I lie in bed. I’ve been lying in bed.  I keep lying in bed. I’m not particularly enjoying lying in bed.  I’d like to get out of bed.  I know that if I get out of bed and do 50 jumping jacks, I’ll feel better.  It really wouldn’t take much.  Just swing my legs over the side of the bed.  That’s it.  Easy. I lie in bed.  I’m nestled against clean laundry.  It smells nice. I really should get out of bed.  There’s so much to do.  There’s that thing I want to finish and that other thing that I have to get done.  I can clean the kitchen, go for a walk, call a friend.  I think about all of the Things I Have to Do.  My chest starts to tighten. Experience tells me that 50 jumping jacks plus 30 push ups will loosen my chest.  That writing a list of the Things will keep the anxiety at bay.  That a cup of tea will center me.  All I have to do–and really, it will take less than 30 seconds–is get out of bed. I lie in bed.  My phone buzzes.  A text message.  I ignore it.  I’m very busy.  So much to do.  No time for texting. Outside, traffic whizzes by.  Cars driven by people who have successfully gotten out of bed.  If they can do it, why can’t I?  My legs work.  I flex my feet just to make sure.  I try to trick myself into getting out of bed. Self, I say, if you don’t get out of bed by the count of three, the world will explode. One. Two. Two and half. I lie in bed. I just want to get up.  God, I hate that I’m not able...

One of the many things I love about living in New England is that Halloween starts at the end of September. It’s not just that the Halloween candy starts showing up in the stores, that happens everywhere, it’s that tons of haunted attractions open their doors a full month before Halloween so they are in full swing as the actual day approaches. New England has a rich history of being creepy. Most of our nation’s fun Halloween activities, such as carving pumpkins and trick or treating, have their roots in terrified people desperately trying to stave off death for one more winter. Fierce If you want to be just a little afraid for your safety, you need to head to Fall River, MA. First of all, you can rent the actual room where Lizzie Borden may or may not (the court found her not guilty) have given her (step) mother forty whacks. During the day, you can go on the tour and see where Lizzie may (or may not) have given her father similar treatment. Lizzie Borden’s home is a B&B, of course Fall River knows how to celebrate Halloween! The older and better known of Fall River’s two major haunted houses is the Factory of Terror. It’s promoted as three haunted attractions in one. What that really means is, it’s a long haunted house. You won’t be in and out in five minutes. You will have time to be truly scared and a little concerned that it will never end. Just by virtue of being in an empty factory in a once industrial part of town, the place is creepy. The special effects are quality and the actors are generally enthusiastic. It’s a popular attraction, for good reason, and the downside is long...