Thank you for your patience

 

The graveyard birthday cake

Little D the birthday girl

     We had HORDES of kids come Trick or Treating.  They arrived promptly at six and continued to inundate us until after eight.  I had no time to grab the camera and get pictures this year.

     However, I did get some pictures of the decorations during a lull.  Unfortunately, I didn’t get a good one of the Zombie in the barrel.  The best laid plans and all that.

     After the Trick or Treating finished, Little D’s birthday cake was a great hit and she had a good time.  Her mother enjoyed the unusual welcome into the neighborhood.

A teensy break for Halloween

 

     Thursday I will be cooking for the après Trick or Treat/Little D’s birthday party and carving pumpkins with G.  Yes, there will be wine.  Afterwards I intend to relax. 

     Friday is Trick or Treat night.  G and I will spend the afternoon decorating the porch.  From six to eight a horde of costumed kids will arrive for the handing out of the treats.  After eight, we party until (?) or DH has had enough of us, whichever comes first.

     There will be no posts for those days.  Since I usually post in the wee hours there might not be one for Saturday.

     I will most definitely be here on Sunday.  Come back then to see the decoration and party pictures!

Halloween facts and some updates

 

     Early Jack o lanterns were carved out of turnips.  I can’t imagine trying to do one of today’s ornate carvings on one of them instead of a pumpkin.  However, I sure there were some crafty artisans who did carve some remarkable turnips.  G and I have made a name for ourselves around here with ours but we can’t do them without a pattern. 

     Allentown, PA had the very first Halloween parade in the US back in 1915 (correction: the year was 1905)  followed by Tom’s River, NJ in 1919.  This year it will be held on November 2^nd.  Somewhere out in TV land there’s a picture of our old Malcolm on one of the Halloween floats.  He always was a ham.

     Although it is 2:30 a.m., it’s a balmy seventy degrees outside with a misty rain.  Not bad for late October.

     I called G this evening to check and see how she was.  Her eye surgery went very well.  She sounded quite chipper.  She was also pleased to announce that she didn’t have a shiner this time.

     I overheard her husband in the background saying, “If she keeps complaining about not having a shiner I’ll be glad to oblige.”  Wiseass.

We will soon be handing out candy

 

     Trick or Treat night is on Friday here.  G and I are preparing for the après treating time party.  It’s not going to be easy for her this year since she’s going in for her second cataract surgery today.  However, she does plan to have a good time.

     She just had the other eye done several weeks ago and couldn’t be more pleased with the results.  She can see again!  She’s excited enough that she plans to dress in costume and party hearty.  She knows from the other surgery how fast she’ll recover.

     She has a mask to wear because the only (slight) problem she had with the first surgery, was the bruise under her eye, she had quite a shiner for a week.  Nevertheless, she still plans to bake and decorate a birthday cake for Little D.  I can’t wait to see Little D’s face when she sees her cake.  G is a very clever cake decorator.

     I will take pictures not only of Little D but also of many of our costumed revelers on Friday.  I’m glad I have a 2-gig card for the camera.

If wishes were horses

 

     Three weeks after I got married my parents, grandmother, and baby sister moved a great distance away.  It was a long time before any family moved back to the area. 

     No family members live here now.  When relatives travel, they never seem to get near our area.  Our location is sort of like Rhode Island; you only go there if that is your destination.

     I have traveled to my father’s old hometown to visit cousins and aunties but it’s difficult to do so as often as I’d like to when I have to do the eight-hour drive alone.  DH doesn’t travel well.  A long car ride is excruciatingly painful for him.  Consequently, as much as he loves visiting my family, he’d rather stay home with the dogs where he is more comfortable. 

     Therefore, to torture myself, I periodically browse the real estate listings in the old hometown.  I love to hit the bird’s eye view when looking at properties close to my family. 

     Tonight, I went browsing, and spied two houses that I loved.  One lovely home was across the road from a cousin’s house.  I hit the bird’s eye view and looked for my aunt’s house on the next road.  I could actually see my cousin’s horses out in the pasture.  [Sigh]  The idea of living near loving family brings out a case of the ‘I wishes’ in me.

On writing

 

     I know many of you have read books in which the characters, plots, dialogue, and scenery are so compelling, that they draw you into new worlds or familiar ones.  They grab you.  Then they hold you there, breathless, waiting for the next scene and the next, all the way to the end of the book.

     Like all writers, I admire anyone who can do that.  I often hope and pray that my books will do the same for the people who will read them.

     New writers will often ask how does so and so do it?  How do they become a wizard at creating scenery, dialogue, and building believable characters? 

     In my experience, it is through hard work and so many rewrites that the average person would quail at the sight of the stacks of printed manuscripts sent to the recycling bin.

     Although some writers are prolific and quick in their writing, it doesn’t mean that they don’t work hard as well.  It probably means they have time to write without many interruptions.

     Then there are those of us who plod along putting in a few hours here and there as often as we can.  We work hard. 

     I soon hope to type ‘the end’ on one of my manuscripts.  It is my dream that when my books do hit the shelves they will grab you.

A new sexy look

 

     Surprise!  I’ve changed the look of the blog again.  I’d debated repeatedly on whether or not to change to this one when it came out.  I do like the large print.  I love the colors and that my picture fit perfectly on the header with only a minimal cropping.

     With winter approaching fast, I felt the blog needed a lighter more uplifting appearance.  I’m happy with this one.

     I hope you all enjoy it.

Silly things

 

     I’ve mentioned before that I enjoy silly things.  The other day I was browsing through Amazon.com and came across adhesive bandages that cracked me up so bad I had to order some.  I’m glad I did because once they arrived I found them to be even funnier.

     I have mini handcuffs dangling from my purse.  I have a crime scene clean up company pen I carry all the time.  Now I have crime scene tape bandages.  They are hysterical.  On the tin, there’s a line, “For best results apply to body parts not already outlined in chalk.”  I should’ve bought a case.

     I ought to stay out of that place.  Not only can I buy any books I want but they also have silly stuff.  I think I need to lock up my credit card.  Is there an ‘I shop too much at Amazon’ anonymous?  “Hello, my name is M and I’m an Amazon shopaholic.”

     “Hello M.”

     Did you see the robot pencil sharpener?  I can see me with the barnyard flingers that make noises as they fly through the air…

     Oooo!  They have a winter scarf that looks like crime scene tape.  Where did I hide my card?

Another Ampyra post

 

     DH was born in this town.  He might’ve been born in the house we live in had his mother not insisted on going for a walk after dinner one night fifty-seven years ago.  It turns out she went into labor about a half a block from the hospital.  Had they been closer to home she probably would’ve dropped him on the front steps while his father got the car started.  Even though DH was her first (and only) child, she wasn’t in labor for very long.  As it was, she barely made it into the hospital before he made his appearance.

     Yes, it seems that DH has always been in a hurry.  This is probably why his MS tends to frustrate him so much at times.  He had to slow down to a three-legged creep.  That is until recently. 

     He’s on Ampyra and it has improved his walking.  He’s not back to full sprint capabilities but he is walking better.  He’s even walking without his cane occasionally and that’s something he hasn’t done for a few years.  Even the dogs have noticed a difference.  He’s not riding on his scooter and running them.  They walk.

They can has gummies

 

     Occasionally my sweet tooth gets out of hand and demands I scarf down something sweet.  Today was one of those occasions.  Fortunately, I have a ton of Halloween candy on hand.  I could pick and choose, but thought I’d best stick with something less calorie laden than some of those oh so rich chocolate caramel bars.

     I spotted a large bag of snack-sized bags of gummy spiders, mummies, and monster shapes.  Ah, not only could I curb my sugar craves, but I could also set up the ice cubes I wanted to make for our party.

     Once I had the spooky gummies in the ice cube trays and had them back in the freezer I was ready to indulge myself on what was left in one little bag. 

     I curled up in my lounge chair, sat back, and began to chew on one.  The next thing I knew I had a dog’s head on each knee.  Two pair of triangular black eyes stared into mine.  I tried to ignore them as I popped a second gummy into my mouth. 

     Gavin and Patty know all about gummies they love them and will drool like crazy as soon as they smell them.  By the third gummy, they had my knees soaked.  I looked in the bag and there were two little gummy spiders left.  Gavin and Patty will gulp things down without tasting them.  However, when it comes to gummies they chew and chew and chew them.

     “Can we has the last two gummies?”  Those eyes and all that drool….

       I am weak.  I am a big softie. 

Miscellaneous things

 

     I’ve had my blucigs for almost two weeks now, and in that time, I’ve only smoked four regular cigarettes.  That’s quite a big accomplishment for me. 

     I replaced my dead fog machine yesterday.  I have far too many enablers.  😉

     G has Little D’s Halloween birthday cake all figured out.  She’s making a sheet cake cemetery.  I finally caught Little D’s mother R today to ask how many candles we should put on the cake—a detail we’d forgotten.  DUH.

     While driving yesterday G and I noticed that many of the trees around here have donned their brightly colored fall fashions. 

     The pups are enjoying the chilly weather and are so full of energy they’ve been chasing each other around the house like maniacs.  It’s a wonder there’s a stick left standing here.  Everything in the curio cabinet has wandered to one side from the thundering herd’s floor rattling romps.

     You all have a good day.  If you live where you actually have a pretty fall, do try to get out and enjoy the colors.

The horrifying death of my fog machine

 

     I wasn’t going to buy anything else for Halloween this year since I did buy two rather large props.  However, it seems I will be making another purchase.  My fog machine is dead.  I’ve had it for well over fifteen years.  I was hoping it would limp through this year, no such luck.

     I’d bought some fog juice and fog machine cleaner my last trip to Spirit Halloween.  Last night I decided to get off my duff, drag the machine down from the attic, and clean it.  I’m glad I did.  The machine gave one gasp and died.  I was horrified.

     I can’t go without a fog machine all the kids around here look forward to our yearly display.  Today I was supposed to go with G to Target to get paper Halloween plates and more candy (DH says we don’t have enough.)  Little does G know that we’ll be making a quick side trip, more out of the way, but on the way. 

     Now I have to decide what size to get.  Back when I bought mine, you didn’t have many choices there was only one available.