1. Lovecraft didn't have any cats after losing his cat, because he was too poor to afford them, but he often befrended nighborhood cats. He let them into his house, let them sleep on his desk and gave them catnip treats. He nicknamed the large group of cats that often hanged out under the window of his study "Ξ.Ξ.Ξ€." (kappa alpha tau) and often wrote about their lives in letters to his friends.
2. Lovecraft was a fan of theatre in his childhood and teenage years. He used to reacreate theatre plays at home all by himself, with him playing his favorite roles and other "actors" being made of various household objects like pilows. He preferred the roles of villains whom he played in a very hammy manner.
3. While living in New York, he loved exploring the streets at night with his friends and once accidentally almost wandered into a very shady speakeasy. He apparently didn't even understand what it was, and his friends led him away before any trouble started.
4. He liked the song "Yes, We Have No Bananas" and once tried to play it on a church organ (it was an abandonen church, I think) but the organ wasn't working.
5. He really liked chocolates and collected chocolate boxes. He had so many that they could fill the whole bathtub.
6. Lovecraft had a hope chest! His mother wanted a girl and started making the things like linens and tablecloths for his "dowry" before he even was born, and after having a son decided to just continue making them, with the expectation that they will just be given to his wife when he marries. And they indeed were eventually given to Sonia, but after the divorce she returned them to HPL, even though he was saying that they were hers now. They were, according to Sonia, very beautiful, with a lot of fine embroidery, but we don't have any of these things or their photos now.
7. Once Lovecraft and two of his friends went to an ice cream parlour that promised thirty-two ice cream flavors (but they had only twenty-eight available) with the intention to try them all and they did! On that day Lovecraft ate a double portion of each flavor, between two and three quarts of ice cream. The parlour owners found this so memorable that they made a note about it and put it on the wall.
8. Lovecraft used to have a huge collection of guns when he was young but it eventually got sold. He was a good shot but lost interest in hunting after killing a squirrel, because he "formed a dislike for killing things which could not fight back" and "turned to targets". He eventually have to give up shooting altogether because his eyesight became too poor.
9. While picking blueberries in Florida, Lovecraft fell into a creek. The creek was quite deep, and HPL wasn't a good swimmer and nearly drowned, but when he got out and came home his first react reaction was to say sorry for loosing the blueberries he picked.
10. Lovecraft once performed in drag to amuse guests at a house party. In a hoop skirt dress with bonnet and parasol to match, he parodied Julian Entinge, a female impersonator famous in those days. "Though it was hard to think of dialogue for such makeup, they seemed satisfied with my improvistaions; and compensated by prolongued applause for the injury inflicted upon my patriarchal dignity." Unfortunately, no photos of this were left.
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