This particular Halloweentober has flown by! It's the same old story, the older I get. But I went with the flow, watched a ton of movies and Halloween specials, ate more than my fair share of junk food, and enjoyed the Autumn season. I only managed to carve one pumpkin this year, transforming the gourd into a magical, mystical totem to ward off dark spirits. Here it is below. This past month I read a bunch of my Halloween short stories books, such as The End of Summer , by J. Tonzelli. And This is Halloween , by James A. Moore. I also picked up the book A Season with the Witch , by J.W. Ocker, while in Salem and briefly read through it. It's a great love letter to the Witch City. During the day T and I watched a bunch of spooky and funny Halloween movies, from Sleepy Hollow and Casper and Hubie Halloween to a few slashers and some Roseanne specials. We gorged on cheesesteak and ice cream (not at the same time, of course). It was an absolutely gorgeous Halloween today, with s...

We just returned home from Salem, and I...enjoyed it. I did. We did. But I have to say that I fell for the trap that movies can do to your perception of a place. Watching Hubie Halloween or Hocus Pocus a dozen times had prepared me for a Salem that only exists in imagination and fiction. Arriving in Salem I expected a town where every house was decorated for turbo-charged Halloween. I thought every home would look like Hubie's, but what we found was that Salem, at least in the neighborhoods, and while unofficially the town of Halloween in America, looked just like home. Every home was not decorated, nor were half the homes. It was more like 1 in 10. It was sad, at first, until I realized I am a nearly 50-year-old dude with real world problems like bills and stuff. This should be the least of my problems. But it was a bit disappointing, I've got to admit. I had expected a living, breathing Halloween wonderland! I expected it to look like Hubie Halloween...

The wonderful and forever spooky Halloweentober is upon us! Welcome to the 31 days (and nights especially) of Halloween! Here it's dark and rainy, just the way I like it! I started dia uno with WNUF Halloween Special! This still is one of the most unique horror films I've ever had the pleasure of watching. Sticking with the local flavor I put in AGFA + Bleeding Skulls Vinegar Syndrome release of Doug Ulrich's shot on video anthology Scary Tales. Yes, yes, yes this is cheesy horror but that does not mean it's not enjoyable. Now for me personally, like WNUF and Nightbeast, I like this film mostly because it's filmed where I live. There's just something about seeing your home on the big screen. Scary Tales is charming and fun if you like homemade movies. The rest of the night was pumpkin carving with Hubie Halloween in the background... And read some short stories from A Newberry Halloween book. Hubie Halloween came out during the pandemic. It was a pre...