Here, There be a Writer

Sunday, October 26, 2014

OctPoWriMo Day 26: In the Moment and Halloween Silliness

Writing Prompt: What is something that scares you? It doesn't have to be a major or life changing event. It could be that moment when you're turning a corner in a dark hallway. A sound that reminds you of walking home in the dark when you were young and easily startled. Get creative!

What scares me? Well, there are the things that give me the jibblies, such as tarantulas, or darken forests, or a really good scary story/movie. They don't always SCARE me, sometimes they do, if in the right circumstance. But there is also Fear...

Fear is the thing under your bed as a child, the monster in your closet, the dark. I am NOT afraid of the dark, but I am easily suggestible, which is why the movie Occulus scared the liver outta me. Usually that which I fear is the unseen, the unknown, the mysterious. Yes, mirrors do scare me a little. :-)

So, what scares me? Being alone has always been a big one. Not being home alone or not having a spouse or friends, but being utterly alone. Like being the last person left. It's not a practical fear, but it's a real one. that's why when the Zombie Apocalypse happens, I know what team I am on. ~giggle~ I do watch the Walking Dead (haven't watched Season 4 yet). Daryl rules!!

I fear failure and not being good enough. Not the must scary thing ever, but it's a real fear. I will use this negative energy when I do OctPoWriMo, NaPoWriMo, NaNoWriMo, and when I go and submit my work for publication. I feel many of us have felt this to some degree, and because of this fear, I try just a bit harder, using the fear to propel the creative muse.

Today prompt revolves around that which scares us. I have taken the feeling I sometimes get with the world feels empty, when there a few people around, and anything could happen. I used to work at a coffee shop and when I worked the late shift it would often be past midnight when I would be heading home. During that time my car was out of commission and have to walk home late for about a week until it was fixed. Late night, through a Dallas neighbourhood (not a bad neighbourhood), but in a city as big as Dallas walking that far is scary. Especially since after that week there was a slabbing behind the local Kroger.

The Blitz Poem felt like the right poem style for this challenge. Hope to enjoy it, Dear Readers.

OctPoWriMo Blog Hop is here, come in we have cookies!

Word Prompts: Frightening, Darkness, Spooky, Mysterious, Thud, Striking, Midnight, Pounding

Poetic Form: Blitz Poem

In the Moment

In that moment
In your own skin
Skin covered in bumps
Skin becomes cold
Cold is the night
Cold is what you feel
Feel the night’s solitude
Feel the crunching leaves
Leaves are falling
Leaves blowing past your feet
Feet are walking
Feet are frightened
Frightened of the dark
Frightened of the time ringing midnight
Midnight chimes upon the bank’s clock
Midnight is now the time
Time is over
Time to return home
Home is across town
Home is a long walk
Walk away
Walk faster
Faster than the short cut?
Faster than the lighted path?
Path through the darkness
Path through the graveyard
Graveyard is spooky
Graveyard is quiet
Quiet are the empty streets
Quiet as you walk
Walk across the street
Walk to the light
Light is very dim
Light is almost gone
Gone are the trick-or-treaters
Gone are most people
People that filled the night
People out to party
Party all night
Party until the end
End of the fun
End of the day
Day is opposite to night
Day is not scary
Scary is the night
Scary is the lonely streets
Streets that are empty
Streets that are mysterious
Mysterious
Empty.

From MorgueFile
Also, today, Dear Readers you luck out. I am featuring my top 5 favourite things to watch during the Halloween season. Note: this was meant to be a separate blog, but time and multiple blog posts required me to condense my posts. 

Halloween sparks many things in me, from pumpkins to candy to scary movies. And as I pointed out above I don't like super scary movies; these are usually the ultra scary or gory horror movies. I prefer the classic. The scary/horror movies that will scary you for the duration of the movie, but when reality sets in cease to become scary after the movie is over.

Yet, I do watch these things. So these are my top 5 must watch during the month of October. Some are obvious, others are not.

1. Halloween 1 and 2: these are classic horror, not super gory, but entirely effective movies. Simple scares leave you with the sense of, "Was that noise Michael Myers Now?", They aren't super fast paced, but they is something creepy and maybe just a little scary about the use of a synthesizer and silence to off set the suspense and the actual murdering. Best part of the Halloween movies (1 and 2) is there are riffs for both, The one for Halloween is available on Rifftrax. The IRiff of Halloween 2 is currently unavailable due to site upgrades (check back in a few weeks, if you are curious still).
   


2. Halloween 3 - Season of the Witch: this movie is a terrible movie. Cheesy and full of camp, but in it's cheesiness there is something amazing. There is also an IRiff fro Halloween 3 (see note above). A Note to viewers, Halloween 3 is NOT a Michael Myers story. The Halloween franchise was suppose to be an anthology of Halloween stories after the Myers story finished. BUUUUUUUUUUUUT, the movie tanked and then was decided that people preferred more of Michael. Thus making Michael into another character in the vein of Jason Voorhees and Freddie Kruger.



3. It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown: yes, it's classic and yes it's a kids special. But, I did grow up on it and I get a great joy out of, "I got a Rock!" the Red Baron, and sincere pumpkin patches.

4. Halloween Safety Shorts from the 1970's and  the 1980's:

Both of these were shown in school. I am most familiar with the first one. They play these in school during Halloween, on the day when we could dress up in our costumes and have the school Halloween parade. There usually was a party with cookies, cupcakes, candy, and cider. All kids got a free trick-or-treat bag. And the best part, there wasn't much school to the day because of it. What more could a kid want, right?


5. Mad Monster Party: a Rankin Bass special, full length movie about monsters coming together for a convention to hear their leader, Dr. Frankenstein retire and leave the business to his geeky, bumbling nephew. And then the attempt to attain the position by some of the fellow monsters. Not the best special. It is a tad on the long side and it has a slowly paced story. But the music is pretty good. Having a potential for an awesome premise, it misses by being too long. Yet, it is good for a laugh.

Honourable Mention - Grandpa's Silly Scaries and Monster Movies. Two DVD featuring Al Lewis as Grampa (Monster) hosting Halloween Public Domain cartoons and classic monster movie trailer. Both are available on DVD. Check out VCR from Heck for more information on Public Domain cartoons, Halloween cartoons, Publid Domain movies, and Grampa.

What do you watch during the Halloween season? What are you scared of or are afraid of?

4 comments:

  1. Hmmm. Interesting. I think if I KNEW I was the only one left, yeah, it'd be weird, but it might be alright. I dunno. I guess you'd get used to it. There would be little to worry about unless you got sick.

    Fortunately it's not gonna happen :D

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  2. This is my favorite of the day! Love the blitz, and love how it ended. Excellent work!! *added to favorites*

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  3. Great Blitz! I felt that moment of fear, well done!

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  4. I loved this blitz in particular. Well done, milady!

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