Category Archives: Deep Thoughts & Fun Stuff
Ruminations on Romero’s THE AMUSEMENT PARK
I’m going to preface this by saying I’m not even close to knowing much about the late George Romero’s films, and in fact, I’m not even a fan of his work—mostly (I know, understand, and can appreciate its brilliance, and I think he was a genius. Zombies are just not my thing). He has, however, thanks to Night of the Living Dead, become synonymous with a specific brand of horror, so fan expectations are set.
I just watched George Romero’s gorgeously restored lost gem, 1975’s The Amusement Park, which has been available as a Shudder exclusive for a while now. In my opinion, this is one of the scariest films I’ve ever seen; if you enjoy the work my magazine, 34 Orchard, publishes, then you will definitely be into this—this is profound, visceral, disturbing, real-world, inevitable horror.
I will keep this all spoiler-free, Read the rest of this entry
This writing chick’s got fingers crossed for an even more fabulous year …
Another year has passed … for me, it’s “Already?” Well, they say time flies when you’re having fun, and quite honestly, my 2021 was pretty awesome. I went to or held a few really fun virtual parties (including my 50th birthday!), and got to visit some favorite and new places: twice to Mystic, a few times to Portsmouth, Rhode Island, to a retreat on Cape Cod, and to Salem for the first time. I attended two virtual Cons–StokerCon and the HP Lovecraft Film Festival–and, with my co-chair David Griffith, got the Horror Writers Association’s Connecticut Chapter off the ground. Horrorfest with my cousin returned. I read some amazing books, both issues of 34 Orchard were successful, and I was honored to participate in two online readings as well as be a guest at a few online high school and college classes. And me and Nathan got to spend many an evening watching movies in the comfort of our living room–something we have always enjoyed, but never seemed to have much time to do pre-pandemic.
But it was the Read the rest of this entry
How to Make New Year’s Eve Popper Wishes—and How Mine Came True!
A close-up of the poppers for 2018. Traditionally, these are called “crackers.” I grew up in a small community in Connecticut, and we always called them “poppers,” so when I’m talking about them to others, I have to stop and check myself, because otherwise people won’t know what I’m talking about.
Every year, one of the big events at my New Year’s Eve party is the opening of the poppers, which comes with my special wish for each person to be granted in the new year—happiness, good fortune, fruition, peace, et cetera.
What’s interesting about this is that not only does my wish come true every year, others have told me theirs do, too. Whether it’s really a bit of magic—or simply just people “making it so” through positive thought—it’s still pretty amazing.
Here’s a run-down of how all of mine have manifested so far—and at the end, directions on how to make them Read the rest of this entry
Happy New Year!
We’re staying in and hosting a virtual party at 10pm. Last year, we did the same, only to come down in the morning and our house was trashed like we’d had our pre-pandemic annual NYE bash … fingers crossed we do it again!
Don’t forget to enjoy The Twilight Zone marathon with your mimosas and Bloody Marys tomorrow, and very best wishes for a celebratory evening and a very productive and magical 2022!
Charles, Nathan, Krissi and our kitty Mikey
MERRY CHRISTMAS!
We wish you a bright and merry holiday weekend! From our house to yours, here’s a short video clip (below) of our vintage (1960s) silver tree that has been stowed in our basement for nineteen years—my little cat Poe had Pica, so to him, this was just a big, glittering snack. While I’d rather have my kitty back, and I miss my live tree, it was tear-inducing to put this baby back together and listen to her sing “Silent Night” to us. The color wheel is modern–we DO have the original, but it’s just not fire-safe.
Always love your traditions—but always relish the moment you can shake them up a little bit, too! Thank you for reading and always supporting my work. May your celebrations be filled with joy.
Best wishes,
Kristi, Nathan, Charles (housemate), and Mikey (the cat)
Gild the Holiday Weekend with the KINDLE release of COLOUR OUT OF DEATHLEHEM for charity!
Happy Christmas Eve! The Kindle Edition of Grinning Skull Press’ holiday horror anthology Colour Out of Deathlehem, which contains my story “Feeding the Babies” (if you know what Treevenge is, you’ll love this!) is now available—best of all, 100% of the $4.99 purchase goes to The Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation.
This is a very worthy cause, and I worked long and hard on a brand new story just for you in the hopes that you’d all lend a hand!
The true spirit of Christmas is really in giving. If you’ve got $4.99 to spare, have a Kindle or the app on your phone or PC and love scary Christmas stories? Consider treating yourself while giving to someone else.
Edited by Harrison Graves and Michael Evans, here’s what’s in store:
Welcome back to Deathlehem, where… Read the rest of this entry
Ten tips for a great online party that feels real
For New Year’s Eve, all guests received an invitation and a party cracker in the mail.
We’re entering another year of this pandemic, and while things are looking up, it’s still going to take time. While we all have Virtual Fatigue and a good lot of us are vaccinated, there’s still a need for some virtual activities, and it’s still one of the few ways we can stay in touch.
In 2020, COVID forced me into hosting the two parties I’d planned—34 Orchard Dark Literary Magazine’s launch in April and New Year’s Eve—into virtual rooms. What surprised me? I’d felt like I’d actually had a house full of guests, and my guests—especially for New Year’s Eve—said it was almost as though we’d all been together in person. It was so successful, I did it for my 50th Birthday Party in February of 2021, and I’m hosting New Year’s Eve online again this year (my guests are from all over the country, and sometimes, people come and stay for a few days. Even with all of us being vaccinated, that’s still not really possible this year–we don’t feel it’s worth the risk).
Wanna pull that off? Here’s how:
1 Choose a theme. A party is a party, right? Yes. But a theme creates a cohesion that changes it from a party to an EVENT.
My 50th birthday was themed for my favorite childhood book, THE PENGUIN THAT HATED THE COLD. So the decor was sort of a winter/tropical mix.
2 Set up your chat room/Meet-up/whatever early. Then call your party something Read the rest of this entry
I don’t normally jump on …
… any controversy bandwagon, but can I just say how thrilled I am that almost NO retail stores (other than basics, which I still feel should also be closed) were open on Thanksgiving for “early Black Friday”? I don’t have anyone in my family that works retail, I DID work one year at Bath & Body Works and it was actually fun (it was a side job, so I didn’t have much choice, and for me it was a novelty), but I was against the idea from day one. I found it really rude that places wouldn’t let their workers spend a day with their families at home, and I NEVER shopped on that day for that reason. Maybe it’s another good thing that came out of this pandemic, and I hope it sticks.
On a side note, it always seemed like it “killed” the Black Friday idea anyway. Lots of people I know made a family tradition of getting up early and going as though it was a separate holiday, and it just seemed like it took some of the air out of that balloon (I work my day job on Black Friday, so this doesn’t affect me, but still … )
Stores Staying Closed on Thanksgiving 2023: The Official List
HAPPY THANKSGIVING!
Happy Thanksgiving, from our house to yours! We hope you have a wonderful day celebrating!
— Kristi, Charles, Nathan, and Mikey (and Kristi’s cousin, Maryanne, who will be joining us this year)
For those of you who enjoy easy craft projects, these are table cards I made a few Thanksgivings back. Just get wooden tags/shapes at a craft store, a couple of three dimensional stickers, a marker, and a few pine cones. Decorate the tags the way you like, then you just “stick” them in the cones. This wasn’t my idea–I think I found this on Pinterest or something, but every year, someone asks how I made them.
So … are these new “turkey stuffing potato chips” any good?
I’m not sure if these were out prior to this year, but everyone seems to be making these now–I’ve seen a few different brands.
I bought them as a joke, thinking, ‘these will be disgusting.’
I WAS WRONG. THEY ARE GOOD. In fact, they are FANTASTIC. If you like a richly-flavored chip that has a “bottom” to it (if that makes any sense), then these are absolutely delicious. In other words, if you enjoy any of the following flavors: Sour Cream & Onion, Garlic, Dill Pickle–then you’ll probably enjoy these; the flavor is robust, but not heartburn spicy, and not “thin” like some of the barbecue flavors can be.
I plan on serving them alongside the antipasto on Thanksgiving (it’s just going to be me, Nathan, Charles, and my cousin, Maryanne). I bought four bags just so I’d have some to last the holiday season–if you want to try them? Better hurry! They seem to be Limited Edition no matter who makes them.
