"Budapest seems a wonderful place... The impression I had was that we were leaving the West and entering the East." So begins Bram Stoker's Dracula, written in a time when the city was seen as Europe's final frontier. Today, Budapest is rather more familiar (it joined the EU in 2004) - although it has lost none of its original appeal.

Here upon the mark we stand
Moving upon a mysterious current
Weeping and laughing away the day
Until only shall we slumber

If you should stumble along the marvelous path
And claw your way across the stones
Let is not matter that your flesh rips clean
Nor the blood that shows the way

For to triumph against the tears and anguish
Whispering our names with an intake of breath
Wrapping arms around a redemptive soul
In the back of our minds to welcome us home

So take my hand and allow it to heal

Ron Chaney's hillside home near Palm Springs doesn't look much like a haunted house, but he always looks forward to getting it ready for Halloween. Chaney is, after all, a descendent of monsters.

She stands at the junction of the road,
The moon is clear and bright.
She chooses her quarry carefully,
Her prey must be just right.

She spies a young man walking by,
With a strong and confident gait.
She decides her feast will come from him,
No longer will she wait.

She follows him to a night club,
It vibrates with a pulsing beat.
She gazes across the dance floor,
His gentle eyes and hers meet.

She moves with slow and sensuous steps,
Her walk becomes a tease.

Clawing at this life, yearning to break free
on the outside looking in, looking at you looking at me
some hearts weren't ever meant to love
some tears weren't ever mean to be cried
that's what you told me on the day that I died
you left me without a soul
spiralling down into the dark
sucked into your black hole
I was your child, your lover, your friend
and you left me alone for eternity without end

Scarlette Death
October 6, 2001