Halloween: Magic, Mystery and the Macabre

I haven't blogged a countdown to mHalloween post yet today and I did not upload a picture of autumnal Montreal yet. Shame on me. The pictures will have to wait sadly, nevertheless I will write a Halloween-related post. The title of it is the same as the book (or one of the books) I am reading right now, edited by Paula Guran. I was looking to horror stories to read this season, but specifically related to Halloween, not merely horror stories, so I would avoid those many ghosts stories set during Christmastime. I was checking on Amazon when I found this one. I ordered it immediately. However, there was a catch I hadn't noticed: in fact, I wanted to buy this book, simply titled Halloween and edited by the same Paula Guran. The first book, published in 2011, was an anthology of horror stories set during Halloween written by reknown authors (Lovecraft and E. Nesbit for instance). It had inspired the creation of Halloween: Magic, Mystery and the Macabre. Maybe it is the title that appealed to me most, and the cover of course, with its grinning Jack O'Lanterns. So I ordered the first one when I discovered my mistake, but of course I kept this one. I am now the proud owner of a whole collection of horror stories, mainly classic tales of terror, but now, thanks to this book, very contemporary ones too. I have read one story so far. One story and a half in fact. Quite entertaining.

Un dimanche montréalais (une observation)

Petite observation, un truc qui m'a frappé lorsque je me suis promené sur le Plateau aujourd'hui: dimanche
à Montréal (en tout cas sur le Plateau Mont-Royal) est plus animé mais plus tranquille que dans bien des petites villes. Celle où je vis notamment, parce qu'elle a beaucoup de circulation le dimanche. Ici les commerces demeurent ouverts plus longtemps, il y a plein de monde, mais tout le monde semble plus zen, sans la pression de la fin de semaine qui se termine.

Autumnal chill

I woke up this morning very early, because of the jetlag, in a Montreal apartment that was quite cool. Well, not downright cold, but cool. My brother had kept the windows open. After a bit of surprise, I actually found it quite pleasant: an autumnal chill like I missed them, just crisp and dry like they are in Montreal. And the trees are gorgeous outside.

Décalage complet

Je suis de retour à Montréal depuis hier. Le voyage a été un charme. C'est pratique de voyager hors saisons: on passe moins de temps aux douanes et les aéroports ne sont pas aussi engorgés. Alors voilà, je suis chez moi... et je souffre du décalage-horaire. Je vais m'en remettre. Je me suis réveillé avant 5 heures du matin et je me sens dans le coton. Outre cela, alors que je tape ces lignes je me rends compte que je ne suis pas habitué au clavier alors je fais faute de tape sur faute de tape. J'écris une ligne, je la réécris trois fois. Je vais me remettre de ça aussi... Et le blogue est en décalage de cinq heures avec son blogueur (puisque je publie à l'heure anglaise).

Witching hour

As I did not do my countdown to Halloween post on Friday (yesterday when you are reading this, but not as I am typing this), I have decided to write quickly a post about Halloween now. As you are reading the post, it is the witching hour. I am in bed and hopefully sleeping, as I will be traveling tomorrow. Not on a broomstick and during daytime (mostly). So I guess I am not a witch (or a warlock, as the male witches are called), in spite of my friendship with a black cat. And in spite of my somewhat nocturnal nature.

13 vendémiaire

Mes lecteurs savent que je m'intéresse au calendrier républicain depuis quelques temps. J'ai donc décidé de bloguer sur une anecdote historique pas si anecdotique: nous sommes aujourd'hui (lorsque vous lirez ce billet, je l'ai mis à l'horaire à minuit) le 13 vendémiaire. En 1795, Napoléon a mis fin à une insurrection royaliste à Paris, acte qui a commencé à le faire connaître. Vous trouverez plus bas la dramatisation tirée de la minisérie Napoléon. J'ai des sentiments ambivalents envers Napoléon mais quel brillant stratège il a été!

Café2U is back! (for now)

Today I had a happy surprise in the morning: Café2U was back! I thought they had gone bankrupt. They had stopped coming more than a year ago, in July 2012. I had seen their vans after that when I was walking home, in the little town where I live, back in September or October 2012. That had been the last sight. Then thir morning, a little bit after 10, I get this mailer saying they were here. Sadly they didn't have the delicious chocolate cornetto they used to have, only plain croissants. So I had a hot chocolate as my Friday treat. Not as big as the one they used to make: there was no whipped cream or marshmallows. I think they learned from their mistakes and know they must be more efficient delivering their food and drinks. I hope this time they last, and thrive, because I love their little business and they are lovely people.

Une poutine végétalienne?

J'ai pris cette photo de la page Facebook d'Aux Vivres, LE restaurant végétalien à visiter à Montréal, un restaurant qui ne vous fait pas regretter la viande un instant. J'ai la nostalgie gastronomique très forte, je songeais surtout à aller dans des places plus viandeuses, mais je suis très curieux à l'idée d'essayer une poutine végé, surtout qu'elle a l'air très santé. Je sais qu'elle est en général disponible en quantité et/ou pour un temps limité, donc j'espère que je vais pouvoir en manger une fois de retour au pays.

A black cat for Halloween

This is my second countdown to Halloween post today, and of course it had to be about my feline friend Odin. Two days ago, when I reminded people on Facebook that there was only one month until Halloween, one of my friends mentioned: "And you already have a black cat". It deserved to be a great unknown line, it also reminded me that, well, he was right, as there is a black cat in my life and black cats do belong to Halloween lore. So it made perfect sense that I blogged about Odin in one of my countdown posts.

Of course, whoever says black cats and Halloween says witches. There is a witch in the neighborhood, however and ironically enough she hates cats in general and Odin in particular. She keeps on talking to people about that bloody cat, but she does not dare to confront me. I have heard that she thinks cats bring vermin. I had evidence to the contrary no later than tonight, and in quite a dramatic fashion, as I have a phobia of small rodents. Rats in particular, but to a lesser extend mice and whatever is their direct relatives. I was checking on Odin, when I saw him getting out of his dwelling... with a mouse in his mouth. It actually gave me a shock. Yes, I am that much of a wuss when it comes to mice, I am afraid of them, in a horrified way, even when they are dead and thus very much harmless, hanging down from a cat's mouth. You should have seen my friend's look of surprise when he saw me scared, there was something so ironic and mocking. He came back to me later, asking for cuddles. Anyway, this episode reassured me: Odin may be partially blind from one eye, he can still hunt. The vet had told me that, I had difficulties believing her.

Octobre est trop chaud (misère)

Je crois que mon titre dit tout et peut-être devrais-je le laisser pour tout billet. Il faut se rendre à l'évidence: ce n'est pas un été des indien, c'est un automne qui semble incapable de vraiment s'installer sitôt après avoir commencé: j'ai porté des vêtements chauds à la fin août et au milieu septembre, mais il a fait doux pour la plupart d'octobre, à un tel point que la nuit je n'ai même pas besoin de manteau lorsque je suis dehors. L'horreur, l'horreur. Je me rappelle des mois d'octobre doux comme celui-ci, mais j'aimerais bien qu'il fasse froid un peu pour vrai. Et j'apprends que c'est la même chose à Montréal. Hé, misère!

Skulls in the fireplace

Here is the post for tonight's countdown to Halloween (although I may write one more). Like yesterday's, it is somewhat about a pub. This picture was taken last year, in a nearby pub, a week or so before Halloween. I was walking back from work and they were putting up their decorations. As I was taking a few pictures of the outside, the landlord invited me to visit the insite, already fully decorated. He was very warm and friendly, telling me about the special events on the weekend before Halloween and the Halloween party that was planned. I guess he wanted to be nice with a future punter.

To tell you the truth, I don't like this pub much. It is set in a beautiful old house, like there are so many in England, but the choice of drinks is rather uninspired and uninspiring, they didn't do much with the building and the inside is just bland and it is a rather rough place, where there has been a few fights and even some people stabbed. I only went there and stayed for a drink a couple of times, I think I could still count them. That said, I went quickly for a glance and I have to say, they know how to make a place atmospheric during Halloween. I took a picture of these two skulls in the fireplace, covered with cobweb. The large skulls are not human, they could belong to giants or ogres. Which makes us leave the world of horror fiction to enter the ones of old folklore and maybe even medieval fantasy, but nevertheless, it was a beautifully sinister display. I hope it gives you inspiration to write a horror story, or any kind of story.

Question existentielle (205)

Une question existentielle sur une chanson folklorique québécoise:

-Pour quelle raison l'alouette de la chanson se fait-elle plumer?

Hobgoblin (the Unofficial beer of Halloween)

As my second post for this year's Halloween countdown, I have decided to plug again the Hobgoblin from Wychwood Brewery. It has become a yearly tradition (my post about it last year here). Unlike what I had said in 2011, they labeled themselves not the official, but the unofficial beer of Halloween, as you can see on the left on this... official label. Nevertheless, unofficial makes it in a way more official. I took this picture in a nearby pub. Wychwood makes a lot of publicity associating the beer with Halloween. But it is available all year round. Every time I have one, no matter when, it puts me in a Halloween mood. Now this year, I will drink it much later in the month, as I am going home for two weeks. Although I first drank Hobgoblin in Québec, back in 1996 to be precise. So you may find some wherever you are around the world. If you ever decide to write the scary story, I suggest you take one for inspiration, especially if you set it in a pub.

Des coquilles d'oeufs dans les feuilles

Cette photo a été prise il y a un an, alors que j'étais dans ma pause de lunch au travail. Des coquilles d'oeufs vides sur des feuilles d'automne. Et je me demande bien comment ça se fait qu'elles étaient là. Ces coquilles m'ont suffisamment obsédé pour que je les photographie et que j'écrive un billet à leur sujet. Vous avez une idée de leur présence sur ce tas de feuilles automnales? Donnez-moi vos hypothèses.

Countdown to Halloween

We are now the first of October, so it is officially the countdown to Halloween. My favourite holiday of the year, which I celebrate a lot on the blog. In fact, I love it so much that the officious countdown starts for me in late August, when I start reading horror stories. Sometimes, often, I get in the mood as early as mid-August, like this year. I decided to kick-start the season with this picture of last year's Jack O'Lantern (I know it should not take capital letters, but I always use capital letters anyway). I don't think I ever uploaded this particular picture last year. So what to expect on Vraie Fiction for this month of October? I will soon be away on holiday for two weeks, but will blog as often as I can and the topic of my posts will be of course Samhain. I made a call to my readership for a scary story recently, I intend not to shy away from this request myself and will try to write something. I don't know what shape it will take yet, nevertheless there will be horror fiction on Vraie Fiction. I have at least one more Jack O'Lantern story in store, after I wrote my take of the genesis of the character here and here.) I don't want to spoil too much of what I have in mind, but in his wandering Jack will meet an old enemy. I also intent to write a few nostalgic posts. So happy season my goulish friends! I look forward to read you.

Quand le soir tombe vite

Ce soir, pour la première fois depuis l'équinoxe, je me suis rendu compte que le soir tombait plus tôt. À la sortie du train, on était déjà entre chien et loup. Nous sommes le premier octobre et j'en suis heureux. C'est le temps parfait pour revenir du travail, il commence juste à faire sombre, mais on n'est pas en pleine obscurité et la lumière diffuse n'est pas agressante.

Monday survival guide

I was wondering last Monday how to survive it and the 9 to 5 job I have. I experienced it today first hand, and in the borderline worst case scenario: at the end of a month. Ends of months are usually busier and often nastier. Surprisingly, or maybe not, I survived this Monday better than I did the last one. Maybe because I was better prepared. I drank tea (Earl Grey), I had a breakfast that was high in sugar: a scone and a donut, the donut being offered by the employer as it was the end of the month. It gave me plenty of energy to get through the day. I also had pizza for lunch, again that was given by the employer which allowed me 1)to save myself a meal, 2)gain some protein through all the salt and saturated fat and 3)to make the usual gloomy Monday lunch a bit different. The pizza was pure junk food, but still enjoyable. And, as one of my readers had suggested, I took plenty of breaks. My waistline is worse for wear, but I survived Monday.

Des oies et des pommes

Nous sommes le dernier jour de septembre et j'ai pensé le souligner sur Vraie Fiction avec une photo. J'en ai publié une très semblable l'année dernière pour souligner le début du mois. C'est tout l'automne en une photo: les récoltes, son fruit le plus représentatif, les oiseaux qui migrent. Quand je suis rentré du travail aujourd'hui, ça sentait la tarte aux pommes qui cuisait lorsque je marchais dans la cour. Je crois que ça venait d'un appart du rez-de-chaussé dont les portes-fenêtres sont toujours ouvertes. Je ne suis pas un grand fan de la tarte aux pommes, mais ça m'a pourtant creusé l'appétit. En fait, si le goût de la tarte aux pommes me laisse indifférent, l'odeur de la tarte qui cuit, j'ai toujours aimé. Mais enfin bref, j'avais l'esprit bien automnal. Ce mois de septembre a été marqué par ça pour moi: des oies qui volent et des pommes. C'est donc pour conclure septembre que je vous montre cette photo.

An Owl

This is, well, the picture of the painting of an owl, very badly framed by me. I took it last summer, in an art exhibition in the local C of E church. I was waiting for a moment to upload it. This is maybe the last picture I upload in September. It is kind of fitting. I consider owls autumnal creatures. They are often featured in Autumnwatch, which I cannot wait to see this year. Sadly, it will be on much later this year, at the end of October. This is way too late, but I guess they cannot get it started in early September. Owls, especially barn owls like this one seems to be, are associated with ghosts. And Halloween is getting closer and closer, so that's a good reason as any. I have only seen glimpses of them in the wild, but I have heard them. Their cry are indeed ghostly and very haunting.

Steak d'orignal

Coeurs sensibles s'abstenir: ceci est un steak d'orignal, que mon père a fait cuire sur barbecue à un moment donné cette année. Cela dit, n'étant pas encore cuit, bien c'est un morceau de chair sanglante. Enrobée dans du bacon. C'est pas décadent rien qu'un peu. C'est dimanche, le jour en Angleterre du Sunday roast. Je me suis rendu compte une fois que j'ai appris l'existence du Sunday roast, que le roast beef que l'on mangeait très souvent dimanche soir au Québec était tributaire de cette tradition britannique. Parfois, rarement, le roast beef devenait un roast... moose. Ou un roast beef d'orignal comme on le disait, ou alors un steak d'orignal. C'est bon pas rien qu'un peu.