Why Halloween?
If I had the answer to that one, I'd be a rich man, I suppose...as I mentioned in the introduction of this blog, I've been fascinated with "things that go bump in the night" since I was two or three, I believe, when I was introduced to "The Munsters" by a neighbor babysitting me....it scared the crap out me, but it struck a nerve...I graduated to the Universal Monsters shortly there after, not to mention General Mills Monster Cereals - anyone out there remember Count Chockula and FrankenBerry? - and just a proliferation of Saturdays spent in front of the TV absorbing every monster movie known to mankind...much to my mother's chagrin, I might add...
When I found out that there was a holiday themed to this sort of thing - well, I think it blew my poor little mind....never recovered, either!
If I had the answer to that one, I'd be a rich man, I suppose...as I mentioned in the introduction of this blog, I've been fascinated with "things that go bump in the night" since I was two or three, I believe, when I was introduced to "The Munsters" by a neighbor babysitting me....it scared the crap out me, but it struck a nerve...I graduated to the Universal Monsters shortly there after, not to mention General Mills Monster Cereals - anyone out there remember Count Chockula and FrankenBerry? - and just a proliferation of Saturdays spent in front of the TV absorbing every monster movie known to mankind...much to my mother's chagrin, I might add...
When I found out that there was a holiday themed to this sort of thing - well, I think it blew my poor little mind....never recovered, either!
As I grew up, I outgrew it...a bit...much to a few folks' chagrin...but it never left me 100%, whether it be my taste in music, my taste in movies - I was *always* up for a good monster flick - or a warm, nostalgic feeling whenever autumn rolled around...
After meeting my wonderful wife Lisa, and then finding out she had similar tastes, well, what can you say really? Away we went!
We're home haunters as well, and every year turns into a competition of how to top the last...and we do fairly well, I think, for apartment dwellers....
We started going to haunted houses fairly early in our marriage - we just passed our tenth anniversary this past November - and have seen some really fantastic places, met terrific people and are immensely grateful for everyone and everything that we've seen - we're hoping to return the favor here and give our recommendations - not to mention a few "what to avoids" as well,
...always remember, fright is very personal. What scares *you* may bore the next person.
Consider this when accepting these recommendations and let the buyer beware!
...always remember, fright is very personal. What scares *you* may bore the next person.
Consider this when accepting these recommendations and let the buyer beware!
Lisa and I live in Dayton, OH, (although I am a native Chicagoan by birth, and Lisa hails from Jacksonville, FL) so about 50% of our reviews will be based upon Ohio haunts, but, as I mentioned before, we do like to travel and have seen some terrific attractions in Illinois, Indiana, Missouri, Kentucky, and Georgia to name a just a few...I suspect that list will get longer as time goes on, but, initially, I'm going highlight several Buckeye State Haunts of Interest.
And, with all that said, next time around I'll begin the reviews with a look at the USS Nightmare in Newport, KY, just outside of Cincinnati...
One last note: my wife and I are Christian, and, over the years, our hobby - 'cos, in the end, that's all it truly is - has led to a lot of consternation with certain members of our faith - in our defense, all I can say is that there are certain lines we do not cross in regards to Halloween - i.e.: witches/witchcraft, devils and demons, and extreme gore, but, beyond that, all else is fair game - and, in the end, this is about imagination - in other words, it ain't real folks! It's a bit of fun.
