not to call me that. This is your life, I guess.

Anyway, trying to determine owner. Please have patience.

Come join our Circle of Concerned Families and Friends posted by Lucas Winn, Circle of Concerned Families and Friends

Lucas Winn, Circle of Concerned Families and Friends — 2023-06-15T00:00:00Z

Are you feeling lost in a world of sadness and confusion?

Do you feel like nothing feels familiar anymore?

If so, we welcome you to the Circle of Concerned Families and Friends. We are just like you, except that we have found answers to the many questions that you have been asking.

This weekend we are holding an informal gathering to talk about the power of justice, freedom, and the purity of the past.

Come to the Question Mark Woods at Picnic Area B on Saturday, July 17th at 4pm for free reading materials and light beverages.

The sun will be out and those seeking will find.

Please visit our website and download our latest tract, "This is Your Life," if you’d like any more information.

We look forward to welcoming you into our circle on Saturday.

Congratulations to Miss Mozart for representing this town with beauty and grace. posted by Mayor Elizabeth Zisk

Mayor Elizabeth Zisk — 2023-06-07T00:00:00Z

There has been a lot of talk about pets in our town lately and very little of it reflects well on this fine community. There are many in this town that would rather tear it down than build it up. Think about your role in our community. Are you a tearer or a builder? Be a builder.

Anyway, since many of you seem obsessed with the pets in this town, I am happy to share some GOOD news. Miss Mozart, internet-cat-piano-playing-sensation and local resident, is featured in this month’s Fancy Cat World magazine. Much credit must be given to owner, Mabel Vickery Dupree, for supporting such a talented creature, an animal that makes the rest of the citizens in town look completely unremarkable by comparison.

When you reflect on your actions and your place in this community, be more like Miss Mozart. Find a song in your heart and play it with your small animal hands. For we are all animals and we can all find our song.

ALERT Ice Cream Cone Statue is Missing posted by Gus Holt, Question Mark Chief of Police

Gus Holt, Question Mark Chief of Police — 2023-06-03T00:00:00Z

Attention People of Question Mark:

The statue of the giant ice cream that has sat in front of Mr. Freeze-E Ice Cream for forty-one years was reported missing this morning. It was last seen at closing on June 2, as reported by Mr. Freeze-E employee, Marlene Winters.

At opening, it was reported as missing by Officer Ronny Dublowski.

This landmark of our town is not small, is not light, and should not be easy to transport. Eyewitnesses to this vandalism are encouraged to come forward.

If you have any information DO NOT HESITATE to contact the Question Mark Police Department at (740) 647-4807 extension 1.

Sinkhole Repairs Have Begun! posted by Jeannie Falls, Department of Streets and Sanitation

Jeannie Falls, Department of Streets and Sanitation — 2023-06-01T00:00:00Z

After a thorough investigation and two years of discussion from the Town Council, we are excited to announce that the filling of the sinkhole and repaving of Willey Way, between the Willey Envelope Factory and Foreverland Pet Refrigeration (currently closed) has begun! Willey Way (21st Street) will be blocked between Adeline and Center Avenues until further notice. Please plan accordingly.

The filling of the sinkhole is the cornerstone of our five-year capital improvement plan and we believe that a traversable Willey Way will lead to a revitalization of our industrial corridor and beyond.

It’s fitting to be repaving the road that connects our oldest business with our newest, and we hope that the removal of the sinkhole will bring further hi-tech investment into Question Mark. As Mayor Zisk says, “The future is a Question Mark.”

80s Hard Rock Record Enthusiast Meet-up Cancelled Indefinitely, Also Stop With The Water Balloons posted by Officer Ron Dublowski

Officer Ron Dublowski — 2023-05-27T00:00:00Z

Hello,

Due to personal reasons that I would not like to share with the whole town, the 80’s Hard Rock Record Enthusiast Meet-up held every-other Saturday in the Town Hall parking lot is cancelled indefinitely. I had a long think about it this morning and there's just a lot going on right now, what with Beth leaving and I think Lindsay hates me and Gary is a handful if we're being honest, at least sometimes. I mean he's a good kid, they're both good kids. It's just a lot, I think. It's a lot.

Also, please stop throwing water balloons at police vehicles. It’s getting tiring, people. I know that many of you are upset about your missing pets and your missing other things and we are doing our best. It doesn't help policework to be sitting in your car and to be hit with a water balloon and then having to do the rest of your shift with your pants wet in front. Remember we are people too and we all have a lot going on. A lot.

Also, and this is more specifically to Glenn Warner in vital records: cancelling the 80’s Hard Rock Record Enthusiast Meet-up does not in any way affect my position in the KISS Army, for which you of all people know I am a dues-paying member in good standing since 1979. Please don't make me come by the office, you know it creeps me out.

Also, Beth if you see this I am sorry?

Ron (Ronny)

Spend Friday Night at the Cinema... In Your Home! posted by William Higgland Jr, writer, director, cinematographer

William Higgland Jr, writer, director, cinematographer — 2023-05-26T00:00:00Z

Welcome Lovers of the Cinema to our Summer Blockbuster Deals at Question Mark Video, Question Mark's only source for movies, games, and family fun for over thirty-five years!

It is I, William Higgland Jr., writing you today to tell you that this summer you can come by and rent any two movies or games for the price of one. Action! Sci-Fi! Horror! Rom-Com! Family! Games! All two-for-one rentals! Please note: our regular adult film special of three-for-one rentals does not apply to our summer special. You can not walk out with six pornographic movies for the price of two, Burt Peacock.

You may be saying to yourself, "William Higgland Jr., certainly two-for-one rentals is enough," but you would be wrong! Download our Summer Blockbuster Deals flyer and get a clippable coupon for a free popcorn to take home! Just present your coupon to Sherman, Dash, or Samantha—our FRIENDLY and HELPFUL rental associates—and they will give you a box to take home some popcorn. Of course, popcorn is always free to munch in-store and every Friday is bacon/wings night, courtesy of Professor Chik N Crunch, including tonight! So please come by!

Also, I know some of you love a good puzzle, so we've included a word search on our flyer! Puzzle away, puzzlers!

Remember what Hitchcock said: Cinema is the perfect tool to confront lingering, unsolvable questions... Or wait, actually, that was me, William Higgland Jr.

See you at the store soon!

Strange things are happening in this town but no one seems worried posted by Violet Bookman

Violet Bookman — 2023-05-21T00:00:00Z

I did a presentation at the library on Friday but no one came. I get it, we're all busy, but this is really important!

I'm really worried something bad is happening here in town! I saw something in the woods last night that really scared me bad. We need to start paying attention before something worse happens.

If you’re interested in what’s actually going on around here, this is the slideshow I put together for the library. You can watch it right here or over on Google Slides. I even made a Reel on Instagram if you want to share that (Nanako played cello for that one)! Please send this to someone so everyone knows what’s happening here in Question Mark, Ohio.

I think it's something really bad.

Please come to my presentation on all the things that have disappeared so far. posted by Violet Bookman

Violet Bookman — 2023-05-17T00:00:00Z

There are a lot of things that have gone missing in this town. It's not just Mr. Business—even though that police officer found his collar, I still think he's out there—it's a lot of other things too. Shoes. Signs. Lots of other pets. Something is going on here!

I don't think people are paying enough attention, so I've put together a presentation and it's this Friday at the Question Mark Public Library. I don't think any of you are going to come, but Ms. Twombley at the library encouraged me to post this announcement, so that's what I'm doing.

Please come, seriously.

The Mother’s Day Parade and Pageant was less-than-inspiring. posted by Mayor Elizabeth Zisk

Mayor Elizabeth Zisk — 2023-05-15T00:00:00Z

Ladies.

First of all, almost none of you came. I can not imagine what would be more important to you than our wonderful Mother’s Day Parade and Pageant, but clearly your priorities are wrong.

Second of all, those of you that did come? Well, I specifically said “Ladies, look your best” and clearly none of you listened. I know you were upset that there was no winner for the Pageant portion of the event, but really: Look inward and ask yourself if there should have been. I mean, honestly.

Sometimes I wonder what it would be like to the mayor of a town where people took themselves and how they dressed a little more seriously. It’s like being mayor of a hole in the ground instead of a center of progress and industry. If I’m being really honest, I wish a few of those dated outfits would have vanished completely.

Try harder, ladies. Try harder.

Recovered a collar in the woods. Tag reads "Mr. Business." posted by Officer Ron Dublowski

Officer Ron Dublowski — 2023-05-13T00:00:00Z

I know the chief doesn't like us posting official police business in the Town Announcements but I found a cat’s collar just now out in the woods, in a little clearing a few hundred yards from British Soldier Field.

Tag reads "Mr. Business." Another tag just a small plastic heart, cracked. Cat was nowhere to be seen.

Could be dead.

Probably dead.

But no proof, so who knows?

80s Hard Rock Record Enthusiast Meet-up probably canceled today.

Two strange cats are hiding in my garden right now. posted by Hilda Durn

Hilda Durn — 2023-05-11T00:00:00Z

I don’t know who they are or what it is they think they are doing. "Lurking" is probably how I would describe it, I suppose.

One is a white cat, that much I know. The other one of them might be tiger-striped. Or black. Probably black. It’s hard to tell. It's hiding in the shade of my hosta.

I do not feel comfortable around these cats or, really, any cats. But these in particular. I would like them gone. I need to do my weeding.

I need your help! posted by Violet Bookman

Violet Bookman — 2023-05-07T00:00:00Z

My neighbor’s cat Mr. Business is still missing. I feel like we are so close to finding him. We have looked behind the alley at the envelope factory, by British Soldier Field, at the old tannery, and by the woods. Yesterday I think I saw him at the ruined playground, but he ran off.

Mr. Business is probably the smartest cat in the world. Any clue would help at this point.

I’ve made a flyer you could use. Or you could make your own. Could you please hang them up around your neighborhood?

Please take a picture and @ me with it so I know what parts of town are covered.

Thank you so much for letting everyone know.

Question Mark Elementary presents “Our Town” May 7 posted by Holly Peterson, Third Grade Teacher

Holly Peterson, Third Grade Teacher — 2023-05-04T00:00:00Z

I am aware we’ve been having a lot of plays recently, but the children have been working so hard on their adaptation of Thornton Wilder's "Our Town" and I believe this one will be really amazing, and almost certainly will go better than the last one.

The themes of Our Town—the transience of life and how we should live in the present moment—have resonated with the children of late, especially after yesterday's disappearance of Boo-boo, our classroom hamster.

I hope everyone will please come. As a new teacher and someone still getting to know this town, it would be really nice to meet some of the parents.

If you have any questions about this or any other upcoming assignments, you can always visit our third grade class site.

Why were YOU not at last night's concert? posted by Mayor Elizabeth Zisk

Mayor Elizabeth Zisk — 2023-05-04T00:00:00Z

Last night’s concert was life-changing and life-affirming. Too bad more people couldn’t attend.

With all the talk about more opportunities for community and cultural events, one would THINK having an award-winning cello player, our own Nanako Yakamoto, perform for the ENTIRE town would be more important than whatever it is other people were doing.

Disappointing.

Announcement posted by anonymous

anonymous — 2023-05-02T00:00:00Z

Slides From Our Experimental Crop Presentation posted by Dr. Rebecca Lipsik

Dr. Rebecca Lipsik — 2023-05-01T00:00:00Z

We were happy to share our research at the University of Ohio extension Experimental Crop Station at the Question Mark Public Library yesterday and are thrilled to share our slides with you today.

I saw what appeared to be a lost cat posted by Gladys Parker

Gladys Parker — 2023-04-28T00:00:00Z

Last night I was out by the old tannery and I saw this cat. It was real dark but maybe it was orange and tiger-striped? I tried to zoom in close with my phone.

Anyway, I tried calling it various popular cat names, like Simba, Bella, Oliver, Greg, Señor Whiskers, Shadow, and Little Mittens but it did not respond to any of them!

Also it did not seem to like Fancy Feast.

Sorry, I tried.

Announcement posted by anonymous

anonymous — 2023-04-26T00:00:00Z

Mr. Business is missing posted by Violet Bookman

Violet Bookman — 2023-04-21T00:00:00Z

Has anyone seen the most amazing cat in the world?

I took this picture of Mr. Business just this week, so this is pretty much exactly what he looks like.

And what’s happening to all the other missing pets in town?

Something is happening here. I am going to get to the bottom of this.

Amateur Kite-Fighting Club Sign-Up posted by Jock Reynolds, retired person

Jock Reynolds, retired person — 2023-04-11T00:00:00Z

Who's got guts enough to fight some kites?

No crybabies, no losers.

Please email if you’re interested in joining our club. Meetings are on Sunday afternoons and over promptly at 4.

Nanako Yakamoto Wins Major Award posted by Mayor Elizabeth Zisk

Mayor Elizabeth Zisk — 2023-04-05T00:00:00Z

Our very own musical prodigy, Nanako Yakamato, won a prestigious award at a very special musical competition in Cleveland last night for her performance of Mozart’s Requiem in D minor, a stark reminder to those who often complain that this town does not support cultural achievements.

Congratulations to Nanako and also to those of us that have done the hard work of keeping Question Mark cultured.

Pets have gone missing. posted by Officer Ron Dublowski

Officer Ron Dublowski — 2023-04-03T00:00:00Z

Over the last several weeks, we have received numerous reports of beloved cats and dogs going missing. Question Mark Police are currently investigating.

If you love your pet, please lock it up at night.

Also, the Hard Rock Meet-up will be postponed this weekend due to a conflict with the Kite Fighting Club.

You can always reach me at @RonDublowski if you have relevant questions about your pets or also 80s Hard Rock.

Has anyone else seen this? posted by Fred Williamson

Fred Williamson — 2023-03-20T00:00:00Z

I woke up and saw this and the wife said I was dreaming. But when I woke up this morning I found I took this photo!

I remember it being so bright. Did anyone else see it last night?

It was right outside my window I swear, out in my field off of 54.

Come to the Hard Rock Record Enthusiast Meet-Up posted by Officer Ron Dublowski

Officer Ron Dublowski — 2023-03-15T00:00:00Z

Do you like to rock? We're meeting up at the Town Hall Parking Lot this Saturday, March 18th to share records, stories, and love of everything ROCK. Also, police community safety tips.

Please come.

For more information: @RonDublowski

Scenes from our Third and Fourth Grade Play posted by Holly Peterson, Third Grade Teacher

Holly Peterson, Third Grade Teacher — 2023-03-10T00:00:00Z

A wonderful night was had last night as our Question Mark Elementary 3rd and 4th Graders reenacted important moments in our town's history. And yes, it didn't go perfectly, but what does, really. The important thing is that our children tried their best. Here's some memorable scenes from an unforgettable night.

Ella McEntire recalled most of her lines as the first envelope off the line at the Wiley Envelope Factory.

Terry Quinn was memorable as the Mr. Freeze-E Ice Cream sign.

Irene Lindholm stole the show as our beloved waterfall.

Gary Dublowski could have done better as our town garbage dump, but let's not dwell.

Donation of Used or Sad Books. posted by Greta Twombley, Town Librarian

Greta Twombley, Town Librarian — 2023-03-02T00:00:00Z

Please consider donating your gently-used or books too sad to be finished to the town library. Donations will be open throughout March.

I Am Not Apologizing, Exactly. posted by Mayor Elizabeth Zisk

Mayor Elizabeth Zisk — 2023-01-29T00:00:00Z

I am not apologizing for what happened with the National Anthem at the Winter Carnival, as it could have happened to anybody. In these very dark times, I implore everybody to pursue radical acceptance.

Thank you!

Deer in House posted by Timm Anderson

Timm Anderson — 2023-01-16T00:00:00Z

Please be alert that there is a deer inside the Anderson house currently. Do not attempt to approach, feed, or ride the deer. Question Mark Animal Control has been dispatched.

Coming Soon! Winter Carnival posted by Question Mark Town Announcements

Question Mark Town Announcements — 2023-01-05T00:00:00Z

Bundle up and join us for our annual winter carnival! There will be rides and food and the little ones can sit in the town snowplow. Please note that our winter carnival will be held weather-permitting, we all remember what happened last year.

January 22nd, 12-5pm
Town Square