The Weekend Reset – October is here. Embrace the season!

It’s Friday. Looking for something to switch up your weekend, or to give you an excuse to relax a little? That’s what the Weekend Reset is for. Each week contributor Tim Johnstone pulls together five things to get your weekend started. Could be something to read or watch, something to eat or listen to, or even something to do. Enjoy the weekend fellas.

 

WATCH: Of all the Body Snatcher movies, this is the best.

OK. There were really just three versions but still, this is not a debatable point. The 1978 version of this sci-fi/horror title is atmospheric as only classic 1970 cinema seemed to capture. The cast is first rate, including Donald Sutherland, Brooke Adams, Veronica Cartwright, Jeff Goldblum and Leonard Nimoy. A crisply told creepfest drenched in paranoia and featuring the most unforgettable dog in all of moviedom.

 

EAT: An easy, tasty one sheet dinner for any weeknight.

As the weather cools off (and for our guys who are still dealing with record high temps you have our sympathy), I start thinking about one pan recipes. There is a simplicity to them and they can allow for an easy weeknight dinner option. This one pan meal roasts chicken sausage with late summer veggies for a colorful, tasty dinner. Use the recipe as a guidepost – don’t be afraid to do your thing. If I think that I’ll have enough left over, in other words if it’s just going to be me, I’d make some multi-grain type of side dish or quinoa and dress it with a balsamic glaze for another meal or two.

 

LISTEN: Something streaming this way comes.*

It’s the witching season. This is the only time of the year where things that go bump in the night are welcomed. Mostly. And if you want to get into the spirit of All Hallow’s Eve, streaming over five hours of Basil Rathbone and Vincent Price reading the works of Edgar Allan Poe is a pretty good place to start. Ideally, this would take place in suitable surroundings but I imagine a morning commute might be a bit more interesting all the same. To recap: two of the most iconic actors of the early to mid 20th century narrate the stories of Edgar Allen Poe. There is a good story behind the company who has made it available. *And yes, I know that’s a Bradbury reference…

 

DECORATE: This is about much more than aesthetics fellas.

Even cave dudes figured out that one’s crib, or in their case cave, needed some accoutrements, not that they had a word for that sort of thing. But hey! Thanks for coming up with art you guys. A reworking of my front room has had me thinking about how and why we take the time to put together our places the way we do. A terrific pal of mine sent me this article about why we should decorate our personal space. HINT: It’s good for your mental health.

 

READ: A Southern tale of whoa!

Once you sort out your space, you just might find yourself reading more, benefits of the comfortable surroundings and all. Ever since my cousin introduced me to Stephen King in the summer of 6th grade, I’ve appreciated a good scary story. I have read more than my share since that initial introduction to the genre. As I was poking about on “best of the season” lists at various bibliophile sites I kept coming across this 1981 novel by Michael McDowell which I was unfamiliar with. That will certainly change. A beach side vacation in the American south goes awry in a most entertaining fashion, for us readers anyway.

Tim Johnstone is Dappered’s music correspondent as well as our resident gatherer of all things interwebs related. He’s pretty sure about some of the things most of the time, but totally clueless about everything else all the time. But he thinks that your Halloween costume made its debut at Paris Fashion Week last month. You’re welcome. Also, he can’t wait for this. And while we are on this particular topic, this should be all kinds of fun. And then there’s this and it’s almost too much to handle.