I’m never afraid to go to the dentist or eye doctor

Image courtesy of Patryk Dziejma, StockSnapIO. Creative Commons license.

I never worry about going to the dentist or the eye doctor because we always have such fun! One of the advantages of living in a small town I guess. My dentist is Dr. David Hanle, who is just excellent…. READ MORE

Mladen and Del review ‘Terminator Salvation’

Image courtesy of Warner Brothers. — “Terminator Salvation” Starring Christian Bale, Sam Worthington, Anton Yelchin, Moon Bloodgood. Directed by McG. 114 minutes. Rated PG-13. Mladen’s take Take a little “Total Recall,” mix it with “Transformers,” sprinkle a tablespoon of “Mad… READ MORE

Who installed this fridge? A team of Republicans?

So they brought the new fridge and Mom hates it. It's too small the doors have inset handles, which she doesn't like. I wish she'd noticed that at the store but whatever.

More troubling ... they didn't turn on the water. Apparently they turned it on briefly, enough to make one batch of ice, but then turned it off. Makes me think they saw the line was leaking and turned it off to let the next person deal with it.

Mom said they didn't seem to know what they were doing. They didn't realize there was a water line hooked up to the old fridge. What were they gonna do? Rip it out of the wall? They didn't level the fridge; it wobbles.

She'll be at Lowe's tomorrow to get it replaced with a fridge she likes. They'd better send somebody out who knows what he's doing.

About the author:

Del Stone Jr. is a professional fiction writer. He is known primarily for his work in the contemporary dark fiction field, but has also published science fiction and contemporary fantasy. Stone's stories, poetry and scripts have appeared in publications such as Amazing Stories, Eldritch Tales, and Bantam-Spectra's Full Spectrum. His short fiction has been published in The Year's Best Horror Stories XXII; Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine; the Pocket Books anthology More Phobias; the Barnes & Noble anthologies 100 Wicked Little Witch Stories, Horrors! 365 Scary Stories, and 100 Astounding Little Alien Stories; the HWA anthology Psychos; and other short fiction venues, like Blood Muse, Live Without a Net, Zombiesque and Sex Macabre. Stone's comic book debut was in the Clive Barker series of books, Hellraiser, published by Marvel/Epic and reprinted in The Best of Hellraiser anthology. He has also published stories in Penthouse Comix, and worked with artist Dave Dorman on many projects, including the illustrated novella “Roadkill,” a short story for the Andrew Vachss anthology Underground from Dark Horse, an ashcan titled "December" for Hero Illustrated, and several of Dorman's Wasted Lands novellas and comics, such as Rail from Image and “The Uninvited.” Stone's novel, Dead Heat, won the 1996 International Horror Guild's award for best first novel and was a runner-up for the Bram Stoker Award. Stone has also been a finalist for the IHG award for short fiction, the British Fantasy Award for best novella, and a semifinalist for the Nebula and Writers of the Future awards. His stories have appeared in anthologies that have won the Bram Stoker Award and the World Fantasy Award. Two of his works were optioned for film, the novella “Black Tide” and short story “Crisis Line.”

Stone recently retired after a 41-year career in journalism. He won numerous awards for his work, and in 1986 was named Florida's best columnist in his circulation division by the Florida Society of Newspaper Editors. In 2001 he received an honorable mention from the National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association for his essay “When Freedom of Speech Ends” and in 2003 he was voted Best of the Best in the category of columnists by Emerald Coast Magazine. He participated in book signings and awareness campaigns, and was a guest on local television and radio programs.

As an addendum, Stone is single, kills tomatoes and morning glories with ruthless efficiency, once tied the stem of a cocktail cherry in a knot with his tongue, and carries a permanent scar on his chest after having been shot with a paintball gun. He’s in his 60s as of this writing but doesn't look a day over 94.

Contact Del at [email protected]. He is also on Facebook, twitter, Pinterest, tumblr, TikTok, and Instagram. Visit his website at delstonejr.com .

So they brought the new fridge and Mom hates it. It’s too small the doors have inset handles, which she doesn’t like. I wish she’d noticed that at the store but whatever. More troubling … they didn’t turn on the… READ MORE

If it weren’t for bad luck I’d have no luck at all

Image courtesy of Flickr user Tim Sheerman-Chase by way of a Creative Commons license. https://www.flickr.com/photos/tim_uk/

So. The guys came over to refurbish the exterior of our units at the townhouse complex. In the process they caused a lot of destruction, namely: 1. They destroyed my potted plant, Methuselah, that had been with me since 1996…. READ MORE

Do you like Twitter? If so, you’re wrong

Twitter is crap. People call Twitter a “valuable tool.” No, a bottle opener is a valuable tool. Twitter is the magnet on the bottle opener that degausses your flash drive. With Twitter you get – what? – 175 characters to… READ MORE

Why does one person need two cars?

Image courtesy of Del Stone Jr.

So I am restored to two functioning vehicles. Why does one person need two vehicles, you ask? How does that affect your carbon footprint on the earth? How can you afford two vehicles? And what exactly do you mean by… READ MORE

Mladen and Del review ‘Ink’

Image courtesy of Double Edge Films.

“Ink.” Starring Christopher Soren Kelly, Quinn Hunchar, Jessica Duffy, Jennifer Batter, and others. Directed by Jamin Winans. 107 minutes. Not rated. Amazon Prime Mladen’s take My boss recommended that I watch “Infinity Chamber.” I did and liked the film enough… READ MORE

We need to get past this hangup about race

Image by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Chad J. McNeeley

Sometimes working for a newspaper sucks. You don’t get to sit back and enjoy events like today’s inauguration. You’re too busy trying to come up with local angles, scrounging for art, installing live video feeds and coordinating with reporters in… READ MORE

Are books dead?

Yours truly (right) signs copies of "Full Spectrum 4" with Ray Aldridge (left) at a signing event at the Waldenbooks at Santa Rosa Mall in Mary Esther, Fla., in 1993. I don't know who took this photo.

I have been writing since the eighth grade. I began selling professionally in the mid–’90s and as recently as last year made the finals of the British Fantasy Award. Around 2000 I began to wonder if there was any point… READ MORE

Mladen and Del review ‘The Day the Earth Stood Still’

Klaatu’s (Keanu Reeves) arrival on Earth via a giant sphere, triggers a global upheaval.

Image courtesy of 20th Century Fox. — “The Day the Earth Stood Still,” starring Keanu Reeves, Jennifer Connelly, Kathy Bates, Jaden Smith, and John Cleese. Directed by Scott Derrickson, 103 minutes, rated PG-13. Mladen’s take Add the recently released re-make… READ MORE