FLASHBACK the 18th century

"bela logosi's dead...undead undead undead"
it's october...time for falling leaves, pumpkin carving, and  scary stories. and nothing is scarier than a vampire. why would anyone be scared of vampires? they aren't real and never were, you say? well...true, sort of. 
no one is quite sure when vampire lore first came into existence, but they have been reported in many cultures and, some say, may even go back to near the beginning of time. the term "vampire" did not become popular until the 18th century, when tales from eastern europe began to find their way west.  the tales led to mass hysteria that sometimes resulted in bodies being staked and people being accused of vampirism. people knew a vamp was around when livestock, relatives, and/or neighbors would die. because, and you know this to be true, nothing and nobody could just die, right? it's always vampires. 
what did a vampire look like? suspected vampires were dug up and described as bloated, and purplish in color. blood would be seeping from the mouth or nose and one eye would be open. the most important thing was the hair, fingernails, and teeth had grown. definitely a sign the person in the coffin might not be completely dead.  we now know that these are all signs of decomposition...but, come on. which story is more fun? ummmm...vampire!!
of course, if we suspect our dinner guest is a vampire, we all know what to look for, don't we?  OF COURSE we do: they don't have a reflection; they hate garlic; holy water fries their skin; they cower at the sight of a cross; and they combust in the sun. okay...that's in the movies. back in the day, they put a virgin boy on a virgin stallion...yep. that's what i said...and lead them thru a graveyard. supposedly, the horse would balk at the suspected vampires grave. and then, of course, they would dig up the grave and find the decomposing body and stake it thru the heart. 
FLASH FORWARD today
people no longer go around digging up graves and staking dead bodies thru the heart. we have doctors give us realistic causes of death. and we don't walk around with an arsenal of vamp hunting gear. we are completely unafraid of vampires. actually, we find them attractive. we find them romantic. we find them irresistible. when bela lugosi portrayed dracula, people were terrified...yeah, i know! who would be terrified of bela lugosi?! even scarier? nosferatu...giving people nightmares since 1922. but, since then, the vampire has become more human, and more romantic. in anne rice's vampire chronicles, the vampires struggle with their need to feed and their desire not to take lives. and, of course, the vampire clan in the twilight series sparkle in sunlight. who could be scared of that?