Tuesday, June 30, 2015

Coffee Talk June 30th /July 1st

This was suppose to be tomorrow's post, but I have a million things to do tomorrow and I'm sitting here right now in front of the computer so.... Spudguns! 

July 1st- Happy Canada Day...

I'll be doing the July theme week this week, and guess what, it's a Canadian theme, cause Wednesday July 1st is Canada Day, so I thought it would be fitting.

The Food n Flix for July will be hosted by Kahakai Kitchen, and their selection is Eat Drink Man Woman.  And I'll have that up for you before the weekend.  So, this will be the "week" of movies for July; as you might remember I said on one of  my last Coffee Talk -with the bad lemon bars- the other week, I'm purposely NOT watching movies (other then the theme week and Food n Flix) for the next two months because I plan on doing the One movie a Day Challenge again starting in December for Year 5. Cause that's what the original point of the blog was.

And now to clean the spilled coffee from my shirt...till later.

Monday, June 29, 2015

All Jane Austen part 6

Persuasion
the 1995 version starring Amanda Root and Ciaran

plot: Anne's family has fallen on rough times, forcing the once wealthy Elliots to move, leaving Anne alone to pack what will be needed and renting out their home. Anne soon learns that the Crofts; sister and brother-in-law; to her ex-fiance are the ones who will be renting the house. This sends poor Anne into a bit of a panic, as the couple had been forced to break off their engagement and she hasn't seen or heard from him in years.  Anne is then sent to visit her other sister, who is married with kids of her own, only to find herself face to face with her ex, Mr. Wentworth, who is now a wealthy captain, staying with friends on the property. Because of an accident with one of Anne's nephews, she is forced to extend her stay much longer then first intended, and joins her sister's family and the neighbouring Musgroves on a trip. While away, she bumps into a male cousin, Mr. Elliot who is the heir to the family name and fortune. Anne is then sent to stay with her father and unmarried sister in Bath. While there, she learns of her father's expected plan for her older sister to marry Mr. Elliot. But once Anne and Mr. Elliot are introduced, they reveal the fact they already knew each other from Lyme. Mr. Elliot then begins to court Anne. While this is happening, Captain Wentworth has followed Anne, along with some navy buddies, and they realize they can't run away from their feelings any longer.  Anne, learns Mr. Elliot is only interested in marrying her for her title and what he believes is a fortune, all the while having an affair with the woman Anne's father intends to marry. Refusing Mr. Elliot, Anne then accepts Captain Wentworth's marriage proposal.

The original novel was printed in 1817 and has never been out of print.

I cry every bloody time I watch this. Every time.   The idea that you never fully get over your first love, that it haunts you in both good and bad ways rings true even today. The idea that when two people are meant to be together, nothing and no one will ever really keep them apart.

There are a few scenes where the captain's friend who has lost his own fiance to illness, talks about how men feel heartbreak deeper then women, and Anne tells him that's not true as women tend to hold the pain longer. They begin to form a bond that leads you to think they might end up together, but it actually gives Wentworth a glimmer of hope in the idea of winning Anne back.

When we first meet Wentworth, he's bitter towards Anne, holding a decade worth of broken heartness. That is until he discovers he's not the only one that had hoped to marry Anne when they were younger, and not the only one she was forced to refuse. As Anne's sister Mary, ended up marrying Charles Musgrove, who originally had fallen in love with Anne.

There is something too about the idea that the so called unwanted girl is in fact the secret desire or not so secret as the story reveals over the course of things, secret desire of many men.
The character of Anne is given a second chance at love only when she's old enough to handle it. When she is wise enough to follow her own instincts and not be led by her family and their shallow values.  This part of Austen's story is considered by some to be very tongue in cheek, as most of her heroines are never over the age of 30. If it's meant as a inside joke or a comment on society's view of "older women" no one can say for sure.

What I always connected with in this movie was the idea that Anne was "a throw away" left to feel invisible and therefore unvaluable by her family.  Even the character of Mary, who her father mentions with clear distaste, has more importance because she is in fact the only of the three girls married. The daughter he personally groomed for perfection is the one who ends up alone and without any true friends or love interests.

As much as this is a classic love story of  finding that perfect big love, it's a story about finding value in yourself and sticking up for what you know is the right path for you.
It takes Anne years to find her voice, but once she does there is no holding her back from making her statement.


And that my lovely Spudguns! brings us to the end of the All Jane Austen posts...for now anyways. Been longer going then I had hoped, but all six of her classic published works are covered.  But don't worry, there is always more Jane Austen around the corner and a little Austen is better then none.

P.S.  I'll be bringing all this up again in December when I; your heroine, will be hosting a selection of Food n Flix with my pick of  The Jane Austen Book Club.

Till next time.

Sunday, June 28, 2015

Coffee talk June 28 2015

Spudguns! how are you this overly humid day?  Coffee fresh?  I know, I haven't posted much this week, but it's been lovely out and you know how it is with summer. That, and the internet has gone out a few times this week on my side of town causing half the city to be without internet or phone for hours.  How did we survive?

So Ghostbusters 3/Reboot is going to be a female version of it.  I don't know how I feel about it?   The only actor I actually like in this new cast is Melissa McCarthy.  I would assume she's got the "Venkman" character in this?

It's looking more and more like 2016 will be the year of the remake/reboot. Ghostbusters, Craft, Beetlejuice, Goonies,  X-Files, Twin Peaks...it will be the year to watch.

Okay, just this short little ramble because I realized the last few posts were all for Nosferatu Adventures...I'll have the final part of the All Jane Austen movies up either tonight or tomorrow as it is the end of the month.

I also mentioned a month or two ago about having some crafting projects on the to do list. I'm hoping to have them done in time for Hallowe'en. So keep your paws crossed I don't screw them up horribly.

later...




Friday, June 26, 2015

The Nosferatu Adventures s8 p23

The Nosferatu Adventures
page 223, chapter 223

1462

Edmund Gaerwn, woke from yet another vision of his dead wife Aurora. Accused of witchcraft, she had been drowned by the local magistrate. The family crest which he had given her on a leather cord, was all that he had left of her. A talisman made of iron, with a Celtic knot design, with two dragons one on top one on bottom, surrounded by more Celtic style knots, and a rune engraved in the center.
Slowly he shuffled out of the large bed, finding it cold and unwelcoming most nights; crossing to the large mirror.  Removing the sheet from the surface, he leaned over the table where the mirror hung gazing deeply into it.  The mirror's occupant away it would seem.

"Astrid!" he screamed. "Woman where are you when I need you?" he sighed deeply, grabbing a shirt from the side of the table, buttoning it.

"You forget, how this works don't you?" the woman said, cradling a small infant in her arms, rocking it back and forth. "I won't always be here. At some point, someone else in my family will be on this end, just as someone else will be on your side."

"That is not my concern at the moment. What have you learned?"

She sighed, juggling the baby on her hip as she moved across the room to get her notes. There seemed to be music coming from somewhere on her end, from one of the large round things that sat in the background of her room. Edmund wondered if everyone in her time was addicted to the strange swirling patterns as she was? The odd combinations of brown, orange and green gave him a headache. But he had to admit, the very thick orange rug he saw there looked invitingly warm. He wished they had something like that in his time. He'd tried to have a rug maker in Paris create something similar, but to his disappointment, it just didn't hold up. Astrid said it had to do with her rug being 100% polyester.


Meanwhile...
2015

Tombstone lifted his head from Bryon's knee, his nose twitching, as he jumped up heading down the long hallway of the estate. Bryon called after the hellhound, but the beast did not heel. Sighing, the short male drained his wine glass following him, thinking he just wanted to go out.  But, instead of heading towards the kitchen door, Tombstone had raced to the library in the south ward of the place.

There seemed to be an extreme cold spot near the far wall, a small pocket of dust swirling as if being blown by an unlikely wind.  The hellhound howled at first, then barked like a common dog as he lowered on his front paws, ears flat.

Bryon stood wide eyed as he screamed for Victor and the others, just as a blackness seemed to open, sending debris into the room. Finn and Reuben tumbled through first, knocking over Bryon, while Rolf appeared, carrying something in his arms just as the portal closed behind him.

"What's going on here?" Victor demanded as he ran into the room. Snarling loudly, Rolf turned his back towards the incubus, as he hunched over his prize. His normally blue eyes were the amber-grey  of the wolf, as he took another step closer to Finn and Reuben. Sniffing, the large werewolf relaxed his shoulders flicking his hair out of his face once he realized where they had landed.

Ash appeared in the doorway of the room a moment later, a cup of coffee in hand, while Dagan shuffled behind him, tossing yarn over Ash's right shoulder every few seconds, his head down as he concentrated on his task. The knitting needles clinked together at a rapid speed as Dagan counted.

"1. 2. 3. 4. crossover. 1. 2. 3. 4. crossover."  the auburn haired werewolf was dressed in white long underwear, thick wool socks, and had about five feet of knitted scarf wrapped around his shoulders.  Finn tilted his head to the side pulling the little round sunglasses down his nose in question.

"What happened?" Victor asked taking a half step towards them, Rolf instinctively moving farther into the corner of the room. The tall vampire held his hands up in defeat as he took another step backwards.

"What's the date?" Finn asked.

"2015." Victor replied.

"No the date date asswipe. January? March? June? October what?"

"June 30th...no it's after midnight, so July 1st."

The familiar ran his hands through his hair and over his face letting out a deep sigh. "So time passed normally then. We've been gone about seven months." he said turning on his heels.  The baby started to scream, causing everyone to wince. Bryon had to cover his ears, as he left the room.  "Well he's got her lungs that's for sure." Finn replied as Rolf started to pace back and forth, trying to calm him down.

"He is half banshee." Reuben remarked fixing his own dark hair into one of his too smooth to be human ponytails.  The mention of the word banshee grabbed Dagan's attention as he looked up from his task for the first time. The male lifted the knitting up to his face biting on the edge of the long scarf, as he looked at the group.
Shuffling over to where Rolf was, Dagan untangled the knitting needles from the unfinished end, wrapping it around Rolf and the baby's shoulders. The look of pure annoyance on Rolf's face caused the other werewolf to start chewing on the end of the scarf again.

"I made it for him. See it's got a moose on it." he pointed to a large blob in the middle of the whole thing that was two shades of brown darker then the rest of it. "Cause he needs a blanket for the cold nights when we're all back at the cabin and he's not able to shift yet..."

"That's a scarf man." Reuben pointed out, crossing his arms over his chest. "Not a blanket."

"No it's a blanket. I just didn't know how to make it this way..." he held out his hands gesturing widely. "Only this way." he gestured again the same way. "So she on the next bus?" he looked around turning in a full circle, tangling himself and Rolf that much more in the knitting; to stare at the wall where the portal had been.

"Dagan, she's not coming. She...she..." Reuben shook his head, his chocolate brown puppy dog eyes cast down. "She didn't make it. Didn't survive the birth."

"No I would have felt the sire bond break if she was dead-dead." he said scratching at his jaw. "I might have lost my mind but I'm not crazy."

Reuben growled as he pointed towards the wall. "Look! She's not coming back alright! She's gone! Sire bond or not, Nosferatu is not coming back!"


Tune in again for another installment of the Nosferatu Adventures starring your heroine...me(straight up story. Don't worry, it's not what you think...I think.)

Sunday, June 21, 2015

The Nosferatu Adventures s8 p22

The Nosferatu Adventures
page 222, chapter 222

1462

Jacob, pressed his nose against the door sniffing.  "He's alive!" he said grinning before bursting out in a fit of laughter.

Sebastian scratched the back of his skull as he felt a shift in the air, his body automatically going into a fighting stance. The sound of the torches on the walls flickering, forced him to look, seeing the hallway blocked by the members of the Oaken pack. The solider refused to relax as he knew the Blacksmith pack wasn't far behind.

The sea of bodies suddenly parted, exposing the woman's mate and brother. Someone slapped the larger of the two on the shoulder, bowing his head in respect just as the door opened revealing Vlad. He had a small blanket in his arms, holding it tight as if it were his own life.  Gazing up at the returning wolves, the prince turned his body slightly shielding the baby from them.

"Congratulations. You have a son." he said mockingly to Reuben. "Or a mate...I'm not sure how this works given you are not the biological anything to him, and he is in turn your alpha." the gleam of his fangs as he smiled sent a stab of hatred into Reuben.

"Where's Nos?" Rolf asked about to push his way into the room. The prince raised his one hand, raising his chin towards the taller male.

"She's resting. It was a difficult time for her, believing all these months you had abandoned her, believing you dead even."

"What are you talking about? We were gone two days." Reuben remarked.

"This baby proves otherwise." the prince smirked again moving past them. "Now, if you will excuse me I have to get this one presentable before Loki arrives." he turned heading in the opposite direction of the wolves, then casually whispered. "You look much better with your hair all one colour. The grey really didn't suite you."
Reuben brought his hands up to his hair, running his fingers through it, trying to see for himself. They hadn't even noticed the claiming had been undone. Which, given they were going through a time portal, already feeling like their insides were being ripped out, the breaking of the mate connection was easily overlooked.

Vlad barely stepped foot into the large dinning hall when the shadows started to move around him. Snarling, the vampire held the baby in one arm, ready to draw his sword with the other.  "Relax." Loki said as he walked across the room in the dimming light of the lamps. Stretching, he casually swung one foot in front of the other, touching the walls, the furniture before gliding over to stand in front of them.
Frowning, he leaned over peering at the little bundle. Sniffing deeply, he moved his hands around as if guiding the aroma of something sweet towards him. "Ah fresh baby smell. I have missed that." he let a smile touch his lips for less then a blink of an eye before sticking his finger towards the baby's mouth. "Did she name him yet?" his tone took on a very hushed gentleness to it as he tilted his head to the side practically cooing. Vlad said nothing, just raised an eyebrow. "I'm sorry you will have to speak up I couldn't hear you over the deafening silence."

"No."

"Probably can't make up her mind. She'll find something fitting soon I hope." the dark haired god said scratching his ear. Vlad lowered his eyes, bending to kiss the baby's forehead then reluctantly holding the little werewolf closer to Loki. "What? He need a changing already? Cause I don't do diapers."

Vlad shook his head in confusion. "Have you not come for him?"

Loki's eyes began to shift back and forth as he stood to his full height, mouth slightly ajar. "Don't be ridiculous. Just popping in to see that he survived. I'll catch up with him once he's starting to show his lycanthrope side." he rubbed his hands together biting his bottom lip. "He is cute though. So pale, little tuff of hair. Wonder if he's going to have dark fur or red? His hair is difficult to tell in this light...what with having Rolf's bloodline and the banshee being a redhead...what now?"

"Forgive me, but I don't understand." Vlad said moving away from the god. Bending, he gently placed the newborn into a cradle that he'd been working on personally for the last month, as a gift.

"What's not to understand? Huh? My son is born, he looks healthy very god like, looks like he'll survive the night. If what's her face survives the next few hours, then the boy and her, will be sent back up the line to 2015 where he's needed. Back to the pack that got stuck with her. Where they can raise him to be the creature he's meant to be. It isn't that difficult to wrap your head around, even for a simple bloodsucker like you."  Loki became angry, his eyes flashing the amber-grey of the wolf before shimmering away.


Meanwhile...

Reuben grabbed Sebastian shoving him out of the way, heading into Vlad's bedroom. The dark haired male stood just beyond the door, stricken by the sight. The already pale female was lost in the whiteness of the sheets, her veins appearing like rough maps of neon against her flesh. Her eyes slightly sunken making her cheekbones appear sharper, while her double row of fangs jutted out of her cracked lips.
He kicked the bed. "Nos. You dead?" He waited, there was no response. He kicked the bed again. "Nos?"

"She was doused with a triple dose of fairy dust. She was in so much pain." a male voice said just behind him. Reuben turned to see the  pack alpha of the Blacksmith clan. Only, he didn't know this; was unaware that this was his ancestor. "You the brother or the mate?"

"I shacked the whore if that's what you're asking." Reuben replied with a dismissive gesture, running his hand through his long dark hair.

"Figures." he snorted crossing the length of the room to sit on the edge of the bed.

"Who the hell are you?"

"Maxwell." standing back up he got right in Reuben's face, not bothered by the fact Reuben towered over him by a foot. "I'm the guy who has been doing your job while you've been off doing whatever it is you've been doing. Making sure she didn't do anything stupid, keeping her fed, keeping that baby alive." he poked the taller male in the chest. Reuben growled low, his chin down, eyes staring up from under his hair.

"So what you're the new me?" Reuben chuckled crossing his arms over his chest. "Thanks I've got it from here." he went to sidestep around Maxwell but the other wolf blocked him.

"No, you don't got it! And you never will. She survives this, and from what I understand you're not even truly her mate because of the baby, but she survives this, you and me will settle this thing once and for all."

Reuben's chocolate brown puppy dog eyes went wide as he leaned in just an inch. "Oh my god, you're planning on claiming her! You're...you're in love with her?"   he scratched at his ear. "Why?"


Tune in again for another installment of the Nosferatu Adventures starring your heroine...me(straight up story. Was everyone thinking she'd end up with Vlad?)

Saturday, June 20, 2015

The Nosferatu Adventures s8 p21

The Nosferatu Adventures
page 221, chapter 221

1462
7 months later...

Our heroine growled as she tugged with all her strength, feeling the tension of the chains. Her wrists starting to hurt from the iron cuffs. She shuffled her feet on the cold stones, feeling the ridges and cracks, as the rattling of the large iron chains echoed in the damp room.

"How's the belly this morning?" Vlad asked as he entered the room, crossing to a small table pouring himself a glass of wine. He stood motionless, waiting for her to lunge at him again as she had the night before. Lucky for him, he healed instantly.

"Let me out!" our heroine screamed, tugging again on the chains. "How long you plan on keeping me here?"

"You keep eating my people. I've lost half my army not from battle, but to your appetite" he said casually gesturing towards her.

"Men are yummy. All those chewy little pieces filled with ooey-gooey blood."  she tilted her head to the side, making a noise. "And other stuff."

"I will pretend I didn't hear that." turning up his lips in a pout, he moved carefully around the room just out of reach of her. "I will let you out when you give birth or when your mate comes back for you. Whichever is first."

"Good luck with that. My mate..." she laughed. "Reuben would have been back by now if he had planned on keeping me. He's a little selfish that way. Still bitter I snagged his true love before he could."  she sniffed. "Or if he were alive. I've come to the conclusion he must be dead or something. It might be a bit of an arranged marriage, business merger really, but he does like to stick to the rules."she sniffed again. "Would take me home with him, just to shove it in the face of his dearest love..."

"Your dearest love. Didn't you say you and your current mate were in love with the same man?" Vlad asked as he brought his one hand up to his chin, massaging his neck.

"...His! His dearest love. His wild obsession. His little furry...backdoor middle of the night snuggling by the campfire sticky sweet desire. Take me back home, parade me like some title on his shoulder just to prove he's more man or dog then that red-haired male bitch. So why don't you just get on with it. Slaughter me."

"I have no intentions Nosferatu, of slaughtering you. I do however, plan on raising the baby."

"Fine. Take it, it's yours." she turned towards him pointing to her stomach. "It's rent is overdue anyways." she threw her head back howling in frustration, grumbling on how long her hair had gotten and that she really needed a haircut. "You know what really sucks...besides us I mean...being a banshee meant I was never suppose to suffer through this crap! And in the end, the big cosmic joke is that's why I was turned into a vampiric monster in the first place." she laughed uncontrollably. "They made me this way, Loki and Bacchus, letting that stupid auburn wolf sire me so that they could have a foolproof baby factory. For their precious werewolves."

"You're tired..."

"No I'm pissed off!"

"Either way, you should rest. I'll send one of the lycanthropes in for you to feed off. At lest then, they won't be roaming around so much outside the castle. We'll have nothing left on the farms soon to feed the village. They keep eating all the livestock."

"Why don't you feed off them, and then I can feed off you?" she grinned devilishly grunting. "I like the little visions that come with your blood. Reminds me of the movies back home."


Meanwhile...
1629

The two werewolves circled closer, the onyx coloured one snarling as he stood there, as if ready to tackle the man. While the caramel coloured one salivated, pacing back and forth keeping the young witch from helping her father.
Finn had managed to grab the pages from the bonfire, stomping out much of the flames, his hands covered in soot as he translated the German.

"No!" the man howled as he attempted to move towards the familiar, to keep him from finishing the spell. Rolf in turn charged, his teeth ripping into the man's shoulder, the blood covering his muzzle as he did. A feeling of dizziness suddenly overcame the large werewolf, forcing him to move away from his prey. Howling, the wolf stumbled backward a few feet, just enough for the injured but still alive man to kick him hard in the side of the head, before managing to run into the streets. The caramel coloured wolf chasing after him.

Rolf started to transform against his will. Bones shifting, cracking, echoing in the night air as his vocal cords began to contract. Letting a very human scream escape his lips, he watched out of watery eyes, as he arched his back, still knelling on the ground his hair in a mess of wet ringlets stuck to his face and shoulders; as Finn ran over to the young girl, breaking her neck.

"What's happening?" Finn demanded breathing heavy.

"I think...I think Nosferatu has gone into labor." Rolf screamed again as he fell to his side, his arms cramping at the elbows.

"That's impossible!"

"Tell the pain that." he screamed again the feeling of hot knives covering his flesh. It was as if something was trying to dig it's way out of his stomach, burning a trail down the nerves of his legs. "Get Reuben. We have to go back. NOW!" He felt himself starting to transform back into his wolf self against his will once more.

"We're not even close to being done here. We can't go back..." the sentence dying in midair, as Finn gave in, turning running in the direction Reuben had.


Meanwhile...
1462

Sebastian was guarding the door to the prince's bedroom, the banshee's screams being heard throughout the castle. He found himself shuttering at the volume of her screams, a ringing forming in his ears as a pitcher of water shook on his side of the locked door.  He'd done the math, the baby was a month and half early. The werewolf packs were worried, afraid something was wrong with their little god. Everything, it seemed was riding on the woman surviving this birth. Of the little furball surviving.
Sebastian thought silently that this is what it felt like for any queen. Bought to birth an heir, bred as nothing more then a common piece of livestock would be. Shaking his head, the bald male shuttered again this time in pity.

Jacob, the former Oaken pack alpha, was standing beside the door suddenly as if having appeared from nowhere. Sebastian swallowed his disgust, still not used to the speed the shapeshifters had.  Then there was nothing but silence. A pause so long, that even Sebastian held his breath in fear and wait.


Tune in again for another installment of the Nosferatu Adventures starring your heroine...me(straight up story. Everyone wants the little brat prince...)

Thursday, June 18, 2015

Coffee Talk June 18th 2015



Spudguns!  Ever have one  of those weeks?  Yeah, it's one of those for me.  Anyways, I had planned on doing a "what that movie inspired me to do" post, but the dessert I made didn't work right.  I had failed to take my own advice, to remember that your emotions affect your recipes.



That and the recipe kinda sucked.  So, I'm not going to give you the recipe this time around, as I want to find a better one and do this again.





But, I am going to tell you what I had planned on posting about...Bold and the Beautiful Lemon Bars.  

Yeah, I got it in my head to do what every soap opera fan has done over the years, make lemon bars inspired by the character Pamela aka Pammy. 


And I wanted to show off my skulls.  Salt/Pepper and toothpicks.

So, some point soon, I'll give this another go around.

I know I haven't been posting much for movies, which given this is a movie blog, but I have purposely been not watching anything lately so that next year I can do the one movie a day again.

And now...I'm off to watch Hannibal.



Monday, June 15, 2015

The Nosferatu Adventures s8 p20

The Nosferatu Adventures
page 220, chapter 220

Out of Time

Loki stood up, walking across the glass floor, his naked feet leaving no smudges. Tossing a raised eyebrow over his shoulder, the dark haired god smirked to himself as he ran his hands through the iced water. Splashing his face, he shook his head nearly unable to contain his good mood. "I must remember to thank my dear little bat for giving me the idea for this body."

"These humans break so easily." a female voice sighed. Looking at the room's reflection in the mirror, Loki hung his head swearing.  "I mean, really cousin, one time and this shell is empty." Turning the dark haired god crossed his arms over his chest, leaning back against the sink, as the long legs swung back and forth of the woman now perched on the edge of the bed, draping herself over the now dead body of last night's conquest.

"Hecate. What are you doing here?"

"Saving you from yourself darling." she cooed smiling at him.

"So you felt the need to break into my office building, and kill my secretary?" he cleared his throat. "That's not cool."

"Well, you always did have a thing for shacking the help. Cliche, cliche, and dare I say, cliche." she picked up the dead girl's arm dropping it back down. "And who lives in their own office building?"

"Again, I ask what are you doing here?" he sniffed, misting himself a set of shorts.

"I need you to back off a little bit." she pouted, trying to tempt him. "Some of my devotees are part of that coven you've sent your mutts after to wipe out. I need them alive."

"Well that doesn't work for me. I trust you can show yourself out." he moved past her, pouring himself a cup of coffee from the little coffeemaker he had in the corner of the room. "You're still here?"

"Don't tell me you're still mad at me for that time in 1925? I mean really one little village flooded..."

"Hecate..." he let out a deep breath closing his eyes tight. "I'm working here. Deadlines."

"Fine, I can take a hint." she snapped her fingers disappearing into a puff of smoke.

"Clearly you can't." he mumbled to himself his good mood ruined. Sighing again,he hung his head letting his chin rest against his chest as he put the coffee mug down, crossing the room to dispose of yet another body. "Who lives in their own office building...na na blah blah." he said in a childish mocking tone as he dragged the dead secretary down to the end of the bed, rolling her up in the sheets. "Worked for David Boreanaz the last season of Angel."  He misted a pair of dark jeans and a t-shirt with an ironic print of the character Spike from the same tv show, as he decided to remove of the body the old fashioned way.
Tossing her over his shoulders, he began moving through the upper level apartment, turning on the lights in the massive kitchen. Every thing in the two floors he was using for both his office and apartment were white, glass and metal.  Loki began opening and closing the kitchen drawers, sending silverware in every direction, plastic food containers shuffled around not finding what he was looking for. "Where the hell are the garbage bags?"

The dark haired god finally found a roll of them tucked into the second self of a broom closet. "No wonder serial killers are crazy..." he grumbled trying to get the tiny plastic end to open. "These damnable things are child proof!" he swore loudly as he finally managed to get the body into the large black-green garbage bag, and headed out of the apartment towards the elevators.

Loki stood there humming to the generic music that pumped through the building's elevators, his left knee bouncing just as the doors opened for the underground parking lot. Nodding as he passed an older woman dressed for a business meeting, he leaned in over her shoulder, sniffing. The woman looked down at him, thinking he was just the janitor as she moved into the elevator pressing the button for the 9the floor. "I'm sorry, I can't talk right now; but I have to return some video tapes!" Loki screamed, dropping the bagged body, his other hand in a fist at his thigh, standing on his tip toes. The woman stared at him, a look of confusion and annoyance on her face as the doors began to close.
Tossing the bag back over his shoulder, Loki smirked as he continued on to the boiler room.


Tune in again for another installment of the Nosferatu Adventures starring your heroine...me(straight up story. What, like you weren't thinking it...)

Saturday, June 13, 2015

The Nosferatu Adventures s8 p19

The Nosferatu Adventures 
page 219, chapter 219

1898

Something dripped down his face, as he struggled to open his eyes. Nathaniel coughed as the blood flowed down into his mouth, adding to the dizziness. The room dark except for the slight glow coming from under the door.

"You're still alive. Wonderful." the room seemed to echo with the dislodged voice as the black smoke gathered closer. He screamed as the figure dig his thumbnail into his cheek just under his right eye, twisting. "Now once again, where is it?"

"I'll tell you nothing!" he screamed again as his fingers were smashed against the arm of the chair.

"Naughty librarian." the male hissed as he hunched down on his heels, eye level with Nathaniel. "See now, we both know how this turns out. I continue to torture you until you tell me, then I kill you and kill your friends. Now, I could just skip the torture part and get right to the killing which I have to say, is just cleaner in the long run for me. I really really hate having to get my hands dirty like this needlessly. So, once again. Where is it?"

"Loki will have your head for this."

The figure let out a sigh as he kicked Nathaniel twice in the knee, bones cracking. "Loki is too busy worrying about his little pet project with Bacchus to even notice. And by the time he does, it will be too late. Now, my patience is worn thin..." the figure glanced towards the window, as the first rays of the sun were starting to appear. "We're all running out of time. Tell me where did you and your little coven of mongrel-half breeds hide my book?"

"Everywhere. We sent pieces everywhere. Even if you find half of it, you'll never be able to harness it's power. Not in this lifetime, not in any." he tried to laugh but all that came out was a wet slosh of a gurgle as the figure's nails came crashing down once more across his throat, the blood spraying him, the wall, the nearest stack of books.
The figure picked up one of the top books wiping it off on Nathaniel's sleeve making a sound of disapproval.

"Damn, this was a first edition." he turned as the door opened revealing the blonde woman. "We've got our work cut out for us." he said tossing the damaged book back down on the desk as he stepped quickly towards her.

Vivien dropped her eyes as she nodded, a smile planted on her delicate lips. "Nobody said this would be easy Master. We must go, there is nothing else we can do while the sun is up."

"I trust Mrs. Elton that you and your coven have a back up plan?"

"Be certain Mr. Jenkins, there is always another plan. Hurry, now. We don't need the horses frightened by you bursting into flames once the sun has risen."



Out of Time

Edward sat stirring his coffee listening to Phil and Barb whispering about one of the actresses. Pinching the bridge of his nose, he let his mind drift. The dark haired male was finding it harder and harder to concentrate, the desire to break out of the small writer's room the only thing he could think of. Mumbling something about needing the toilet, Edward abandoned his coffee and started to head down the long hallway, trying the nearest door that had an exit sign.

Taking a deep breath, he leaned over hands on his knees as he heard the door bang against the wall as he shoved it open. The sound itself like a gong being stuck, reverberated in his delicate ears.

"You got a light?" a voice asked. Edward hadn't realized anyone else was standing there. Shaking his head, he took a half step back, eyes still closed. "Yeah I should really quit, but everyone's got some sort of addiction right?" Edward turned his back on her as she continued to talk. He heard nothing but the sound of waves crashing loudly around him, his teeth aching suddenly.
Bringing his hand up to his mouth, the dark haired male felt as if his jaw was about to break open. His nose feeling as if he'd been punched in the face, as he clenched his teeth against the saliva that was building up uncontrollably in his mouth. 
He spat not sure what else to do, as his stomach let out this horribly loud growl. Hunching his shoulders, Edward turned back around to face her.  The woman stood there, her pale skin the colour of chalk, her hair up in a tight twist on her scalp, two little grey streaks on either side.  He was on her before he could think, his hands digging into her shoulders as he pushed her up against the wall, his mouth at the soft spot just between her collar bone and shoulder. "What's wrong with you?" she tried to push him away, but only got her arm broken for her attempt. Edward's left hand now over her mouth keeping her from screaming.

He stumbled backwards just an inch as the visions flashed behind his eyes. A female, with skin just as pale, hair with the same grey streaks at the temples, her body rounder softer, more inviting. A dead timber wolf laying in a horse drawn carriage, a lighthouse full of books.
Edward fell to his knees vomiting up the blood, tearing at his mouth as he realized there was a large chunk of this actress's flesh still hanging on his lip.

"Oh god, oh god, oh god what's going on?" he mumbled to no one as he saw his own blood stained hands, the nails like small daggers of sharpened glass. "What's happening to me?"

"Nothing you can't handle." Loki's voice slithered around him. Grunting, the god bend down grabbing Edward by the shoulders forcing him to stand up. "You had one of your migraines and needed to go home for the day. Don't worry I'll cover for you at work." his voice was soothing as he made sure the werewolf was looking deep into his brown eyes. Nodding, Edward sniffed as he calmed down instantly. Turning, the dark haired male began to shuffle in his hypnotized state down the back alley.
Loki turned looking then at the mess before him as he puffed out his cheeks with a deep breath.  Grabbing the woman by the arms, he hauled her to a standing position, covering the wound with his hand, healing it. "Well, with that stage make-up and the cheap wig, I see the resemblance. Something tells me I'm going to be spending more time playing babysitter then I wanted to."

The dark haired god was about to heal the actress's now broken arm too, but thought better of it. Smirking, Loki slapped her. "Miss, Miss...are you okay, do you need me to call a medic?" he squeezed her elbow just enough to shock her back to life, as the woman screamed in pain. Tears began to stream down her cheeks, ruining the layers of make-up. "Miss are you okay?"

"I don't...my arm...I broke my arm..." she said suddenly holding her elbow with her other hand.

"Let me get you inside. Do you remember what happened?"

"I...I..." she was sobbing in pain and shock. Shaking her head, she choked back another round of tears. "was having a cigarette and fell...I think someone pushed me."  Loki pointed to her dropped cigarettes and purse suggesting that she had been mugged. Agreeing with him, she allowed him to escort her back into the building.


Tune in again for another installment of the Nosferatu Adventures starring your heroine...me(straight up story. Someone killed the magick mirror!)

Wednesday, June 10, 2015

June Food n Flix

This month's Food n Flix  selection is being hosted by Cheap Ethnic Eatz, and they picked Butter.

plot: A young girl decides to enter the yearly butter sculpting challenge after seeing it done at her state fair. The other competitors are the wife of the former champion who'd won it for fifteen years straight, and the stripper he'd had an affair with; who happens to be blackmailing his family.  

This is a 2011 comedy-drama starring Alicia Silverstone and Jennifer Garner.

I saw this back at the new year, and was going to do a write up about it then, but held off when I learned it was on the list for the group. I get that's a political satire, but I wasn't feeling it. Maybe because it was a political film?

And again, I watched this online, so you will notice a lack of dvd cover in the photos.

All I could think was butter-cream and chicken while re-watching this. but none the less, here are my notes... Butter, "pickles"(their last name is Pickler) meat on a stick, popcorn, iced coffee, hot dogs, soup, pie, "white bread" (just so conservative), vegan pop, olives, yogurt, vegan mayo, salad, kale, root vegetables, pretzels, beer, "shake and bake" (cause of the sex in car scene) frozen peas, mini chocolate, "ginger bread" (her hair colour) apples, "butter cream", crackers, potato salad, "cheating chicken"(they are about to have chicken when wife finds out about affair), dinner rolls, "pudding and brown butter sauce", donut holes, pork-rinds, birthday cake, pasta, "butternut squash noodles with cauliflower puree" (cause of his broken penis when he's holding the frozen vegetables)

I've been vegetarian for over a decade so this should have been a snap, given all the vegan related items seen in the fridge of the foster mom played by Alicia Silverstone.(yeah she did this film about the same time her vegan cookbook came out) Side note, I've had vegan pop and you can't tell it's vegan at all. I have no idea how pop can be vegan given it's still processed but... 
So obviously, I had planned on going with the butternut squash noodles with cauliflower puree, cause when have any of you dear Spudguns! known me to pass up a penis related situation.  But...the movie gods or culinary gods, or St. Lorenzo(yeah cooks really do have a patron saint) didn't feel I prayed to him enough or something; cause the grocery here was out of butternut squash for the last few weeks.
So my next thought was....butter pecan tarts.

A Canadian classic in a not so classic way.  I decided to make it a tart...not little single tarts. And I went with a shortbread crust. 


 Crust

1/2 cup unsalted butter softened
1/2 cup sugar
teaspoon salt
2 cup flour

Combine till dough is ready to form in pie pan.

I used an ungreased glass pie dish. 

Filling

1/2 cup unsalted butter
1 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
1/2 cup maple syrup
1 Tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup pecan pieces
(optional raisins)

Melt butter and brown sugar over medium heat, stirring till it bubbles, then remove from heat.  Set aside for a few minutes.
Whisk in the eggs, syrup, lemon juice, vanilla, and salt.
Stir for about five minutes and then add pecans.


Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Press dough into the pie pan, and pour the filling over, baking for 10-15 minutes depending on your oven.

Lower heat to 350 degrees and continue to bake for another 15 minutes depending on your oven.


This surprisingly, is not as sweet as traditional butter tarts are.  I say surprisingly, given the amount of maple syrup and brown sugar are in it.

This one came out a little on the "short" side; as my pie pan was just a bit large for the amount of crust I made.  I know, bad me for not considering that factor, but it's a new pie dish and...yeah. Just wanted to use it damn it!

I also did not add any raisins, as most butter tarts have raisins which add to the sweetness.


I was afraid I was going to have to change the plan yet again, as we suddenly had a massive turn in weather.  This little apartment became such an oven all on it's own, the butter I had out to soften, melting from the muggy-humidity here.
Kinda wish I'd been quick enough to snap a photo of the butter as it melted in the mixing bowl, but at that point I just wanted to get the recipe done.


That's the "short" of it for this month, till next time...

Tuesday, June 9, 2015

The Nosferatu Adventures s8 p18

The Nosferatu Adventures
page 218, chapter 218

Out of Time

Edward breathed deeply trying to calm himself from shaking, the water he'd just splashed on his face now in his nose as the droplets hung from his hair. Gazing up at the bathroom mirror, he jumped back seeing his eyes flash for the briefest second the amber-grey. He was terrified. "Just a dream. Not real. Can't be real." he looked up again seeing his own blue eyes once again.  Another handful of water to rinse out his mouth. 

That's when the voice echoed in his mind. "You can't keep me in here for long little wolf."  He screamed, his fist connecting with the mirror, shattering it. A large piece falling into the sink.

Loki shimmered into the darkness of the bedroom letting out a deep sigh. Running his hand across the bed, he made the dead neighbour and her red pajamas disappear, before shimmering back out.

Edward opened the door to the bedroom ready to call for help, only to find it empty. He practically threw himself at the empty bed, knelling on the crumpled sheets, both hands moving around the bed as if searching for some tiny lost item. Laughing then, he fell forward his face pressed into the sheets. He was loosing his mind in grand form.

"AAAAHHGGGRR!" he screamed as the cell phone began buzzing out in the kitchen. He snatched it up in a blur. "What!" he felt this seething rage suddenly.

"You need to be at work in half an hour." a voice he barely recognized said. Looking at the caller id, he realized it was his editor Loki. The line went silent as Edward stood there, not understanding how he even manged to be doing so? He didn't remember leaving the bedroom. Didn't remember making the walk through the apartment or grabbing the cell phone off the table. It was like all he did was think he should answer the phone and there he was.
Sinking to the floor, he pressed his forehead to the edge of the cold wall.


Meanwhile...

Bacchus stepped off the elevator smiling brightly at the secretary as he continued on down the hallway. Not bothering to knock, he opened the door to Loki's office. "White. Isn't that a bit cliche?" he asked closing the door behind him.

"I just kind of wanted it sterile." the dark haired god replied as he hit the off button on the cell phone, tossing it onto the large table. He scratched at his temple, his left knee bouncing suddenly. "Coffee? Tea? Bag of O Negative?"

"You're in rare form this morning. Any problems?"

Loki grunted as he moved around the room, patting down his pockets, before holding his hand out. A pile of change suddenly appeared in his palm as he smirked, heading towards the hallway. Bacchus tilted his head following. 
The dark haired god's eyes shifted back and forth as he watched the little arm of the vending machine reach up slowly and move in it's mechanical way across the rows. It stopped just in front of a bottle of pop before grabbing onto it. Bending down to take it from the little shelf, Loki stuffed another handful of coins into the machine hitting more keys on the keypad, waiting for the arm to move across again. "I do love the sound of the Toonies as they clank into it."

"Huh. Going for the expensive stuff. Must be a big problem." the sandy haired god commented as he crossed his arms, leaning against the vending machine.

"Nothing I can't handle."

"You going to let me in on this?"

"Our containment has sprung a leak." his words were hushed as he stayed facing the contents of the machine, dropping another round of coins into it.

"Pan's out?" Bacchus said moving closer, his hands now in his pants pockets, his tie swinging between them.

"No. But, The Seer's been feeding. Hunting actually." he gathered up his loot, turning heading back to the office. Bacchus let out a deep breath as he turned sharply, following once again. The bottle of pop, four chocolate bars, three bags of chips, and a roll of rockets clanked onto the table as Loki turned leaning on the edge of  it.  "The werewolf attacks everyone has been putting off as animals escaped from the zoo or something. The string of dead women...those I've been cleaning up myself."

"I thought you suppressed the sidhe side? Isn't that why you picked this reality for him?"

"Yeah, well that would be the part were I said our containment has sprung a leak. I think Pan is controlling that part of him. Besides, it was bound to show itself at some point. The Seer was half sidhe before he was bitten and turned into a lycanthrope. I honestly thought we'd get a few years at lest."

"It's been barely two months." Bacchus slammed his palm down on the table, causing the roll of candy to start running away. Loki leaned over, grabbing at the sweets putting them back into place in the pile.  "Just keep him contained till after Nosferatu gives birth. All hell can break loose then I really don't care."   Bacchus nearly spat the words as he ran his hands through his short hair, the edges of his suit jacket flying up around him.

Loki straightened up, his shoulders squared, his head tilted back, mouth open slightly as he crossed his arms. "You don't care because then what, you plan on taking her off with you to lead your army? Huh? We agreed on 150 years. You collect her after that time frame. Until then, she's mine. And by my calculations, I still have 148 years on my watch." he snarled.

"None of it matters if we fail and Pan gets a body of his own." Bacchus retorted. Throwing up his hands, he stormed out of the building.


Tune in again for another installment of the Nosferatu Adventures starring your heroine...me(straight up story. Okay so I made Loki a stress junk food eater...)

Friday, June 5, 2015

Theme Week part 5- Vampires

Vampire Academy

plot: After spending a year on the run, a vampire princess and her protector are forced to return to the confines of their high school. They are barely back behind the doors when the school's popular crowd begin to torture them both in the typical ways, but under it all, is a plot to kill the princess.

This is a 2014 comedy drama starring Zoey Deutch and Gabriel Byrne. 

Based on the books.

It's increasingly harder and harder every day, for me to find vampire movies I've never seen before.  And I had stayed away from this one because of both the negative reviews and the fact its based on teen novels.   But, it was online so...

I was surprised it ended up being better then I expected. Not great mind you, but funny enough and with enough blood to at lest hold up against an episode of Buffy or Vampire Diaries.
It had more themes going on then you would originally think given it's a teen vampire flick. You've got the usual bullying, betrayal, desperation, jealousy, revenge, greed. And a few others like class status, political assassinations, religious conspiracies, responsibility, and self control.

There were moments that reminded me too much though of the old tv show from the 1990's  Kindred the Embraced. Which, as someone coming into this as not even realizing it was based on books till five minutes ago, I suppose was a good thing as it gave me something familiar to connect it to.

I do like the fact that both forms of classic vampirism was used, both blood vamps and energy vamps.

Thursday, June 4, 2015

Theme Week part 4- Vampires

Only Lovers Left Alive

plot: Adam, a reclusive musician is depressed and thinking of killing himself, while his wife Eve is vibrant and soaking up life. They are currently half way across the world from each other, until Eve decides to return to Detroit to stop Adam from being so lonely. After awhile, Eve's sister arrives, drinking too much and killing Adam's only friend. After banishing her from Detroit, the couple return to Morocco to find another of their vampire friends; and their blood supplier, is dying of blood poisoning. 

This is a 2013 drama starring Tom Hiddleston and Tilda Swinton.

I can't believe I waited so long to see this film.  Okay, I have to admit, there was about ten minutes in the first half that sort of seemed like it had gotten off track, and left me wondering if I was watching a vampire movie or a history lesson on Detroit?  But, as the movie progresses, you see where it ties in, as the themes of water and regrowth/population is brought up.

What starts off as a metaphor for addiction, reveals itself to be a comment on the world's clean water issue. I love it, two metaphors in one film.

The film also plays with the idea of ying-yang, having Eve practically an albino dressing in light creams and pale colours, while Adam has jet black hair and wears only black and navy.  His style reminded me of  every goth guy every in the late 80's early 90's, as well as the character The Crow
When the sister arrives on the scene, she's a strawberry redhead who dresses in a rainbow of colours and a orange-y fox fur coat. Which represents her wild nature perfectly.

You are dealing here with themes of trust, love, betrayal, addiction, survival, and hope.  And I get the impression that Eve is suppose to have been the muse for hundreds of writers over the centuries, if not the writer of famous works herself, as well as Adam having been either the muse to hundreds of musicians or else the musician himself.  The topic of staying anonymous vs grabbing glory is brought up more then once as well.

Coffee Talk June 4th 2015

Spudguns!  So, as we by now know, the cult classic The Craft is getting a remake.
It seems to be a solid split down the middle with people on if this is a good thing or not?  A lot of those in my generation feel it doesn't need it at all, and the younger fans seem to think it's the most brilliant thing since sliced bread.

Here's my take on things.  Are you ready for this, cause it's important, earth shattering even.

It depends on how they handle it. 

Truly earth shattering for you right?  I mean, I have such depth and insight to the whole thing.  Seriously, I can see it being a good thing and I can see it being a bad thing.

The pros of doing this remake: if they get more in depth with the whole witchcraft element. Dive into Vodun, Santeria, Shamanism, Hoodoo, and really get with the reality of it.

Which brings me to the cons of doing this remake: if they water it down. If they decide to make it Charmed-lite, with the whole spotlight on Wicca's commercial side.  You know why everyone loves the character of Nancy?  Because she's not afraid to do what needs to be done. Where as the character of Sarah is just too...nice. 

If they decide to get a bit more Witches of East End, or Constantine with the script, then it could be good.  That is if they cast it right.

That's another thing. If they cast name brands for the sake of it, then it will be an epic fail. I think casting no-name brands in the leads would be better.  I also think it would have been an even better plan to have had it of more a sequel with the original four twenty years later, to see what their lives turned into after the events of the first film.
The main themes of bullying, class, gossip, trust, loneliness, guilt. All the original elements need to still be there. If any of those subplots or themes are removed, the film just won't work.
It will be interesting to see how they bring technology into the storylines?  The original was done before the internet/cellphones/ ruled the world. Will this distract from the main themes or strengthen them? 


Wednesday, June 3, 2015

Theme Week part 3-Vampires

The Addiction

plot: While walking home from a late night class, a woman is attacked by a vampire. Over the next few days, she finds herself slowly turning into one herself, and that the need to drink blood overpowering. Her first few victims are done by sticking a needle into their arms and proceeding to shoot up their blood like a drug addict. This quickly escalates to attacking and biting her closest friends, turning them into vampires as well. She mistakes another vampire for a victim, but finds herself no longer the hunter but the hunted as he takes her to his apartment and feeds off of her. The whole time lecturing her on how to control the addiction. A few weeks afterward, while at a party, herself and her newly made vampires feed on the guests, before she has a breakdown ending up in the hospital where she tries to kill herself.

This is a 1995 drama starring Lili Taylor and Christopher Walken.

I'd like to say this was different, but it really wasn't.  Shot in black and white, this was released at the same time that  Habit and Nadja were, and has much of the same themes.

What I loved about this was, the use of vampirism as a metaphor- though in no way subtle- for addiction and the social paralysis that it can cause.  I always find vampire movies more interesting when they are metaphoric of other issues, rather then just having a vampire for the sake of it.

We see the lead character in a state of desperation and false control through out this movie. Circling back and forth blaming her victims for not being strong enough to resist her, when it's in fact her that is the weak one unable to keep her junkie at bay.  There is even a scene where they bring up the book Naked Lunch, which is all about addiction in it's many forms.


Tuesday, June 2, 2015

Theme Week part 2-Vampires

Pale Blood

plot: After a serial killer has left a trail of bloodless bodies, a private detective is hired to find out if it's the work of a real vampire. With her own background in the Occult, she manages to psychically connect with the ghosts of the victims, and learns the killer's true identity. Unknown to anyone else, the man who hired her is a vampire himself.

This is the 1990 crime thriller starring Pamela Ludwig and George Chakiris.

It's been over 20 years since I last saw this movie. You can imagine my giddiness when I found this online this morning.  I want to say this film was ahead of it's time.  Here we are given prime examples of vampirism in different forms, one being how the entertainment industry is the biggest vampire of all.

The film revolves around a video film maker who has become so obsessed with the idea of hunting vampires, he begins to kill in order to lure a real vampire to him. All the while taping the crimes in order to make a documentary.
It's almost like both a nod and inside joke to the fact that immortality can be gained by video, and how as a society we're under it's "thrall" with every show/movie there is.

This film also brings up the topic of psychic vampirism. The ability to connect from miles away with just the will and desire to do so. In this case, instead of "feeding off them" the detective is gathering information and passing it on through a series of collective visions.

Some of the other themes brought up in this is self control vs surrender, belief, sanity and intuition.

There is a bit of an inside joke about midway through, when a series of shots of traffic are overlaid with radio voice overs, and you can hear one announcer saying "of all the vampire movies I've seen Pale Blood offers something new."   Subtle right?

Coffee Talk June 2nd 2015

Spudguns!  It's 7:30 am EST here, just got up, and thought I would post the monthly shout out for the Food n Flix.    This month is be hosted by Cheap Ethnic Eatz and they have picked the movie Butter.

That's kinda all I had to say this morning...there is one more Jane Austen adaption left to do later this month.

Okay, so I finally saw the teaser trailer for Hotel Transylvania 2  which is scheduled for Sept 25th release, and you know I totally can't wait for that.  I know it's a cartoon but its a vampire cartoon so deal. Which is why I thought now would be an excellent time of year to have a vampire theme week on the blog.  Cause why wait for October when you can vamp out now?

Till later

Monday, June 1, 2015

The Nosferatu Adventures s8 p17

The Nosferatu Adventures
page 217, chapter 217

Out of Time

Edward scratched the back of his skull as he entered the studio.  Taking a deep breath, he tried not to look like he felt, which was not wanting to be there.  But, the publishers weren't giving him a choice. They had him locked in contract. So here he was, standing on set of a day time soap opera My Gothic Kitchen where he'd be one of the new writers. He hated the whole idea.

It, he was told, was the hottest show at that moment, mostly it would seem because of the show's star Montgomery Spencer.  Montgomery played billionaire T.R. Colt and his twin brother J.J. Colt III.  Edward had been there all of fifteen minutes, and he'd already witnessed Montgomery's slippery charm on the make-up lady, the costume designer and even the caterer. He felt dirty just being in the same building as him. Rolling his blue eyes, it was obvious this dude was no David Canary. Then again who was?

"I'm sorry, no press today. It's a closed set for the nude scene."  a demanding female voice said just to the left of him. Edward turned around to stare at the woman, his mouth forming a perfect 'o'.

"I'm the new writer." he said tilting his head to the side beaming at her in that too charming way of his, before running his right hand through his hair. "They sent me over from the..."

"Oh right. Sorry." she flipped through her notes not looking at him. "Totally forgot they were doing that. Just head on then down the hall to the first door on your left. That's where the rest of them are." she said turning on her heels moving away from him.  Clearing his throat the dark haired male did as ordered actually glad to remove himself from the cast. He stopped midway down the hall, turning pointing back to where the main room was.

"Nude scene? Since when do daytime television....nevermind." he continued on to the first door on his left.

The room smelled of stale coffee and cheap nicotine. It made his nose twitch. He was about to introduce himself to the other writers already in the room when he thought better of it. Two of the women were standing beside the coffee maker whispering, while the one guy was sitting a few feet away on a beat up looking sofa, his foot crossed over his knee, picking his teeth.

"You must be Tony." a man said as he clapped Edward's shoulder. "Nice to meet you, I'm Phil, and you've already met Janet, Barb and Kurt." he squeezed past him in the doorway dropping a box of donuts on the table by the coffee maker.

"Actually it's Edward and I just got here so no I haven't..." his sentence died in midair as everyone turned to look at him.

"So you're the guy they brought in to replace Robert." Barb huffed shifting her weight just enough to lean her hand on her hip, her orange curls frizzing out around her head. "You've just better be half as good as he was cause I need this job. I've got two kids to feed and I don't need some pretty boy hotshot hoarding in on my time..." she hooked her thumb at herself then pointed at him. "Stealing all the glory."

"Yeah. Robert might have been a complete drunk, but he knew his stuff. So if you're here thinking you can just replace him like it's nothing, you've got another thing coming." Janet snorted as she moved a few feet opening the window, lighting a cigarette.

"Basically kid; what those two are politely saying is keep your head down, your nose clean and just write the mumbo jumbo voodoo crap to the standards we're used to okay. Don't half ass it" Kurt chimed in as he wiped his hands on his thigh. Edward made a sound as he lowered his head, shifting from one foot to the other.

"I think I can handle it. Who's Tony?"

"I don't know? They told me your name was Tony." Phil replied shrugging as he stuffed a donut into his face.


It was nearly midnight before Edward was able to get out of there for the night. He had spent the majority of the previous seven hours listening to Janet and Barb complain about how the scenes they'd written for the lead actress had been thrown out because she was so high the woman never remembered her lines, and just ad-libbed everything. He'd barely gotten out of there with his sanity.
The dark haired male just made it into his apartment, locking the door and removing his shirt when the buzzer went.
Knitting his eyebrows in confusion, he checked the peeper to see who it was. A woman dressed in a pair of red flannel pajamas, her hair up in two braids, and a pink bathrobe, stood there holding a stack of mail. Opening the door just an inch, Edward asked what she wanted.

"Hi, I'm down the hall in 14F. Um..." she licked her lips as she held out the stack of mail to him. "They stuffed your envelopes in my box..."  Edward couldn't help but grin upon hearing that. "I mean, your letters were jammed in with mine...I ..."  he opened the door fully for her nodding for her to enter.  He noticed the pattern on her pajamas were of little cartoon bats and wolves and Hallowe'en monsters with the words Happy Hallowe'en. 

"Sorry what?" he closed his eyes pinching the bridge of his nose, a sudden migraine pounding causing his ears to ring and his eyes to burn.

"I didn't say anything."

"Are you sure? I could have sworn..." his ears began to hurt as he strained to hear around the suddenly ringing. Grunting, he doubled over his hands now on his knees as he told himself silently to calm down. To focus. All at once he could hear the neighbours all over the building, a cat somewhere down the hall scratching to be let in a window, birds flapping their wings on the roof, the hooker two blocks away hustling her customers, and the traffic layering itself over all of it.  And somewhere under it all, the sound of  her heart thumbing beside him.
Standing up straight, Edward licked his lips as he smirked at her tilting his head just a half inch, smoothing down his dark hair. "I was just about to have a glass of wine. Care to join me?"


He woke clutching both hands to the sides of his skull, as he realized he was on the floor under the bed. Reaching a hand up he grabbed the edge of the mattress pulling himself out from under it. As he did, he spotted something red in the doorway. Crawling towards it, Edward half way recognized the Hallowe'en pajamas the neighbour had been wearing. Too bad he didn't remember taking them off her.  But guessed if they were still there, she must be as well.
Turning, he saw her pale leg tangled in the bedsheets and made his way back to the bed, thinking they could have another round.  Leaning in to kiss her neck, Edward froze. The neighbour was cold lifeless.

The dark haired male threw himself across the room shutting the bedroom door behind him as he fell to his knees trying to remember what had happened.


Tune in again for another installment of the Nosferatu Adventures starring your heroine...me(straight up story.  And that's why shacking a sidhe is bad for your health...)

Theme Week - Vampires

You knew this one was coming!

Fright Night 2 New Blood

plot:While in Romania, exchange students Charlie, Amy and Evil, find themselves at the mercy of their professor Gerri Dandridge, who as it turns out is a vampire. Not only is she a vampire, she's the legendary Elizabeth Bathory. After the police refuse to believe him, Charlie lets Evil talk him into asking tv star and ghost hunter Peter Vincent to help them. But time is running out, as Bathory has kidnapped Amy upon discovering she was born at the stroke of midnight on a full blood moon; and drinking her blood will turn the countess into a daywalker.

This is the 2013 remake starring Jamie Murray and Will Payne.

I read the reviews for this over a year ago, at at the time they were all negative. I have a feeling the reviews were written by folks who didn't actually sit through even half of the film; because damn this was a really good movie.

Putting the "2" in the title is a mislead though. As this is a remake of both the original 1985 and 2011 versions, and not really much to do with the 1989 sequel.  The only connection this might have with the 1989 film is that we have a female vampire lead.

There are a few minor plot twists in this -other then the Countess Bathory element- one has to do with Charlie's sacrifice in the last few minutes of the film, and shift in Peter Vincent.  

I have to say, the way the Peter Vincent character was done this time around, which was basically a mix of both previous versions of him - he's a desperate tv star needing quick cash like the original version played by the late Roddy McDowall and a bit of the occult collecting geek version played by David Tennant- was brilliant. 

Instead of using mirrors as their vampire test like in the other films, we get the use of a camera phone, with no vampire showing up on film.  And the addition of bat sonar was not just a first for the series, but as far as I can say right now, for vampire movies in general. Where as in other vamp films we see the vampires become bats, this time we see them just have the ability to use sound waves to locate objects; and as a weapon.

There is one big goof up in the film, and that is when Evil is fighting Vincent and gets the left side of his face burned. A few scenes later, the right side of his face has the burn scars.

All in all, it keeps to the main soul of the original while expanding on the story. I really liked it.