There's one particular tale found within that send shivers down my flesh like cascading streams, just at a mere thought. "The Green Ribbon," which basically followed a young boy as he developed a crush and flirtatious relationship with a cute female peer, who forever wore the titular green ribbon around her neck. Love blossoms, they eventually get married. But miss thing never tells our protag why exactly she never takes the ribbon off. Turns out,as we discover while she's lying on her death bed, elderly in years, removing said scarf causes her barely-hanging-on head to fall off. Which it does, when he gives it the old heave-ho. One decapitation special, coming right up.
Not the most frightening premise, I'll admit. But shit, it seeped into my subconscious from the moment I first finished it, and even now, the willies are unavoidable. The way it's written, damn creepy.
"The Green Ribbon" crossed my mind this morning, after years of dormant deep-in-my-mind filing-away when I was seated next to a lady wearing a green scarf. Close enough, I thought. Naturally, the urge to yank the neck-dressing off and catch her falling cranium was potent, but I resisted.
If my life were the neverending Twilight Zone episode I truly wish it were, the outcome would've much cooler than the smack-in-the-face reality was ready to bite.
***As a nice bonus, here's another Alvin Schwartz book that caused many a "I'm too old to sleep in my parents' bed, must grow a pair of testes and sleep here" night. This was the first of three Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark editions. All great. The artwork /illustrations alone were the stuff of nightmares-come-alive. I picked them up one year when St. Catharine's grade school held their annual Book Fair in the library, my personal fave day on the academic calendar. Always found some gems.
******Just caught another glimpse of that preceding Obama Girl picture. Fuck me. I may be infatuated now.
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