A dark Halloween. (2011)

Posted: November 1, 2011 | Author: Renae Rude - The Paranormalist | Filed under: Halloween, My dog: The Dog, My Family Album | Tags: Alfred Hitchcock, Anne Rice, Anoka, best horror novels, bipolar II, Clive Barker, Dean Koontz, digital art, dog, Ed Gein, Forever Night, Halloween, horror movies, Horror Writing, In Search of, Joe Hill, Kolchak the Night Stalker, Light As A Feather, Minnesota, Nancy Drew, Nessie, paranormal, PBS, Picnic at Hanging Rock, Renae Rude, Ripley's Believe It Or Not, Robert McCammon, Salem, Sasquatch, Stephen King, Stiff As A Board, The Paranormalist, Trick or Treat, Twilight Zone, vampires, witches, writing | 7 Comments

Thirteen years ago – in what I now recognize as a 3-day-long manic state – I made a tripod website called Dark Touchstones. (Remember tripod websites?) As a special treat to myself, I spent much of Halloween day bringing that content to The Paranormalist. Have a look by visiting Dark Touchstones – a lifetime’s worth of creepy stuff, circa 1997.

NOTE: Most of the tags listed below actually refer to the content of Dark Touchstones. (Apparently I can’t tag pages, only posts.)

P.S. If I were writing Dark Touchstones now, my favorite authors (with their best) list would now have to include Joe Hill and Heart Shaped Box.

I didn’t spend the whole day in front of the computer, though. At about 5p, my 16-year-old son and I decided to raid the old costume trunks and take our dog trick-or-treating in Anoka. (We might be past the age for such things, but Fierce Guard Dog is only 13 months old.)

I donned the dog-suit and fashioned myself a leash and collar from a scrap of red velvet, duct tape and a belt. We put our dog in a one of my favorite t-shirts. (Get it? I was the dog, the dog was me.) The boy opted to dress as a rather dashing pirate. As we rummaged for pirate-y accessories, we found a pair of devil-wings that looked to be the right size for the dog, so we put those on him too … which messed with our “theme” but looked cute.

We didn’t really trick-or-treat of course, though some friends we visited did scrounge up a biscuit for Fierce Guard Dog. Instead we met up with my husband for a walk through the loveliest Halloween evening we’ve had in years. Sadly, there were few costumed children dashing through the warm night, and most of the houses were dark, their stoops devoid of pumpkins. I am reluctantly beginning to believe that Halloween, as we knew it, is dying.

Still, the crescent moon rode bright in the cloud streaked sky, the leaves crunched as we kicked through the gutters and the dog’s devil-wings flapped as he pranced along beside us.

Now, to finish my nostalgic day, I’m going to settle in with a handful of fun-size Milky Way bars and the classic 1978 film, Halloween. (In which there are many glowing jack-lanterns, and my favorite holiday is eternally preserved.)