Thanks for reading the October 2026 issue of This Awful Awesome Life. I hope you try the recipe for Spelt Lentil Soup in our “Twelve Months of Grain.”
Previous issues of This Awful Awesome Life are available to read on our website. Go to www.thisawfulawesomelife.com and start scrolling or you can enter specific search criteria.
November is Men’s Health Month and Indigenous People’s Month. Find out about Movember and men’s health issues. We’re also recognizing the many contributions of Indigenous peoples and their culture.
Orlando Bartro, Tony Valerino, Sheila Kirk, Scarlet Carter, and I will be back with more interesting poems, stories, and articles for you.
Our featured author, with a November birthday will be the Irish author, Bram Stoker.
I haven’t selected a book to review yet, too many wonderful choices.
We’re moving some of our regular features around to shake things up a bit and keep you on your toes. I’m also hoping to expand our Artist Page to feature more talented creatives. Some people manage to elevate their work to the level of an artform, and we want to support their efforts.
I’ll have more streaming and reading recommendations. “Dare to Believe” will be back but we’ll be alternating some of our content. We’ll continue the monthly quizzes to exercise our brains, and we’ll continue reviewing books.
For the time being, I’m holding off on a new subscription-based Patreon account featuring short stories and chapter installments of my books as I write them. I also hoped to provide opportunities for book discussions and narrations of short stories. It’s something I want to do, but pesky life keeps getting in the way. When and if this happens, it will remain separated from our online magazine which will always be free and available to everyone. I’m considering the Patreon option because traditional and Indy publishing have changed so drastically in recent years. Now that AI has entered the equation, more changes are coming.
Stay safe. Stay well. You are important, and you are loved.
All my best,
Fran
Answers to the October 2026 “Scary Folklore” Quiz:
1. According to the Maine legend, the White Lady of Brownville Road, a bride in white haunts the scene of the fatal crash that occurred on her wedding night by walking along the roadway searching for her lost bridegroom.
Louisianna’s version of a werewolf, the Rougarou, walks upright. It has the head of a dog or wolf, and a human body covered in black fur. The creature prowls the swamps, woods, and sugarcane fields searching for people who do not follow the rules, such as not properly observing Lent.
In Rhode Island, a strange rock formation became known as the Devil’s Footprint marking the spot where the devil tried to capture a Native American woman. When she resisted with surprising agility, the devil angrily stomped his foot leaving a mark. According to legend, bad luck will follow anyone who disturbs the space.
In 1692, a group of girls created a panic in their town when they claimed to be possessed by the devil. Over 200 people were executed, and countless others were persecuted during the Salem Witch Trials.
In Irish folklore, the Dullahan is a harbinger of death. It rides through the countryside on a black horse carrying it’s head under its arms. According to legend, if you see it, you will die soon.
Founded in the 1740’s, the settlement called Dudleytown was plagued by mysterious deaths, suicides, and tales of widespread insanity among its residents. Many believed the misfortune was caused by a curse placed on the town founders because of their political misdeeds in England.
Deep in the woods of Coos County New Hampshire, Wood Devils, tall, thin, hairy creatures resembling Big Foot press themselves against the trees at night. They flee if someone accidentally stumbles upon them. To this day, people are still reporting eerie noises in the woods, strange footprints, and sightings of giant fleeing shadows.
In Scottish and Irish folklore, the Sluagh na marbh were spirits of the unforgiven dead. Many were so evil they were rejected by heaven and hell. These shadowy outcasts flew through the night in packs from the west searching for souls to snatch at the moment of death. Fear of these creatures was so strong that relatives of the dying rushed through their homes closing all west facing windows.
In the late 19th century, a young woman named Mercy Brown died of tuberculosis. After several other members of her family also died of the disease, townspeople in Exeter, Rhode Island suspected she caused the illness from the grave. They dug up her body and because it was unusually well preserved, they assumed she was a vampire. They removed her heart, burned it, and placed the ashes in a potion used to cure the sick.
The Pine Hill cemetery in New Hampshire is a popular attraction for ghost hunters and thrill seekers because it is said to be haunted by the Blood family. Visitors report hearing strange voices, seeing ghostly apparitions, and being overcome with feelings of dread.
The Cherokee legend of Tsul ‘Kalu or the Tennessee Bigfoot claims a giant creature roams the wilderness at night as a protector that is peaceful unless provoked. It is also the protector of the hunt. In modern films and video games, the creature can be peaceful or a malevolent beast that terrorizes rural communities.
In this Louisianna version of Big Foot, the Honey Island Swamp Monster with webbed feet, large red reptilian eyes, and bodies covered in thick gray fur, is said to be the offspring of escaped Circus chimpanzees and alligators. This creature is blamed for mysterious animal deaths and strange noises at night.
Behind the glamour of LaLaurie Mansion, the home of a wealthy respected member of the Louisianna elite, is an unspeakable horror, the torture and murder of enslaved people in the attic. These heinous crimes weren’t discovered until a fire broke out and the torture chamber was discovered. People report hearing screams and seeing ghostly figures in the windows.