Halloween Decorating

I went out looking for candidates for 'What Does Your Halloween Decorating Say About You" the 2009 version.

What I found was that decorating recycling has hit Halloween.

But.

There were some creative new displays.

Below is one of my favorites. Can you see the little orange lights in the fir tree on the left?


And this place...they pulled out all the stops. Can you make out the green face in the upstairs window? And the black cat against a moon in the next? Last years spider has been shoved aside for the multitude of skeletons. Skeleton head lantern covers flank the entry. A huge skeleton menaces those who wish to enter. And just below the hanging skeletons, do you see the rather human looking person below them? It's not human, it's just a good dummy.

These folks planted some relatives down by the road. I guess they had to keep the riff raff at a distance...

This family has a chorus of Jack-o-Lanterns out front.

Hope you had some fun decor to see in your neighborhood.

One [or More] for the Road

Isn't this the cutest skunk?

And she's got plenty of tootsie roll pops for the road!

October Sky

This was the sky over our neighborhood festival late Sunday afternoon. It couldn't have been a better day!

Undercover Sting at Fall Festival

A metro area sugar cartel was rounded up in an undercover sting operation this weekend.

Local dentists are suspected to be behind the cartel in an effort to drive up business, though no one's talking. Children in the metro area fear apples and celery will be handed out this Saturday now that their supply has suffered a set back.

Tune in at the 11pm broadcast for the full story.

Bright Lights

Orange and purple and cobwebs, oh my! I'm noticing that the skeleton escaping from the ground is popular this year. The traditional pumpkins is always popular, but spiders and their webs seem to be the big decorating item this year. I haven't seen many of those inflatables this year, but maybe when I venture into the other neighborhoods I'll see some.

Have a great weekend!

Doorstep Trio

I've been out looking for fun Halloween decorations...and will definitely be out Saturday to see what I can find...until then, here's a grinning trio from a few houses up the street.

Wednesday Woof

This is Cotton right after I brushed her. Look at those ears. The big smile is because she lurves being brushed.


This is the one I took last night that I like.

Hope your week is going well!

Chilly!

It's chilly! Wahoo! I get to pull out the cool season clothes. It will be in the 40s overnight tonight, and then highs in the 50s tomorrow, I think. I love cold weather. It makes me want meals with soup and cheese toast, and mugs of hot tea.

I've got to pull out my camera tomorrow and practice, I've volunteered (been sucked in?) to take pictures at the neighborhood Fall Festival. This will be the first time I've done anything like that, and it makes me nervous just to think about it.

Pink Horned Flowers

The longer I live, the more I realize the impact of attitude on life.

Attitude, to me, is more important than facts. It is more important than the past, than education, than money, than circumstances, than failures, than successes, than what other people think or say or do.

It is more important than appearance, giftedness or skill. It will make or break a company...a church...a home.

The remarkable thing is we have a choice everyday regarding the attitude we will embrace for that day. We cannot change our past...we cannot change the fact that people will act in a certain way.

We cannot change the inevitable. The only thing we can do is play on the one string we have, and that is our attitude...I am convinced that life is 10 percent what happens to me and 90 percent how I react to it. And so it is with you...we are in charge of our attitudes.

Charles Swindoll

I needed this last week. I think I may start reading this to myself every morning as I make coffee.

Freak of Nature

Meet the giant mushroom in my back yard. It's been a bit damp here, you may have heard about that.

This one looks like those rolls sold in the store.


Here it is with its pal.

Mushrooms through the azalea.

Mushrooms with a Golden.

Tomorrow - freaky pink horned flowers.

Blast from the Past

Things are a bit out of order around here, leaving little time to blog. And I miss you, inter-friends!!

So until I can get myself back in gear, here's a post from last October that I had fun doing, and was thinking of doing this year. But the peeps in my neighborhood haven't cooperated yet.

I'll be on the lookout so that we can laugh with them, right? Click below for some Halloween fun.

What Does Your Halloween Decorating Say About You?

Moving

OK - is there anything worse than clutter at home?

Yes. Clutter at work. It just doesn't pay to be a pack rat who regularly changes offices.

Which I will be doing again one week from today.

And, all this organizing and cleaning up at work means absolutely no organizing and cleaning up at home.

Ack.

Pimento Cheese

See the little red pepper looking thing? It's a pimento. I had grand plans for growing pimentos and being able to make my own pimento cheese this summer for sandwiches.

However.

The pimento plant had other ideas. I only got 4 ripe pimentos (pimenti?, pimento?), and they were only ripe in the last week.

I've gotten over the pimento cheese thing at this point, it seems summery. Now I'm thinking Fall couscous with butternut squash.

The best laid plans of mice and me...

Fall Color

I am a big fan of sweet potatoes. I am a big fan of balsamic vinegar. This dish, which I made for my BIL's birthday lunch, married the two plus chili to make some yummy roasted sweet potatoes.

1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
2 Tablespoons packed brown sugar
1 stick of butter (I later decided 1/2 stick would be just fine)
2 tsp salt (start with one and taste as you go)
1 tsp chili powder
5 large sweet potatoes, cut in cubes roughly the same size


Heat balsamic vinegar and butter over med high until it reaches a boil. Reduce heat and simmer until slightly reduced. Add brown sugar, salt and chili powder (or your favorite spices - we decided rosemary would have been good, as well as cinnamon and cumin).

Peel and cube 5 large sweet potatoes and put in baking dish (the larger the better for optimum caramelization). Pour reduced vinegar/butter mixture over potatoes and roast at 350 degrees for about an hour. Stir occasionally to distribute the tangy goodness.

The result is a tender bite of potato with a subtle tang and warmth from the chili powder.

Enjoy!

Pimento Red

Here's my plate/bowl from glass class last weekend. The background was pimento red. Keep in mind that I said my circles were like saw blades - the fact that the edge is smooth is a testament to the instructor who fire polished the edges.

Anyway, I liked my patter and color composition. I was worried about how that yellow would look.


Sorry for the photo quality - I had guests off and on all weekend and only remembered to take a photo last night around 10 pm. When it was raining. Again.

I think I may be taking the intermediate class. Just as long as I can do square bowls. And plates.

Mixer Lust

Several years ago, my brother and his wife gave me a white Kitchenaid Artisan Stand Mixer. It has a red stripe. I love my mixer. I think I've had it for almost 10 years, and it's just getting started. My most recent serendipity is that I realized I could use the dough hook and make the best ever meatloaf without having to get ground beef under my fingernails [shudder].

Did I say I heart my mixer?

KitchenAid is celebrating 90 years today, and I couldn't resist showing you where the mixer started - courtesy of Chefs catalog online.




Consider this a KitchenAid testimonial. If you don't have one, there's a hot little red anniversary number with your name on it!