Closed on Account of Rabies

The 7th of October marks the anniversary of Edgar Allan Poe's death.

Public domain photo, via Pixabay.com

The cause of his demise is still inconclusive. One of the possible reasons for his death was rumored to be rabies, which was the inspiration of a 1997 spoken word album entitled Closed on Account of Rabies: Poems and Tales of Edgar Allan Poe, now long out of print. I am lucky enough to own a copy of the CD and it has become one of my seasonal favorites. 

 

 

 

See the Youtube link below to listen to Iggy Pop's dramatic reading of "The Tell-Tale Heart."

Turkey day weekend

I know 2020 Thanksgiving was supposedly gonna suck because we'd all been asked to socially isolate within our own households and not gather in big groups for the holiday, but I gotta say. I enjoyed myself a lot and I can't remember a more relaxing and chill T-Day 4-day weekend. 

Picture this:

Super easy dinner, it's just the two of you. Instant, canned, and/or frozen-cooks-in-bag fare. Nothing fancy, but decent enough. I mean, as long as there's stuffing and green bean casserole, right? Plus, there's leftovers.

Pickles the cat doin' a THANK

"D'ya eat yet? No? Lemme fix you up a plate."

Then Saturday night Friend night: meta-dinner with the BFF - video chat + virtual sushi dinner in Second Life + real-life sushi delivered + Netflix watch party (Hannibal, for the 2nd time). 

What a time to be alive.

Then, hopping in the car with your partner & chasing around fog til the wee hours in the muffled night, because why the hell not.

 

Then finishing this book, which you finally got around to reading, in the even later hours of the evening, and waking up tearfully and dreaming about Patti Smith & her life all night long, as if she made a psychic visit with you in the dream world.

Then waking up peacefully, and sharing a simple breakfast with coffee & some fancy pastries from a bakery in Seattle that your partner picked up the day before. And lounging around, and eventually making your way to a local park to walk around in the magical sunset mists.

And then, deciding to pick up a few groceries at Fred Meyer so you can come home, make a simple dinner, then watch a movie.

And then, deciding to take a pit stop at the cemetery where your partner's mother is buried, because it just feels like an opportune time and mood to do it.

And watching the foggy sunset over the town below, as Mt. Rainier watches all.

And then the moon rises, and that's something that the mountain & the moon have in common, is that you'll never cease to gasp in wonder whenever you see them. Even if that means you're a sentimental and/or romantic old fool.

* * *

I have very mixed feelings about this holiday - especially this year. But I am still grateful for many things. And I really enjoy winter in the Pacific Northwest and I'm looking forward to it this year.

 

Masque of the Red Death 2020 Redux

For the past couple of weeks or so I've been working feverishly on a project that I am finally ready to reveal - my virtual home haunt. 

I was asked to be an artist participant in Dutch Design Week 2020 for the event Manifestations: Monsters, an international program of Art, Tech & Fun Online expo during Dutch Design Week 2020 from October 17-25. 

For the fifth year in a row, Manifestations shows artists who, in a funny, spectacular or controversial way, examine the (mis) matches between people and technology and ask how technology can contribute to a sweeter, more humane world.

With more than 50 works by mostly young, recently graduated artists who put the exciting interaction between people and technology in a different light. 

Visit the website for the full range and program of kids workshops, lectures and meet-ups.

We offer tours and VIP tours via pers at manifestations.nl to sign up.

Manifestations is the largest Art & Tech event during Dutch Design Week.

https://facebook.com/manifestations.nl

https://twitter.com/Manifestations_

https://instagram.com/_manifestations

More info here - https://2020.manifestations.nl/en/pers/

Dutch Design Week in Eindhoven, Netherlands is the largest design event in Northern Europe and presents work and concepts from more than 2,600 designers to more than 355,000 visitors from home and abroad. (link)

Usually, Dutch Design Week and its related programs are mixed-reality events - that is to say, some occur in person on locations in Eindhoven, while others are held online and in virtual-reality space. This year however, due to the pandemic, all events will all take place online. 

The main Second Life event portal for Manifestations: Monsters. 

Visitors arrive here, and then can teleport to the different installations at the tall kiosks on the left.

Second Life users can follow this link to it - http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Chill/222/23/21

The online portion I'm involved in exists in Second Life, a virtual 3D sandbox world. My project is based on the short story "The Masque of the Red Death" by Edgar Allan Poe, and incorporating some commentary about present-day sociopolitical issues.  

I currently live in a small apartment in a busy urban area, so home haunts aren't an option for me. We don't even get trick-or-treaters, we're too near busy roads with no sidewalks. Fortunately for me, I can build almost anything I want in virtual space, so it helps to scratch that Halloween itch. 

Masque of the Red Death Redux 2020 is an interactive installation in which Second Life users can visit in virtual 3D space. If you have a Second Life account, you can visit this installation by following this link - http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Kress/244/88/301

For those who don't have an account, I will post some screencaps below, and eventually will produce a video. 

Here are some preview images:

When you arrive at the virtual space, you are given this backstory to give context to your experience.

You then begin your journey by 'teleporting' to the beginning chapter, and follow the paths through various scenes - not unlike a haunted house.

There's a few teaser images for you - next week, there will be a virtual event, where I will be interviewed, that will be livestreamed on Youtube. I'll share more details about that soon!

Favorite childhood books - Spooky Tricks

Spooky Tricks is a magic book for kids with a Halloween/ghostly theme.

  

    Inside its pages are easy-to-make projects for illusions and tricks using common household items.

    The illustrations are great and I love the green and purple color scheme. This book is a little yellowed now, so the original print has faded a bit and the green is not as vibrant. 

There have been other editions of this book with different illustrations, but this one is my favorite.

Favorite childhood books - Something Queer at the Haunted School

    It's Throwback Thursday, so I'm sharing another of my favorite Halloween-themed kids' books:

Something Queer at the Haunted School by Elizabeth Levy, illustrated by Mordicai Gerstein, published around 1982.

    Apparently there is a series of books called Something Queer is Going On about BFFs Jill and Gwen & Jill's dog Fletcher, but this was the only one I ever had; I probably got it through my school's Scholastic books program. I must have read it a zillion times when I was a young Halloweenie. My copy is still in great shape in spite of this, although yellowed with time, which I suppose can't really be helped.

    The illustrations by Gerstein are incredible. Levy and Gerstein have collaborated on other books in this series, and on other junior horror/Halloween titles (one of which I'll be blogging about in the near future), and they make a fantastic team. Find a copy of this somewhere for your Halloween collection!

 

Clive Barker in the news

     I'm psyched to see Clive Barker's name a lot lately - he's one of my favorite visual artists EVER, and the films Hellraiser & Hellbound are among my top most important & influential films.

    First up: Books of Blood, based on short stories by Barker, will see a release on Hulu on 7th October 2020. 

Image via Hulu

    Next up: The new vision of Candyman, originally to be released in June of this year, will see a theatrical release on 16th October.

Watch the animated trailer here.

    And finally: apparently Clive Barker has a new Threadless shop that has just launched featuring his paintings & drawings, and I'm trying not to buy everything. 

News courtesy of Clive Barker's official site

Favorite childhood books - The Blue-Nosed Witch

    Wayback Wednesday to one of my childhood favorite Halloween books - The Blue-Nosed Witch by Margaret Embry. 

    The story is about a young witch named Blanche who has a bright glowing blue nose. She's constantly late for everything, and gets sidetracked on the way to a Halloween outing with her fellow witches. 

    Blanche meets a group of regular kids who are dressed up in costumes, who are just on their way out to go trick-or-treating... ⠀

    What are your favorite Halloween picture books?⠀