For once this won't be a long post. Why, because sometimes you just don't need to mess with perfection. The way it is, is enough. And today I present you with....the perfection of enough.
Today, or rather yesterday was a wonderful October day. It was almost perfect. The only thing that would have made it better would have been if I had suddenly developed amazing pumpkin carving skills and hadn't dropped an entire pumpkin pie blizzard all over my lap. Other than that, perfection!
I got to converse with friends about pumpkin carving preferences and find out that small children are more adept at carving than I am. I sat underneath an almost full and hazy October moon while listening to frogs croak and owls hoot. I listened to my Sounds of Halloween tape three times through and by the end I was full on singing. I finished my zombie book and didn't scare myself silly. I worked on Family Fun Night stuff and was very productive, and I am about to snuggle down and watch one of my October films. Ahhh. This, this my friends is October bliss.
Tomorrow, or rather today, I get to decorate for a party, carve a pumpkin or two, drink a pumpkin spice latte and watch more spooky movies. October, I am kinda in love with you.
I'm curious, what would be your perfect October day?
Sunday, October 28, 2012
Family Fun Night: OT Day 28
I am starting to go into my “October is almost over” panic. There are still so many things that I want to do before the month ends and I know I just won't make it. But that is ok. October is a no fault month. Besides, if I can't do it in 31 days, then I will just appropriate some of November for other October related purposes. Ah, now I feel better. Finally, November is good for something.
Today it seems, many people decided to have their Halloween fun early. I saw people in costume, read about people in costume, and heard about people in costume. So many parties and gatherings. I hope they save some of the merrymaking for the actual day.
Parties are one of my favorite things about October. Scary movie nights. Costume parties, harvest parties at school, pumpkin carving parties, trick or treat sleep overs, and the best of all, Family Fun Night.
Family Fun Night was the best day of the school year for me. Even better than the first day, and that is saying something. For years I thought the event was indigenous only to my school, but since then I have found otherwise. For one night, our gym and surrounding classrooms would be turned into an October wonderland. Rooms that were dedicated to learning, morphed into photo studios, game booths and face painting way stations. The library turned into the cafeteria and the halls were filled with excited children who had parents in tow.
But the gym, the gym was amazing. Professional looking carnival booths lined every wall and took up any available floor space. And for the most part, the floor plan didn't change from year to year. The fish pond was always on the right back corner near the cake walk stairs. The cake walk was always on the stage. The ticket booth was always out of the gym teachers office. The rope climb with its big spongy mat was always in front of the cake walk in the middle of the room and the cotton candy was always out the right side gym doors turning the entryway into a shiny sugary mess.
Once I entered the building I didn't see my parents again until I either needed more tickets, had to drop off prizes because my hands were full, or needed food. Sometimes I saw them at one of the booths playing games, but really, I can’t tell you what they did with their time other than hold my winnings and keep the cafeteria chairs warm. It was pretty much a given that I would win 3 or 4 baked goods of some kind and bring home a fish or two that wouldn't last till morning. At some point during the night I would have the little kid melt down of NO I DON'T WANT TO LEAVE YET, and the begging and pleading of just one more booth.
Eventually, after a few years, my parents got wise and curtailed my cake walk participation. No more participation after two wins. And I was forbidden to play the fish game. Which was fine with me really. Perpetually dead fish really are not much fun. Now that I have had the opportunity to plan my own Family Fun Night, I realize how much work went into making things look how they did and run so smoothly. I wish that I could have a time machine to go back and appreciate with new eyes all that was going on. But maybe not, maybe I am content to just let it live in my imagination with all the sparkle and wonder that an elementary school child can conceive.
I still have mementos from those wonderful days. They make me smile every time I see them. Instantly I am transported back to a waffle floored gym and the sounds of merrymaking on a cold October night. I wish everyone could have such a wonderful experience. I wouldn't trade those memories for the world.
Saturday, October 27, 2012
Bunnies of Doom: OT Day 27
In my short time on this earth, I have come to realize that there are some things I find scary that other people simply do not and visa versa. For example, I think poster people are looking at me. I find the Stepford Wives frightening beyond belief. I think older people in white cars are out to get me and that USA made for TV horror movies come true. But there is one thing that trumps all these fears, and that is bunnies. Bunnies are dangerous creatures all dressed up in fuzzy hippity hoppity fur to lull one into a sense of false security. But I am on to them.
I used to be one of the mindless "aww bunnies are so cute" masses. That is until two things happened. One, my friend got a pet bunny and it turned out to be a madly hopping psycho. I think it was really a werebunny. I have never seen a rabbit with that much shaggy fur. I have also never seen another rabbit actively chew its way through dry wall in order to escape confinement. That thing freaked me out and with good reason. I woke up one morning, turned over in my sleeping bag and there is was right next to my head with its evil nose a twitching, munching on computer cables. It had escaped from its cage and hopped over to me. I think it was trying to decide how best to eat my brains. I took one look at those little red beady eyes and screamed. That rabbit was not of this world and I never spent the night again.
The other thing to make me scared of bunnies was a kids book. Yes, I said a kids book. I have a rather overactive imagination if you haven't already guessed and this was enough to push me over the bunny paranoia edge. The title character goes by the name of Bunnicula. He is a white rabbit that was found in a movie theater (my kind of bunny so far) He has a black back (looks like a black cape) and a widows peak of black fur on his head. He doesn't like sunlight and sleeps most of the day (also like me) and likes to suck the juices out of the vegetables that he eats. When the family wakes up in the morning the carrots will still be whole and sitting in the cage, but they will be white in color because all the inside carroty juice has been sucked out via two little tooth holes. See, what did I tell ya. Bunnies are out to plot our doom.
Bunnicula is really not the main character though. He doesn't talk and the action doesn't revolve around him. Rather the family cat Chester narrates the whole thing. Chester is a bit of a conspiracy theorist and thinks that Bunnicula is a vampire rabbit (I tend to agree). The books revolve around all his crazy Wil-E-Coyote like plots to get the bunny out of the house. The poor rabbit never does anything except for drain veggies, but this just unnerves the cat.
I got started on these books way back in elementary school when we had book order days. After all, who wouldn't want to read a story about a supposed vampire rabbit that was found in a movie theater. And with titles like "Howliday Inn" and "The Celery Stalks at Midnight" I was a goner for sure. The books are not even remotely scary, but when I was a kid I had this habit of reading them on dark and stormy nights and I could get myself worked up real good. Bunnies after all can be very scary things. Like Anyanka pointed out in the musical episode of Buffy, "and what's with all the carrots, what do they need such good eyesight for anyway?" Yeah, why do bunnies to have to have good night vision and such sharp teeth. Hmmmm. Anyway, I still enjoy the series and read them every October.....sometimes other months too. After all, one can never have too many good books in October.
But I'm getting off track. The point is, forget about not letting a black cat cross your path. Beware of bunnies. Beware. If I really did see one in the corn maze the other day, I was lucky that I escaped with my life. Just imagine running into a werebunny in the middle of a corn maze at night. No thank you. So yes, I do enjoy reading about a vampire rabbit every October. But call it more constant vigilance and homework than reading for fun. When the werebunnies finally attack, and I fend them off, you can thank me later for all my selfless reading ;)
I used to be one of the mindless "aww bunnies are so cute" masses. That is until two things happened. One, my friend got a pet bunny and it turned out to be a madly hopping psycho. I think it was really a werebunny. I have never seen a rabbit with that much shaggy fur. I have also never seen another rabbit actively chew its way through dry wall in order to escape confinement. That thing freaked me out and with good reason. I woke up one morning, turned over in my sleeping bag and there is was right next to my head with its evil nose a twitching, munching on computer cables. It had escaped from its cage and hopped over to me. I think it was trying to decide how best to eat my brains. I took one look at those little red beady eyes and screamed. That rabbit was not of this world and I never spent the night again.
The other thing to make me scared of bunnies was a kids book. Yes, I said a kids book. I have a rather overactive imagination if you haven't already guessed and this was enough to push me over the bunny paranoia edge. The title character goes by the name of Bunnicula. He is a white rabbit that was found in a movie theater (my kind of bunny so far) He has a black back (looks like a black cape) and a widows peak of black fur on his head. He doesn't like sunlight and sleeps most of the day (also like me) and likes to suck the juices out of the vegetables that he eats. When the family wakes up in the morning the carrots will still be whole and sitting in the cage, but they will be white in color because all the inside carroty juice has been sucked out via two little tooth holes. See, what did I tell ya. Bunnies are out to plot our doom.
Bunnicula is really not the main character though. He doesn't talk and the action doesn't revolve around him. Rather the family cat Chester narrates the whole thing. Chester is a bit of a conspiracy theorist and thinks that Bunnicula is a vampire rabbit (I tend to agree). The books revolve around all his crazy Wil-E-Coyote like plots to get the bunny out of the house. The poor rabbit never does anything except for drain veggies, but this just unnerves the cat.
I got started on these books way back in elementary school when we had book order days. After all, who wouldn't want to read a story about a supposed vampire rabbit that was found in a movie theater. And with titles like "Howliday Inn" and "The Celery Stalks at Midnight" I was a goner for sure. The books are not even remotely scary, but when I was a kid I had this habit of reading them on dark and stormy nights and I could get myself worked up real good. Bunnies after all can be very scary things. Like Anyanka pointed out in the musical episode of Buffy, "and what's with all the carrots, what do they need such good eyesight for anyway?" Yeah, why do bunnies to have to have good night vision and such sharp teeth. Hmmmm. Anyway, I still enjoy the series and read them every October.....sometimes other months too. After all, one can never have too many good books in October.
But I'm getting off track. The point is, forget about not letting a black cat cross your path. Beware of bunnies. Beware. If I really did see one in the corn maze the other day, I was lucky that I escaped with my life. Just imagine running into a werebunny in the middle of a corn maze at night. No thank you. So yes, I do enjoy reading about a vampire rabbit every October. But call it more constant vigilance and homework than reading for fun. When the werebunnies finally attack, and I fend them off, you can thank me later for all my selfless reading ;)
Friday, October 26, 2012
Through Linus Colored Glasses: OT Day 26
I felt a bit of October melancholy today. I think it was mostly to do with Christmas creeping in. And it isn't being subtle about it either. Don't get me wrong, I like Christmas, but it needs to quit co-opting October. At McDonald's today as I was getting my Scooby Doo pumpkin bucket I noticed the menu board advertising Christmas drinks. Then later in the evening while watching an October themed show and drinking my cider Target had a full on Christmas is coming add complete with snow and presents. Plus, I got two Christmas coupon catalogues in the mail. Arghhhh. I am no fan of November, but come on. If you are going to skip Halloween, at least give Thanksgiving a fighting chance. Poor fall holidays, it seems that your days are numbered.
So while I was in my pre Christmas funk I found a way to cheer myself up. Yes, I bought another plush Frankenstein doll. No, I did not buy another pumpkin. But I really felt like it. I also bought something called a Ghost in a Jar, which I find greatly superior to the creepy Elf on the Shelf. There are three different ghosts in jars and I have had so much fun with this one, that I may have to go collect the other two tomorrow.
But what really cheered me up was my purchase of an interactive sound book of It's the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown. I usually watch it on TV when it rolls around, and if I happen to miss it I pull out my copy for holiday viewing. But the book just called to me. So this evening after everyone was asleep, I opened it up and went on a Halloween journey with Charlie Brown and his pals. I know I already mentioned this story a few times this year, but when I settle down to do October Thoughts I never quite know what will stick. Today it is this, and it isn't repetitive so bear with me.
Now of course I like Snoopy. He will always be my favorite. I am kind of partial to his happy dance and the sound he makes when he laughs. But my favorite kid is Linus. He is the character that most resembles myself. He is a kid and not ashamed to be one. While his friends go out and party he is content to follow the beat of his own drum and wait for the Great Pumpkin.
I don't know if someone (cough cough his parents) told Linus that there was a Great Pumpkin or if he imagined it. Either way I respect him. If someone told him about GP, then I admire him for sticking to his guns. His friends ridicule him. His own sister calls him names, but he never wavers, even when the Great Pumpkin doesn't show. If he imagined it, then I am in awe of his creativity. I mean, what on earth does a sincere pumpkin patch look like anyway? I have gone round and round about that one for years. I think a sincere pumpkin patch is a bit wild. It might not be in neat rows, it will have a variety of pumpkins and it won't be fenced. Beyond that I couldn't really say. I guess my imagination isn't that great. And how on earth does a really big pumpkin fly, let alone hand out presents? What a creative mind.
I love that Linus is willing to dream big. He has a goal and by golly, he sticks to it. He actively searches out what is the most sincere patch. He writes letters to GP, he misses parties and trick or treating just to catch a glimpse. If Linus were a real boy, I would want him for a friend. I would know that I could count on him. If he said that he was going to do something, then he would do it. I would also hope that some of his youthful innocence would rub off on me. That some of the wonder and magic would find its way into my bloodstream.
I also am a bit in love with the fact that Linus carries his blankie wherever he goes. I did that for years and a man who is confident enough to carry his blue blankie with him, gets my vote. I also love his sweet naiveté. His friends come tromping by on the way to a party and he assumes that they are coming to see him and sing pumpkin carols. I love that in his mind that is the only option. I also love that someone other than me knows that there are such a thing as pumpkin carols.
While the gang goes off to bob for apples and listen to Schroder play the piano, Linus is out in the pumpkin patch having his own fun. He is his own man. He doesn't let anyone's opinion of him get him down. When he is being teased or when things don't go his way, he is positive and looking forward to the next time. My favorite line is "But Linus still wasn't ready to give up." What a guy.
I love that when he thinks the Great Pumpkin is about to appear, he does the manly thing and faints. He is so overcome with excitement, anticipation and joy that he is full to the brim and can't contain it anymore. But I think the bet part is that even though he is teased, even though he potentially missed the Great Pumpkin, as the gang leaves he shouts, "If the Great Pumpkin comes, I'll still put in a good word for you." He is willing to share his magic and wonder. He is willing to believe enough for all of them.
When I grow up, I want to be a Linus. And I don't think that is such a bad thing to aspire to. I even know where there might be a really sincere pumpkin patch ;)
Which Charlie Brown character is your favorite?
So while I was in my pre Christmas funk I found a way to cheer myself up. Yes, I bought another plush Frankenstein doll. No, I did not buy another pumpkin. But I really felt like it. I also bought something called a Ghost in a Jar, which I find greatly superior to the creepy Elf on the Shelf. There are three different ghosts in jars and I have had so much fun with this one, that I may have to go collect the other two tomorrow.
But what really cheered me up was my purchase of an interactive sound book of It's the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown. I usually watch it on TV when it rolls around, and if I happen to miss it I pull out my copy for holiday viewing. But the book just called to me. So this evening after everyone was asleep, I opened it up and went on a Halloween journey with Charlie Brown and his pals. I know I already mentioned this story a few times this year, but when I settle down to do October Thoughts I never quite know what will stick. Today it is this, and it isn't repetitive so bear with me.
Now of course I like Snoopy. He will always be my favorite. I am kind of partial to his happy dance and the sound he makes when he laughs. But my favorite kid is Linus. He is the character that most resembles myself. He is a kid and not ashamed to be one. While his friends go out and party he is content to follow the beat of his own drum and wait for the Great Pumpkin.
I don't know if someone (cough cough his parents) told Linus that there was a Great Pumpkin or if he imagined it. Either way I respect him. If someone told him about GP, then I admire him for sticking to his guns. His friends ridicule him. His own sister calls him names, but he never wavers, even when the Great Pumpkin doesn't show. If he imagined it, then I am in awe of his creativity. I mean, what on earth does a sincere pumpkin patch look like anyway? I have gone round and round about that one for years. I think a sincere pumpkin patch is a bit wild. It might not be in neat rows, it will have a variety of pumpkins and it won't be fenced. Beyond that I couldn't really say. I guess my imagination isn't that great. And how on earth does a really big pumpkin fly, let alone hand out presents? What a creative mind.
I love that Linus is willing to dream big. He has a goal and by golly, he sticks to it. He actively searches out what is the most sincere patch. He writes letters to GP, he misses parties and trick or treating just to catch a glimpse. If Linus were a real boy, I would want him for a friend. I would know that I could count on him. If he said that he was going to do something, then he would do it. I would also hope that some of his youthful innocence would rub off on me. That some of the wonder and magic would find its way into my bloodstream.
I also am a bit in love with the fact that Linus carries his blankie wherever he goes. I did that for years and a man who is confident enough to carry his blue blankie with him, gets my vote. I also love his sweet naiveté. His friends come tromping by on the way to a party and he assumes that they are coming to see him and sing pumpkin carols. I love that in his mind that is the only option. I also love that someone other than me knows that there are such a thing as pumpkin carols.
While the gang goes off to bob for apples and listen to Schroder play the piano, Linus is out in the pumpkin patch having his own fun. He is his own man. He doesn't let anyone's opinion of him get him down. When he is being teased or when things don't go his way, he is positive and looking forward to the next time. My favorite line is "But Linus still wasn't ready to give up." What a guy.
I love that when he thinks the Great Pumpkin is about to appear, he does the manly thing and faints. He is so overcome with excitement, anticipation and joy that he is full to the brim and can't contain it anymore. But I think the bet part is that even though he is teased, even though he potentially missed the Great Pumpkin, as the gang leaves he shouts, "If the Great Pumpkin comes, I'll still put in a good word for you." He is willing to share his magic and wonder. He is willing to believe enough for all of them.
When I grow up, I want to be a Linus. And I don't think that is such a bad thing to aspire to. I even know where there might be a really sincere pumpkin patch ;)
Which Charlie Brown character is your favorite?
Thursday, October 25, 2012
October Was Kind to Me: OT Day 25
So this isn't a very traditional thought, it is more like a diary of my day, but it has October wonderfulness stamped all over it, so I'm gonna post it.
The day started off late, for me anyway. It seems that I slept through the first October snow. I'm ok with that though. I am much happier with rain. Not so much its frozen cousin. Though it does tend to make things pretty. But we are getting off topic. When I got up everyone was gone. Not in Home Alone they all flew to Paris without me kind of way, but everyone had errands or appointments and had to skedaddle. So it was a lonely breakfast. At least I had my monster cereal to keep me company.
I had a doctors appointment that I was hesitant to go to and once there I didn't get the best of news. BUT, that is when the October magic started to kick in. I brought my zombie book with me to pass the time in the waiting room and had fun scaring myself silly over the totally plausible and immanent zombie outbreak that was sure to happen while I was sitting there. A man coughed. A woman was eating something sketchy out of her purse and a little boy was moaning. When the nurse called my name I was off like a shot. I wasn’t going to stay there in that zombie breeding ground. I spent the time in the exam room waiting for the doctor devising ways that I could Spider Man myself down the side of the building to get away from the surely mounting zombie hoard.
After the appointment I was feeling both a bit depressed with the results and elated that I didn't end up zombie snack food. So I treated myself to a pumpkin spice latte and some sweet potato curly fries. I drove down to the park and watched the river run by as I munched and slurped. The day was beautiful and overcast and every now and again it would spit rain for a handful of minutes. It was my kind of day.
When I got back home, I found a package waiting for me. I had forgotten that I had even ordered it. Inside were my autumn truffles. Some are shaped like pumpkins, some like leaves and acorns. But by far my favorites are the monster collection. There are four truffles and they all look like something spooky. They are so well done that I don't even want to eat them. I want to shellac them and keep them forever as decorations. I'm sure I'll get over it and be eating them by morning.....or at least late afternoon.
While I was truffle gazing I had a brain storm. It was a cold, miserable day by normal person standards. By my standards it was perfect. I decided right then and there to go to the corn maze. It was cold, the wind was blowing and it was spitting rain. That meant that I got to wear my boots. SCORE! So I loaded up my gear and off I went.
Once I got there, I found that I was the only customer! I kinda had a feeling about that. Man was I excited. I was practically hopping up and down as the cashier gave me my instructions. I chose the hard section of the maze first and happily squished my way down the rows. I got my boots and pants good and muddy and I only managed to fall down once. Who knew that mud was slippery. I saw black birds in the maze and one bunny. At least I think it was a bunny. It was kinda large and grey and could possibly have been a cat. But I don't think that cats hop. But man, that bunnycat was like the Hulk of animals. I kept a wary eye out the rest of the time let me tell you.
I gazed at the sky. I listened to the crunch of the stalks as I walked by. I took pictures, I hummed, I listened to the silence. It was amazing to have the whole maze to myself. It was a gift just for me. And I didn't get lost once. Yes, I am going to brag. The big maze is supposed to take a forty five minutes to an hour. It took me half an hour. And no I wasn't running, I was meandering and taking pictures and looking at birds and bunnycats. The smaller maze is supposed to take twenty minutes. It only took me ten. I felt a little sad that I whizzed through both mazes, but it was still fun.
I took some time to feed the goats, I wandered around the cow train. I did the mini maze for kids, I eyed the zip line that I was too big to ride on and I tried to take a picture of myself and the inflatable pumpkin that they have at the entrance.
I was so stoked after going through the maze. I really thought that I was going to miss out this year. It was a pleasant surprise that I didn't. I chatted with the maze owner and his grandson who seemed to think that I was very brave to go into the maze alone. He kept pointing at me with his eyes real wide and telling his dad that I was going in the maze. I'm glad I impressed someone today.
On the way home I was still jazzed about the maze experience and didn't want the October fun to end, so I bundled up mom and one of our house guests and drove them back to the maze. I am still not brave enough to go through the maze after dark. But I did want to go on the hay ride. Again, we were the only customers in the place and the owner was so amused that I came back and brought friends that he let us go on the hay ride for free. We all bought cider and took a ride under the stars. It was AMAZING. The moon was peeking from behind hazy dark clouds and casting beautiful reflections on the water. The corn stalks were luminescent in the moon light and it was perfection. The hay wagon was comfortable and the ride smooth. It was the perfect way to end the evening.
Once we got back to the drop off point I went over to the pumpkin patch and yes, I bought two more pumpkins. I would have bought four more but decided to exercise some restraint. They really were perfect pumpkins though. Simply gorgeous. I may even carve one. I think this puts my count at thirteen, possibly fourteen now. I'm sure I will probably buy a few more before the month is out. I'm kinda glad it is almost over. If my pumpkins were to stage an uprising we in the house are already woefully outnumbered. I don't want to add any more potential soldiers to their cause.
Once home I settled down and watched a few Halloween specials which made me laugh. After they were over, I got to sit in the darkened living room while everyone was asleep and eat Franken Berry cereal and watch the Halloween village blink. Right now I am sitting on the couch with a puppy curled up on one side of me and a kitty on the other. The puppy has one of my candy corn holiday socks stuffed in his mouth and seems quite content. The kitty is passed out on my leg and snoring loud enough to drown out the highway traffic noises. It is a good evening and the perfect end to an almost perfect day. I can't wait to see what October has in store for me tomorrow!
The day started off late, for me anyway. It seems that I slept through the first October snow. I'm ok with that though. I am much happier with rain. Not so much its frozen cousin. Though it does tend to make things pretty. But we are getting off topic. When I got up everyone was gone. Not in Home Alone they all flew to Paris without me kind of way, but everyone had errands or appointments and had to skedaddle. So it was a lonely breakfast. At least I had my monster cereal to keep me company.
I had a doctors appointment that I was hesitant to go to and once there I didn't get the best of news. BUT, that is when the October magic started to kick in. I brought my zombie book with me to pass the time in the waiting room and had fun scaring myself silly over the totally plausible and immanent zombie outbreak that was sure to happen while I was sitting there. A man coughed. A woman was eating something sketchy out of her purse and a little boy was moaning. When the nurse called my name I was off like a shot. I wasn’t going to stay there in that zombie breeding ground. I spent the time in the exam room waiting for the doctor devising ways that I could Spider Man myself down the side of the building to get away from the surely mounting zombie hoard.
After the appointment I was feeling both a bit depressed with the results and elated that I didn't end up zombie snack food. So I treated myself to a pumpkin spice latte and some sweet potato curly fries. I drove down to the park and watched the river run by as I munched and slurped. The day was beautiful and overcast and every now and again it would spit rain for a handful of minutes. It was my kind of day.
When I got back home, I found a package waiting for me. I had forgotten that I had even ordered it. Inside were my autumn truffles. Some are shaped like pumpkins, some like leaves and acorns. But by far my favorites are the monster collection. There are four truffles and they all look like something spooky. They are so well done that I don't even want to eat them. I want to shellac them and keep them forever as decorations. I'm sure I'll get over it and be eating them by morning.....or at least late afternoon.
While I was truffle gazing I had a brain storm. It was a cold, miserable day by normal person standards. By my standards it was perfect. I decided right then and there to go to the corn maze. It was cold, the wind was blowing and it was spitting rain. That meant that I got to wear my boots. SCORE! So I loaded up my gear and off I went.
Once I got there, I found that I was the only customer! I kinda had a feeling about that. Man was I excited. I was practically hopping up and down as the cashier gave me my instructions. I chose the hard section of the maze first and happily squished my way down the rows. I got my boots and pants good and muddy and I only managed to fall down once. Who knew that mud was slippery. I saw black birds in the maze and one bunny. At least I think it was a bunny. It was kinda large and grey and could possibly have been a cat. But I don't think that cats hop. But man, that bunnycat was like the Hulk of animals. I kept a wary eye out the rest of the time let me tell you.
I gazed at the sky. I listened to the crunch of the stalks as I walked by. I took pictures, I hummed, I listened to the silence. It was amazing to have the whole maze to myself. It was a gift just for me. And I didn't get lost once. Yes, I am going to brag. The big maze is supposed to take a forty five minutes to an hour. It took me half an hour. And no I wasn't running, I was meandering and taking pictures and looking at birds and bunnycats. The smaller maze is supposed to take twenty minutes. It only took me ten. I felt a little sad that I whizzed through both mazes, but it was still fun.
I took some time to feed the goats, I wandered around the cow train. I did the mini maze for kids, I eyed the zip line that I was too big to ride on and I tried to take a picture of myself and the inflatable pumpkin that they have at the entrance.
I was so stoked after going through the maze. I really thought that I was going to miss out this year. It was a pleasant surprise that I didn't. I chatted with the maze owner and his grandson who seemed to think that I was very brave to go into the maze alone. He kept pointing at me with his eyes real wide and telling his dad that I was going in the maze. I'm glad I impressed someone today.
On the way home I was still jazzed about the maze experience and didn't want the October fun to end, so I bundled up mom and one of our house guests and drove them back to the maze. I am still not brave enough to go through the maze after dark. But I did want to go on the hay ride. Again, we were the only customers in the place and the owner was so amused that I came back and brought friends that he let us go on the hay ride for free. We all bought cider and took a ride under the stars. It was AMAZING. The moon was peeking from behind hazy dark clouds and casting beautiful reflections on the water. The corn stalks were luminescent in the moon light and it was perfection. The hay wagon was comfortable and the ride smooth. It was the perfect way to end the evening.
Once we got back to the drop off point I went over to the pumpkin patch and yes, I bought two more pumpkins. I would have bought four more but decided to exercise some restraint. They really were perfect pumpkins though. Simply gorgeous. I may even carve one. I think this puts my count at thirteen, possibly fourteen now. I'm sure I will probably buy a few more before the month is out. I'm kinda glad it is almost over. If my pumpkins were to stage an uprising we in the house are already woefully outnumbered. I don't want to add any more potential soldiers to their cause.
Once home I settled down and watched a few Halloween specials which made me laugh. After they were over, I got to sit in the darkened living room while everyone was asleep and eat Franken Berry cereal and watch the Halloween village blink. Right now I am sitting on the couch with a puppy curled up on one side of me and a kitty on the other. The puppy has one of my candy corn holiday socks stuffed in his mouth and seems quite content. The kitty is passed out on my leg and snoring loud enough to drown out the highway traffic noises. It is a good evening and the perfect end to an almost perfect day. I can't wait to see what October has in store for me tomorrow!
Sometimes, Treats and TV Are the Same Thing: OT Day 24
Have I mentioned October TV yet? I'm lucky if I can remember yesterday, and yesterday I know that I didn't mention October TV. Well, if I have, then claim selective amnesia and read on. If I haven't, then wahoo, it's new to you.
I am a big TV watcher. It is in my DNA. I won't get into specifics but I will say this, 1) I am a Nielsen family member 2) I know what sweeps, up fronts, and anchors are 3) I love TV as much as I do reading and movies 4) I have 22 shows I follow yearly. That should give you some idea as to where I am coming from. October turns out to be a very lucrative time of year for TV watching. This year more so than others, since most of the fall shows decided to come back at the end of September/beginning of October. The new TV season is like back to school for me. I have my premier date diagram, I plot out my viewing schedule. For an organizational nerd like me it is like Christmas. I get positively giddy. Plus, there is the added bonus that the networks turn their promo ads spooky, bats fly out of logos and chirons get changed to pumpkins. I'm pretty sure they do it just for me.
But October, October is something special when it comes to TV. October means that most all of my shows (unless they are too cool/serious to lower themselves) have a special Halloween episode. Halloween episodes are always different from the other holiday episodes. For the Halloween episodes anything goes. Some shows that are on hiatus come back just for Halloween and do special episodes while they are on break. Some shows use the Halloween episode to do something totally non linear in the story line. Some shows just run with it and go all out on the Halloween theme.
Remember how I said that I wanted to live in my Halloween village? Well, come Halloween time, I really want to live in a sitcom. Every year I am excessively jealous of the costumes and decorations that TV families have. Yes, I am well aware that they are TV shows, and the families aren't real and they have costume departments to help dress them. But man, I want to live there. No matter what, the costumes are always super cool. A character may only have 5 minutes to get to a party and only have their closet as a costume resource, but somehow, they show up in full gear, and look great. Every. Time. Arghhh. I want the magic TV costume closet.
And the decorations. They always have the best fog, candy bowls, creepy lights or front yard displays. I know what it takes to decorate my house and the storage space it eats up. If just one TV character had to store all their decorations like I do mine, they would have to rent a storage space I promise. That said. I love the creativity that goes into each episode. Tonight I got to see three Halloween themed episodes and they were all marvelous. Some of them even gave me costume ideas for next year.
My favorite Halloween themed episodes are, in no particular order; The X-Files: Home, which has forever made me fearful of a Johnny Mathis song. Two Guys, A Girl and a Pizza Place: Mind Over Body, which was the best brain swapping episode ever done on TV. Modern Family: Halloween, which is the most realistic portrayal of how I am around the holiday. The Friends episode where Ross dresses up like Spudnick and has to keep explaining it. (Best costume ever. Second only to the Holiday Armadillo) Psych: This Episode Sucks, which totally gets my geekery for Halloween and pop culture references. And of course, it wouldn't be October without It's the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown. Which isn't a TV show per say, but these are my October Thoughts and I can put it in there if I want to. I always feel SO sorry for Charlie Brown. Every year I think, maybe this time he will catch a break. He never does, but I hold out hope. I also love Linus sitting in the pumpkin patch with his blankie waiting for the Great Pumpkin. It totally sounds like something I would do. Which is probably why my parents never let me see it when I was little. Smart parents. Then there was the year that Sunday Night Football fell on the same night as Halloween and my Benglas were playing. Leslie Nielsen (no relation) did the scary intro and I just about died from holiday TV programming bliss.
I know not everyone is a big TV watcher, and I know not everyone likes Halloween, but I think I have enough joy in my system to make up for that lack. After all, it is the little things in life that can add the most joy sometimes. At least for me.
I am a big TV watcher. It is in my DNA. I won't get into specifics but I will say this, 1) I am a Nielsen family member 2) I know what sweeps, up fronts, and anchors are 3) I love TV as much as I do reading and movies 4) I have 22 shows I follow yearly. That should give you some idea as to where I am coming from. October turns out to be a very lucrative time of year for TV watching. This year more so than others, since most of the fall shows decided to come back at the end of September/beginning of October. The new TV season is like back to school for me. I have my premier date diagram, I plot out my viewing schedule. For an organizational nerd like me it is like Christmas. I get positively giddy. Plus, there is the added bonus that the networks turn their promo ads spooky, bats fly out of logos and chirons get changed to pumpkins. I'm pretty sure they do it just for me.
But October, October is something special when it comes to TV. October means that most all of my shows (unless they are too cool/serious to lower themselves) have a special Halloween episode. Halloween episodes are always different from the other holiday episodes. For the Halloween episodes anything goes. Some shows that are on hiatus come back just for Halloween and do special episodes while they are on break. Some shows use the Halloween episode to do something totally non linear in the story line. Some shows just run with it and go all out on the Halloween theme.
Remember how I said that I wanted to live in my Halloween village? Well, come Halloween time, I really want to live in a sitcom. Every year I am excessively jealous of the costumes and decorations that TV families have. Yes, I am well aware that they are TV shows, and the families aren't real and they have costume departments to help dress them. But man, I want to live there. No matter what, the costumes are always super cool. A character may only have 5 minutes to get to a party and only have their closet as a costume resource, but somehow, they show up in full gear, and look great. Every. Time. Arghhh. I want the magic TV costume closet.
And the decorations. They always have the best fog, candy bowls, creepy lights or front yard displays. I know what it takes to decorate my house and the storage space it eats up. If just one TV character had to store all their decorations like I do mine, they would have to rent a storage space I promise. That said. I love the creativity that goes into each episode. Tonight I got to see three Halloween themed episodes and they were all marvelous. Some of them even gave me costume ideas for next year.
My favorite Halloween themed episodes are, in no particular order; The X-Files: Home, which has forever made me fearful of a Johnny Mathis song. Two Guys, A Girl and a Pizza Place: Mind Over Body, which was the best brain swapping episode ever done on TV. Modern Family: Halloween, which is the most realistic portrayal of how I am around the holiday. The Friends episode where Ross dresses up like Spudnick and has to keep explaining it. (Best costume ever. Second only to the Holiday Armadillo) Psych: This Episode Sucks, which totally gets my geekery for Halloween and pop culture references. And of course, it wouldn't be October without It's the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown. Which isn't a TV show per say, but these are my October Thoughts and I can put it in there if I want to. I always feel SO sorry for Charlie Brown. Every year I think, maybe this time he will catch a break. He never does, but I hold out hope. I also love Linus sitting in the pumpkin patch with his blankie waiting for the Great Pumpkin. It totally sounds like something I would do. Which is probably why my parents never let me see it when I was little. Smart parents. Then there was the year that Sunday Night Football fell on the same night as Halloween and my Benglas were playing. Leslie Nielsen (no relation) did the scary intro and I just about died from holiday TV programming bliss.
I know not everyone is a big TV watcher, and I know not everyone likes Halloween, but I think I have enough joy in my system to make up for that lack. After all, it is the little things in life that can add the most joy sometimes. At least for me.
Tuesday, October 23, 2012
Dressing It Up: OT Day 23
I am not a girlyl girl. I don't like dresses and I’m not overly fond of skirts. I will take an action film over a romance any day. I can't use make up in a convincing fashion and my only hair styles are up, down or in a hat. That said, I LOVE to play dress up, or as I like to call it, make believe. Some little girls wanted to be a princess when they were growing up. I wanted to be a pirate...or Indiana Jones. My heroes were Mr. T, Hulk Hogan, Batman and Fragles. My poor mother had to be on constant alert lest I attempt to tear my shirt down the middle whilst shouting "I pity the fool."
When I was growing up, there weren't very many worthwhile costumes for girls. I could either be Barbie (too much pink), Strawberry Shortcake (too frilly), a princess (ugh yuck no), or a ballerina (too much like a princess). What I really wanted to be, they never had costumes for. No Neverending Story (and how does one dress up like the Nothing anyway). No Dark Crystal (ask for a Gelfling costume and people look at you funny). Mom wasn't really into me being a Ninja Turtle, so for years I settled for being a really hideous clown. I am ashamed to even admit it. I hated that costume. I still do in fact. I think I inherited it from my older cousin. It was itchy, came with a hideous mask that I really couldn't see out of and it made my face sweat.
I don't remember what happened to the costume. I'd like to say I took it out back one dark evening and buried it, but it probably got donated to Goodwill. Poor kids. I pity the fool. The hideous clown was replaced by a leopard unitard that came with a snap on head piece and already affixed tail. It was my favorite costume of my childhood. Mostly because I had a tail to twirl and the fact that I felt compelled to make the cutest growling noises known to man while wearing the costume. I did it so much in fact that dad had to threaten to take my candy away to make me stop. It was no use telling him that the suit was making me do it. I wore that costume until I couldn't squeeze into it anymore. At some point my head got to big for the hood and the leggings that used to go to my ankles It resided somewhere past my knees. It was a good run and a great costume. Plus I really enjoyed having whiskers drawn on with eyebrow pencil.
Costumery in our house was pretty low key until I started going to college. Then I could choose my own costume. My favorite college costume was Queen Amidala from Star Wars. I did the full make up and everything. I looked so convincing in fact that at my part time job (where they encouraged us to wear costumes on the day) little kids kept coming up to me to get their picture taken. It was a blast.
I love costumes. I love that now there are so many more things to choose from, in a way. But it is still hard finding things to my exacting specifications. For years I have wanted to be Charlie Chaplin, but I can't quite find the right bits. One can't simply stick on dark pants, a hat and a fake mustache and call it good. They have to be the right corduroy pants with a black bowler, a rounded cane and big, slightly clownish black shoes.
I also don't like to settle for mainstream. Why be Katniss Everdeen when I can go as Charlotte from Making Fiends. I like elaborate or quirky, or combination of both. I can't wait to find a good steam punk costume. As soon as Halloween is done and I have had time to appreciate the month, I start searching for next years costume. Sometimes I buy two or three out of season just so I have options if it comes down to the wire and I still haven't found "the one"?
But why do I like costumes so much? I think it is because I live more in my imagination than most people. Getting to wear a costume is a way to express that after a fashion. How cool to suspend disbelief for just one night and pretend you really can fly, because you are Peter Pan or Tinker Bell. For one night you can be a princess if you want. You can be a mummy without the nasty side effects of being dead for years. You can be a dashing pirate or a super hero. You can walk around shouting "I'm Batman" and people will only think you are a little crazy.
In one of my favorite TV shows, the characters dress up for Halloween and due to a little magic snafu, find themselves stuck as their costume for the night. When picking a costume I always have that idea floating around the back of my head. Sure, I want to be a Twister game board. How funny. But what happens if I get stuck this way. It is an interesting idea to think of. Maybe this year I will go as rain. Not quite sure how to pull that concept off. Maybe paint myself blue and stick clear beads all over to show moisture.
Whatever I choose to be, I know I will have fun doing it. What is your favorite costume past, present or future?
When I was growing up, there weren't very many worthwhile costumes for girls. I could either be Barbie (too much pink), Strawberry Shortcake (too frilly), a princess (ugh yuck no), or a ballerina (too much like a princess). What I really wanted to be, they never had costumes for. No Neverending Story (and how does one dress up like the Nothing anyway). No Dark Crystal (ask for a Gelfling costume and people look at you funny). Mom wasn't really into me being a Ninja Turtle, so for years I settled for being a really hideous clown. I am ashamed to even admit it. I hated that costume. I still do in fact. I think I inherited it from my older cousin. It was itchy, came with a hideous mask that I really couldn't see out of and it made my face sweat.
I don't remember what happened to the costume. I'd like to say I took it out back one dark evening and buried it, but it probably got donated to Goodwill. Poor kids. I pity the fool. The hideous clown was replaced by a leopard unitard that came with a snap on head piece and already affixed tail. It was my favorite costume of my childhood. Mostly because I had a tail to twirl and the fact that I felt compelled to make the cutest growling noises known to man while wearing the costume. I did it so much in fact that dad had to threaten to take my candy away to make me stop. It was no use telling him that the suit was making me do it. I wore that costume until I couldn't squeeze into it anymore. At some point my head got to big for the hood and the leggings that used to go to my ankles It resided somewhere past my knees. It was a good run and a great costume. Plus I really enjoyed having whiskers drawn on with eyebrow pencil.
Costumery in our house was pretty low key until I started going to college. Then I could choose my own costume. My favorite college costume was Queen Amidala from Star Wars. I did the full make up and everything. I looked so convincing in fact that at my part time job (where they encouraged us to wear costumes on the day) little kids kept coming up to me to get their picture taken. It was a blast.
I love costumes. I love that now there are so many more things to choose from, in a way. But it is still hard finding things to my exacting specifications. For years I have wanted to be Charlie Chaplin, but I can't quite find the right bits. One can't simply stick on dark pants, a hat and a fake mustache and call it good. They have to be the right corduroy pants with a black bowler, a rounded cane and big, slightly clownish black shoes.
I also don't like to settle for mainstream. Why be Katniss Everdeen when I can go as Charlotte from Making Fiends. I like elaborate or quirky, or combination of both. I can't wait to find a good steam punk costume. As soon as Halloween is done and I have had time to appreciate the month, I start searching for next years costume. Sometimes I buy two or three out of season just so I have options if it comes down to the wire and I still haven't found "the one"?
But why do I like costumes so much? I think it is because I live more in my imagination than most people. Getting to wear a costume is a way to express that after a fashion. How cool to suspend disbelief for just one night and pretend you really can fly, because you are Peter Pan or Tinker Bell. For one night you can be a princess if you want. You can be a mummy without the nasty side effects of being dead for years. You can be a dashing pirate or a super hero. You can walk around shouting "I'm Batman" and people will only think you are a little crazy.
In one of my favorite TV shows, the characters dress up for Halloween and due to a little magic snafu, find themselves stuck as their costume for the night. When picking a costume I always have that idea floating around the back of my head. Sure, I want to be a Twister game board. How funny. But what happens if I get stuck this way. It is an interesting idea to think of. Maybe this year I will go as rain. Not quite sure how to pull that concept off. Maybe paint myself blue and stick clear beads all over to show moisture.
Whatever I choose to be, I know I will have fun doing it. What is your favorite costume past, present or future?
Monday, October 22, 2012
Tradition & Memories: OT Day 22
It is rather peaceful right now. The neighbors have turned off their spooky lights and I am free to enjoy the velvety dark without my retinas burning or fear of imaginary vehicular retribution. I am snuggled up on the couch watching the Halloween village lights flicker and listening to the cat snore. Even though my online fog dance didn't seem to work, it still turned out to be a rather nice day. I broke down and bought another pumpkin, which I fully intend to carve some time before October 31st. I watched one of my October movies, drank a pumpkin latte and bought a stuffed bat/pumpkin hybrid toy at the grocery store. Yup, it was definitely a good October day.
But it got me thinking. What have been some of my other really wonderful October days? Which lead me to thoughts of tradition. Traditions that I have started and maintained like the October Thoughts, traditions that I hope to begin, or traditions that I have begun but not followed through on for one reason or another. One of my traditions that fell through the cracks was also one of my very best October memories. I was reminded of it today by one of my younger friends. About four years ago, I had the opportunity, nay privilege of being a part of a cider making party. A local grower invites family, friends and various other people to come to his house and turn apples into liquid deliciousness. Depending on the amount of helpers who show up, it takes about four to four and a half hours of hard and continuous labor which at the end of, you are rewarded with dinner and your own cider. It really is magical.
I was asked by a member of the family and didn't know what to expect. I am a city girl. I know how to juice an orange and stick things in the blender. Anything beyond that and I go to the store where they provide it for me in a nice plastic container. (I really would suck at being a pioneer, I’m not kidding). So being a city gal, my first thought was "hmm, what does one wear to a cider making party?" (I settled on stylish yet functional, just in case you were wondering). I had never been to the location before so I made sure to scout it (bordering on stalking) well in advance. I wrote down the event on my calendar and counted the days.
When the big day finally arrived I bounced out of bed eager to go. I showed up at the appointed time only to find that they had started without me. (the nerve ;) Of course my shy mode kicked in. There were dozens of people already happily engaged in the process of cider making. Where to go? What to do? I needn't have worried, there was plenty of work to go around. The whole process was set up like an assembly line. There were people who shoveled the apples off of trucks and into crates. People who cleaned and cut the apples. People who carried crates from group to group. People who used the press. People who bottled, and a few other stations that I can't remember. I was greeted with enthusiasm and set to work along side a few others washing the apples, cutting out the bad spots and dumping them into waiting containers.
Now let me say right from the start that I had HUGE amounts of fun and it is one of my favorite memories. But man, sometimes it was downright miserable. The day was not the warmest and occasionally the sun went behind a cloud or a chilly wind struck up. This would not have been so bad had I not been dealing with apples and water. By the end of the day I was soaking wet and couldn't feel my fingers. But it was great! The fellows from the trucks would come by and dump crates of apples into these soaking tubs next to the table we were at. We let the apples bob and then we had to transfer them from the bleach water they were in, to the rinse water. Then we had to cut them and toss them into a waiting bucket to be taken to the press. It sounds simple enough, but the combination of bleach, cold water and even colder temperatures made ones hands not exactly nimble.
I think I had a watery apple bin overturn on my first fifteen minutes in. It was a good thing I was wearing layers, but I got soaked and there went layer one. I also made a newbie mistake and grabbed one of the apple bins myself to tip it over so the fellows on the truck and dump duty wouldn't have to. I found out pretty quickly why they did the dumping and not us. The edges of the bins are sharp and I sliced my palms on them. So, for those of you keeping score, it was city girl zero, apples two. It was barely a half hour in and I was already covered in water and had to go see someone about Band-Aids. I felt like a doofus.
After getting all the rookie mistakes out of the way nice and quick, things settled down to a routine. I began to chat with my fellow apple cutters and some of those around me. Each of the jobs was hard in its own way, so from time to time, new people or people from other stations would wander in and I would get a break to grab a snack, pet the dog, get warm, see what others were doing or just relax. It wasn't forced labor. You could come and go as you pleased. Some people just came to sit on the steps and watch the work being done. Nothing was really planned out or assigned, and somehow all the stations got filled and things moved like clockwork.
Other than watching the process of cider making and actually doing it myself, my favorite part was laying on the giant trampoline and staring up at the colorful leaves on the trees. The trampoline also functioned as the part time babysitter so sometimes I had to share my leaf watching with the kids, but I didn't mind. They either sat still and watched leaves with me, tried to bounce me off, or begged me to bounce them off. A few decided to be my personal snack bearers and I didn’t dissuade them. On other breaks I wandered to other stations and tried my hand at them. The press in particular was better than any gym work out.
Way sooner than I expected the last bunch of apples were unloaded from the truck. Slowly the process wound down and as each station ran out of apples to process people just sat down on any available space to watch the final product work its way toward being poured into jugs. When the last jug was filled there was a cheer from those assembled and we were then invited into the house for dinner. Food never tastes so good as when you have worked up an appetite. Everything was delicious and warm. I spent equal amounts of time either holding the bowls to get warm or eating the substances inside them. People talked, napped, laughed, mingled and generally enjoyed themselves. Everyone smelled like apples and had a smile on their face. When chairs became scarce, people sat on the floor or any other surface they could find. There was a camaraderie amongst all those people that you don't see very often now a days. We had all participated in a common goal and been amply rewarded for the fruits of our labor s(pun intended).
Slowly the talk wound down. Parents would pick up sleeping children and people would get up in small groups to head home. The jugs of cider got fewer and fewer and the driveway emptied of cars. I thanked my host and hostess for a wonderful time and was invited to come back again the next year. I left with a grin on my face, jugs of cider in my hands and the smell of apples that wouldn't dissipate for a few days, even after a good scrubbing.
I still can't believe that I actually had that experience. Sometimes it feels like a vivid dream. I fully intended to make it an October tradition. After all, what could be better than gathering with a group of folks to make cider on a lovely fall day? But for one reason or another, that has been my only cider making experience to date and that makes me a bit sad. This year I hear that there was live entertainment from a couple of participants who afterwards got out their guitars and serenaded the crowd. Cider and a concert, man jealousy rears its ugly head. Even so, I would not trade having gone the first time for not having gone at all. I know the fun they are having and the memories it will make. I cherish my memories of it and tradition or not at least other people get to experience the wonder of a homemade product and camaraderie with fellow workers.
It makes me sad that things like this don't happen more often. People get so wrapped up in their technological lives that they forget to take their families or friends to things like this. I certainly never knew about such things when I lived in the city. So this is my challenge to you. Make a memory. Go out and find something new and different to do this October with the time you have left. Go find an orchard or a farmers market. Maybe take a hike through an October colored forest or visit a pumpkin patch. Have friends over to bake something or sit around the fire. Create your own tradition and make a memory. You won't be sorry you tried, I promise. After all, water dries, cuts heal and homemade cider tastes better than anything in the world
But it got me thinking. What have been some of my other really wonderful October days? Which lead me to thoughts of tradition. Traditions that I have started and maintained like the October Thoughts, traditions that I hope to begin, or traditions that I have begun but not followed through on for one reason or another. One of my traditions that fell through the cracks was also one of my very best October memories. I was reminded of it today by one of my younger friends. About four years ago, I had the opportunity, nay privilege of being a part of a cider making party. A local grower invites family, friends and various other people to come to his house and turn apples into liquid deliciousness. Depending on the amount of helpers who show up, it takes about four to four and a half hours of hard and continuous labor which at the end of, you are rewarded with dinner and your own cider. It really is magical.
I was asked by a member of the family and didn't know what to expect. I am a city girl. I know how to juice an orange and stick things in the blender. Anything beyond that and I go to the store where they provide it for me in a nice plastic container. (I really would suck at being a pioneer, I’m not kidding). So being a city gal, my first thought was "hmm, what does one wear to a cider making party?" (I settled on stylish yet functional, just in case you were wondering). I had never been to the location before so I made sure to scout it (bordering on stalking) well in advance. I wrote down the event on my calendar and counted the days.
When the big day finally arrived I bounced out of bed eager to go. I showed up at the appointed time only to find that they had started without me. (the nerve ;) Of course my shy mode kicked in. There were dozens of people already happily engaged in the process of cider making. Where to go? What to do? I needn't have worried, there was plenty of work to go around. The whole process was set up like an assembly line. There were people who shoveled the apples off of trucks and into crates. People who cleaned and cut the apples. People who carried crates from group to group. People who used the press. People who bottled, and a few other stations that I can't remember. I was greeted with enthusiasm and set to work along side a few others washing the apples, cutting out the bad spots and dumping them into waiting containers.
Now let me say right from the start that I had HUGE amounts of fun and it is one of my favorite memories. But man, sometimes it was downright miserable. The day was not the warmest and occasionally the sun went behind a cloud or a chilly wind struck up. This would not have been so bad had I not been dealing with apples and water. By the end of the day I was soaking wet and couldn't feel my fingers. But it was great! The fellows from the trucks would come by and dump crates of apples into these soaking tubs next to the table we were at. We let the apples bob and then we had to transfer them from the bleach water they were in, to the rinse water. Then we had to cut them and toss them into a waiting bucket to be taken to the press. It sounds simple enough, but the combination of bleach, cold water and even colder temperatures made ones hands not exactly nimble.
I think I had a watery apple bin overturn on my first fifteen minutes in. It was a good thing I was wearing layers, but I got soaked and there went layer one. I also made a newbie mistake and grabbed one of the apple bins myself to tip it over so the fellows on the truck and dump duty wouldn't have to. I found out pretty quickly why they did the dumping and not us. The edges of the bins are sharp and I sliced my palms on them. So, for those of you keeping score, it was city girl zero, apples two. It was barely a half hour in and I was already covered in water and had to go see someone about Band-Aids. I felt like a doofus.
After getting all the rookie mistakes out of the way nice and quick, things settled down to a routine. I began to chat with my fellow apple cutters and some of those around me. Each of the jobs was hard in its own way, so from time to time, new people or people from other stations would wander in and I would get a break to grab a snack, pet the dog, get warm, see what others were doing or just relax. It wasn't forced labor. You could come and go as you pleased. Some people just came to sit on the steps and watch the work being done. Nothing was really planned out or assigned, and somehow all the stations got filled and things moved like clockwork.
Other than watching the process of cider making and actually doing it myself, my favorite part was laying on the giant trampoline and staring up at the colorful leaves on the trees. The trampoline also functioned as the part time babysitter so sometimes I had to share my leaf watching with the kids, but I didn't mind. They either sat still and watched leaves with me, tried to bounce me off, or begged me to bounce them off. A few decided to be my personal snack bearers and I didn’t dissuade them. On other breaks I wandered to other stations and tried my hand at them. The press in particular was better than any gym work out.
Way sooner than I expected the last bunch of apples were unloaded from the truck. Slowly the process wound down and as each station ran out of apples to process people just sat down on any available space to watch the final product work its way toward being poured into jugs. When the last jug was filled there was a cheer from those assembled and we were then invited into the house for dinner. Food never tastes so good as when you have worked up an appetite. Everything was delicious and warm. I spent equal amounts of time either holding the bowls to get warm or eating the substances inside them. People talked, napped, laughed, mingled and generally enjoyed themselves. Everyone smelled like apples and had a smile on their face. When chairs became scarce, people sat on the floor or any other surface they could find. There was a camaraderie amongst all those people that you don't see very often now a days. We had all participated in a common goal and been amply rewarded for the fruits of our labor s(pun intended).
Slowly the talk wound down. Parents would pick up sleeping children and people would get up in small groups to head home. The jugs of cider got fewer and fewer and the driveway emptied of cars. I thanked my host and hostess for a wonderful time and was invited to come back again the next year. I left with a grin on my face, jugs of cider in my hands and the smell of apples that wouldn't dissipate for a few days, even after a good scrubbing.
I still can't believe that I actually had that experience. Sometimes it feels like a vivid dream. I fully intended to make it an October tradition. After all, what could be better than gathering with a group of folks to make cider on a lovely fall day? But for one reason or another, that has been my only cider making experience to date and that makes me a bit sad. This year I hear that there was live entertainment from a couple of participants who afterwards got out their guitars and serenaded the crowd. Cider and a concert, man jealousy rears its ugly head. Even so, I would not trade having gone the first time for not having gone at all. I know the fun they are having and the memories it will make. I cherish my memories of it and tradition or not at least other people get to experience the wonder of a homemade product and camaraderie with fellow workers.
It makes me sad that things like this don't happen more often. People get so wrapped up in their technological lives that they forget to take their families or friends to things like this. I certainly never knew about such things when I lived in the city. So this is my challenge to you. Make a memory. Go out and find something new and different to do this October with the time you have left. Go find an orchard or a farmers market. Maybe take a hike through an October colored forest or visit a pumpkin patch. Have friends over to bake something or sit around the fire. Create your own tradition and make a memory. You won't be sorry you tried, I promise. After all, water dries, cuts heal and homemade cider tastes better than anything in the world
Sunday, October 21, 2012
Foggy Hodgepodge: OT Day 21
Ok, I'm about ready to burst into tears. How are there only ten days left of this wonderful month? Has November been siphoning off hours and minutes? I still have a pile of October books to read. I have a basketful of October movies to watch. I haven't carved my pumpkin yet, and I haven't made it over to the corn maze. Ten days seems like an awfully small amount of time to fit all this in. But I accept the challenge.
Today was a very Octobery day. I had not one, but two pumpkin spice lattes. I almost mugged a little girl to get an orange and black stuffed stock monkey skeleton (don't worry, the store had more so she got to her car unscathed). I read a book about zombies, I made two apple pies, a spiced apple topping for cheesecake and some applesauce. I also made deviled eggs and used way more than the necessary amount of pumpkin spice body scrub while in the shower. Indeed, it was a very Octobery day. Plus, the weather was dark and spooky. It was dark and spooky last night, but I didn't get to properly appreciate it.
Tonight however. After my apple baking fest, I wrapped myself in a blanket and sat outside. The air was chilly (yes, I have finally turned my air conditioner off) and the sky was so overcast that nary a star was to be seen. It was a truly inky night. The moon however was shrouded in gauzy dark clouds and it looked quite hazy. Like if you blew on it a little it might disperse and dissolve into the sky. Very spooky. Very October.
But the best part is my neighbors lights. On a good day in a non spooky month, these lights give me the creeps. Which is weird, because normally lights mean safety and warmth and good things. But these lights. They creep me out man. My neighbors turn them on with no real rhyme or reason. I'm sure they have one, but I haven't cracked their code just yet. The lights are on two decorative poles and they look like the headlights of a car. Which is off putting because the way they are situated, they point right at my house. So as you go by a window you suddenly see what looks like a car pointed right at you. But the car never moves. It’s like living next door to Christine (horror movie reference, look it up).
Tonight, there is a bit of haze around the lights that really gives it a sinister glow. I know it is just my imagination but it is really spooky. That said, the days have been getting spookier lately. The nights are a little darker. The days a little overcast. Dogs bark at night more for no seeming reason. Sounds can be heard outside that quiet the crickets. I love this time of year. But you know what would make it even better.....fog.
Yup, I have had enough of waiting. Usually in October by this time I have had fog at least two if not more times. The mornings are the best times to find it, but it has also been known to lurk around the twilight hours. I love fog. It sets my already overactive imagination into hyper drive. I love the way it creeps across the ground and up from the river. I love how it eats sound and light like a living thing. I love how thick it looks but how insubstantial it really is. Playing in the fog is the best game for a lazy afternoon. What makes it even better is if you play in it whilst in a corn maze at dusk. We are talking serious fun then.
If I got to create my own October town and its inhabitants, I would make pet fog. It would be awesome to have this cloud like thing following me around. But it wouldn't be traditional fog at all. Sure it could ooze and glide. But if I needed a chair to sit on, the fog could morph into a foggy sitting structure and hold me up. Or if I needed an umbrella. Bam! Fog to the rescue. It would be able to squeeze through key holes and would sleep in an empty fish aquarium at night. I think I'd call it Pete. Oooh, and I just had another idea. My pet fog could also turn into a cape. I could wear it with my leaf dress. Man, I wish that could happen right now.
Until I get my pet fog, I will just have to settle for the fog maker that mom got me two Octobers ago. Well, it isn't a fog machine really, it is a bubble machine that spits out bubbles with fog in them. It is the coolest thing. When we saw it in the store we both stood under the display for something like seven minutes just popping the bubbles and watching the fog swirl. It is the closest thing you will ever come to actually being in an Alien movie. While the fog is in the bubble it looks like an angry bee. It swirls and twirls and races all across the inside of the bubble. Once free it spreads out like it has been shot out of a cannon. Whoever thought of such an neat invention should be given a medal. Or at least their own national holiday. Hey, if bosses get a day, then people who invent bubble fog should get one too. It's only fair. Them and the people who make monster cereal. I just love how creative people get in October.
So this is me, doing my online fog dance and petitioning October to send me some. Some little girls dream of sugar plums at Christmas. This little girl dreams of fog in October. If the weather doesn't cooperate I might just enlist some of you to come over here and set up some fake fog for me. I promise to keep you well fed with my stockpile of monster cereal and pumpkin nog. So keep your eyes peeled everyone, and if you see some fog, send it my way won't you.
Today was a very Octobery day. I had not one, but two pumpkin spice lattes. I almost mugged a little girl to get an orange and black stuffed stock monkey skeleton (don't worry, the store had more so she got to her car unscathed). I read a book about zombies, I made two apple pies, a spiced apple topping for cheesecake and some applesauce. I also made deviled eggs and used way more than the necessary amount of pumpkin spice body scrub while in the shower. Indeed, it was a very Octobery day. Plus, the weather was dark and spooky. It was dark and spooky last night, but I didn't get to properly appreciate it.
Tonight however. After my apple baking fest, I wrapped myself in a blanket and sat outside. The air was chilly (yes, I have finally turned my air conditioner off) and the sky was so overcast that nary a star was to be seen. It was a truly inky night. The moon however was shrouded in gauzy dark clouds and it looked quite hazy. Like if you blew on it a little it might disperse and dissolve into the sky. Very spooky. Very October.
But the best part is my neighbors lights. On a good day in a non spooky month, these lights give me the creeps. Which is weird, because normally lights mean safety and warmth and good things. But these lights. They creep me out man. My neighbors turn them on with no real rhyme or reason. I'm sure they have one, but I haven't cracked their code just yet. The lights are on two decorative poles and they look like the headlights of a car. Which is off putting because the way they are situated, they point right at my house. So as you go by a window you suddenly see what looks like a car pointed right at you. But the car never moves. It’s like living next door to Christine (horror movie reference, look it up).
Tonight, there is a bit of haze around the lights that really gives it a sinister glow. I know it is just my imagination but it is really spooky. That said, the days have been getting spookier lately. The nights are a little darker. The days a little overcast. Dogs bark at night more for no seeming reason. Sounds can be heard outside that quiet the crickets. I love this time of year. But you know what would make it even better.....fog.
Yup, I have had enough of waiting. Usually in October by this time I have had fog at least two if not more times. The mornings are the best times to find it, but it has also been known to lurk around the twilight hours. I love fog. It sets my already overactive imagination into hyper drive. I love the way it creeps across the ground and up from the river. I love how it eats sound and light like a living thing. I love how thick it looks but how insubstantial it really is. Playing in the fog is the best game for a lazy afternoon. What makes it even better is if you play in it whilst in a corn maze at dusk. We are talking serious fun then.
If I got to create my own October town and its inhabitants, I would make pet fog. It would be awesome to have this cloud like thing following me around. But it wouldn't be traditional fog at all. Sure it could ooze and glide. But if I needed a chair to sit on, the fog could morph into a foggy sitting structure and hold me up. Or if I needed an umbrella. Bam! Fog to the rescue. It would be able to squeeze through key holes and would sleep in an empty fish aquarium at night. I think I'd call it Pete. Oooh, and I just had another idea. My pet fog could also turn into a cape. I could wear it with my leaf dress. Man, I wish that could happen right now.
Until I get my pet fog, I will just have to settle for the fog maker that mom got me two Octobers ago. Well, it isn't a fog machine really, it is a bubble machine that spits out bubbles with fog in them. It is the coolest thing. When we saw it in the store we both stood under the display for something like seven minutes just popping the bubbles and watching the fog swirl. It is the closest thing you will ever come to actually being in an Alien movie. While the fog is in the bubble it looks like an angry bee. It swirls and twirls and races all across the inside of the bubble. Once free it spreads out like it has been shot out of a cannon. Whoever thought of such an neat invention should be given a medal. Or at least their own national holiday. Hey, if bosses get a day, then people who invent bubble fog should get one too. It's only fair. Them and the people who make monster cereal. I just love how creative people get in October.
So this is me, doing my online fog dance and petitioning October to send me some. Some little girls dream of sugar plums at Christmas. This little girl dreams of fog in October. If the weather doesn't cooperate I might just enlist some of you to come over here and set up some fake fog for me. I promise to keep you well fed with my stockpile of monster cereal and pumpkin nog. So keep your eyes peeled everyone, and if you see some fog, send it my way won't you.
Saturday, October 20, 2012
October Goes to the Moives: OT Day 20
I was going to be a good little girl this year and not mention movies. I tried so very hard. I got halfway through a thought tonight and then just had to give in. Blame it on the internet movie data base. Their poll question today was "What's cooler, a fast zombie, or a slow zombie?" I say slow, but only out of a sense of self preservation. I can outrun a slow one I'm reasonably certain. ;-) Now I know that I have mentioned movies here and there already, but I just can't contain myself any longer. Be proud of me for being able to wait this long.
There is nothing quite like a good October movie be it in the theater, at a friends house, or alone in your room. Back home we have the most wonderful theater. It is the Mt. Hood Theater and it is a mom and pop joint that plays second runs. For $3 you can see 2 films and the food isn't half bad either. The Mt. Hood Theater is where I first learned to play Pac man and developed my love for Red Vines. It is also where I got to hone my between movie bathroom sneaking skills. See, the Hood only has 2 women's stalls way down in the depths of the theater, so you had to time things juuuuuust right to beat the rush. Otherwise you were stuck in the line that never ended and ran the risk of missing the previews before the new movie.
Back in the good old days the movie didn't start until the projectionist decided that it should. The seven pm start time was more of a suggestion than an actuality. There was no fancy timing switch like there are now a days. The projectionist simply waited until the last person had bought their snack at the concession stand then walked up the ramp to the main floor. From there he would slowly ascend the stairs to the balcony and open up the projector room door. It would take him a few minutes, but then.......out would come that white beam of light and the movie would begin. The Hood didn't always run ads before the show, and sometimes there were not many previews. Most times the big red curtain was down over the screen before the movie and the red sconces on the sides were set to white. When the movie began the white faded away leaving big red triangles in their place.
The balcony was by far the best place to sit. It was like being in another world. But boy were those step tricksy. I don't know how many times I tripped going up them and caused a popcorn explosion. I only fell down them once.....ok twice, but the only thing I bruised was my pride. If you sat at the very top of the balcony there was a couch, then it got too old so they replaced it with a really big roll of carpet. Once that got too ratty, there was just a really long black bench and to my knowledge it's still there.
The only bad thing about the balcony, other than the devious stairs, was the fact that teenagers and sometimes adults went up there to snog more than watch movies. I had ample opportunity to perfect my withering stare and quiet but still menacing shushing noise.
Some of my very favorite memories happened in that theater. The first time I saw Die Hard, the time I saw Scrooged and the audience sang with the film. The time I had my tooth pulled after Thanksgiving and my parents took me to a movie to cheer me up. The first time I got to go to a movie by myself. The 1st, 4th and 5th times that I saw Jurassic Park. The best thing about the theater was that it was literally right down the hill from my house. I could get the binoculars, stand in my front room window and look at the marquee while they were changing it. I could see my mom leave the house to come pick me up after the last film had played, and I could see if my dad had beat us to the theater while mom was still trying to find her keys.
Whenever we go back to Portland I try to fit in a Hood Theater showing. It is the only theater left from my childhood. Sure, the Hollywood is still there, and so are both the Lloyd Center cinemas, but these were the ones close to home. The Rose Moyer was torn down for the vastly superior Division Street Theater. The old Gresham theater is now a La-Z-Boy store, and Eastgate is simply gone. I know that one day the Hood will go too, but for now, I will take what I can get. Did I mention that when I was little I wanted to get married there. I still kinda do.....tee hee. ;-)
So without further delay or ramblings down memory lane, I present some of the movies of October. We would be here all day if I listed all my favs. Give them a look.................if you dare. But I should say, I don't do horror. Well..........I do, but horror for me is Psycho NOT Saw. Horror plays with your mind not dismembers people. True, I have a few bloody picks, but not many.
-The Addams Family - (Wednesday, Gomez, headless roses, the front gate............what's not to love, oh, and I can do a wicked impression of cousin It)-The Adventures of Baron Munchausen- (I know you have never heard of it, but no one does make believe like the Python boys)-Batman and Batman Returns -(Tim Burton is Halloween)-Big - (because who among us has not wished for something and had it come true, oh, and the dancing on the keyboard thing)-The Black Cauldron - (I saw that movie in a drive in theater when I was small and it gave me the heebie jeebies for years)-The Brotherhood of the Wolf - ( a spooky French horrorish film that makes you think, and the cinematography is stunning)-The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari - (this is an OLD fashioned horror film. It isn't scary but it is really good)- Count Duckula (a British TV cartoon just the opening titles were enough to scare me silly and I was in Jr High)-The Dark Crystal -(another movie that scared the pants off me when I was little, but for some reason I rented it EVERY time I went to the video store. I did that for 12 years)-Edward Scissorhands -(like I said, no one does Halloween like Tim Burton, this is an October classic)-The Frighteners- (another of my can't do without Halloween movies!!!!)-Ghostbusters 1 &2 (both good in their own right and heck, there is even a little romance)-Gremlins - (just don't feed them after dark...................I can also do a wicked impression of the head gremlin)-The Goonies -( cuz I really wanted to be one of them, and it was filmed in Astoria after all) -Invasion of the Body Snatchers and now Invasion (I think I know some pod people)-Jumanji (seriously, an interactive board game.....hook me up)-Labyrinth (David Bowie, mall hair, and spandex.....)-The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (a whole bunch of my favorite literary characters in one place, what bliss)-Lemony Snicket's: A Series of Unfortunate Events (-The Mask ("I was just killing time.")-Men in Black (cuz really, wasn't everyone's first grade teacher an alien)-Monsters Inc. ("Kitty!")-The Mummy (the new and the old)-Night of the Living Dead- (saw it when I was a tot and it was just love at first sight, the way horror should be done)-Plan 9 From Outer Space- (so hideously bad it is good, me and Mulder have seen it many times)-The Phantom (a good old fashioned comic book hero who has his own island and some pretty tough dames)-the Prestige (Halloween is all about smoke and mirrors, and this film is VERY well done, it's all about the masks we wear)-Psycho ("mother just isn't feeling like herself today.")-the Scream Trilogy (my other favorite)-Secret Window - (another Stephen King classic)-The Shadow (how can you hate a superhero named Lamont Cranston)-The Silence of the Lambs (2 scariest words ever......"Hello Clarice.")-The Sixth Sense (Christmas is Die Hard, October is Sixth Sense, it's a Bruce Willis world and we are just living in it)-Sleepy Hollow (the very short Disney version) The Stepford Wives -(only cuz that ending scares the stuffing out of me, horror indeed!)-The Tenth Kingdom -(how would you like to walk into a story book, oh and while I'm at it, Alice in Wonderland)-Tremors -(and you thought that living in a small town was peaceful)-The Vanishing -(it was filmed in Oregon, well bits of it, and it really makes you think twice about gas stations)-Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory -(the classic. Nothing is scarier to me. Gene Wilder is just creepy) -Wrong Turn (inbred cannibal mountain men pretty much sums up the film) -Young Frankenstein (cuz who doesn't want to see Franky do a soft shoe)-Young Sherlock Holmes (a teenage Holmes, talking pastries, and Dr. Moriarty!!!)-and I am going to add EUReKA on SyFy to the list. But my top 5 are Disney's Legend of Sleepy Hollow, Addams Family, the Frighteners, Beetlejuice and Hocus Pocus ("amok, amok, amok, amok") It just isn't October for me without them.
What are some of your favorite October flicks?
There is nothing quite like a good October movie be it in the theater, at a friends house, or alone in your room. Back home we have the most wonderful theater. It is the Mt. Hood Theater and it is a mom and pop joint that plays second runs. For $3 you can see 2 films and the food isn't half bad either. The Mt. Hood Theater is where I first learned to play Pac man and developed my love for Red Vines. It is also where I got to hone my between movie bathroom sneaking skills. See, the Hood only has 2 women's stalls way down in the depths of the theater, so you had to time things juuuuuust right to beat the rush. Otherwise you were stuck in the line that never ended and ran the risk of missing the previews before the new movie.
Back in the good old days the movie didn't start until the projectionist decided that it should. The seven pm start time was more of a suggestion than an actuality. There was no fancy timing switch like there are now a days. The projectionist simply waited until the last person had bought their snack at the concession stand then walked up the ramp to the main floor. From there he would slowly ascend the stairs to the balcony and open up the projector room door. It would take him a few minutes, but then.......out would come that white beam of light and the movie would begin. The Hood didn't always run ads before the show, and sometimes there were not many previews. Most times the big red curtain was down over the screen before the movie and the red sconces on the sides were set to white. When the movie began the white faded away leaving big red triangles in their place.
The balcony was by far the best place to sit. It was like being in another world. But boy were those step tricksy. I don't know how many times I tripped going up them and caused a popcorn explosion. I only fell down them once.....ok twice, but the only thing I bruised was my pride. If you sat at the very top of the balcony there was a couch, then it got too old so they replaced it with a really big roll of carpet. Once that got too ratty, there was just a really long black bench and to my knowledge it's still there.
The only bad thing about the balcony, other than the devious stairs, was the fact that teenagers and sometimes adults went up there to snog more than watch movies. I had ample opportunity to perfect my withering stare and quiet but still menacing shushing noise.
Some of my very favorite memories happened in that theater. The first time I saw Die Hard, the time I saw Scrooged and the audience sang with the film. The time I had my tooth pulled after Thanksgiving and my parents took me to a movie to cheer me up. The first time I got to go to a movie by myself. The 1st, 4th and 5th times that I saw Jurassic Park. The best thing about the theater was that it was literally right down the hill from my house. I could get the binoculars, stand in my front room window and look at the marquee while they were changing it. I could see my mom leave the house to come pick me up after the last film had played, and I could see if my dad had beat us to the theater while mom was still trying to find her keys.
Whenever we go back to Portland I try to fit in a Hood Theater showing. It is the only theater left from my childhood. Sure, the Hollywood is still there, and so are both the Lloyd Center cinemas, but these were the ones close to home. The Rose Moyer was torn down for the vastly superior Division Street Theater. The old Gresham theater is now a La-Z-Boy store, and Eastgate is simply gone. I know that one day the Hood will go too, but for now, I will take what I can get. Did I mention that when I was little I wanted to get married there. I still kinda do.....tee hee. ;-)
So without further delay or ramblings down memory lane, I present some of the movies of October. We would be here all day if I listed all my favs. Give them a look.................if you dare. But I should say, I don't do horror. Well..........I do, but horror for me is Psycho NOT Saw. Horror plays with your mind not dismembers people. True, I have a few bloody picks, but not many.
-The Addams Family - (Wednesday, Gomez, headless roses, the front gate............what's not to love, oh, and I can do a wicked impression of cousin It)-The Adventures of Baron Munchausen- (I know you have never heard of it, but no one does make believe like the Python boys)-Batman and Batman Returns -(Tim Burton is Halloween)-Big - (because who among us has not wished for something and had it come true, oh, and the dancing on the keyboard thing)-The Black Cauldron - (I saw that movie in a drive in theater when I was small and it gave me the heebie jeebies for years)-The Brotherhood of the Wolf - ( a spooky French horrorish film that makes you think, and the cinematography is stunning)-The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari - (this is an OLD fashioned horror film. It isn't scary but it is really good)- Count Duckula (a British TV cartoon just the opening titles were enough to scare me silly and I was in Jr High)-The Dark Crystal -(another movie that scared the pants off me when I was little, but for some reason I rented it EVERY time I went to the video store. I did that for 12 years)-Edward Scissorhands -(like I said, no one does Halloween like Tim Burton, this is an October classic)-The Frighteners- (another of my can't do without Halloween movies!!!!)-Ghostbusters 1 &2 (both good in their own right and heck, there is even a little romance)-Gremlins - (just don't feed them after dark...................I can also do a wicked impression of the head gremlin)-The Goonies -( cuz I really wanted to be one of them, and it was filmed in Astoria after all) -Invasion of the Body Snatchers and now Invasion (I think I know some pod people)-Jumanji (seriously, an interactive board game.....hook me up)-Labyrinth (David Bowie, mall hair, and spandex.....)-The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (a whole bunch of my favorite literary characters in one place, what bliss)-Lemony Snicket's: A Series of Unfortunate Events (-The Mask ("I was just killing time.")-Men in Black (cuz really, wasn't everyone's first grade teacher an alien)-Monsters Inc. ("Kitty!")-The Mummy (the new and the old)-Night of the Living Dead- (saw it when I was a tot and it was just love at first sight, the way horror should be done)-Plan 9 From Outer Space- (so hideously bad it is good, me and Mulder have seen it many times)-The Phantom (a good old fashioned comic book hero who has his own island and some pretty tough dames)-the Prestige (Halloween is all about smoke and mirrors, and this film is VERY well done, it's all about the masks we wear)-Psycho ("mother just isn't feeling like herself today.")-the Scream Trilogy (my other favorite)-Secret Window - (another Stephen King classic)-The Shadow (how can you hate a superhero named Lamont Cranston)-The Silence of the Lambs (2 scariest words ever......"Hello Clarice.")-The Sixth Sense (Christmas is Die Hard, October is Sixth Sense, it's a Bruce Willis world and we are just living in it)-Sleepy Hollow (the very short Disney version) The Stepford Wives -(only cuz that ending scares the stuffing out of me, horror indeed!)-The Tenth Kingdom -(how would you like to walk into a story book, oh and while I'm at it, Alice in Wonderland)-Tremors -(and you thought that living in a small town was peaceful)-The Vanishing -(it was filmed in Oregon, well bits of it, and it really makes you think twice about gas stations)-Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory -(the classic. Nothing is scarier to me. Gene Wilder is just creepy) -Wrong Turn (inbred cannibal mountain men pretty much sums up the film) -Young Frankenstein (cuz who doesn't want to see Franky do a soft shoe)-Young Sherlock Holmes (a teenage Holmes, talking pastries, and Dr. Moriarty!!!)-and I am going to add EUReKA on SyFy to the list. But my top 5 are Disney's Legend of Sleepy Hollow, Addams Family, the Frighteners, Beetlejuice and Hocus Pocus ("amok, amok, amok, amok") It just isn't October for me without them.
What are some of your favorite October flicks?
Friday, October 19, 2012
Well Candy My Apple & Call Me Appealing: OT Day 19
Before I dive right in to the thought of the day, I have to share something wonderful. Ok, it will really only be wonderful to me but since you are a captive audience I am going to pretend that you care ;) It seems that the good people of Netflix share my love of October. Today when I got my red envelope in the mail it wasn't just red, it was red...............with...............bats on it. BATS!!! I giggled like a crazy fool all the way down to the house. It isn't even Halloween yet and they are bedazzling my envelope with theme pictures. I had a lousy day and that made up for at least some of it. Sigh. I love October. Ok, enough gushing over paper bats, on with the thought.
Last year I found a kitchen appliance that is used only for the purpose of dipping apples into it and having them come out all coated and delicious and perfect looking. I meant to purchase it because one, it is a kitchen appliance so I must have it. Two, it involves dipping apples which is a favorite October pastime. Three, it comes in a very nifty color. And four, did I mention it was a kitchen appliance? Alas, said beautiful machine was not purchased. I may or may not have been sidetracked by truffles that look like pumpkins, Frankenstein heads, acorns and black cats and blown my allotted kitchen gadget budget. But that is a conversation for another day.
So, when this year came around I was faced with the age old problem of how to get a candied apple that didn't come from a grocery store. Now I have nothing against grocery store caramel apples, I just happen to think they look puny and the nuts are always stale. I was ruined on grocery store caramel apples by my orthodontist of all people. The day you get your braces off he gives you the biggest gourmet caramel apple you have ever seen. (I think to make your teeth go all wonky again so that he can add a tennis court to go with the pool your mangled teeth already helped him build) It is, or I should say was, a gourmet apple that was covered with an inch thick candy coating. There was chocolate of two different kinds, marshmallows, caramel and nuts. It tasted like heaven and ever since it has been an October obsession.
But back to the great apple debate that I have going with my mom. For years she had extolled the virtues of the red candied apple. She spoke with reverence over the taste, the smell and the appearance of such a delectable morsel. One day, quite by accident or an October miracle, we happened upon an establishment that sold these mythic treats. We both bought our shiny red apples and went out to eat them. Frankly, I'm lucky I didn't chip a tooth. That candy spackle was so hard all I could do was sit there and try to gnaw at it like some crazed beaver. In the end I think I ended up taking it back to my dorm room and whacking it on the desktop to loosen the candy coating. That part was fun. I will give her that. But mom loved her apple just as it was. She licked it like a lollipop and made a delightful mess of her face with all that melty candy coating. Oh my kingdom for a camera that say. Needles to say, candy apples are still her apple of choice. Truly, a house divided.
Red or green. Coated in chocolate or candy. Apples are a solid second to being one of the best October foods. You can candy them, bake them, bob for them, decorate them, throw them, roast them, twist the tops off and see who you will marry, dry them, dice them, juice them and make stamps from them. Any way you slice it (yes, pun intended) apples are some kind of wonderful.
Today as I was driving past the dentist who advertises a cash for Halloween candy trade each year, I was struck with a terrible craving. I needed something red and delicious that I could sink my teeth into. I needed a candy apple. For years mom and I have gone back and forth over which kind of dipped and coated apples are the best. She says red with red candy coating. I say green with anything but red candy coating. I am still sticking to my no red apples policy, but I feel myself wavering on the hard candy shell bit as of late.
You see since we are dealing with my brain, when someone says candy apple, it is like saying caramel apple as well. Kind of like how the word October also means autumn to me. So when mom starts talking about that hard, crunchy outer shell, I think, the poor woman has gone and lost her mind. Caramel, peanuts, and chocolate are on the outside of a candy apple. Duh, it is candy after all. Thus begins the war of semantics in our house over what exactly constitutes a candied apple. My dad wisely chooses to stay out of it altogether. Smart man.
But I digress. Whatever form it comes in, red candy or coated with chocolate and other bits, they are like my cooking kryptonite. I can't make them to save my life. All I end up making is a mess. Kind of like how I can't make pancakes. I can make lobster thermidore, I can cook a super complicated soufflé and not have it fall. But ask me to put an apple on a stick and then dip it in something. Sorry, you are talking to the wrong gal. I have no idea why it is so hard. I have tried making it super complicated just in case that was my problem. Nope. I constantly burn the candy or get melty chocolate everywhere. Once I even got an apple stuck to a countertop and had to pry it off with a screwdriver. Now that takes talent.....or a lack thereof. I can't even work those caramel wraps that they sell in the produce aisle, which advertise they are so simple a child could do it. Well not this child. That poor apple looked like the elephant man of apples when I was done with it. It was a complete and total fiasco.
Last year I found a kitchen appliance that is used only for the purpose of dipping apples into it and having them come out all coated and delicious and perfect looking. I meant to purchase it because one, it is a kitchen appliance so I must have it. Two, it involves dipping apples which is a favorite October pastime. Three, it comes in a very nifty color. And four, did I mention it was a kitchen appliance? Alas, said beautiful machine was not purchased. I may or may not have been sidetracked by truffles that look like pumpkins, Frankenstein heads, acorns and black cats and blown my allotted kitchen gadget budget. But that is a conversation for another day.
So, when this year came around I was faced with the age old problem of how to get a candied apple that didn't come from a grocery store. Now I have nothing against grocery store caramel apples, I just happen to think they look puny and the nuts are always stale. I was ruined on grocery store caramel apples by my orthodontist of all people. The day you get your braces off he gives you the biggest gourmet caramel apple you have ever seen. (I think to make your teeth go all wonky again so that he can add a tennis court to go with the pool your mangled teeth already helped him build) It is, or I should say was, a gourmet apple that was covered with an inch thick candy coating. There was chocolate of two different kinds, marshmallows, caramel and nuts. It tasted like heaven and ever since it has been an October obsession.
Sadly, farmers around here don't seem to see the point in putting anything on their apples other than a pie crust. The "big" city is really too far away to justify driving to get one and even if I did drive, I have no idea where I would go to get such a delicacy. For some weird reason, they don’t have caramel apple sellers listed in the phone book. But luckily, there is always the trusty internet and UPS. As we speak, apple elves are busy coating my newly ordered beauties with artistic swirls of chocolate and sprinkles. I will admire their handiwork for approximately 2.5 seconds before I begin to devour them like an apple crazed fiend.
But back to the great apple debate that I have going with my mom. For years she had extolled the virtues of the red candied apple. She spoke with reverence over the taste, the smell and the appearance of such a delectable morsel. One day, quite by accident or an October miracle, we happened upon an establishment that sold these mythic treats. We both bought our shiny red apples and went out to eat them. Frankly, I'm lucky I didn't chip a tooth. That candy spackle was so hard all I could do was sit there and try to gnaw at it like some crazed beaver. In the end I think I ended up taking it back to my dorm room and whacking it on the desktop to loosen the candy coating. That part was fun. I will give her that. But mom loved her apple just as it was. She licked it like a lollipop and made a delightful mess of her face with all that melty candy coating. Oh my kingdom for a camera that say. Needles to say, candy apples are still her apple of choice. Truly, a house divided.
I will say this for the red candy coating though, it certainly is beautiful. Mom said that she had her first one at the fair. The only fair food that I like are corn dogs and elephant ears. I have never seen a candied apple at a fair, but then again I have only been to two in all my years of existence so it really isn't a fair comparison. Food on a stick seems to be a popular fair food, so I am inclined to believe that they are out there. Somewhere.
Red or green. Coated in chocolate or candy. Apples are a solid second to being one of the best October foods. You can candy them, bake them, bob for them, decorate them, throw them, roast them, twist the tops off and see who you will marry, dry them, dice them, juice them and make stamps from them. Any way you slice it (yes, pun intended) apples are some kind of wonderful.
So tell me, which do you prefer most, a caramel or candy coated apple?
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