Gargoyles & Cemeteries...

That's really three topics, which is a lot to cover in five to ten minutes, but here goes. These are things I think about in the fall because Halloween reminds me, but spooky isn't seasonal for me. I'm fascinated by things macabre and monstrous throughout the whole year.Gargoyles:  I'm sure there's some psychological principle to explain my love of lumpy stone statues, but I have yet to find a study. I can say from my research that far more thoughtful people than me have pondered them. I offer a link to this fantastic site: Gravely Gorgeous.  There you can learn as much as you like about the architecture, history and nature of grotesques, of which gargoyles are a subset.Horror movies: I like the classic monster films best, not the gore-splashed bloodporn cinema popular these day. The Carousel Films edition of Dracula scared the pants off me when I was a child. The only modern ones I've enjoyed were Alien, for its moody-broody intensity, John Carpenter's The Thing, for its creeptastic perfect balance of effects and character drama, and Final Destination, which was clever, shocking, and smart by turns. Saw and its ilk? No, thank you.Cemeteries. I love them. They're some of my favorite places to go walking. I don't find the idea of being among the dead frightening, never have. To me cemeteries are parks full of quiet and caring, spots dedicated to history and remembrance, where the air is sweet with memories as much as bitter with grief. Whether the grave markers are shiny and new or worn-away lost and long-forgotten in tall grass, they say silent things about humanity and impermanence that need to be heard. I listen, and I am comforted.Ha! Did it. Only 3 minutes overtime too. Flying fingers.Time: 2:33 PMTea: Supreme BreakfastSteep: 5 minutes, and 4 to cool off.