Psychological Horror at its finest is horror as an abstract projection of the human psyche.

The best examples are Jacob’s ladder (1990) and the PlayStation 2 video game Silent Hill 2 (2001). While they do use delusion and/or hallucination like devices in their stories, they do more than just use them for shock value or to describe mental illness (usually in a negative light). Bringing up those very serious and alarming symptoms help question reality, but instead of being used to support supposed mental instability, it is used as a springboard to expand on the deep and intense feelings of their protagonists - to describe personal suffering.

When words fail to describe very real pain in life, the expression of our emotions is often better met through connection with art. When horror makes a point of illustrating intensity, it can relate internal conflict like no other. Suddenly the monster isn’t just a monster anymore, it can be say, the embodiment of a character’s resentment towards their father, or perhaps more vague still, repression incarnate. When other pieces of the story become connected commentary, as abstract as it may be, it can create a work of art that leaves an impression, makes you think, ignites conversation and can connect with people on a personal level. Do the two aforementioned titles do all those things? To varying degrees, yes, but is in no way as “good as it gets” as far as psychological horror is concerned.  It has yet to be developed in that aspect. The trick is to weave a coherent story, haunting enough to stand on its own, but have all the elements with which to be transform into something more profound for those who go looking for it.

Psychological Horror can be an important tool in expressing life’s otherwise difficult to describe personal horror, its ongoing torment and ultimately healing.

Psychological Horror can be meaningful.

Psychological horror can be art.

Psychological Horror has its place.

And needs your help

If you can - make it, promote it, read or watch it, write about and discuss it. Help it grow by sharing how it’s different from the other horror sub-genres.

Indulge when it finds you, and you may find yourself in it.

- Josh 

I see a lot of Facebook posts these days about being yourself.

You quirky individual you.

The message holds truth: There is no one like you (Thank god?). Well, hey, what if you don’t like being you? Painfully quiet? Thrill seeker playing it safe? Anxious? Depressed? Who are you anyways? Maybe you’re still figuring that out.

Sure, you’re more complex than that. I know “be yourself” is supposed to be a positive message, but I can’t stop thinking about that other stuff. Maybe some of you do to.

I am reading through Edward de Bono’s “Six Thinking Hats” now and I can’t help but recall some of the tools I used together with clients in my past work in the field of Mental Health. Turns out that being someone else (at least for a little while) might be just what you need.

I remember trying to help someone think of ways to handle a situation differently. We could come up with a few answers, but it felt like we hit a roadblock, until I asked this person to try and imagine what a friend might do in their place. By imagining things from a different perspective, this person was free to explore different options, options that suddenly were possibilities for them.

We come will all kinds of beliefs about ourselves, how we should behave, who we might be and where we are headed. If you have a hard time thinking about that, try thinking of how you wouldn’t behave, who you are not and where you’re not headed. It’s a little easier and illustrates bit more that box we put ourselves in.

To be sure, what makes us unique should be embraced. It could indeed be foolish to spend time on something you don’t like or is a distraction from what you’ve already gained some expertise in. It might be a waste of time to do something out of character… but it might not be.

In de Bono’s thinking hats, he advocates we practice putting on different kinds of hats to allow us to be more open in specific ways. For example, when we put on a yellow hat, it gives us license to be optimistic about possible outcomes. It asks that we rack our brains for positive results. A parallel here might be that instead of putting on a hat, you might ask yourself, what would your friend Ryan say about a certain subject, as he is more optimistic than you. Being Ryan for a while helps you open  up.

But pretending to be someone else doesn’t just help in the thinking department, it also plays a role in the doing and feeling department.

It’s been shown to be helpful when some are depressed, they benefit from practicing small smiles. Smiling even though they don’t feel like it. Believe it or not, the act of doing that repetitively has increased some people’s mood.

Consider how some big screen actors find that acting a certain role has an impact on their mood when they are off screen.

When you’re looking to break a pattern, being someone else might give you the license to do just that. Think of it as an experiment. While you should be careful about labeling your first set of outcomes as conclusive, you could find that the preliminary results are surprisingly positive. Maybe people reacted a little differently than you imagined when you spoke your mind, while harnessing aunt Marie’s outspoken dinner table antiques. Maybe kickboxing was fun when you channeled your outgoing friend Donnie.

So the next time you are looking for an answer or wanting to broaden your horizons, use the tool of pretend. Be someone else. It could help you find out more about yourself.

- Josh

It’s true; I’m something of a chocolate fiend. The wonderful taste of chocolate is alluring to say the least, what with its vast palette of flavors from Crème brûlée to orange. The sweet, edible gold’s versatility and appeal don’t end there though does it? No; it’s infused into crunchy wafers, hot drinks, ice creams, liquors, you name it. IT’S EVERYWHERE. You could get lost in its mouth-watering creaminess…

Uh. What was I saying?

Oh yea. Being a chocoholic, I’ve found myself in some sad situation – sweet, chocolaty sad situations. Now it’s time to shed some guilt in this confessional, like extra pounds shed in [gulp] post Christmas treat time workouts. I can’t be the only one that has done these things – and rationalized how doing it is okay. Chocoholic ain’t the prettiest word is it? I prefer “connoisseur” of cocoa, maybe gourmand of ganash? 

Confessions

1. I’m glad that kisses are individually wrapped. It slows me down. I ate the little Hershey ribbon once.

2. I’ve eaten sweets in hiding. Away from the kids, my wife, and away from any mirrors.

3. Have eaten less of supper to make room for dessert

4. “There’s always room for dessert” is a steadfast rule, no matter how full I am.

5. I have to give away birthday cake because I can’t trust myself around the leftovers.

6. I’ve folded my stomach over by belly button to make a mouth and moved it to say “feed me” … and then ate chocolate.

7. I have to go to buy more Halloween candy for trick-or-treaters because I bought the bag too early and devoured it all.

8. I’ll eat the left over candy after Halloween and leave the less desirables at the bottom of the bowl (usually coffee crisp). But if I’m hungry enough, I’ll return for those too.

9. I’ll complain about bad chocolate but eat it anyways

10. Candy just isn’t safe at my house. Even if it’s someone else’s. You have a grace period of a week, but after that it’s fair game.

11. When Tim Horton’s has their smiley cookies, I go there three times as much.

12. I’ve eaten candy I bought for someone, felt guilty, and have gone to the store to buy replacements afterwards.

13. I’m confident in my ability to name most of the chocolate out of the “Pot of Gold” box without a glance at the menu.

14. When premium chocolate has shiny packaging sleeves, I get excited because it reminds me of “Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory”

15. … Sometimes I make the sound effect and/or sing, “I’ve got a golden ticket” after I open it.

- Josh

Life’s busy. “Time seems to fly by” is something I hear a lot and has come out of my mouth more than a couple times.  On the subject of catching up with far away friends, an old friend aptly put, “Life needs to slow down, being an adult sucks”

Correspondence takes time and effort, even if it’s just a quick word on a Facebook private message or in the comments. Most of the times a quick glance at status updates as it appears in your news feed is enough to provide some sense that friends are doing okay. That helps. I hope you’re doing okay.

“I’ve been busy. You too.” Mostly everybody understands. You have a job, maybe kids, certainly bills, you need some down time to relax, time to connect with your immediate family, your close friends.

But there are close friends of the past; there are those people that you wish you were closer to that you would like to connect with. The truth is, writing a little greeting takes mere minutes; it’s usually the case when I do, but it always feels like a significant undertaking beforehand. And I’m tired, aren’t you? Or busy tending to life’s laundry list of things that needed to get done yesterday.

Oh the things we could really accomplish when we’re tired but “feel” like we have to lay down a while and sink in some video game or T.V. time.

“You need some time to relax.” It’s true. But if you’re anything like me, you override the “fully recharged” signal in exchange for another half hour on Youtube, maybe more during precious down time.

How much of an active effort have you really been making to connect with friends? When did living with the guilt or sadness of absence (no matter how big or small or fleeting) become easier to bear than spending a moment sending some form of our thoughts that we’re thinking of them?

Wanna change that? On board? Here’s some suggestions for things to do this week:

     Write an old friend that you’ve been meaning to get in touch with

     Turn off the TV, computer, music, video game, whatever’s your reprieve and think about what kind of person you are to others and who you want to be.

     Create something that honors your past.


Just to let you know, I thought about you today. Hope you're doing fine.

- Josh

We could all do better to invite more fun into our lives.

If we ask children to use their imaginations, they can transform a lone backyard birch tree into an imposing tower, ready to be besieged by sticks turned to swords or any other instrument from untold arsenals. In fact, they could spring all manner of townships, dark caverns, or space stations from any size space if they tried – if they’d learned to have fun with it. Then, well, everything around them could become interesting, could be novel, and wonderful.

Shigesato Itoi is a “cultural figure in Japan, known for his copywriting, essays, lyrics, Nintendo game creation, and his role as editor-in-chief of his popular webstie “Hobo Nikkan Itoi Shinbun” (‘Almost’ Daily Itoi News)” (From wiki). He is best known in most western circles as the creator of “Earthbound”, a whimsical Super Nintendo game with quite the cult following.

Over at Nintendo.com, Mr. Itoi had some things to say about that little old video game that has won over the hearts of many. Haven’t played the game? That’s okay. Don’t care for video games? That’s okay too. What he has to say about it is such a curious and thoughtful thing, that it’s worth the trespassing into unknown territory.

From: http://earthbound.nintendo.com/message/

Wonderful words. 

The best memories are of times we had fun aren’t they?

Earthbound invites us to have fun. Everything in the game is already interesting because it was born by what feels like unbridled creativity, ever present at the fringes of the adventure, and woven carefully into the story line, colouring even serious themes in a unique way that gives surprising depth. 


Story has the power to connect with others, to heal ourselves, to make an impact. It can be all kinds of serious and solemn. But there is also a wonderful potency when it is mixed with the disarming whimsy that invites us to have fun, and feel the freedom of being back at a playground. 

Some kids can play make-belief better than others… so can adults for that matter. And if they are skilled enough, they can disarm others of what is holding them back. Too, the creation, when done just so, is so alluring that it can do that on its own. It’s never any bigger a plunge if we choose to dive into an adventure that’s unfamiliar and exciting. 

That is exactly what Mr. Itoi and the EarthBound team does in their work on the Super Nintendo title "EarthBound" (and also, how they’ve endeared their audience to the other two parts of the trilogy known as the Mother series in Japan).

The result is an experience that is memorable and even invigorating, as any of those members of the earthbound cult following will attest. 

Maybe it's time you tried 'EarthBound'

The whimsical, the wildly creative, should be no more dismissed than its serious counterparts. It’s those fun adventures that have such potential to leave its mark and at the very least remind us of how recharging it can be to invite fun into our lives. 

- Josh

For the complete thoughts of Mr.Itoi on Earthbound, please click the link HERE
You won't regret it!

What it's like to channel your inner kid:

The above is a Comic by Zac Gorman. His website, Magical Game Time can be found HERE. 

Other than having all sorts of other great comics at his website, you can buy the awesome piece of art above HERE.