I Ain't Afraid of No Ghost!

I have always loved all things Halloween. I think it may be my favorite Holiday.

I love the candy, obviously. I also love the corniness of bobbing for apples, doughnut races, and scary ghost stories (when I was a kid I read every book my library had by Hans Holzer.)

The Haunted Mansion is one of my favorite rides at Disneyland, and this is great.

I love scary movies, but no one will go with me, and I'm too scared to go alone. I was probably around 7 years old when I first saw The Blob, and it scared me to death (years later of course I wondered what could possible be frightening about gelatinous ooze from which one could literally stroll out of the way.)

I love all the new paranormal reality shows on TV now, much to the dismay of other members of the family....hey, they're Roto-Rooter Plumbers by day, ghost hunters by night! What's not to love?!!)

Dark Shadows was my favorite TV show when I was a kid- when I could sneak over to a friend's house to watch it, that is. Now I watch these episodes and they're so schlocky (this one is terrifying though, especially at 5 minutes and 8 seconds into the video. Schtick around until the end...you'll be glad you did!)

I am especially fond of pumpkin carving (if it's scary pumpkin carving, all the better.) I didn't think I'd be doing a pumpkin this year, what with my developing pathological fear of knives (if I had only known, I would have started doing this), but apparently people depend on me for these kind of things.

Pumpkins I Have Known:

Circa 1965: Arizonan Primitive Pumpkin

1999: Our "Party Like It's 1999" Berkeley Pumpkin
(quirky but lovable)

2000: Ooh, Our Scaaary Millenium San Leandro Pumpkin

2001: Our "If We Don't Have a Pumpkin the Terrorist Win" Patriotic Pumpkin

2002: Another San Leandro Pumpkin
(I think this subconsciously signified the
beginning of our interest in the culinary arts)

2003: What happened in 2003? We may never know...oooh, spooky!

2004: San Leandro again

2005: Issaquah Pumpkin
(surprised the pumpkins stayed lit with all the rain)

2006: More Issaquah, More Rain

2007: San Mateo: Great Pumpkins- Crappy Photos

2008: San Mateo again

2009: Ho Hum

It's obviously time to either move or perk up our pumpkin projects. Maybe next year I'll try something more challenging, like this, or this.

Here are some amazing pumpkins for your perusal.

If you've got a young 'un, or if you're feeling particularly agressive, you can take a hammer and nail (if you dare) to your pumpkin.

If you're wondering what to do with all your leftover pumpkins, there's always this.

Happy Halloween!

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Can't Touch This

The surgery to repair the tendon on my left hand went well; stitches came out last Tuesday. The pain is mostly gone now, and I'm in a splint for 6 weeks. PT won't start until week three; until then my thumb is completely immobilized, trussed-up like a Thanksgiving turducken.

A sort of ennui has settled over the house.

All the stuff I love to do is taunting me from their dusty corners. My sewing machine sits dejected- all those promises of pulling it out and getting started early this Holiday season tossed out like so many pattern pieces along the dusty trail of life (sigh).

My knitting needles mock me, aiming their pointy tips accusingly in my direction..so many unfinished objects.

My Cuisenart and rolling pin, Kitchenaid mixer- well, I can't even make eye contact with them, especially after seeing this. It's all just so, well, sad.

All the while the knives lay menacingly in wait in their new little Kapoosh-y home, all safe and dry, while I sit in this cursed splint, unable to perform even the most simple domestic tasks (If I had one of these, I would be awesome.)

Okay, I've got my Hammer-pants on; break it down!

The awesome pasta maker I found in a Wellfleet thrift store for $4?

Can't touch this

(but everyone else can:)


Pasta Making from Steve Miller on Vimeo.

All the free tulle I scored (thanks, Mom!) that's just begging to be sewn into produce bags?

Can't touch this!

I had such high hopes for this fabric from Paul and Mark, but...

Can't touch this!
Yo, I told you! Can't touch this!

I found this vintage fabric children's book at the same thrift store in Wellfleet; I imagined upcycling it into quilt squares

Can't touch this!

Steve's vest I've been trying to finish for a year. I was just about to separate the fronts and back when

Why you standin' there, man? Can't touch this!

Front View

Side View

Back View

Stop! Hammer time!

But that's just stinkin-thinkin'...I guess all is not lost. There are some things that apparently can be done with one hand tied behind your back: like this, or this, and it would be so cool right now to have one of these. A big "thumbs up" to this guy!