And awaa-aay I go!

I'll be away for a few days, visiting friends in Massachusetts. Initially, this was the weekend of the "The X-Files" season 9 premiere and we planned our usual premiere/finale get-together. But because of the Emmys and the World Series (GO YANKS!), it has been rescheduled for the 11th. Since half of our group had already bought their plane tickets, we'll still be meeting this weekend, regardless. It should be a lovely weekend, filled with good food, good movies, fun games and maybe even some outdoor activities.

Have a good weekend, peoples. I'll be back home on Monday and I should be back to posting by then.

posted at 11:35 AM | link |

"It's not just CNN," Kerr said, "but groups like Fox News, CNBC, and even CSPAN that are behind the anxietyist attacks. These are large, well-funded, well-organized groups dedicated to scaring the shit out of innocent men, women, and children."

Can I get an Amen?!

[link courtesy silly cow]

posted at 12:14 AM | link |

"The Rumor Busters"

Salon.com has an interview with Barbara Mikkelson, who along with her husband runs Snopes.com, the Urban Legends Reference Pages, in which she discusses the recent rumors and e-mail hoaxes surrounding the events of September 11. Recommended reading for us all.

posted at 11:46 PM | link |

Okay, one more...

"Good Evening and welcome. This website is all about the paranormal and the unexplained, here you will find true ghost stories, articles on U.F.O's and Aliens, plus do werewolves, ghosts and other unexplained and supernatural things exist? There is a large collection of horror clipart, graphics and lots of horror midi music files to listen to. There is also a dedicated paranormal directory with links to many other sites of that and other genre. "

posted at 5:33 PM | link |

"Horror Find is the first search engine dedicated to all horror all the time. It is the ultimate source for horror and halloween, with listings of sites about halloween, halloween products, halloween props horror, horror movies, werewolves, vampires, witches, ghosts, demons, monsters, haunted places, haunted parks, haunted attractions, ghost walks, black magic, magic in general, evil spells, zombies and all sorts of other horror related stuff.."

posted at 5:24 PM | link |

Pass the popcorn, please.



Like many people, I like to watch scary movies on Halloween. In no particular order, here are some of my favorite spine-tinglers:

1. John Carpenter's "Halloween" - anyone who has ever done any bit of babysitting can appreciate this one. This is the one that gave birth the the slasher movie, and there are few that can rival it. If you have Cinemax, it's on tonight at 11:30!
2. "Silence of the Lambs" - not officially a horror film, but nevertheless seriously creepy.
3. "The Sentinel" - 70s horror film about a fashion model who rents an apartment in an old NYC apartment building, only to find that it resides over the entrance to Hell. Not Oscar-caliber stuff, but the cast alone makes it worth seeing - Chris Sarandon, Ava Gardner, Burgess Meredith, Christopher Walken and many more. It's a bit campy, but it has some truly horrifying scenes.
4. Francis Ford Coppola's "Dracula" - Gary Oldman rules. I could have done without both Keanu Reeves and Winona Ryder in this, but Oldman's portrayal of Count Dracula and the creepy makeup and sets make up for the two of them.
5. "Rosemary's Baby" - a classic and it's got Ruth Gordon in it.

What are some of your favorite scary movies?

posted at 5:16 PM | link |

Mummy Dearest

Time for a timely personality test: What's your Monster Match? My results:

Mummy

You've been dead for 3000 years, but you are still the life of the party because your monster match is the mummy. Has anyone ever told you that you look sharp in linen, and white is definitely your color? From head to toe, you are the best dressed of the zombie clan. You throw the best parties this side of the Nile, whether you rented out a suite at the Luxor or you're just chilling in your tomb, you know how to unwind and have a good time.

You put the "Rahhh" back in Rock and Roll and forget hip-hop, you're the original wrap artist. But mummies, you may need to get outside more. You could use some sun and that sarcophagus is starting get a little stuffy. Go for a walk (like an Egyptian) or maybe even a jog. It's important to have an outlet so life's details don't bury you alive.

Badump, bump!

posted at 5:02 PM | link |

Scary X-Files

I drew up this list last year at Halloween time and figured it might be worth a second look -

20 Moments From The X-Files That Scared The Crap Out of Me.

posted at 4:51 PM | link |

Happy Halloween!

The precautionary candy's in the bowl and I'm ready for trick-or-treaters, although we will most likely have none. In the five and a half years we have been here, we have seen neither ghost nor goblin on Halloween. With that in mind, I bought candy that I like.

posted at 4:48 PM | link |

Whatever happened to...

Charlie Bucket from "Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory"?

posted at 10:56 PM | link |

"Halloween's origins date back to the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain (pronounced sow-in). The Celts, who lived 2,000 years ago in the area that is now Ireland, the United Kingdom, and northern France, celebrated their new year on November 1. This day marked the end of summer and the harvest and the beginning of the dark, cold winter, a time of year that was often associated with human death. Celts believed that on the night before the new year, the boundary between the worlds of the living and the dead became blurred. On the night of October 31, they celebrated Samhain, when it was believed that the ghosts of the dead returned to earth. In addition to causing trouble and damaging crops, Celts thought that the presence of the otherworldly spirits made it easier for the Druids, or Celtic priests, to make predictions about the future. For a people entirely dependent on the volatile natural world, these prophecies were an important source of comfort and direction during the long, dark winter.."

posted at 12:56 PM | link |

U2 in NYC

"No rock band's body of work seemed more appropriate for the occasion. U2's songs have often ached with suffering and loss, from "One Tree Hill" to "Peace on Earth" ("They're reading names out over the radio/All the folks the rest of us won't get to know/ ... Their lives are bigger than any big idea.") And some of their music is a direct rebuttal to the cycle of terror and revenge that has wracked their own land ever since they were boys. When, in the middle of "Sunday Bloody Sunday," Bono screamed, "I'm so sick of it," his anguish seemed to resonate throughout the arena, although New York's suffering has decades to go before it matches Belfast's. "

He says it much better than I do.

posted at 1:29 AM | link |

How Lo Can You Go?

"Though J.Lo was at the studio for only 90 minutes, her people insisted on a few "important details" to "ensure a more comfortable stay for the artist and her entourage." Such as? A 45-foot trailer "with triple slide outs and 2 entry doors" (though she'd settle for a 40-footer in a pinch) and equipped with a CD player ("NO EXCEPTIONS"), a TV/VCR, a "hair sink and make-up station" and an assortment of CDs, including the work of artists like Macy Gray, D'Angelo, Toni Braxton and Destiny's Child. "

Oh, it gets worse.

posted at 1:13 AM | link |

And in related news...

Now, we've all been watching a lot of the news lately, and I for one know that I am in need of some serious massage therapy to repair the crick in my neck resulting from attempts to read that damn scrolling text at the bottom of the screen while simultaneously trying to listen to the latest anthrax/terrorism/military expert talking head who happens to be expounding at the time. What I find most annoying, though, is the need that news organizations feel to give a name to the current crisis. We've all seen them - "America Under Attack"; "America Fights Back"; "America On Guard". Alright already! We know what's going on. This is not a movie or television show - we don't need a title. By titling their coverage of the crisis they reduce it to yet another form of entertainment, a current events soap opera. Of course, that's just my opinion. I could be wrong. (nod to Mr. Miller).

Never fear, news-weary citizens - those crazy kids over at Comedy Central's The Daily Show have come up with the perfect title/graphic:


image courtesy comedycentral.com

I'm still smiling.

posted at 1:01 AM | link |

October 31 Hoax

Press release from the FBI website:

"An anonymous internet electronic-mail (e-mail) message has been widely circulated pertaining to an Arab male who warned his wife not to fly on September 11, 2001 and not to go to any shopping mall on October 31, 2001. The e-mail further states that the Arab male disappeared prior to the September 11, 2001 attacks.

The FBI has conducted an inquiry into the source of this e-mail and determined that the alleged threat is not credible."

I received this e-mail a few weeks ago. I was pretty sure that it was a hoax, but these days it is better to be safe than sorry. I didn't forward the message on to my friends but I thought I should do something, just in case. So there I was, in the middle of the night, trying to figure out how to forward it on to the FBI without actually having to call them. In the end I sent it with an explanation to the DOJ e-mail address since you cannot currently e-mail the FBI. I never did hear back from anyone, but it is comforting to see that all possible threats are being given careful consideration.

posted at 11:59 PM | link |

"Google is considering offering premium subscription services as a way of boosting its revenues. "

posted at 10:44 AM | link |