the words and worlds of John Robinson
Back in the mid-'90s, I began to work the graveyard shift (which turned into a nearly eighteen year stretch). When I was not working, on my "days" off so to speak, I had a tendency to keep to my routine of being up late at night and sleeping late into the day (this was before …
Does anybody else remember their middle grade and high school health classes? A few of you, good. I remember mine as well. Does anybody remember the chapter(s) on sexually transmitted diseases? I think I saw a few of you cringe with, ahem, familiarity. It was alternately humorous, awkward, and boring to read and listen to …
In a small village in early 18th Century England, a farmer, Ralph, makes a gruesome find while plowing the field: the blade uncovers a skull. The skull is not human, but seems to be a mix of beast and man, maybe even demonic. For all its age and decomposition, it still has one eye intact …
Continue reading "Movie of the Week: The Blood On Satan’s Claw"
When two strangers have a conversation over drinks in a bar the future is changed in drastic ways.
"Movies are so rarely great art that if we cannot appreciate great trash we have very little reason to be interested in them." - Pauline Kael When we were children, my brother and I used to stay up late on Saturday nights to watch Elvira, Mistress of the Dark. If you are unfamiliar with her …
Continue reading "Movie of the Week: Humanoids From the Deep (1980)"
I'm a He-Man fan from way back. I was five years old when I was first gifted with the action figures. I loved them. I collected all the figures and playsets, and I watched the animated series every day after school. I was a fanatic. Before I ever viewed the cartoon show, my introduction to …
Several years ago, on a Halloween night, I was invited to a seance. It was the first one I had ever attended, and I enjoyed it. A friend of mine hosted, and there were about six of us gathered at her house. It wasn't a hold hands around a crystal ball type of gathering, we …
Some years ago I was a member of the Science Fiction Book Club. They had a series of books in which they reprinted classic titles from different decades. Through the club I obtained copies of Rendezvous With Rama, The Mote In God's Eye, and Mythago Wood among others. It was during the reprint of the …
Continue reading "Movie of the Week: Dreams With Sharp Teeth"
The unnamed narrator of The Shadow Year lives with his family in the suburbs of 1960s Long Island. He has an older brother, Jim, and younger sister, Mary. Their dad works three jobs and their mom is an alcoholic who can barely function at times. Their grandparents live in the garage converted into an apartment. It …
Continue reading "Book of the Month, August: The Shadow Year"
I've only had four dreams, or they could be called nightmares, which have really stood out and stayed with me over the years. All of them I dreamed when I was a kid, and only one still bothered me as an adult. That dream was about Bigfoot standing in the corner of my grandmother's front …
Curio Macabre 