This is a more intimate post. Consider this a hidden journal entry.
It’s Friday the 13th, it’s the 50th post on this website. It’s bringing it back to the Myspace days.
Sometimes the universe feels a bit too much, life spirals out of control and the worst floats nearby, trying to drown you.
This is where some moments save your sanity.
It can be the most random things or the most meaningful ones.
You want examples right ? Ok let’s go.
An unwanted meeting
It was in 2007 when I was with a friend in Los Angeles. She had issues with her mobile so we spent most of our holiday at the T-Mobile booth on the Hollywood Blvd.
I have always loved horror, and knew some of the more hidden gems. Getting bored at the booth my eyes wandered and got stuck on someone. It took me a second to realize.
He saw me look and took an instant 180 away, clearly not wanting any interaction.
I’m still laughing about it to this day, because it was Joey Kern from Cabin fever (the only one who wasn’t infected in the movie because he only drank beers). Me recognizing him changed his entire direction, haha.
Dead bodies ?
Ok, so this next one isn’t legal, so don’t do it, yeah ?
When we were teenagers with friends, there was an abandoned castle near our hometown.
The front door was unlocked once you crawled under the fence.
They had closed everything down because a fire burnt some of the upper floors and basements.
It was very dangerous, and we were very drunk.
When we made our way to the basement floors, back in the no cellphones days, we only had a rechargeable light.
We completely forgot that there used to be a wax museum down there when the fire started.
You see where I’m going with this, right ?
Yes, we walked down two flights of stairs in pitch darkness to stumble upon human parts.
It took us a good two seconds too many to realize that they were attached to metal hooks.
We had to recharge our only lamp at that exact moment too, because it could have died anytime, but chose the perfect timing.
They were burnt to a crisp and all over the floor.
It made for a brilliant memory, but was soooo scary in the moment. We had such a good laugh afterwards though.
The gentleness of a horror queen
After the For the love of horror convention in 2024, I took a flight back home to France.
I couldn’t afford a picture with some of the OG Evil Dead cast and was fairly bummed about it…
Until I buckled my seatbelt and heard a familiar laugh on the row behind me. I turned and it was Betsy Baker (Linda) herself with her husband !
She saw me smile and instantly asked if I was at the con (wearing a bloody necklace and a Wes Craven shirt gave me away anyways). We talked a bit before takeoff, and then again after landing.
She offered to take a picture, but we boarded different busses. We later met again at the passport queue and took one.
We then chatted again while waiting for our luggage. It was her first time in Paris.
I still hold this memory very dear to my heart and am forever grateful that she has such a distinct laugh.
“Don’t lick it”
Visiting Chernobyl in 2017 made for some fun memories as well. I went with a tour, not knowing what to expect. Having a dog rescue, I brought some dog food for the abandoned doggies in the exclusion zone.
Just picture the scene for a moment please.
A little goth girl, alone in a -mostly couples- tour, that stopped whenever there were dogs nearby to feed them her packed lunch. The odds weren’t in my favor to pass as « normal ».
So when there were decaying dolls or gas masks, of course I would take stylized pictures.
Of course everyone would stare.
Anyways we got to the ferris wheel part of Pripyat and the guide stopped dead in his tracks to explain that the zone is still highly contaminated.
He puts his Geiger counter next to it and it spikes.
He then stands up, looks me dead in the eyes and says « So don’t lick it ».
I kid you not when I say that to this day I still don’t know whether it was a joke or not to single me out like that.
I use it almost monthly, and you probably read it somewhere on the website because that is the funniest shit to assume out of anybody.
« Please don’t lick this » referring to something no one would think to put their tongues anywhere near.
I loved it and still do. What happened on his tour for that to be his first reaction ? I’m so fascinated.
The horror community
And to close it off (although I have a hundred more of those anecdotes) I’ll circle back to the For the love of horror convention.
Yes, again.
This was my first time there, by myself, not being familiar with Manchester at all.
I went to the friday night screening, but not without getting lost with no Wi-fi.
I had won a ticket to attend the preview of Thanksgiving at the local cinema afterwards. I was sooo excited.
I still had no Wi-fi though. I didn’t know anyone. I had no idea where the cinema was.
Turns out, after asking a few people, it was either a 45 minutes walk (with no gps) or a 5 minutes Uber ride (without an internet connection).
The struggle was real.
The venue was closing down, people were all walking out… I had no way to get there so, in desperation, I tried talking to litterally everyone around me to try and get some help.
A lovely, very drunk girl grabbed my arm and took me to a car.
Any other situation would have been a giant red flag.
I could have died.
But luckily the horror community is the best.
She gave me her seat in a car, finding another way for herself to get there…
The door closed.
There I was with four strangers, driving to the cinema in the middle of the night, in a different country.
Without a signal in sight.
Anything could have happened… but it turns out that they were some of the organizers and panel hosts for the convention.
Not only did I get to the screening on time and unharmed, I also got a ride from Manchester horror royalty.
This was an insane first day at FTLOH and a great way to get the weekend started.
This community can be toxic at times, like many others, but the real fans are the sweetest people you’ll ever get to meet.
And that makes it all worth it.