Happy Birthday, H.P. Lovecraft!

I am a lover of Lit and most things horror. I'm not all in on the "killing for killing's sake" kind of movies like Saw, but I really enjoy supernatural horror movies and stories and sometimes those really intelligent crazy death movies like the first couple Final Destination movies. Even though, I will admit, I had to watch the first one a few times before I could even handle the crazy deaths.

I guess what I am getting at here is that I like the unseen and the psychological. Even Jaws is more of an unseen and psychological thriller than something like, oh, gee... the umpteen million sequels to Saw. Maybe that's why I prefer Criminal Minds to NCIS or CSI (granted, I used to love the original CSI until a bunch of changes made it meh and then it went off the air).

Digression? Why yes! I excel at them. The point is. . . today is H.P. Lovecraft's birthday! The man. . . the mythos. . . the occultist? Sure! This is a man who has contributed to the shaping of the modern horror and even, to an extent, modern fantasy and Sci-Fi. I don't want to make this a long biography of someone I studied in college, but fell in love with as a reader. So let's shorten this up a big with my homage to his birthday.

Today, on  his 123rd birthday, I chose to reread a work his that I haven't read in such a very long time. It quotes one of my favorite romantic poets and harkens back to my days as a lover of all things romantic and gothic. "The Outsider" by H.P. Lovecraft. A tale so reflectively strange and so near to my heart as one who is trying to find their place. Beautifully crafted with haunting images. A amazing piece of literature and a worthy piece to sharpen the literary mind.

If you're hardup for a way to celebrate, make sure to check out Unspeakable Words, designed by James Ernest and Mike Selinker, with art by Tony Steele.  You have cards with letters and images on them. You try to play words and, depending on angles on the cards, you have to make a sanity roll. In true Lovecraftian style, your either go insane or die. . . err... lose. There are adorable little purple Cthulu like pieces as part of the game. Enjoy! I'm hoping to get a round in with Ray after Isabelle goes to bed. So celebrate!

Happy Birthday, Mr. Lovecraft.