Happy Second Birthday!

YEAH!

Yes Ladies and Gentlemen, my faithful Non-Existent Readers, The Freak Show is two years old!

Actually the second anniversary of me starting this little experiment was a couple days ago, but I forgot about it until last night, while talking to some friends. We weren't even talking about it, but I mentioned a post I had made, and that reminded me.

A lot has happened this year.

As the year has progressed, I have started talking more aboout serious stuff like the war in Iraq and Global Warming.

I started posting my stories, becoming serious about my writing since I first started almost 7 years ago.

I posted alot more. This time last year, I only had about 150 posts. This one that you are reading right now is post #413.

I started a few new blogs, all focusing on various writing projects. I also participated in National Novel Writing Month.

Oh, and since I mentioned it last year, I lost my job in the bakery because the store closed. I am now working in the deli at the former compatition.

Hopefully I will have a job that I like better, or atleast one that pays better, by this time next year.

BTW, just so you know, the writing project that I mentioned last year (one Casey and I were working on) is still going to happen eventually. I got busy with my stuff, and Casey decided to concentrate on his writing, but it will happen.

As for stuff to expect, the obvious one is The Freak Show passing the 500 posts mark, which I am guessing will be some time in May. Also, I have some new writing projects planned, which will be on their own blogs, but I might post updates here. I also hope to have not 1, but 2 and possibly even 3 Novellas done by this time next year, one of which will be done during NaNoWriMo. Might not sell many copies, but it will be cool to be real author, even if it is just self published.

The Woman In White

This story is part 3 of The Pine Creek Murders, a 6 part series that started in The Girl In The House


The Woman In White

Levi Basso walked along the cliff side. It had been one week since his sister’s body had been found, battered and broken at the bottom of the cliff. The police didn’t even know what killed her; the fall, or the knife wound in her chest.
What they did know was that her death was not an isolated incident. Her’s was the fourth body found, a week after the search began.

No one had been worried when she didn’t show up for work, but after five days with no call, her co-workers became concerned. Floyd Hamilton volunteered to check on her, and that is when they found Thor

After calling the police, who could find no trace of Katie, Floyd decided to check on his sister, who had seemingly disappeared. Upon entering her house, he was greeted by a horrific sight. His brother in law was sitting in his favorite chair, his chest cut open and his entrails covered the room.

The sight when they found Mary was just as gruesome. She had been gutted on her bed, killing not just her, but also her unborn child. More then one officer had gotten sick at the sight.

The police had searched the entire town until they found her body at the bottom of the cliff. Like Thor, she had been stabbed. How she ended up at the bottom of the cliff, no one knew.

There was one thing that connected all the murders; the mark on their foreheads. Each of them had the same mark branded on them, a cross with the cross beam connected to the bottom by a curving beam on each side.

The same brand that Erik Ullrich placed on the foreheads of his family as he killed them.

The police investigation had been inconclusive. They knew that the victims had been murdered, but all efforts to find clues to the killer’s identity had failed. As the police struggled to find the killer, rumors had all ready started spreading.
That Old Man Ullrich had returned from the grave to continue his murderous rampage. That for some reason he had return to kill again, joining his daughter Lyne in terrorizing the village of Pine Creek.

With the police investigation stalled, Levi decided to start an investigation of his own. He started in the bathroom where Thor had been killed. While his death hadn’t been nearly as gruesome as the Armstrong’s it had been no less brutal. The killer had severed several major arteries, and Thor’s blood sprayed against the walls as he bled to death.

Levi’s past as a crime scene photographer, the first job he had gotten out of college, had been enough to convince the police to allow him to see the pictures taken at the scene. He had spent three days studying all of them, except those of his sister. As much as he wanted to find the killer, he couldn’t bring himself to look at the pictures of her body. They had always been close, and he knew that it would be hard enough for him to see her in a casket tomorrow at the funeral. He wanted the last time he saw her to be there, with her laying peacefully in a coffin, not of her broken and twisted body.

His investigation had failed as well, and he found himself retracing her final steps. The rain the day before had washed away her footprints, but he had followed them from Katie’s house so many times since they had found her body that he knew the route by heart.

As he walked in the failing light of day, Levi couldn’t help wondering what Katie’s final moments had been like. What had she felt as the killer plunged the knife into her chest? What she had been thinking of as she fell, and if she felt anything at all when she crashed into the jagged rocks below. The police said that she may have been alive on impact, and survived for several minutes before dying from her wounds.
Levi wondered if she had died a painful death, or if she felt anything at all as the life slipped from her body.

As he approached the site of her death, Levi saw a woman wearing a white dress. Her hair pulled back, Levi instantly recognized the earrings she wore.

They were the earrings that Grandma had given Katie on her twelfth birthday.

Levi shook his head. They couldn’t be the same earrings. Katie was wearing them now, as she lay in her casket at the Church. It was obviously the dieing light playing tricks on him.

Levi walked up to the woman, intent on finding out why she was there. As he got closer, she looked more and more like Katie. He stood beside her and was about to ask why she was there when she turned towards him.

From the side she looked perfectly normal. When he saw her face, Levi took a step back in horror. Her nose had been shattered, her jaw hung open on one side, as it had been nearly ripped off her head. An eye hung out of its socket, thanks to a shattered orbital bone. A nasty gash had opened on her forehead, and blood flowed down her face, staining her cloths. What was left of her once beautiful face, as well as the blood covering her chest, confirmed his suspicion.

It was Katie.

An unearthly moan emanated from her useless mouth as she reached towards him for help, one of her hands crushed beyond recognition. Levi continued to move away from the horrifying specter as she stumbled towards him, dragging a shattered leg behind her.

Katie reached out to him and Levi stepped backwards once more
Before falling into the void.



Few people venture hear the Basso cliffs, least of all at night. But the few who do always come back saying they heard screams bouncing off the Barrens, and tell tales of the woman in white.

Thought the timing of this was funny. A few days ago J.H. and I were talking about my secret base in Utah on Tales From The Coffee Shop and then, the next day, I saw an ad encouraging people to take a vacation in Utah.

Like I said, the timing is kind of humorous.

Maybe next time I should talk about putting a secret base on a nude beach in Hawaii or something.

I'm watching an episode of My Generation about JFK's assasination, and they mentioned that there were some anti-Kennedy people there (described as "right-wing conservative extremists") They said that the main fear was that there might be some embarassing or inappropriate signs in the crowd, but figured there would be no harm done to the president.

Obviously we know what happened that day.

The thing I found funny was the fact that they mentioned the anti-Kennedy crowd, but that was about it. they were mentioned in passing, partially because the cops were supposed to keep them away from the big crowd so that they couldn't embarasse the president.

Man how times have changed. Now the Anti-Bush crowd have police escorts, and there are no worries about the president being embarassed.

We can only hope that the same fate doesn't await President Bush, and obviously if it does, it won't be during a parade.

The sad thing is I get the feeling that a lot of liberals would celebrate if {resident Bush ere killed. Maybe not right away, Maybe not even for a few days, but I am sure there would be some.

While watching T.V., I noticed an Asian Lady Bettle crawling on the screen.

These things are ultra annoying, but I like them. They make good targer practice for my Nerf weapons :)

The Knights Of The Morning Star

This story is part 3 of The Siege, a 5 part series that started in Enamies At The Gates

The Knights Of The Morning Star

I swing my sword, separating my foes head from his body. I take a deep breath, using a few precious seconds to recover my strength before re-entering the battle. The situation was desperate. Everywhere I looked, there were bodies. Most were my fellow warriors and precious few were the enemy. They seemed unstoppable. They cut through our ranks as easily as an arrow cuts through the air. They would soon over run the caer, and there seemed to be nothing we could do to stop them.

Suddenly a battle cry sounded behind us. Looking towards the sound I couldn’t help but smile, despite the carnage around me. The Knights Of The Morning Star had arrived.

They are close. the truth is that the Girl Scouts are plotting to take over the world, using cookie money to fund their conquest of the planet. Even The Question knows that.

Check this video I found out. Not only is it a great song, but the footage rocks. I think it is all from the first episode of Hellsing, although a few clips might be from episode 2. It's been a while since I watched it, so I don't remember.

If you haven't seen hellsing, I recomend it. it is very dark and violent, but if you can get past that, it rocks.

Saw this while catching up on Pearls Before Swine and I had to post it, because My DVD player is posessed.

Serious, it is. the tray closes with out any warning or any reason. Plus, I think I heard it say "i Love Satan" a few times.

I saw today that the guys in charge over in Iraq have requested more troops, and President Bush has approved it. Of course I am sure that the Democrats started complaining and trying to find some way to block them as soon as the words left his mouth.

I said it before and I will say it again.

Who knows the situation over there better. The suits in D.C., or the guys fighting in the trenchs.

I hate Daylights Savings Time!

No, I am not contradicting what I said a little less then a year ago, I I stand by what I said then, I just hate it right now, on the first few days.

Why do I hate it? Because for the second year in a row, I no-showed Sunday School because of it. This wouldn't be that big of a deal if I wasn't a teacher!

Last year I showed up and was greeted by the pastor's oldest daughter, who was getting something from their car. Thinking Church had just let out, I was surprised when she said that Sunday School was over, until I remembered that I forgot to change my clocks.

This year was a little different. Last week we changed to having Sunday School before church. I remember waking up at 6, looking at the alarm clock, and thinking that it was relay 7, and that I could sleep for another hour. I woke up , looked at the clock, and saw that it was 8:30. After rushing to get ready, I headed for church and was greeted by my students, who told me that Sunday School was over, which is when I remembered that I forgot to change my clock.

So two years in a row, I wake up late, get to church, and realize that I missed Sunday School. this year was especially bad because I no-showed last week as well. We decided pretty much at the last second to go to the bike show in the cities (we had bad weather last week) and so I had an hour to finish getting ready for work, pack a bag, find a sub, and help a friend with a computer problem. I decided to wait on finding a sub, expecting a slow night at work, but instead it got busy and I forgot until about noon the next day.

Now the question is will I forget next year and make it three in a row

400th Post!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Accually, this is tencically post number 401. It seems that the last post was #400.

Opps.

When I reached #300, I estimated that it would take 5 months to reach 400, and I was close. only took 4 months :)

In that time, I've posted some more stories (including one as the 400th post) and played with a troll. In all, I think the last hundred posts went well.

Now to see how long it takes to get to 500.

The Man In The Mirror

This story is part 2 of The Pine Creek Murders, a 6 part series that started in The Girl In The House

Remember when I said that The Girl In the House was a stand alone story, and that I had no way to continue it? Well, as usually happens when I say something like that, I figured out a way, because here is part 2, The Man In The Mirror.



The Man In The Mirror

Thor Leipheimer had to admit, he had been wrong. When his fiancée had asked him to move to Pine Creek, he was hesitant. He had lived his whole life in New York. He loved the city, and enjoyed his job at the Times. He had never thought of leaving New York, and never thought he would. In the end, his love for Katie won out, and after accepting a job at the Pine Creek Gazette he moved out of the city.

It didn't take him too long to fall in love with Pine Creek. As a photographer, Thor felt like he had died and gone to heaven when he saw the trees, rivers, and other sights that had made Pine Creek famous. He especially liked walking through the Pine Barrens, snapping picks of everything he saw. It was rare that he left the house without a camera, even if it was just a little point and shoot, and he was thankful for the development of high quality digital cameras. Without them, he would have spent a fortune on film in the three months since he moved here.

Luring away a photographer had been a big deal at the Gazette, and they used Thor as much as the could, asking him to do a story about the Ullrich Murder House to commemorate the fiftieth anniversary of the murders just days after he started. Thor loved the assignment, delving into the Ullrich family history, learning about the murders, and of course the ghost stories that followed. Unlike Katie, Thor believed the stories were true, that Lyne Ullrich did in fact still haunt the house where she died. Of course he would never tell her that. She would just laugh at him.

On of the best resources Thor could find while doing his research had been Wendy Landis, the widow of the man who had died in the house a year ago, and his next-door neighbor. A life long resident of Pine Creek, she knew a lot about the murders, and was more then willing to help him as he wrote the article. With her permission, he had even started writing a book on the murders, including a chapter speculating that Lance's death had been connected to the curse placed on Lyne Ullrich by her father before she died.

Today however was a day to rest and relax. The book had been sent off the editor the day before, and now Thor, Katie, and their friends Mary and Taylor Armstrong were walking through the woods surrounding Pine Creek. They had asked Wendy to join them, but she said no. IT was her anniversary, and she wanted to spend it remembering her late husband and by visiting his graveside. They understood.

Thor of course had his camera out, snapping pictures of everything; a bird here, a pinecone there. He even had a picture of Lance's headstone. Mary and Taylor had known Wendy and Lance for a long time and they decided to pay their respects as well.

As they walked along the cliff side over looking Leed’s Lake, Thor saw what he had been looking for since he first became interested in photography. The perfect shot. Leed’s Lake in the foreground, disappearing into the fog as the Barrens closed in from the side. He knew that none of the others could appreciate the view as he did. In fact he knew on only one other person who could; Levi Basso, Katie’s brother.

Levi and Thor had been roommates in college, had taken the same photography classes, and were the best of friends. In fact, it was Levi’s fault that Thor and Katie were engaged. When a snowstorm kept Thor from joining his family in Florida for Christmas one year, Levi invited him to join his family. When Thor first laid eyes on Katie, he knew that she would some day become his wife, and the feeling was mutual. They began dating soon afterwards, and shortly after he accepted the job at the Pine Creek Gazette, Thor proposed. They were to be wed in three months, and Thor eagerly awaited the day when they would become man and wife.

He snapped picture after picture, but there was always something missing; people. Carefully posing the others near the edge of the cliff, Thor prepared to take the shot when he saw something shining between Taylor’s legs. He looked up in time to see a person in black plunge a knife into the base of Taylor’s neck. Blood sprayed everywhere as the killer turned and slashed Mary’s throat with a single stroke. Blood sprayed from between her fingers as she collapsed to the ground. The killer turned to Taylor and finished him off, driving the knife through his throat.
Katie and Thor ran, but the killer followed, with seemingly superhuman speed. As the light faded and the shadows grew longer with the setting of the sun, Katie and Thor thought they had lost him, until he wrapped his arms around Katie’s shoulders and drove the knife up under her rib cage and into her heart. The killer again disappeared as Thor ran back to help Katie, but it was too late. As she lay in his arms bleeding to death, she pointed. Thor looked in time to see the killed, his knife raised, ready for the kill.



Thor awoke with a start, cold sweat running down his chest. It had been a dream. Or a nightmare. He looked at Katie, lying beside him and was glad that he hadn’t woken her up.

He climbed out of bed, careful not to wake her, and went into the bathroom. He looked in the mirror and saw the face of a man who had, seconds ago, been in mortal peril. Thor smiled. It was only a dream. No need to get worked up about it. He bent down to splash some water on his face, and didn’t see the man in the mirror, his knife ready to strike.

Yet Another Of Life's Great Questions

Unlike the last edition of Life's Great Questions, I did my home work this time, but it proved to be a pointless exercise, answering none of my questions.

Today while I was at work, I was making garden and chef salads, and I couldn't help wondering, how did Chef Salads get their name?

After all, The orgin of the name Garden salad is obvious; it is made up of stuff from a garden. Taco salad is also easy; it is a taco in salad form. Some, such as Caesar salad, are a little less obvious with out any research, but it is named after the guy who created it, as is Cobb Salad. But what about Chef Salad? There is nothing in Wikipedia that explains the name.

The only thing I can think of is that it was named after someone. Maybe the first person to make a Chef Salad was named Chef, kind of like the South Park character.