I'd like to thank the Academy....

Apparently Tuesday was awards day around the horror blogosphere, and I was lucky enough to be on the receiving end, so it ended up being a banner day here at Fascination With Fear!

First off, I earned (do we say earned?) A Kreativ Blogger award from my pal Chuck, over at Zombies Don't Run. We've been twittering back and forth for awhile now too, and are both reeling over our respective NFL teams bombing out this season (he w/Titans, me w/Steelers).
So thanks Chuck! And keep up the great work at your blog, I love it!

And now for the "rules" (why do I feel like I'm watching Grease for the 73rd time here?):

1. Thank the person who nominated you for this award. - Again, thanks, Chuck - you made my day!

2. Copy the logo and place it on your blog. Done.

3. Link to the person who nominated you for this award. Again, done.

4. Name 7 things about yourself that people might find interesting. Okay. Here goes:

*1) I'll be married for 20 years next month and I have never taken off my wedding band. Ever. For anything. At first it was just that I never needed to, now it is like a superstitious feeling I have. Like if I take it off I won't be as rip-roaring happy (truly) as I am now. I'm weird, I realize that.

*2) For many years, I didn't particularly care for the seashore. Crowded towel-to-towel beaches, noisy kids, seagulls shitting on you, the smell of those damn potato patch fries... then my husband and I discovered Hatteras Island on the Outer Banks of N.C. - in the off-season. Presto-chango! I can't get enough of it (probably because it has none of the above!) We now go there every May and it's the highlight of my year.

*3) I hate celery. I'll pick it out of anything it's in and I can smell it a mile away. Gah!

*4) I am passionate about Thoroughbred Horseracing. No one who knows me would expect me to be anywhere except in front of my flat-screen on the first Saturday in May (or in Louisville gods willing). I even told my brother not to dare plan his wedding for that date or I wouldn't be there. I meant it, and he knows it. It is like a religious experience for me. And not just in May.

*5) For my last meal, I would quite possibly choose a Chef Boyardee pizza and a bowel of strawberry ice cream with hot fudge on top.

*6) I like winter. People who continually complain about snow get under my skin. Move out of the snow zone then, dammit - you have a choice in life. But as for me, I would love one of those wicked, debilitating four foot snows to hit my area, causing me to be trapped in my home for three days straight. Bring it on.

*7) And the most surprising thing? I do not own a cell phone. Yep, I'm living in the stone age and quite frankly, I'm doing okay. Nobody calls me while I'm in the book store and reminds me to pick up peanut butter on the way home.

5. Nominate 7 Kreativ Bloggers. Well...here's where I have some difficulty. Everyone and their mother has been nominated and chosen. I'd actually love it if seven bloggers who read my blog but have yet to be recognized in any capacity would contact me so I could give them props... But what I will do is post seven blogs I read every day, and who have made me want to strive harder to do better by horror. They inspire me, and I bow down to them.

The Vault of Horror - Brian seems to be everyone's I-Ching in the horror blogger world.
Day of the Woman - VOH's sister blog. Whole lotta love to my hero BJ-C.
The Horror Digest - See more praise for Andre below.
Dollar Bin Horror - Rhonny Reaper runs the most prolific blog out there, and she's fun!
Freddy in Space - Cause I like Johnny's style!
Fatally-Yours - Sarah just flat out rocks the house. Comprehensive, to say the least.
I Love Horror - Because Brad always says exactly what he thinks. Love that.

6. Post links to the 7 blogs you nominate. Done.

7. Leave a comment on each of the blogs letting them know they have been nominated. If I were to leave another award comment no one above would even notice, they've all been so bombarded with recognition.

* * *

I also received the One Lovely Blog Award from two people as well.
B-Movie Becky over at The Horror Effect sent some love my way. Having only been blogging since March of '09, she has a terrific site that I always look forward to reading! And may I mention how organized her blog is. Whoa. {Love your blog header, too, BTW!}
So, thanks to you, as well, Becky! Much appreciated!

Also, thanks to Nicole Raymond over at Gruesome Details, too! She also sent the One Lovely Blog Award into my corner. She notes in her blog that in the next year, she has plans to add more book reviews - which I love - and is actually a rather rare thing, with folks usually so focused on movies. I for one, wait with baited breath... She also uses a WordPress layout, which always impresses me cause I have yet to figure it out;)
Thanks for noticing me.

With this award, you are to pass it on to fifteen other worthy blogs. With the almost boomerang effect of all the awards floating around out there, I know I'm mentioning some blogs that have already been blessed with awards, and I'm going to cut it back to ten...but here goes anyway:

Diary of an Amateur Vampiriologist

Unspeakable Horror

Zombies Are Magic

Musings Across a Continuum

Lost Highway

Magia Posthuma

Horror Movie A Day

The Horror Club

Tomb of the Headless Werewolf

Mermaid Heather

* * *

And while we're still patting each other on the back, I got yet another swell award - and this one probably boasts my favorite image.
The Zombie Chicken Award!

Because I have received this from two separate sources, I feel I need to mention both!!

So....first, many thanks to Andre over at The Horror Digest. An absolutely prolific blogger, her site just tickles my fancy with an array of great commentary, in-depth reviews and witty banter. And she is always kind enough to leave me comments on my own blog - 'cause you know bloggers live and die for the comments, folks! And last but not least, she's a cat lover as well - yay!
So thank you, Andre, for noticing my blog. I'm humbled.

And also to Matt at Chuck Norris Ate My Baby - your blog is a wonder of the natural (or perhaps unnatural) world. And I have to give props to someone who chooses CNAMB for a blog name - it's just sick (in a good way of course!) I love your sarcasm, your love of lists, and your honest opinions on the state of horror today. Thank you thank you thank you!

And it is my duty to pass this award on to five worthy blogs. I've cut that back to three, as we've been passing awards around like hepatitis here. I know all three of these have no doubt been mentioned, but hey - as Andre said, spread the love!

Hayes Hudson's House of Horror - New to my blog roll, Hayes is also a new friend of mine - and he comes to horror blogging in an almost identical manner as myself - almost no one he is close to truly appreciates horror. So blogging became a great outlet - and he's very attentive to updating his little piece of the internet. Well-versed in all things horror, it is a site not to be missed.

Behind the Couch - James is one of my first followers on my blog, and is always kind enough to leave me a comment on quite a few of my posts. He's based in Ireland (always a good thing in my book) and his blog has been online since December of 2008. Articulate and literate, his reviews are thorough and entertaining, and his mind-set is very similar to mine. Scary!
Oh! And he has a book on Dario Argento coming out this March. Whoo-hoo!

Basement of Ghoulish Decadence - This is a new find for me, which always makes me happy. As if I don't already have enough to read, Jayson goes and kicks it out of the park. The first time I happened across this blog was a post he'd written on Let The Right One In - thoughts that I completely agreed with. Good stuff here.

So to wrap it up, I'd like to thank the Academ-- whoops, sorry.
I'd like to thank everyone who thought my blog worthy enough to hand out an award to, and thanks to my (currently) 60 followers as well as anyone who has taken the time to stop by and read my blog, even if it was by accident.

**And if I missed anyone that happened to award me or mention my blog, please let me know. With all the awards running rampant it's been crazy keeping up. Story of my life... (yeah right.)

***ADDENDUM: I wanted to take a moment and recognize Geof, from Enter The Man Cave. He also nominated me for a 'One Lovely Blog Award' and I have to give him a great big Thank You! Geof always leaves me comments - and I think you know how I feel about that;)
His blog is sublimely witty and I suggest you get your ass over there right now!

In addition to that, I found out No Room In Hell also gave me props in handing out the coveted Zombie Chicken Award as well. And I do so appreciate it. I've been reading NRIH for quite some time, and you should too. Most recently, their retrospective on the last decade was a fresh take on the subject, instead of a list - which so many of us did, and were great - but to see a Fangoria-worthy article like theirs was enjoyable. So go check that out!

Gosh, I can't say how grateful I am at all the recognition I've been bestowed lately. Not sure if I'm really worthy of it, but I'll try to keep doing what I'm doing. Thanks!