Happy Halloween!

To celebrate, take a look at some creepy vintage Halloween costumes from The Huffington Post over here.

Just Had to Share

This picture demands an audience!

Creepy Haunted House Films

I've been too busy to update this as often as I should, but with Halloween being tomorrow and all, I thought I may as well post something. Here is a great article that my sister sent me from the Atlantic titled, The Enduring Creepiness of Haunted House films.

Enjoy!

How to Hit the Bottle This Halloween

Check out these creepy cocktails. My favorite is this rendition of Martha Stewart's bleeding heart, beet concoction.

Zak's Bagans: Deep Soul or Douche Bag?

I've been reading Dark World by Zak Bagans. All I can say is Ho Hum. The book is basically a guide for would-be ghost hunters. A lot of the chapters are devoted to all the things we Ghost Adventures fans are already literate in. For example: EVPs, the equipment GAC use, residual hauntings vs. intelligent hauntings, blah blah blah.

zzzzzzzzzz. . .


There is one chapter in the book that really held my attention and it's the one that's actually about Zak. The chapter recollects Zak's childhood, his vulnerabilities, and why he turned to ghost hunting. Fascinating stuff and what I really wanted more of out of this book. I thought the book would be more like a bio than a how-to guide. Oh well, I can respect that Zak keeps his privacy fairly maintained, but I wouldn't be so disappointed if I didn't find him so interesting.

Who is this brawny, uber metro-sexual, ghost-hunting ruffian (love that word)? Is he a drama queen, a deep soul, or just a douche bag?  I do hope to find out.

Paranormal Activity 3 Coming to a Theater Near You

Paranormal Activity 3 is set for wide release this weekend. I loved the first two movies so I'm looking forward to the third installment. This time, we go back to the 80s and see the two sisters, Katie and Kristi, as kids. When they're not playing with Teddy Ruxpin dolls and video cameras, they're being terrorized by some malevolent spirit.

The reviews are out and they're good for the most part. The LA Times reports that directors Henry Joost and Ariel Schulman continue the thrills with crafty cinematography:

Throughout, though, there is a newfound wit and invention. The blocking used to get characters (and scares) in and out of shots feels lively and fun, making the jolts hit harder and the thrills giddier.


I'll miss seeing it in Philadelphia where the audience reactions and comments were as entertaining as the film was. Tucson's audience will probably be a little more low-key. As long as I leave the theater jumpy and looking around every corner like some unseen force is going to bitch slap me, it will all be good.

A Haunting We Will Go

Check out the latest treasury I put together on Etsy: A Haunting We Will Go. . . 

Spooky Twin Witches Halloween Charm by Fairylandbeads

American Horror Story Episode 2 Tonight

FX's new drama, American Horror Story, about a haunted house and its new occupants, is on tonight. I have to say I'm really looking forward to it after watching last week's premier. I was a bit wary at first. It looked like it could wind up cheesy or creepy. Well, it's both. And it works.

Its over-the-top antics and clichés will probably turn off a lot of people, but once I started watching I couldn't stop, even though I was aware of what the writers were doing. AHS plays off of many horror movie stereotypes and pays homage to well-known horror films such as The Shining, It, The Amityville Horror, AND it has Dylan McDermott naked. A lot. Not a big surprise since Ryan Murphy, creator of Nip Tuck, is behind this one.

The Washington Post has this to say about AHS:

The “American Horror Story” pilot has aired on FX. And anyone who watched thinks it’s either the worst, most jumbled, depraved excuse for television ever, or a brilliantly audacious, twistedly compelling piece of work.


I couldn't agree more. I'm intrigued. What is with the gimp suit? What about Jessica Lange acting like a nutjob with hair that looks like a baked good has been sewn into her head? What's up with that bizarro daughter of hers? Is the guy with the half-melted face real or a ghost? And what about that phantom maid?

If you don't know what I'm referring to, you should really tune in.

Haven't I Written This Post Before?

I just had the most strong sense of déjà vu . I was sitting here at my computer watching my son play on the living room floor with the front door open and the early autumn sun coming in. It was one of those eerie this-has-happened-before moments. These familiar instances usually happen during the most mundane times.

These déjà vu moments (déjà vu translates as already seen in French) happen to me frequently as it happens to a lot of people. So what the hell is it? Are we remembering some mundane moment we've experienced in a past life exactly like this one? Are we remembering looking into the future at this ordinary moment?

I found a fascinating article in The New York Times about the phenomenon here.

As might be expected, it basically it boils down to neurology:

Psychologists have long known, too, that people register impressions and images well before they are aware of what they have seen. The brain sends visual signals through at least two circuits, which move from the retina through the brain to the visual cortex via different routes.

Opacity: For the Urban Explorer in You

My sister recently sent me this link. It's a site called Opacity, devoted to urban ruins in the Northeast. Here's what they write about themselves:

This site is dedicated to documenting various abandoned places through both text and photographs; recording their transformations through time before they are demolished. The abundance of abandoned asylums and psychiatric hospitals in the New England area create the bulk of the locations here; these beautiful state funded structures are vast and complex, giving insight to both the humanity and mistreatment towards the mentally ill over the past two centuries.

They include Byberry (Philadelphia State Hospital) on the site, which my sister was always interested in. Unfortunately before she could see it, it was demolished.

Byberry

The site also includes Norwich State Hospital in CT, which I've been to. Very creepy. At the time I had a camera that generated prints (remember those?) instead of a digital camera. I wish I could find those pictures because there were some great shots.

 Norwich

Boo! It's Your TV Set.

Looking for some good TV to get the Halloween season started? TV Tango has listed all the shows with thrills and chills scheduled through Halloween.

Check it out here.

Ghosts in the Museum?

My sister is a keeper at the University of Pennsylvania's Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology. For years she's been telling me that weird things happen there - elevators with minds of their own, strange noises, sights in the basement and galleries, etc. Recently a surveillance camera in the Etruscan gallery where she works caught a ghostly figure. Check it out below:

On October 22, the Young Friends of the Museum will couple up with The Free Spirit Paranormal Investigators to investigate the unexplained happenings.  Read more here.