Seconds of scares
I love Halloween. And I love it even more when I get blindsided by an unexpected bit of the holiday spirit. So when I heard Weekend America's "Tales of Terror" while errand-running yesterday, I was thrilled and spooked simultaneously.
In case you're not a nerd who listens to NPR in your spare time, the "Tales of Terror" comprise a dozen short spots written by authors from across the country. Their only criteria is that they be 30-seconds long and creepy.
How much creepiness can you pack into 30 seconds, you ask? Well, I'll let David Wellington's Red Flag answer that question:
"Stand clear of the closing doors, please," the subway conductor squawked, his voice distorted and blaring.
A few of us glanced up sullenly from our papers and iPods, all of us in a hurry to get moving.
A new voice came on the intercom, the voice of the station master. "Hold on, Chris. Keep your brake on, there's a red flag. There's a kid down on the track! He got squeezed off the platform. Keep your brake on!"
We all looked around at each other, then, until the conductor spoke again.
"What was that? I couldn't hear you. I've got a timetable to keep."
The doors slid closed with a chime. We were up on our feet, pounding on the doors and windows, shouting for the conductor.
But he couldn't hear us, either.
(Photo courtesy of weekendamerica.publicradio.org)
