Normally I don’t like pictures of myself, cause I think I look akward and geeky. Emily took this photo of me Saturday night before we went out and partied in Philly. I look hot in this photo! Sorry if the T-shirt offends anyone 🙂

Dustin

Hope everyone had a good weekend filled with fun parties. I went out and partied a little too much this weekend. I had fun though! Nothing planned for tonight other than a night in front of the boob tube.

Dustin

Just a fun little website I found . . .

http://www.theoworlds.com/halloween/

Dustin

The following are ghost stories from my family, just in time for Halloween! They may not be the spookiest, but hey, they are true.

The first two stories come from my mom and are from her childhood. They take place at my great-grandmother’s home. A bit of background here. My great-grandfather built the house and when he dug the foundation for the house he came across civil war artifacts and bodies! The Smithsonian was called in to excavate and it turned out the land was once the headquarters of a Civil War general named Mosby who lead a pack called Mosby’s Raiders. The Smithsonian took the bodies and most of the artifacts, leaving some of the poorer preserved rifles with my family. On Sundays when the family would gather at my great-grandma’s and the kids would all play war with these rifles.

Anyways, one Sunday as everyone had gathered for lunch, the kids were outside playing as usual. Suddenly the attic window opened and someone, or something, threw an ugly witches mask down at the kids. The strange thing was, nobody knew where the mask came from and all the adults and kids were accounted for!

In another story from my great-grandma’s house . . . . My great-great-grandma Mimi lived in the house until she died. Every night she would get up and walk down a long hallway to the bathroom, take her medicine out of the cabinet, and then walk back to her room. After she died, my mom, uncle and aunt were spending the night in the house. Late at night they heard the all too familiar footsteps of great-great-grandma Mimi walking down the hallway, opening the medicine cabinet, and walking back to her room! They thought it was their uncle playing a trick on them, but it wasn’t!

This quick story comes from my grandma. She told this to me when I was in undergrad and we were watching a program on ghosts. Shortly after my grandfather died she said she woke up one night and saw him standing at the end of her bed looking at her. She felt it was his way of telling her everything would be okay.

The following two stories come from my mom. Last year my grandmother passed away after a battle with cancer. On the day she passed, the family had gathered to be with her. My mom and the woman who was my grandmother’s caretaker were sitting with her in her room. Suddenly the door to my grandmother’s room opened and then closed, as if my grandmother’s spirit had got up and left to see what the family in the other room was up to. She passed away in the evening, and that night my mother instinctively woke up in the middle of the night to check on her, as she usually did. She found that the light in my grandmother’s room was on!

So there are the ghost stories from my family, that I can recall. As I experience more ghost stories in my house I’ll be sure to let you know about them.

Dustin

The leaves are turning and falling and it’s getting nippy out. Fall is here! Halloween is almost over, then Thanksgiving and finally Christmas! Christmas, the most wonderful time of the year. One of my favorite things about Christmas are the TV specials. I love them, which should be evident since I named my dog after one. This year the powers that be are releasing the He-Man and She-Ra Christmas Special on DVD. I HAVE to have this! I think I saw it all of once when I was a kid. I was a huge He-Man fan. I still have all the toys. Christmas just got a little brighter this year!

Dustin

Given that Halloween is coming up, I thought I’d give out some recommendations for some of my favorite all time scary movies. The list is far too long to include everything I enjoy, so I picked a few classics, a few new films and a few foreign films.

First up, one for the whole family. This is Disney’s “Watcher in the Woods” starring none other than Bette Davis. This is one of the earlier scary movies I ever saw, and to this day I still love it. It’s a great spooky film about a “ghost” in the woods surrounding a castle a family move into. Suitable for all ages. “Naaaaaaareeeeeeek!”

Up next is the Aussie film “Undead.” I’m not the biggest fan of Zombie films, because they are all the same, kill the brains and the zombies die. This one is a bit different though. It is part horror and part comedy with one big twist your not expecting in a zombie film! I can’t say what without spoiling the film.

“The Toolbox Murders” is a recent film but is built upon classic slasher films. It is made by the original director of “Texas Chainsaw Massacre” and is a gore fest and scream fest. The film centers around a woman living in an old building in Hollywood in which the residents go missing one by one. If you just want to be creeped out by a good old fashion slasher flick, this is a good pick. Warning, very violent and not for the faint of heart!

“The Eye” is a film from Thailand that has a lot in common with “The Sixth Sense.” This film is about a woman who receives cornea transplants and as a result sees the dead. This is a very spooky film and is recommended for those who love ghost stories. Subtitles require reading, and I know that bothers some. If you can get past the subtitles, your in for a good ride.

“The Others” is another great ghost story. While somewhat predictable, it’s still a good tale with a good twist. The movie centers around Nicole Kidman and her children, who are haunted by a houseful of unseen spooks during WWII (maybe WWI, it’s been awhile).

Forget the remake that is in the theaters now, see the original “The Fog” instead. This one is spookier, has more shock value and is a better story all around. The film centers around a mysterious fog that descends upon a town that is getting ready to celebrate it’s 100th anniversary. Something is back for revenge, and it’s in the fog! It’s a John Carpenter film, you can’t go wrong with him!

“Poltergeist” is just a classic, there is no doubt about it. The film centers around the disappearance of a families youngest daughter Carol Anne and the ghosts that haunt their house. If you’ve never seen this film, I just have to ask why? Go rent it now! One of the best ghost stories ever made! “They’re Here!”

Another classic, one that spawned a lot of pretty bad sequels. The original “Nightmare on Elm Street” is the best of the bunch. Everyone knows this story, Freddy the clawed killer gets people in their dreams. Gory and scary, this one still packs a wallop. Even if you know how it ends, I bet you’ll still get chills when watching it again.

“The Mothman Prophecies” is a supernatural thriller inspired by a true story. It is about a figure called the mothman who brings devastation whenever he appears throughout history. While not a jump out of your seat thriller, it is a creepy film with some even creepier audio effects. I dare you to take on Ingrid Cold and not get chills!

“Halloween” by John Carpenter launched Jamie Lee Curtis’ career as a scream queen, and this is one of those classics that still holds up. Everyone recognizes the theme song and the mask of Michael Myers, the crazed killer who wreaks havoc on Halloween. While not a gore fest, the knitting needle scene still gives me the willies.

While most horror movie sequels don’t live up to the originals, “Halloween H20” is one damn good film that does. It takes place 20 years after the original, and Michael is still looking for Jaime Lee! It manages to recapture the scares of the original. Not to be confused with the horrible “Halloween Resurrection.”

Again, this is one of those films that is just as good as, if not better than the original. “Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter” is really the best of the “Jason” films. This film was touted, at the time, the last of the series in which Jason dies. It’s also the film in which Jason was unmasked (though he was unmasked in the 2nd one for a quick second).

So what are some of your favorite horror films?

Dustin

Last night I watched 2 hours of BBC America. First I watched Footballers Wive$ Series 2 Finale. It was sooooo good, but I don’t think they intend to keep going with it 🙁 They are up to series (season) 5 or 6 over in Britain.

After that I watched the premier of a new series called Mile High, which followed a group of flight attendants on an airline called Fresh! The name suits them, as the whole show was about shagging.

After 2 hours of these show, I found myself thinking in an British accent! It didn’t help that I was high on cold medicine at the time either.

Dustin

I had a lot of plans this weekend, none of which happened. I was supposed to go out with Emily on Saturday night, but Friday I started to get sick. I had to cancel 🙁 Today I was supposed to go see “Mirror Mask” with my friends in Philly. Surprise Surprise, they are sick too! Canceled.

A little bit of happy news though, my mom and brother got two new kittens! We lost our last two cats (of three childhood cats) this past year. They were considering getting a dog, but I think that idea may have been nixed after they took care of my high maintenance baby 🙂 They missed having cats around and just adopted a brother and sister, Amos and Peekaboo! They are about 6 months old. My brother sent me a photo of them.

Amos and Peekaboo

Dustin

Take the quiz: “Which Horror Movie Are You?”

The Craft
You’re whole life, you’ve felt different. You know you’re different, and that is why you break away from the norm and don’t give a shit what other people think about you. You’re you, you’re proud, you’re a bit… weird might I say? but you’re far more interesting than most people will ever percieve. Keep being yourself, whether people like it or not.

Dustin

So last night I went out with my partner in crime again. We had dinner at a restaurant/bar type establishment I adore but haven’t gone to in a long time since moving out of the city. However I’ve been there twice this week already, and may be going again tomorrow if weather permits. I’m sure after tomorrow I’ll be sick of it. After dinner we went to have some fun. I don’t know if you can handle the truth as to where I was. I think you all are too straight laced for the truth. Here are some hints about my evening.

Where we went was once a hole in the wall bar, until they expanded and bought the place next to them. Now it’s sort of a nice place, though the bathrooms say “Sitters” and “Standers” complete with drawings to explain to those who don’t get it.

The clientele is still the hole in the wall bar type :). Actually they are the cool kats who think they are ultra hip in their corduroy pants and retro shirts. If your in college, you know the type. There is one in every class.

Music and dancing was going on, but we weren’t really participants. Well, my friend did dance on stage once (if you can call it a stage), and I did dance with a kind of celebrity.

We handed out dollar bills 😉

Hehe, it’s not as bad as I make it out, and it’s actually a Philly tradition among many, especially college kids.

Dustin