When the Wind Blows

I wrote the post below before Hurricane Ian blew in then sat over us for what felt like years. As someone who's been through hurricanes before and as someone who writes scary things, let me tell you, that was scary. Even now, I still kind of flinch when the wind picks up. But compared to what others went through, we were incredibly lucky. We only had minor damage to our home and were unable to move farther than our block for a few days. We had spotty communication, and no water or power for a while. But, like the little bougainvillea tree we planted when we moved into our home, we here at The Shellshank Redemption are bent but not broken, and we are so grateful to be pretty much upright again. Please join us in sending good thoughts, positive vibes and prayers for those who are struggling and suffering, and for all those who are helping and working to make things better.   

 

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October is my birthday month, and I usually use this time to start thinking about goals for next year. I kind of look at it as MY new year. And, as this is one of those bigger birthdays, I have mixed feelings. What do I hope to accomplish going forward? What do I do differently? What do I keep the same? What do I try? What do I stop doing? 

 

How do you celebrate your birthdays? Do any soul searching or is it all party?

 

I think it's ironic that I was born in the spooky Halloween season, because, as I've mentioned before, I really am a big chicken. That being said, I do plan on reading and/or watching something creepy in keeping with the season. 

 

Do you have any Halloween plans? Any recommendations for scary reading or watching?

 

What I've been reading – 

Amen, Maxine by Faith Gardner and Look Closer by David Ellis are both five star reads and made my favorite books of 2022 list. I don't want to say more about them because it's best to go in not knowing too much. 

 

Have you read anything lately you'd recommend? Have any favorites so far in 2022?

 

What I've been watching – 

The movie "The Black Phone" was excellent! Creepy and heartbreaking and the child actors were amazing.

 

My husband and I started watching "What We Do in the Shadows" on Hulu, and I will say that while I like it, my husband almost falls off the couch laughing at least once an episode. 

 

Have you watched anything lately that creeped you out or made you really laugh?

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At the moment, our Internet connection is still spotty, so it might take some time before your comments and my responses appear here on the blog.

Oh, October!

October is one of my favorite months! We finally get cooler weather here in Florida. Our household celebrates birthdays. And all things spooky take center stage. 

 

I do read, write and watch scary stuff all year long, but I like to ramp it up in October, binge on stories of things that go bump in the night. I've got stacks of books to choose from and jotted notes of movies and TV shows, but I'd love to hear your recommendations.

 

*** What books and/or stories had you checking under the bed before going to sleep? What movies and/or TV shows had you turning on every light in the house? What was it that made your skin crawl? ***

 

Wishing you all a wonderful month and a Happy Halloween! 

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The Horror! The Horror!

The Plan: Buy this book - Frightlopedia: An Encyclopedia of Everything Scary, Creepy, and Spine-Chilling, from Arachnids to Zombies by Julie Winterbottom - for my nephew and niece for Halloween. They love to read, and they're pretty okay with scary things. Besides, each section in the book has a Fright Meter to gauge the scare-factor. 

What Actually Happened: Aunt Madeline decided she did not want to be responsible for terrifying her nephew and niece. (Adults, on the other hand, are fair game.) So, at great sacrifice to her own sanity, she read it instead and promptly freaked herself out.   

(To be fair, the kids might've been fine with it. It's just you never know what will trigger a nightmare, a fear, a phobia, especially when you're young. Take it from someone who was scared so badly by an innocent Popeye cartoon that she had bad dreams for a week.) 

All that being said, I really did enjoy the book. It's creepy, with photos that haunt me still, but it's also entertaining and informative. 

Did you know . . . about the waste water treatment center where scientists found 107 million spiders had woven a four acre web - the size of four soccer fields! - inside the building? 

Did you know . . . that claustrophobia is the fear of enclosed spaces, but cleithrophobia is the fear of being trapped? Check out these two real-life situations:

- A man got stuck in an elevator for two full days with nothing to eat but Rolaids.

- A woman got stuck in her bathroom for 20 days. She banged on the pipes, but neighbors thought the noise was construction. She lived on nothing but water.

And finally, a place I will NOT be going to on my next vacation:

Gomantong Caves is on the island of Borneo in Southeast Asia. It houses two million bats. The cave floors are ten feet deep in guano, but you can't see any it because of all the cockroaches. Yep, a giant mass of cockroaches feasts on all that poop, along with the occasional bat that falls from the ceiling. And you can watch it all from the wooden walkway that will supposedly keep you safe from all but the errant cockroach and the three-inch-long centipedes that crawl along the handrail. 

Yeah, my sister should sooooo thank me for not sending this book.

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So, what scared you as a kid? What scares you now? Plan on taking a trip to those caves? If so, please don't bring me back a souvenir . . . . 

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(I talked about this book purely because I enjoyed it. I didn't receive any compensation, etc.)

Maybe Someday - Every Day Fiction

Halloween brings out the monsters and zombies and creepy crawlies, and yes, I'm scared of all of them. (My Halloween costume should be a chicken suit.)

But one non-Halloween related thing that frightens me is the thought of making the wrong decision. I have to remind myself that I do not make my decisions lightly, that I take many things into consideration, that I am doing the best I can at the time and that's all I can do. Still, it's scary.  

So, on this day before Halloween, I give you a horror story of a different kind - Maybe Someday at Every Day Fiction. I hope you enjoy it.