My best friend and I recently had lunch with horror writer H.P. Lovecraft.

No, really.

Last month, I was surprised to learn that he is buried in Swan Point Cemetery in Providence, Rhode Island. Before that, I only knew that he was the author whose work caused me to lose a good deal of sleep during that one college semester where I took a seminar on Victorian Ghost Stories.

They are far scarier than you think, and I encourage you all to look some of them up. And then call me because we both won’t be sleeping at night and should really have someone to talk to.

Swan Point itself is far from scary. It’s just as picturesque as it appears on its website. The afternoon I spent there was chilly, and the skies were overcast, but there is no getting away from the loveliness of the wooded walks, and the soft sounds of the river, just behind where Lovecraft is buried.

For some reason, I always picture well known historical figures as having massive monuments wherever they are buried, despite large amounts of evidence to the contrary. The same goes for Lovecraft. His stone is small and unassuming. Except for the Mardi Gras beads someone had placed there before our visit. Not sure what the significance of the gesture was, but to each his own!

We took our lunch nearby, and we most certainly did not take any photographs. Because they’re not allowed, okay? So, you know, I cannot publicly condone any rule breaking.