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My Honda Fit (2009) is gone. As of yesterday, we welcomed this bad boy into the fold. A Honda CR-V. The Fit was wonderful. It was the first car I purchased myself. It was with me for 14.5 years. But…the time had come. This NEW one will be safer, more up-to-date, bigger (for events!), and higher off the ground so I won’t get stuck so easily in winter weather. I don’t have a proper name for it (Clarisse was the Fit), but I’m leaning toward a Capybara moniker. (The Fit was the hamster) This vehicle looks chill and chonky…i.e. Capybara.
Sanctum, as you might know, is out in the world, having its day. I need more reviews, people! 🙂 If you happen to read it, PLEASE toss a review onto Amazon and/or Goodreads. People have asked what I’ll be working on next. My PLAN is to do a third collection of short horror/suspense/apocalyptic stories (which will likely start during NaNoWriMo – November). I know, it’s not a regular novel, but I feel the need to do at least one more short story collection. Someone I was talking to mentioned that this will be “easier to write”. Not so!! I have to come up with FIFTEEN plot-lines, characters, and endings as opposed to one story and a handful of characters. It’s not easier – it’s just different. And of course, all the editing… (I like to have 15 stories in my collections – it’s just my thing)
The next event is coming up fast! Saturday, June 24 is the Indie Author Book Expo at the Peoria Civic Center (in Peoria). It runs from 10am to 3pm and it’ll be my first time. I’m told that there will be between 24 and 30 authors (of all different genres), so it should be fun. If you’re in the area, come on by. More info can be found on my EVENTS page on the blog.
Okay, so what have we been watching as of late? A LOT of movies (mostly from Tubi). I’ll pick and choose so the list isn’t crazy long. (lol)
The Thing From Another World (1951) – Black and white “horror” movie that came along well before the much better “The Thing” (1982). It’s exactly what you might expect, with a dash of misogyny thrown in for good measure. James Arness (the 6′ 7″ Gunsmoke star) plays ‘the thing’, but you would never recognize him. I don’t care for this line, but it fits: It is what it is. I gave it a 3.8 and Charlie gave it a 5.8.
Dr Terror’s House of Horrors (1965) – The standard “five guys on a train” and Death joins them, telling them their fortunes/future. Two pinnacles of horror greatness (Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee) help lead the movie down an expected path. I imagine it was cutting edge in ’65, but time and age has lessened its effectiveness. Still, I gave it a probably too strong 8.0, just for the awesome old-school charm. Charlie came in at a “not amused” 4.8.
Them That Follow (2019) – Inside a snake-handling church deep in Appalachia, a forbidden relationship forces a pastor’s daughter to confront her community’s deadly tradition (Google). A solid movie that delves into obscure church practices (which I imagine go on somewhere today…). Good acting, good characters, and believable storylines. Decent recommend.
Air Collision (2012) – A solar storm disables air-traffic control, sending Air Force One and a passenger plane on a collision course. (Google). I found this on Tubi and thought it would be an easy watch while we had lunch. Well…the dialogue, characters, and incessant problem-on-top-of-problems made it pretty laughable – almost to the point of unwatchable. There HAVE been other movies that take the “disaster” factor much more seriously, and I probably would prefer those. This? Well, you’re on your own. I gave it an almost undeserved 2.0, where Charlie ranked it at 7.1.
Thirteen Lives (2022) – True story directed by Ron Howard. A rescue mission is assembled in Thailand where a group of young boys and their soccer coach are trapped in a system of underground caves that are flooding. (Google) Riveting tale, well acted, incredible cinematography, and very intense at times. While I remember this ACTUALLY HAPPENING, it was fascinating to see how everything played out. I learned quite a bit about how it was handled and how so many people came together. High recommend.
Deranged (1974) – A loose telling about the killer, Ed Gein. Um. No? It’s gross. It’s disgusting. It’s hard to watch. It’s disturbing on a number of levels. If you aren’t a horror fan, take a hard pass. Charlie and I do the ugly work so you don’t have to.
Okay, that’s plenty. Thanks for reading! 🙂
Sue
Sue Rovens 