Horror Report

Tag: ayden

  • A photo showing its age

    A photo showing its age

    10291108_10205319752499615_2955116092100004107_nThe grainy image you see here was once a moment of happiness in time. Seven years ago today, my wife and I ‘tied the knot’… Some would jest that the bounds of holy matrimony only conflict with modern realities of existence, and others would say the troubles of the tight ‘knot’ of marriage isn’t worth the trouble.

    Quite frankly, I could not disagree more..
    Are there tough days? Sure..
    Have there been dim moments? Of course..

    Seven years into marriage, some amazing and sad moments come to mind.. The most amazing and miraculous part of my life was watching my son be born into this world. Since that time, my wife and I have both lamented world violence and murderous rampages that seem to be commonplace .. But that life being born, that first cry, and each and every day since has left us with the impression that we have done something right. Also, we both agree: We will strive to continue to do something right..


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    Tragic moments have been mixed in with miracles. Deaths in the family.. car problems.. monetary lapses in the wallet. All of those common troubles that are associated with living in America..

    My wife and I are 20th century kids, people who have left our growing pains at the doorstep of the year 2000. Now 14 years later, bringing up a child in a new millennium, you’re what you own..

    And what is it that we own?
    Material possessions? Some.. some others are on the tab, being paid with those credit cards that we wish we did not have..

    But what we own on the higher level is much more impressive: Love, acceptance of each other–and this is important. Also: We have a family. Do we own our son? In a sort of way.. but he’s his own person. Our job is to mold him and create a human being that will change this world, make a difference, and get out of the negative spiral that so often consumes our brains.

    That’s what living in America is to us, right now..
    Living with love. Living with a positive approach even in the face of turmoil and darkness..

    Living in America. We are from the last millennium.
    But we’re dying a new one–all the while raising a child to not be alone.

    Happy anniversary to Tara, my wife. 2007 until now.. With all of that life in between. So much done. So much more to go..
    You’re not alone.

    [youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1hNGj30peTs]

     

     

  • 7TH YEAR STRETCH

    7TH YEAR STRETCH

    Some fine wine was consumed.. amazing food was, as well.. The Greystone in Pottsville PA was the location for a very special dinner.

    Last night, my wife Tara and I cerebrated our seventh inning stretch.. We got married on a beautiful October day in 2007.

    In the years since, there has been new life made and miracles born.. there has also been lives lost, some very painful..

    Some days easy.. others days not. I cannot even imagine the burden of living with me, sometimes.

    The state of marriage, seven years in.. by the time 9pm came, we rushed home to make sure we could tuck our child into bed and relieve a babysitter of some duties. Because parenting has now become the most important part of our marriage.. Everything else takes a second seat to ensuring you’re properly raising a human being into this world.

    I hope we are doing well.
    Last night we took a time out to consume some amazing food. And have some very meaningful discussions to attempt, in some small manner, to put a theme to the past seven years.. And move into the next 7 stronger.

  • Lightning crashes, a child hides

    Lightning crashes, a child hides

    This is what a late summer thunderstorm looks like on a Saturday night above HORROR REPORT home base:

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    And this is how my son reacts:

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  • Imagine no religion. It’s not easy even if you try

    Imagine no religion. It’s not easy even if you try

    As so often happens during free-flowing conversation with me, I got into a somewhat intense chat yesterday with a few friends and co-workers..Typically, my ‘devil’s advocate’ style of arguing enrages some who don’t quite understand I am always attempting to trick them into disagreeing with their own point of view..

    The topic at hand yesterday was actually something that reared its ugly head from my colloquial area. A gay couple was denied a cake from a popular bakery in Schuylkill Haven, PA.. the CAKE PROS was actually a business my wife and I entertained in 2007 when we got married, but we found a better deal.. Now, in the modern age of quick news online, their name is being besmirched throughout the nation due to their ‘Christian’ moral of denying same sex couples baked goods..

    And this is where we are in the world..

    There is something amazing to me about what wars Christians choose to fight and what banners of zeal they decide to wear on their sleeves..

    For a little bit of full disclosure, I was born and raised Catholic. I don’t regret it, as it actually gave me a sound foundation in grade school and let me fight religious professors in high school with knowledge.. But as any Catholic does after years of education, I grew doubtful in my 20s and now, in my 30s, completely and utterly confused as to the purpose of life and whether, big question time, a personal God even exists to begin with.. maybe I’m not in the Stephen Hawking camp yet, but more in the Michio Kaku corner: that a personal god is illogical but a god of order is more true. Math always seems to add up. Electricity makes sense.. perhaps the God I choose to try to understand is a God of those two subject matters.. Or maybe the real God will be wagging his finger at me on a high throne when my demise occurs, as my lifelong doubting Thomas type mindset never seemed to go away..

    But that is me.. Confused and pondering the meaning of all of it.. not a believer or disbeliever.. just someone searching for answers. Clues.. Any signs that aren’t just by chance mistakes on the grand scale of life..

    While it seems I am digressing, I’m not. I am attempting to paint a somewhat vivid picture of my mindset vs others..

    Back to cakes..
    Yesterday, there was one particular hard core Christian, whom I know and love and think is a great person, that expressed a sentiment that the Cake Pros thought process is not abhorrent but instead quite fine. I posed the question: If the pastor of the church you go to suddenly says he will allow gay marriages in her church, will you quit? The question caused her to become flustered.. she was torn. On one hand, as a literal believer in the Bible and someone who endorses the 6000 year (flawed) theory of the age of the planet, she is right at home in the church she attends. The Bible is an historic account, she says.. It’s all true. And even those parts of the excoriation of women or the killing of innocent as a punishment from God? Well they happened but they’re glossed over as ‘events of a time we don’t understand.’ While everyone has the right to believe what they do, this person I speak of denies science and disregards any evidence presented through carbon dating or other scientific method as a parallel to truth, and quite possibly of Satan himself attempting to trick the faithful into doubt.. She also thinks Satan has done the same for me–no matter how many times I tell her I am investigating all of life and trying to find answers without simple blind faith.. Nonetheless, the question on whether she would quit this church, one that espouses all of her own convictions, due to gay marriage taking place, was difficult.. Finally, after obvious blood pressure hit her forehead and confusion hit her brain, she answered: “Yes.” She would quit..

    And this is the battle Christians in the United States are attempting to fight, at this time.. right now.

    Gay marriage.
    Same sex love..

    To make matters worse, during my chat with this person, she said that gay people still have a choice whether they want to sin or not.. So I asked her back: “Why did you choose to be straight?” That question irritated her to high heaven, much more than I expected it to..
    There were no answers..Instead the conversation ended quickly and we agreed to disagree..

    I find the entire premise of fighting over gay marriage to be contrary to any common sense..
    I am 33, and I think I am apart of a generation that began not caring. I grew up with the ‘not that there’s anything wrong with that’ joke from Seinfeld.. Characters on television programs were quietly incorporating same sex love long before adults noticed. While my high school years still were filled with gay hate in some circles, the rest of us knew that fawning the most hate were probably simply hating their own impulses anyway..
    Things have changed. More and more states are going to allow gay marriage.

    But hard core religious believers will still pump up their iron of anger and quote scripture to condemn those in love…All the while ignoring most of anything important actually happening on this planet..

    There is a great divide of common sense in Christian quarters, in my thought..

    In Iraq, ISIS, or IS, is busy slaughtering Christians in big numbers.. sure, fellow Muslims who believe in a slightly different timeline are getting cruel punishments, too, but the big target seems to be the infidels. Men, women anad children–kids–are being sliced in half .. Beheaded.. pressed.. stoned.. They are being deprived of food and water and forced to perish in horrible and long drawn out deaths.. They are being burned. Buried alive. Tortured. And some families are being forced to throw their own children off of cliffs to kill them –a better option when compared to the inevitable treatment when ISIS comes to town..

    But Christians here? Worried about gay marriage..

    There is something very dangerous about religion–something that we as a civilization should have dealt with long ago..

    The logic escapes me, as well.. While this is not an endorsement of atheism–I am not that but instead searching for answers as mentioned prior–but perhaps the line from John Lennon’s song IMAGINE about thinking of a planet that had no religion is in order.. If there’s no religion, no belief system to divide us, perhaps we will become a united people ready to achieve our destiny: Inhabiting the stars and populating our galaxy with life.. Maybe we will not be cutting children in half because Mohammed said so. And perhaps the Christian crusades in which the same behavior occurred would not have taken place, either..

    Maybe the light of life that is in every child’s eyes will not be indoctrinated by hate disguised and love, or judgement pretending to be discernment.

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    If there was no religion, perhaps we would start getting closer to actually finding who or what created us.. Maybe without ancient texts to get in the way, we would be able to scientifically trace back the origins of man and find the missing link.. Hell, maybe we’d even find out the grays did make us as a science experiment but that they are confused we have souls..

    I look at my own son before bed each night. He sleeps in peace, most times and sugar-depending.. He is inquisitive about what his world, so far, is.. But I still weep for those children who don’t have have a peaceful sleep.. Those awakened by bombs overhead or the cries of suffering mothers at the hands of hateful and dreadful human beings hellbent on opening the gates of Hades on this planet. I contemplate the mothers of the children of the disappeared.. I loathe those who profess faith while driving BMWs to their giant Sunday services in convention centers.. I disdain religions that set rules contrary to human emotion.. And I get infuriated when people quote God to justify their heartless and ungodly acts.

    But ain’t that Earth?
    The truth will set us free.. what if that truth is that all religions are frauds and that the issues we have been told are important are nothing more than divisive ways to control population? I think that’s exactly what religion so often is..

    Pope Francis has lots of impromptu photo ops. But there’s always a photographer at the ready, isn’t there?

    Is anything real? Is nothing real?
    Gay marriage is real to some.
    The world is real to others–especially those suffering in it..

    The quicker we move on from old antiquated belief systems the better..
    There’s a world of trouble out there. It’s time to move on from the world.

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  • From the depths of my childhood, new toys for my son

    From the depths of my childhood, new toys for my son

    My son and I were playing my my old He-Man action figures tonight, I think it’s the first time in my 33 years of life I actually took a close look at Moss Man’s face.. What an ugly mug.

    Funny enough, Moss still has a slight hint of the fresh 1980s added on odor that Mattel have him.. Amazing.

    BUT!

    Oh no! Ayden just beheaded Mekaneck… Another casualty in the old toy box..

    Oh no! Ayden just beheaded Mekaneck… Another casualty in the old toy box..

  • A FATHER’S DAY REFLECTION

    A FATHER’S DAY REFLECTION

    Mother’s day came first. Dad was an afterthought. And then Father’s day followed. But that’s fine. 

    You see, Mother’s Day, in many respects, is what matters. ‘Mom’ goes through the nine months of changes, the labor pains.. the glorious feeling when she holds her child.  Dad of course had a hand in the whole affair, but.. .. .. and for that, we know why dads mean something.
    I have sought to be the best father, ever. Period. I don’t know how often I sink or swim with my son, Ayden, but I certainly try..
    Since the first time I looked at my son’s face, I felt a connection that is stronger than the physical form. This may sound corny, and for non-believers, potentially repugnant, but I see “God” in my son’s eyes. Whatever your idea of God is, of course. Because God may not be the God we think God is, or he may be a she, or maybe just electricity.. or maybe nothing.  But I see more than nothing in my son’s eyes, therefore I know there is something more than nothing—and the something is something I have no clue how to even try to understand.. 
    And re-re-reading that paragraph, I know it makes little sense. But life sometimes just… makes little sense.
    What does make sense, though, is being a father. Sharing laughs, wrestling matches (without real punches), fights, and love.
    Family first. At least according to Adam Sandler in CLICK.
    And I follow that motto. Family first.
    We certainly don’t have to be friends. But we need to be family.
    In 1993, I received a Christmas gift: My mom subscribed me to TIME magazine. I have been a reader since. Though I will admit now over the past 10 years I sometimes page through the smaller than ever print edition and just toss it aside. But in 1993 I read a story called ‘FATHERHOOD’… Never of course, at the age of 13, realizing that 20 years later I’d be celebrating my third father’s day…
    And in 2003, ten years after that TIME edition was printed on old paper, I was cruising around in my 1999 RED Volkswagen Jetta, searching for a mate and not realizing my best friend Tara would soon be my wife… While cracking the windows, I played my COMPACT DISC of Simple Plan. I’d Do Anything… And now, ten years later, my son Ayden  is watching 2003 reruns of SCOOBY DOO and he is singing along to songs by Simple Plan, as they did the theme songs and background music for the show.. At one point about three weeks ago, I had Ayden in my car and put my old scratched up CD of Simple Plan in.. and me and my son shared a moment of singing along to music. In 2003 did I ever think I’d have a child, let alone be married? No.. I did not.
    This is what happens. Life happens when you are busy making other plans. Right, Mr. Holland? Your Opus proved that..
    I think I may go back to the 1993 article of TIME and read what  being a father is all about..Though I think I know.
    Being a dad is being there. Being the wrestler in Chief and sometimes the disciplinarian in chief. Easing mom’s tension by taking the child away for a while. Being a friend. A foe. And an ally to the end.
    Yes, fatherhood is interesting, beautiful, and amazing. All at the same time. I am glad I am taking part in this grand experiment.
    To all the dads out there, including my own: Happy Father’s Day. For a few hours Mom may tell you it’s “your” day. Actually it’s not. It is your child’s day — everyday..

  • The Horror Report.. another year older..

    The Horror Report.. another year older..

    There are things that go bump in the night.. abandoned buildings.. hospitals, perhaps?  Maybe it’s that thick fog that descends over your home, shrouding your comfort in a hostile dense mystery. There is something about fog that can be creepy.. You can strain your eyes trying to drive in it, wondering if an animal will jump from the woods … wondering if something else is out there. And to say you’re safe in your home when it’s foggy outside is wrong. After all, a glance outside may spot something, anything, in the corner of your eye. Maybe a tree that looks like a man waving.. or maybe a someone who will intrude into your safety. And, it could still be just a tree…

    If you have read the HORROR REPORT on any semi or regular basis since the year 2001, you may get a sense that there are more than a few lists of what scares me.. I began this site in February, 2001, during a cold and bleak winter day. It existed then on a Geocities site and had an Angelfire backup .. A dotcom was born several months later. And the rest became history. This site vanished for a few years.. but came back again. When it did, the things that scared me grew in numbers.. How could they not.

    Life has changed much in ten years.. What I worried about as a 21-year-old surely is not the same as a 32-year-old. For some reason, I have considered this website my friend. I felt it was a living, breathing, and aging friend. It was there during times of sadness, tragic circumstances, personal victory, and history. 9/11 happened, and the HORROR REPORT was there.. A space shuttle exploded.. a marriage occurred.. a son was born. . . and a few dogs perished along the way. All there, though, still was the HORROR REPORT. With all of the scary news from the world and beyond. But the thing I still do, as I did then, is update this website in a dark room. No windows, no lights.. just the flicker of the computer screen.. and the sound of typing fingers.. Sometimes a background song or two to accompany my mood.

    My son Ayden just turned 2-years-old a few days ago…Amazingly enough, I went back in time, and found an old copy of my first official ‘HORROR-REPORT’ .. and it was dated February 21, 2001. Ten years and one day later I would have a son.. Never in 2001 would I have thought that…

    The HORROR REPORT was originally a center for horror movie news … it transitioned and grew–as I did… as we all do. After all, what is scarier: Some bloody gore flick or real news? We know the answer. And it’s why horror movies are still popular in 2013 as much as they were any other time.. because they allow an escape from reality. A reality that is often more frightening than any script or scene on a screen in front of you. Living color is more horrid and horrific than the digital kind… 

    Fright and scares..
    Take flight.. avoid scars.

    I see already that my son gets freaked by shadows.. I see him scared at certain scenes on games or TV. Noises make him jump.. Why is it that fright is so ingrained into the psyche of a human being? Why does a child, innocent, still find fright and take flight at things you’d least expect? Maybe because people who are fresh to the earth have a simple and true approach to life.. maybe they see things we don’t? Maybe they know more than adults who grow to disbelieve wicked games of paranormal…

    Out of respect, I won’t give many details, but I will tell you that my sister had a strange experience as a child. She saw, what I think at least, was the Rake. A hand would follow her around.. it would torture her in her sleep, trying to grip and claw at her. Of course, parental guidance would suggest such thoughts and feelings were of imagination.. Not real. Not at all. But who is an adult to tell a child, experiencing a claw tormenting her, that it is not real? 

    I had some strange occurrences as a child, too.. I recall, quite vividly, a few times in which I saw bright white lights in a room where my grandfather died… I remember looking in the room and seeing endless white light. I recall a trip to a church late at night when I heard a confession taking place. Unfortunately no one was actually in the church except me, and my father… 

    My cousins and I used to play ‘horror movie’ when I was younger.. typically I’d be the Michael Myers or Freddy figure in the game, and have to find them somewhere .. we’d typically play this game over a wide landscape–my cousin lived near farmland and had more than 4,000 rows of corn field to hide in. I remember one night, in particular, where we played late into the evening. It was late summer, I know that because I still can feel the warm breeze that was blowing in across the landscape… We were quite far from his home when we realized that we needed to travel back before it got dark. And as the group of us walked the landscape we came across a farmer, or someone, chopping wood. The figure of him in motion was set against a dark yellow-red back drop… for some reason, that simple image of a man doing hard labor at sunset scared the hell out of us.. we ran the rest of the way. Think about it: A group of young men unaware of danger, seeing a man with an ax and not knowing if we’d be in some type of trouble.. we ran like our lives depended on it…


    And I write and report on this website in the same fashion now.. Like my life depends on it. I report what scares me.. sometimes the news of the day, whether it be entertainment or geopolitical, Hollywood gossip or religious, can give me a chill to my bones..

    In 2001 Pope John Paul II was reigned… in 2013 the ‘prophecy of the popes’ may come to fruition. 


    In 2001 George W. Bush was president.. now he paints naked images of himself..
    In 2001 I was young and dumb. In 2013, I’m aging and lamer.. wasting some time but longing for more.

    I am a father. A husband. A son. An employee. A co-worker. An uncle. A brother. A brother-in-law. A friend. A teacher. A student. And an owner of the HORROR REPORT. 

    I intend on doing this so as long as I can.. Live long the free internet.
    Live long the HORROR REPORT.
    But I’d sure love less frightening news….
    Thanks for reading. Thanks for being here. Keep in touch.. 
    Email me at bryan@horrorreport.com .. keep in touch on Twitter@TheHorrorReport. Or just read it here.. It’s where I’ll be.
    Thanks. 
    A million.


    [youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jqMG3VR5PP4?list=PL4AC70DC818081723]

  • Ayden dreamed of a white Christmas and got one.. With reindeer poop to boot

    Ayden dreamed of a white Christmas and got one.. With reindeer poop to boot


    It was Ayden’s second Christmas—and first white one..

    He hardly slept, with excitement about the snow along with the possibility that Santa was about to eat a chocolate chip cookie..

    Fun memories.

    I hope you and yours had an equally beautiful time last night and today.

    Christmas almost done.

    My God so is 2012..

    Since we don’t know where times goes, may as well enjoy while we have it.

    He got it this year. Really ‘got it’.. knew about Santa Claus. He even believed that Santa’s reindeer took a ‘poop’ on our front yard.
    For a soon to be two year old, the gift opening session went pretty well.

    He barely wanted to open more after a few books he liked were opened first..

    We kept it minimal this year. On purpose.

    Kids can be spoiled quickly. Right now, with Ayden being our only son, he is spoiled simply by default.

    But there is nothing wrong with that..

    It’s amazing to see innocence in the eyes of a child. Eyes that have not seen horrors or ravages of this planet. That is precisely why images of children who see those horrors make me intensely sad sometimes around this time of year.

    Ayden Morris, you did well. Cheers to another year coming. Your third Christmas will be only better.

    Merry Christmas to all out there. And to all a good night.