Come and Visit!

Not sure how much or how often I will be posting here,

but you can always check me out on Tumblr at:

Caffeinated Joe

My main site, with my thoughts and interests.

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My Third Parent

Devoted to classic television of the past.

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Hallowe'en Horror

Dedicated to Halloween, creepy art, horror movies and Autumn.

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Wish You Merry Christmas

Christmas all year long.

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Classic General Hospital

Classic GH and the reinvigorated show of today.

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Plastic Canvas Creations

My pieces and other great patterns and work from around the net.

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Color 2 Color

Two colors and only two colors per month.

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Come on over and visit!

Retro Halloween TV Fun

I mentioned my Hellowe'en/Horror tumblr blog before.

Today I wanted to showcase some of the Halloween pics

from My Third Parent, my retro television blog.

Hellowe'en Horror on Tumblr

As I mentioned, I have a Tumblr blog which focuses on

Halloween, horror films and Autumn.

It can be located here: Hellowe'en Horror

Here are a few of the pics I have posted there that I enjoyed!

To see more, go to the site or check out the archive.

Howdy!

Long time, no post!

Hope everyone has had a great Summer!

Hope to be posting more here,

and hope to have some visitors and comments!

Anyone still around?

F13:TS 25 - Blog Post on the Series

The blog Supernatural Television did a post on the show, check it out!

Friday the 13th: The Series

Ideas?

October is fast approaching, and as usual I am planning a month of Halloween/horror related posts.

Also, I am once again taking part in the great Countdown to Halloween.

My request here is for ideas. Anything you all want to see?

A particular movie? Show? Book? Costume? Character?

Drop some thoughts in the comments. Will see what I can make out of them!

And thanks!

Interview with me at Zombos' Closet

Hey, how cool is this?

I was interviewed about Halloween and why I love it over at Zombos' Closet!

Check it out: My Halloween: Caffeinated Joe

Thanks for the opportunity, sir!

Crossroads

Last week I did a post of one of Shakespeare's Sonnets. I have been reading them lately, and am subscribing to all 154 of them through DailyLit. Felt like sharing it.

And that is what brings me to this blog title: Crossroads. I haven't posted here since New Year's, except for a cartoon and the sonnet. I have felt like this blog lost its purpose, for me. Why? I am not sure.

Part of it might be the Horror road I went onto here. I never intended for this blog to be just a horror blog. I had originally intended this blog to just be, well, whatever I felt like posting. Here is what I originally posted when I started this blog:

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So, I will post what I want, when I want and how I want. I won't ask anyone to read it or comment on it or care about it.

I will at least be getting some flotsam and jetsam out of my head. Maybe I can help my writing, find some ideas for stories, articles - whatever. But it will all be just for me.

Feel free to read, or not. Feel free to share, or not. Enjoy it, or not.

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I don't want to just close up shop here, so I am going to try and get back to that mindset. My blog, my space, I will post whatever.

Let's hope it works. And thanks to those who didn't delete me when things got quiet in these parts.

It is appreciated.

About Blogging...

As anyone who visits here may have noticed, there hasn't been anything posted since May 1st, and even that was just an embedded video.

I have been having trouble feeling creative, whether it is just in blogging here or writing in general.

Writing itself is a whole issue, but, in regards to the blog at least, I think I was making this place too ... specific, I guess.

I started this blog back in October of 2008. Here is part of the very first post here:

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(writing about previous blogs)


I wrote a few random things, nothing major, nothing regular. I always thought "why bother" and "what could I post that anyone would want to read?" But, reading a post today from a friend who hit her six-year blog-anniversary, I was shown a reason why I should blog: For myself.

She made a point of saying that she writes to get the stuff out of her head, and that resonated with me. So, I will post what I want, when I want and how I want. I won't ask anyone to read it or comment on it or care about it.

I will at least be getting some flotsam and jetsam out of my head. Maybe I can help my writing, find some ideas for stories, articles - whatever. But it will all be just for me.

Feel free to read, or not. Feel free to share, or not. Enjoy it, or not.

I am going to!


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I obviously drifted away from that, a bit. I became sort of fixated on only posting things I was sure that would be of interest to others, especially things relating to horror films. I never intended for this to be a "horror movie only" site. Nor of any one particular subject, at all.


This was supposed to be randomness. Flotsam and jetsam. As it says above: "What I read, write, watch, listen to or do between hot cups of the good stuff." 


Hopefully, I can get back on track and post the weird and wonderful.
Hopefully, I will enjoy it once again.
In turn, I hope you will enjoy visiting here.

Tumblr For Me?

Wanted to do a quick post today mentioning that I have a tumblr site, for those of you who are interested:

Caffeinated Joe - To Go

What do I post there, you may ask? Well here are a few samples:


{via Mr. Macabre's Hallowe'en Cerebrations}

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{via Saturday Morning Breakfast Cereal}

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{via Vintage_Ads:Kellog's}

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{via PaperTissue}

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{via Entertainment Earth}

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{via The Daily What}

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{via ALPHAVILLE}

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Like any of this? Want to see more?

Follow me at Caffeinated Joe - To Go

Thank you!

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Here's one more for the road:


{via Zap2It}

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The Bad Movie Ultimate Cage Match #7

My friend Jason over at Invasion of The B Movies has a relatively new feature on his blog: The Bad Movie Ultimate Cage Match.

Each week, he pits two bad flicks against each other. Each movie is submitted by one of his readers, and they give their reasons for why the flick is the worst out there.

A poll widget on his sidebar is easy to use and keeps track of which flick is ahead in votes. At the end of the week a 'winner' is announced.

This is week #7, and my submission (the awful Land of the Lost movie) is going up against the 5-week champ (Ballisitc: Ecks vs Sever)!

Please head over and vote. Won't take long!

And think of submitting your own bad movie for consideration. Jason needs submissions to keep the Cage Match going, and I am sure we ALL have flicks we can't stand!

Theme Thursday - Surface

The topic for this week's Theme Thursday is Surface.

I have had a case of writer's blahk for about a month, and nothing creative came to me for this theme.

So I decided to do something different and change the entire look, or 'surface', of my blog. A stretch, I know, but work with me people!

I had been thinking of making some blog changes for awhile and one of the issues I wanted to deal with was the dark/black background. I did like it, but I had noticed that when I read posts on my blog, or other black background blogs, my eyes saw after images of the white text. So, I wanted to change that.

And with that, I went ahead and uploaded an entire new layout. I hopefully have worked out all the kinks and I hope you like it.

If you want your site listed in one of my blog rolls to the right here, just let me know. Always open to reciprocal linking.

Okay, thanks for indulging my stretch of a post here. I promise to try and be more creative next week. Here is a pic to go with the theme. Look at the art on the surface of these cups of coffee!



Click for more Theme Thursday ---> Surface

Theme Thursday - Friend

Theme Thursday posted "Friend" as the topic this week.

I thought it would be a great opportunity to shine the spotlight on some of the people I have met online, people who have become more than just a weird name or a funny avatar. People who have become true friends.



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Ravyn (@ Ravyn's World)

I was going to limit this list to just friends, but I couldn't do it. I had to start with the one person, above all others, who has become not only my best friend but also my love - my wife, Ravyn.

We met way back in 1994, when this online world was still so new. We bonded as friends before we ever met, and fell in love when we did. We have been through so much since then, including raising all of our amazing children together.

We are coming up on 15 years since that first, 'real-life' meeting, and I wouldn't change one thing about any of it. She has shown me not only that there are good, caring, loving people in the world, but that I deserve all that for myself, as well. I only hope I have done the same for her.

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Jeff (JeffScape @ Irreverent Irrelevance)

I have known Jeff the longest, in terms of online friends (well, 2nd longest, if you count my Ravyn). We met a long time ago in a comic book chat or forum, I can't recall now.

Our mutual love for, and frustration with, the comic book world was a basis for a friendship that has withstood distance, overcome differences (me = settled family man/him = nomadic soldier) and grown with a shared passion for writing.

Jeff is as loyal and honest (and frustrating) as you can ask for in a friend, and even if he doesn't like to get all mushy about, I am thankful to know him.

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Cal (@ Cal's Canadian Cave of Coolness)

I met Cal after stumbling across his blog a year ago. I was shocked and amused to find someone posting some many photos, links and anecdotes that I loved and identified with.

Over this past year, I have come to also know Cal as a great guy with a big heart, an eye for the beautifully strange and unusual and a prolific love for blogging that keeps me inspired.

Cal is also always vigilant in the war against the cephalopods, and we will be thanking him for it one day!

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Steve (Dr. Monkey Von Monkerstein @ Monkey Muck & Dr. Monkey's Retro Blog)

I met Dr. Monkey earlier this year, we had a crossing interest in different blogs, and I soon came to appreciate the strange mix of content he offers daily.

His blogs can be a source of wonderful inanity, with posts featuring creative replacement dialogue mixed with cheesy photos or vintage pics. And the next day it can be a heartfelt post about something dear to him, or a rant about something that just inflames his sense of what is right.

Dr. Monkey is a man who has learned to love and enjoy life while still holding accountable those who need a good kick in the rear. Thanks for saying what some of us find hard to articulate, Doc!

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Hector (Curious George @ tvandcelluloid)

I met Hector about a year ago, on a forum for the show we both have a deep-seated love for, "Friday the 13th: The Series". It is a show that has an enduring appeal that goes much deeper than the 80s look it sports.

Hector and I agree on so many points regarding the show, it is amazing sometimes. But I was also taken by the good nature, laid back attitude and generosity that is just who he is.

He has had quite a roller coaster year, but he has maintained quite a positive outlook and a sense of humor about it all. I applaud him for always being able to look on the bright side, and wish him tons of luck in the new chapter he has just begun!

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Laura (@ The Aquaman Website and Bloggity-Blog-Blog-Blog)

Laura is another old friend, er... I mean long-time friend! We met when I surfed on over to her amazing, comprehensive site for all things Aquaman. I was as astounded by the work she put into the site as I was by the fact that there was another fan so fanatical about the King of the Seas. Back then, it seemed like we were few and far between.

I have known Laura throughout the ups and downs of our hero, and he has had plenty of those, but also through the ups and downs of normal life. She hasn't always had an easy voyage herself, but she keeps on keeping on, and I am always rooting for her.

I also owe the creation of this blog to her. Back in the Fall of '08, when she posted about one of her Blog-anniversaries, I was inspired to start this one myself. So, thanks Laura!

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I could go on and on, really. I have met so many great people here.

Jason Soto (@ Invasion of the B Movies), who shares a love for films that don't always deserve it, and those that deserve more attention than they get.

wiec? (@ when is evil cool?), who is not only quite prolific in his blogging, but also shares a passion for the pop culture world and horror flicks that makes me feel less alone in my weird tastes.

Otin (@ Wizard of Otin), a man with a talent for writing that is always surprising and engrossing. His twisted tales always entertain.

Brian Miller (@ WaystationOne), a man who has a love and appreciation for family and friends that is constantly expressed in great prose and poetry.

Mr. Beautiful (@ The Leroy Lockhorn Appreciation Society), who has a shared love for the wacky and weird comic The Lockhorns. There must be something wrong with both of us.

Gilligan (@ retrospace), a blogger who has an eye and heart for the cheesy, out-dated and always wonderful stuff from our pop culture past. He is an archivist of our groovy memories.

Rob (@ The Aquaman Shrine & namtab.com), a man who continues to amaze and inspire with the sheer amount he is able to accomplish each and every day. I wish I had half his energy.

Jon (@ Random Acts of Geekery, Saturday Morning Superstars, Dracula's Crypt of Collectibles and many more!), who entertains every day with his multitude of blogs, and inspires with his wonderful family.

George (@ Macabre Drive-In Theater), who spotlights the odd and obscure in the horror world we both love.

Carl (@ I Like Horror Movies), who has his finger on the pulse of the horror flicks, both old and new, good and bad, that I connect with.

Johnny (@ Freddy in Space & Win Free Horror Shit!), who has such a love for the horror world that he goes above and beyond to share it with the rest of us. Thank you for all your work and passion, man!

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If I missed anyone, it was not intentional. Like I said, I could go on and on.

Thank you all for making life entertaining, exciting, funny, strange and unusual.

I hope to always be your friend.

Joe

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For more Theme Thursday, click here ---> Family

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Moon - A Tenth Daughter of Memory Post

This post is my submission for the current Tenth Daughter of Memory topic, which is 'Moon'.

It is also chapter seven of the novel I am writing for NanNoWriMo.

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Back in his kitchen, Jake tossed the photo down on the table and walked over to the refrigerator. Had he not been so upset, he would have laughed at how cliche the contents of the appliance were.

Inside the door stood a bottle of ketchup, a bottle of mustard and a small glass jar of relish, all cheap, store brand items. Jake couldn't recall the last time he had touched one of them.

Beer made up the majority of items in the rest of the fridge. Two six-packs of the only brand he drank took up the entire top shelf. Below, a small tub of margarine and half a loaf of bread. Below that, a container from the Chinese place. He couldn't recall what was in it or when he had shoved it in here.

Next to it was a bottle of wine, laying on its side.

His eyes stayed on the wine as his hand reached for a beer. Sara had bought it and he could never bring himself to drink it. In fact, he had never even touched it. He let it lay, unopened, undisturbed, aging slowly, waiting.

With a beer in hand, he shut the door.

After using the edge of the counter to knock the cap off the bottle, he turned back to the small table. The sight of the picture he had dropped brought up the anger he had come home with, so instead he walked to the back door and out into the night.

A small set of five stairs led from the door to the walkway in his back yard. He sat on the top step and took a sip. The beer was cold and made him realize how unseasonably warm the air out here was. Much warmer than an early November night ought to be, he thought. Looking into the small yard, he realized it was much brighter than it should be, too.

He could barely make out the grass, which he knew needed mowing. The fallen leaves had covered almost the entire yard. He hadn't thought about raking them up. He mentally added them to his chore list, but wondered if they would still be here come Spring.

Further back, where Sara's old vegetable garden had been, tall weeds stood, dry and dying. They looked odd, he thought, creepy. He turned his gaze slowly upward, searching for the source of this midnight light.

He found it quickly, hovering above the skeletal trees, watching him. The moon, round and full and remarkably huge, with an orange glow that reminded Jake of fire. He sat, sipping his beer, staring at the moon as it stared back.

For so long he had felt alone.

His mother, his friends... They all meant well, but they really didn't understand what he was going through. He had taken to acting when he was with them, to play a role instead of just being himself. Always feeling more alone after spending time with any of them than he did before.

So, he avoided them.

And Gramps was gone. Until Sara came along, Gramps was the one person Jake could talk to, about anything. And even after Sara, he was the only one Jake could talk to about certain things. But Gramps was gone, and Jake still didn't know how to feel about his disappearance from his life.

And then there was Sara. Damn, how he missed her. The guilt rose up inside him, so he sipped the beer to quell it. It didn't help.

He looked up at the moon again. It just hung there, silently watching him. And for a moment, Jake didn't feel so alone.

Then a breeze picked up, causing the dry leaves to dance around the yard. There was a chill in the with the wind, a gentle reminder that this was November, after all.

Jake stood and, holding his beer out in front of him, looked up at the moon once more.

"Thanks for listening." he said. tipping the bottle a bit. Then he downed what was left and placed the empty bottle along the porch ledge, lining it up with all the others.

He stepped back in to his empty home. Alone.

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For more Tenth Daughter of Memory posts, click here ---> Moon

For my page at the NaNoWriMo site, click here ---> Wings1295

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Tenth Daughter of Memory: DISTANCE

Earlier this month, I wrote about a new blog/project I am part of: The Tenth Daughter of Memory.

The first topic chosen was "And so it begins...", and lo and behold, my post won!

Cool! Thanks to those who voted.

My post was: The Beginning

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The new topic has to be picked by the winner, and I chose:

"Distance"


Painting by Roman Gumanyuk

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To participate, check out The Tenth Daughter of Memory!

It will be more fun with more bloggers joining in. And remember, it doesn't have to be writing, it can be whatever you want it to be!

C'mon... You know you want to!

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First Ever 'Caffeinated Joe' Contest!

Okay - here's the low-down:

I want a cool, new header for "Caffeinated Joe" and from what you can see above, my artistic talent is best when kept really simple.

So I am putting this out there for all of you who are artistic. Make one I love and I will use it as the new header for this site.

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As a prize, I will send the winner their choice of:

"Friday the 13th - Uncut - Deluxe Edition" - New and unopened!

-OR-

"Friday the 13th: Part 3 in 3-D - Deluxe Edition" - New and unopened!

-OR-

"Castaways" by Brian Keene - A paperback book, read once, but in almost-new condition!

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Details:

What to use? I want it to say "Caffeinated Joe", somewhere - what else you add is up to you, but I also LOVE coffee (obviously), horror flicks, Halloween, pop culture - Heck, just look through some of my old posts if you need inspiration!

Make sure it fits the size above, more or less. I don't want something that takes up half the screen!

Send me as many entries as you want, but the one I actually use will have to be tasteful, as in no blatant nudity or outrageous gore.

Email it to me HERE by September 30th, 2009.

Make sure to let me know who it is from, with a name or nickname and a link to your site.

I will post the winning header, along with all the entries, on October 1st, the beginning of the month of all things Halloween & horror!

If I don't like ANY, I will stick with my simple stuff. But I will still choose a 'winner', the one I like the best out all submissions. So, SOMEONE will win, whether I use it or not.

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Thanks for reading and thanks to all who participate.

Good luck!

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The Tenth Daughter of Memory

Today I want to highlight a new blog/project I am a part of.

The Tenth Daughter of Memory is a new blog that aims to generate creativity among bloggers, writers and creators of all kinds.

Twice a month, a topic will be posted. Anyone who wishes can then do a post on their own blog using the topic in some way. No rules on what you create, you have total freedom. Writing, pictures, memories, drawings, musings, videos - WHATEVER. Just have it connect with the topic in some way.

There will be a deadline for each topic, and once that deadline is reached, no further submissions will be allowed. Then, all those who want to can read all the posts. But the catch is you have to vote for the blog you like the best out of the lot.

The winner of each topic gets the 'honor' of posting the next topic. And it all begins again.

Hopefully, it will all be fun, creative and interesting.

The first topic went up yesterday, so head on over to The Tenth Daughter of Memory if you want to take part. We look forward to seeing you there!

Honest Scrap Award

I am back from a week out of the loop. And upon my return, I found that I was the proud recipient of the "Honest Scrap Award" from two different blogs: when is evil cool? and Why Do I Like Stupid Horror Movies?

Thanks, guys!

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Okay, here's the dealio:

1) Link back to the site where you were awarded.
2) Pass the award on to 10 other blogger sites.
3) Post 10 honest things about yourself.

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Here are the 10 blogs I am awarding:

1) Super Blogliness!

2) My Power Is Beyond Your Understanding

3) Irreverent Irrelevance

4) Cal's Canadian Cave of Coolness

5) Random Picture Day

6) ALPHAVILLE

7) Theme Thursday

8) Dr. Monkey's Retro Blog

9) Sitcom Diablo

10) Scott Burroughs

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10 Facts About Me:

1) Closing in on 15 years of marriage, my wife and I are still very much in love.

2) Thought about getting a tattoo, but haven't yet. Plenty of scars, though.

3) I was positive I was never going to get to be a dad, and now I don't know what I would do without them.

4) My patience for rude people is wearing very thin. Really, how hard is it to acknowledge a hello, say thank you or hold a door for someone else?

5) My younger brother is one of my best friends. We've been through a lot, but at least we went through it together.

6) I would pick coffee over food, if I had to choose.

7) One of my best friends is someone I have only known online. And it may be disconcerting for him to know I consider him such a good friend.

8) I can be stubborn. It's a family trait.

9) The extent of my travels have been up and down the East Coast of the US, Maine to Florida and most all in between.

10) When it comes to movies, I am a bit of a masochist. I watch some pretty horrible stuff.

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So, there you go! Enjoy the other blogs and the facts, and thanks to the other bloggers out there for making the Internet a fun and wacky place to be part of!

Coffee Art

This popped up on the net today, and I had to share:

webdesigner depot has 50 Beautifully Delicious Coffee Designs.

Even though I think people should be drinking their coffee instead of fiddling with it, I have to appreciate the talent involved here.

My two favorites:


Love the devilishly creepy grin!


And this has a Dr. Seuss/Grinch-like quality to it.

Check out the rest, some are truly amazing!

Great Read Award

Thank you to both Super Blogliness!
and Cal's Canadian Cave of Coolness!

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I read many awesome blogs, but I want to avoid giving this to those who have already received it.

So I am going to award it to:

Irreverent Irrelevance

Interesting Pile

Pick a Peck of Pixels

ALPHAVILLE

when is evil cool?

Igloo of the Uncanny

Just a few of the Great Reads out there, check them out!

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