Well, I’m here, obviously.

And it’s… over—more or less.

This will be my final update.

Here’s what happened. It was just past midnight. We got into the Subaru and made our way toward the lake.

I didn’t want to be there. I would have paid my life savings to be anywhere else. I could just hop on a plane, go to New Zealand. How long would it take them to cross half the earth?

Continuing from yesterday…

On Friday (or really, the wee hours of Saturday morning) after we had made the long trek back to my house—me shivering, hobbling painfully alongside Johanna on my worn feet, her towing me mercilessly after her—the wiry little woman stayed overnight. Ranger and Ladybird, who like strangers but usually bark when they first arrive, treated her like she had lived there her entire life.

OK. It’s a bright, sunny fall day, feeling all right. A LOT has happened.

Two nights have passed since I last updated.

The lurchers have continued to linger around the property—I think I saw an additional one or two hanging around on Thursday night—but they didn’t get closer. The reason I’ve been having trouble writing about this is because the sleepwalking, and those terrible dreams, continued.

Thursday night, after I updated you, I got up again and did the same thing—walked to the front door and made to open it.

Drew stopped me again.

I'm tired.

Another update. It’s been a better day.

I’ve learned some things, made some progress, put away my notebooks and pens in the bottom of the closet so I can't draw anymore.

Ripped up *those* pages. I tried to take everyone’s advice and start a fire last night, but it turns out my chimney needs servicing—the damper is stuck. Even Drew couldn’t get it open.

Most of our firewood was pretty wet too, so it may not have lit. Called a chimney guy, he’ll be here on Wednesday.

Thank you all again for the recommendations, identification, theories and support surrounding my… er, screaming creature situation.

I have a few developments on this situation from yesterday and today, though I don't know exactly how satisfying it'll be.

🧵 In the light of day, Drew told me in no uncertain terms that he thought I was pretty idiotic for following the voice up the hill—past a private property sign and police tape—in the first place.

… which is completely fair, but ALSO I’m not sure I entirely had a choice.

Wow, I had no idea this would take off.

Thanks so much for your concern, everyone—I'm still here and as of yet intact, though still pretty freaked out—and the problem isn't exactly solved.

Last night was… interesting.

https://twitter.com/JessZafarris/status/1584715844818735104

When the motion sensor light tripped and I saw the eyes, I yelled for my husband, Drew, who clearly thought I had lost my mind when I came home shaking and covered in leaves.

Fuckfuckfuck.

The most terrifying thing happened to me earlier—I don’t fully understand it, but I am FREAKING the hell out.

Please don’t read on if you're not into scary things.

This is both graphic and frightening.

It's also a pretty long story. 🧵 So I’ve talked about how much I love my house.

I bought it this summer. It’s in the woods of Connecticut, tucked in the crook of two lakes.

I’m closer to a boat launch than a grocery store and see about 5-6 deer a day when I go for my run.

Quiet and serene… or so I thought.

Let's get meta meta!

The word and word-forming element "meta" today is often used to mean "beyond" or "transcending."

But "meta" didn't mean "beyond" in Greek.

This modern usage is based on a misunderstanding in the origin and translation of the word "metaphysics."🧵 Meta did have a lot of meanings in Greek: "in the midst of, by means of, between, in pursuit of, after, behind."

But "beyond" wasn't one of them.

Sure, "after" is similar in meaning to "beyond," but not precisely the same, and here's why that's important:

Here’s a thread of Halloween etymology facts! You may know that Wicca is the name of a modern belief system associated with the occult, witchcraft and nature.

In Old English, "Wicca" was a word for a male sorcerer or magician.

The word for a female sorcerer was "wicce," which is the source of the modern word “witch.”

#NationalPunctuationDay⁉️

Awesome❗️

Here are some etymolog-ish things you might not know about punctuation. 🧵👇

https://twitter.com/LeagueOfLexicon/status/1441390014693261312

The word "punctuation" is from the Latin pungere "to prick or pierce"—also the source of pungent, poignant, punch, puncture and pink!

It originally referred to psalm-pointing. The dots and marks used to notate psalms evolved into the symbols we use to punctuate writing today.

My office is based in a Manhattan location of a certain shared workspace company (you know, the alliterative one that’s been in the news a lot lately).

I stayed late last night, and things got… strange. (thread)

#ScaryStories @gothamghosts You’ve probably heard how this company operates.

They buy out a few floors of an office building, gut them, and revamp them with a compact maze of glass-walled, glass-doored rooms furnished with industrial chic office paraphernalia, …