One starry night, I saw a black cat looking up at the moon.
Do you think animals wonder about the moon? We certainly know lunar cycles have an affect on animal behaviors, but I can’t seem to find the answer to whether they admire the moon and star gaze like people.
World renowned artist Aja Trier picks up where van Gogh left off, by painting animals, landscapes, famous cities, and more under the infamous starry night. With titles like ‘The Haunting of van Gogh’ and ‘van Gogh Never Saw Las Vegas’, Ms. Trier is clearly inspired by the doomed Impressionist and her works are more tribute than imitation.
Aja Trier’s art is sold online through her own gallery, places such as Fine Art America and private galleries around the globe, please see her website for details.
I announce the return of the monthly blog! Random musings and kitsch movie lists for my fellow horror lovers, that’s what I’ll offer at the end of every month. Can you believe it’s already the end of May? We are well past the halfway point to Halloween. This is a crucial time of year for many Halloween fans because it’s been 8 months since we’ve seen a jack-o’-lantern, Summer, the most dreaded season, is right around the corner, and we desperately need something that will satisfy our cravings until October. We’re hunting down springtime scares and often finding comfort in horror nostalglia. Halloween lovers might be a little prickly right now.
Most of us still have Covid anxiety and after a year of living in and out of lockdowns, nobody knows how to act. Mass shootings have returned and vaccination lotteries are all the rage. Human beings have to be bribed to take care of our health. How the hell did we get this far? Anyways, it’s suggested that we ease back into society, gingerly, like curious cute kittens, ready to explore, adorably pounce on butterflies we can’t catch, and slash the hell out of anyone who messes with us. This is why I predict a cautious summer with steady routines and subtle day trips to our favorite local hangouts, where we can get used to being around people again, wearing clothes that don’t stretch, and obeying traffic laws. By Fall, however, we should be ready to party. I’m really looking forward to that.
Halloween season is the perfect time to get adventurous, try new things, and travel the world, or maybe just to the next city over, if you can’t afford a plane ticket. Trust me, it all counts. Visually, one half of the world will be stunning, so get those cameras ready. I’m hoping climate change hasn’t doomed our favorite autumn landscapes just yet. Another reason why we should take plenty of photos this fall. In fifty years, no one will believe we had bountiful harvests, tall trees, and grass this green. But, let’s table the rest of this discussion for later this year.
Halloween is a holiday that can be shared by communities and we’ll be needing to build up the goodwill and learn to trust society all over again. Trust each other again. What better way to do it over a shared love of pumpkin spiced lattes and creepy yard haunts, plus, there’s extra incentive in finding the beautiful abandonment of a pre-covid world. Abandoned places. Restless spirits. Scary monsters. Haunted people. Only time will tell how much we’ve changed after this pandemic. The anger. The fears. The death. We’re gonna need to channel these dark energies, and the arts, the culture, music, movies, comics, gaming, literature… it’s where we’ll go to bear our souls. Fear not my friends, I feel a spooky renaissance may be on the horizon.
What do you think? Let me know in the comments section or hit me up on social media.
Recently, Halloween Haiku celebrated its 3rd anniversary. It’s been a quiet and subdued year, partly due to the pandemic, partly due to the fact that I’ve been unemployed since January. The job hunt takes up most of my energy, focus, and time these days. I had even toyed with the idea of shutting down, but decided to simplify instead. I post haiku every week. We’re not the biggest or the most exciting web blog, but who doesn’t need a little quiet contemplation every now and then?
I tried many times to hold events and do contests, but the truth is, I simply don’t have a big enough following to justify the costs. Given my current situation, I’m not going to try and rectify that anytime soon. We’ll see what the Halloween 2021 season brings.
Haiku is hard. I’m not even sure how good I am at it. It’s more than coming up with three lines. It’s about conveying emotion, feelings, and memories. Trying to conjure up connections through seventeen syllable poem and imagery is not a simple task either. True haiku is about nature. Senryu is less about nature and more about people. It’s often times witty or humorous. Most of my poems falls under the category of zappai, a seventeen syllable poem that does not match the format or characteristics of either haiku or senryu. I like writing halloween haiku, horror haiku, or dark haiku. I like writing in third person, say, from the witch’s point-of-view:
burning straw escape the witch hunters a magical broom
Maybe it’s no Matsuo Basho, but it’s not a haiku failure either. It’s just different. If you’re interested, you can learn more about zappai and other haiku styles here.
I want to thank my supporters, readers, and anyone who stops by to take a look at my little blog. I appreciate your time and energy. Here’s to another great year of Halloween Haiku.🎃
Looking for Covid-safe, last minute or long-distance gifts for a Halloween or Horror fan this Christmas? Well, check out my picks for some magical gifts they’ll love.
Hunt A Killer – Digital Version (Physical box version also available)
Don your detective apparrel for this immersive and thrilling role-playing game, where you help solve the crime from the clues, codes, evidence and more, sent to you to decipher each month. Various sources say you can typically solve the crime within 6 boxes. This is a fabulous must-have gift for True Crime fanatics.
Hunt A Killer: Blair Witch Edition – Digital Version (Physical version also available)
Battle supernatural forces this immersive psychological thrilling role-playing game. Just like its predecessor, Hunt a Killer, sends tons of clues, documents, evidence, etc., each month to help solve the mystery of the Blair Witch.
Stranger Things: The Drive-Into Experience – Los Angeles, CA ($154)
Based on the hit Netflix show, Stranger Things, this amazing one-of-a-kind immersive theater event lets fans drive into the world of Hawkins and unlock the secrets of the Upside Down. Word out is tickets for February/March shows are running low for this Covid-19 friendly event.
This year, many Murder Mystery Theaters chose to go virtual with unique immersive events, like this one from The Murder Mystery Company. Grab 8 of your closest friends and don your spookiest apparel for a night of mystery, mayhem and fun. Don’t forget to check your local listings to see if any theaters in your own area are hosting similar events. Support your local theaters!
Cameo Recorded Message/Shout-out from a Horror Celebrity (price varies)
Gift a short call or a pre-recorded message from a horror icon or fan favorite, like one of the ones listed here:
Tom Savini, Horror icon, Director and Special Effects guru ($100) John Kasssir, Crypt Keeper of HBO’s Tales from the Crypt ($70) Tony Todd, Star of Candyman, Final Destination, etc. ($100) Kane Hodder, Jason Star of Friday the 13th movies, Crowley from Hatchet, etc. ($
Watch spooky movies from the comforts of your own home, with this awesome subscription to Shudder, a premium horror channel, streaming horror, thrillers and suspense 24/7.
Got a creative Halloween fan in the family? Gift them a Creativebug subscription, where they will have unlimited access to hundreds of online arts and crafts classes. I hear there’s some special holiday deals on class prices happening right now!
Calling all writers! Give the gift of award-winning horror, dark mystery, and suspense with this one-of-a-kind subscription to Cemetery Dance Magazine, filled with short stories, articles, interviews, reviews and much more!
Life can be sweeter with a virtual membership to the Candy Corn Crew!
GIFTCARD IDEAS:
Eclipse Afterglow Studios If you can’t decide which original print from the Ghost Collection to pick up for your favorite fan, no sweat, Jackie sends cool gift cards, deliverable by email.
Trick or Treat Studios $25 Digital Giftcard Halloween collectibles from the folks that brought us Trick ‘r Treat, Krampus, and more!
Horror Merch Store Horror Merch is still shipping some items, but you could make your life easier with a nice gift card that you know will under the tree, Christmas morning.
Fright Rags The best place for horror fans to get officially licensed T-shirts, apparrel, collectibles and more!
Halloween Horror Haiku 
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