Today I met Azzy and her beau, JR at Henrietta's Table in Harvard Square, where we decided we weren't hungry enough to spend $40 each on brunch. We headed over to Upstairs at the Pudding, which had an a la carte menu that was fantastic! I had an artisan cheese plate and a fruit plate (with a dirty martini which was quite good), Azzy had huevos rancheros and JR had divine rosemary steak & eggs. While eating, we were treated to a few a cappella songs featuring Harvard's best, and suffered through it mostly gracefully;-)

Since it was raining, we didn't walk around afterward, but still and all, we had a great time!

I stopped by Mt. Auburn Cemetary on the way home and took this picture...I'm thinking of featuring a Halloween-type picture each day in October...what say ye?

Laura said: "Sometimes we take our hometowns for granted. For example, right now the leaves are starting to turn up north, and I would LOVE to see that, but I can't get up there. I'd like to see YOUR hometown or neighborhood or other scenic areas at this time of the year."

Here's some pictures for you, Laura! Hope you enjoy :-)

Perfect fall colors!

Not too much color, but love the stormy sky!

Anyone else want to participate, just leave Laura a comment :-)

Oh, man, I have to much to say but it's all work related and we all know I can't talk about work! I'ma exPLODE!

Do you see it? Just there in the black tunnel beneath the old trees? Max did...and he ran his little doggie butt off!

This is what I felt like yesterday and will probably feel like today, tomorrow and so on until [edited for content, i.e., can't talk about you know what here!]

In better news, the batch of Imps I ordered from Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab was waiting for me when I got home from work. I tried Laudanum first; it's described as the essence of the most debauched hunger encapsulated into a perfume. Desire beyond love, anguish beyond sanity. Nutmeg, sassafras, black poppy and myrrh. All I know is WOW! I love it! It's smoky and incense-y and it was still going strong at 11 PM last night; I'd put it on about 730 PM.

I also got Les Infortunes de la Vertu (love the descriptions!): A pain-tinged, pleasure-soaked blend - leather, oakmoss, orange blossom, amber, and rose with a breath of virginal French florals and a hint of austere monastic penitential incense.; two of the Seven Deady Sins, Greed - Base and earthy, yet glittering with golden notes: patchouli, heliotrope, copal and oakmoss and Lust - Uncontrollable passion and insatiable sexual desire: red musk, patchouli, ylang ylang and myrrh.

Two of the other ones I'd ordered didn't come in Imps (read the fine print, dummy) and so they sent me Verdandi: Deep herbs and apple with black amber (I can't wait to try this one!) and Calliope: Hers is the scent of creative inspiration, and it is a boon to writers, poets and arbitrators: lavender and bright mint with bergamot, verbena, thyme and a touch of sweet orange and warm almond. I think I should've put some of THAT on before I wrote this post :-) (this one I might give away...any takers? Hmmm...I'm sensing a contest here...any ideas for a contest?)

If I can ever tear myself away from Laudanum, I'll be sure to let you know how those others smell :-)

Here's last Wednesday's picture:

This is what it was cropped from:

DebR got it right! She said "Looks to me like some guy with a beard has just had something creamy (cake with frosting? cream pie? cheesecake?) smooshed into his face."! Most of the other comments cracked me up; it was a pretty gross looking picture!

So this week...

what is it?

I decided I'd try a different scent a day off the 'imps' I got from Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab.

Today was Greed, a combination of patchouli, heliotrope, copal and oakmoss. The patchouli is VERY weak in this...you can smell it, but it's toned down and mixed nicely with the flowery scent of the heliotrope; it's a very nice combination!

Again, there is a slight smell of incense, which I believe comes from the copal (had to look up copal--it's a more mature form of resin. The word copal comes from the Spanish word copalli which means incense.)

These are some of the comments I got:

smells like baby powder
smells like incense
smells good (could ya BE a bit more specific)
and my favorite was this unsolicited comment, given to me as I was walking ahead of this woman in the hallway:
Janet, you smell good!

It's a keeper! Tomorrow will be Lust, perfect for the adult toy party I'll be attending ;-)

Yesterday, I went back through my blog entries from October 2004 and 2005. Damn, I've been around awhile, and so have some of you! Apparently I have a tradition of posting spooky pictures for the month of October. It's so convenient, having a brain that doesn't remember things!

Awhile ago, I asked my non-blogging cousin, Mel, to contribute another scary story for Halloween; she's a bit busy, but said she'd consider it. In the meantime, I'll post a repeat of her stories from 2004 & 2005 starting next week. Both of them have 4 chapters, so I'll post 1 chapter a day starting on Mondays. She's an excellent story teller, I hope you enjoy them!

Here's the "scary" picture of the day, which is a repeat from October 1, 2005!

Today's photo: a tricky shot involving a shiba and a witch hat...always a tough combination:

me: Wolf! Stay!

Wolf: oh for crissakes, I'm NOT wearing that hat!

me: C'mon, Wolf...treat! Treat!

Wolf: Hmmm...maybe it's one of those crack biscuits or a piece of cheese!

me: Good BOY, Wolf!

Wolf: Yeah, whatever, where's the damn treat?

1. Plum Island Wild Life Refuge; the only thing I dislike about it is they don't allow dogs
2. Salisbury State Beach Reservation; they allow dogs! In the off season, of course :-)
3. Aquatini; yummy food & drinks
4. Maribeth's house; I always feel welcome there
5. My bed, with my extraordinary comfy pillow that I take with me on every vacation!
6. Cemeteries...they're so peaceful!
7. Great Brook Park; I discovered it when I got Max back in 1997...I might have known about it back in the day but I think I've blocked out alot of stuff. Don't know why!
8. Harvard Square, particularly Grendels, but also Cardullos and just walking around.
9. Megan's beautiful chair; I swear I'll figure a way to steal it!
10. Calvin's arms; it felt like home.
11. Sapporo and Otaru, cities in Hokkaido, Japan; Sapporo reminded me very much of Boston; Otaru, for it's beauty
12. My car; great seats and an awesome stereo
13. Meeting folks in real life that I got to know from blogging; without exception, the ones I connect with via my blog I also connect with when we meet.

and I spent the night with a bunch of chicks giggling about coochy cream and bunnies and The A Lotion LOL! Since none of the pictures I took at the party are in any way un X-rated, I thought I'd post this picture of the moon I took when I got home. Altho...I'm sure Krista will post the picture of Michelle being ridden doggy by a very pregnant woman...just sayin'! HAHAHAH!

I used the 70-200mm f/4 lens on a tripod.

Courtesy of Megan:

1. My favorite thing about autumn is...there is not one single thing I dislike about autumn! So, from the gorgeous foliage, to the crisp cool days, to the apples (and apple cider w/rum, yum!), to Halloween--all my favorites!

2. I'm currently reading...The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield. For the most thorough review you'll ever read, go here.

3. The last time I bought a purse...I did so at TJ Maxx, it's awesome, and I just happen to have a picture of it! It's from Red by Marc Ecko.

4. I hear...running water, the low hum of voices, and my fingers on the keyboard...but no ringing phones! Hooray!!!

5. Last night...I went to an adult toy party and watched a pregnant woman have her way with an attendee...HAHAHAH!!!

6. This weekend...I'm wandering...here or there, near or far, who knows! I'll take lots of pictures, tho :-)

and you?

Today was one of those perfect autumn days...a bit chilly but a beautiful blue sky. Megan, her sister Tara and I went for a ride with no destination in mind, just to see what we could see, and take lots of pictures along the way! I ended up taking about 100, and 62 of them made it to my flickr account. I have three favorites:

Sometimes, the farmer puts the right pumpkin up :-)

I love how the tree looks black...it really makes the leaves stand out all the more

I LOVE the background on this...it looks like a yellow screen!

Thanks for a great day, girls!

A few more shots from yesterday :-)

Today I'm off to Parker's Maple Barn in Mason, NH for breakfast; perhaps a walk with the dogs in the woods; and who knows what else.

On a side note, my Tivo is being bad! It's recording what I ask it to, but it won't let me watch the shows, nor can I watch tv! Anyone else have this problem? Grrrrr...and on a long weekend, too! And speaking of technology, does anyone else have two iPods, and if so, how in the HECK do you hook them both up to the computer.

Yeah...I'm technologically challenged!

Top 25 keyphrases that brought people here:

1. steve arwyn-the crocodile hunter who recently died: Try spelling it correctly.
2. steve irwin`s dog-sui: He loved his dog!
3. picture of model t: I get so many hits for this, it's weird!
4. giuseppe s italian restaurants ruther glen va: This one too.
5. john lennon s backwards satanic message: Ahhh, just in time for Halloween! Did you know today would've been his 56th birthday? It still makes me sad he's gone.
6. boobiethon 2006: I edited photos for it this year
7. fluffy apple pancakes: damn things are good!
8. lyrics fools it s a night for beautiful girls: It's a night, it's a night...for beautiful girls. Complicated lyrics, eh?
9. see porn with 13ers: This is just gross; people, what the hell happened in your life to make you so sick?
10. wedding images 33 restaurant: 33? Dunno what that is...
11. pampered chef apple pancake: Ah, pampered chef! Did everyone order yet? Closing is Oct 15th!
12. older moms with lez teens: I don't understand this at all.
13. williams sonoma winter forest candle: Yummy scent!
14. megan snape: Megan? Something you want to tell me?
15. tuscany s apple cider martini: Ooooh, I'm sure that's delicious! I made a drink this weekend with apple cider, Myers Rum and mulling spices...yum!
16. one out of four people unbalanced: You're telling me!!!
17. snape tattoo; also “professor snape”; also “snape quotes”: Snape, Snape, Snape
18. cheasepeake bay bridge pics: Got a shot of this from a plane awhile back
19. 5 jasmine dr saco me 04072: No idea how googling this address brought them to my blog
20. velocity-dean koontz spoiler: The spoiler is that this book SUCKED!
21. severus snape and spank: heh heh heh ;-)
22. halloween things to do in camden me: Bet Camden would be fun at Halloween!
23. are cancerians good at selling: Oh, you betcha!
24. funny ageless quote: Hmmm...is it cause I'm funny or ageless?
25. azzy.jpg: Azzy, who's searching for ya, m'dear?

And thank you! to my top 10 referrers:

1. http://www.princessponderings.com/trampslikeus/
2. http://carmenhasgonetoplaid.blogspot.com
3. http://www.stainlesssteeldroppings.com
4. http://www.princessponderings.com/index.php
5. http://dyanesdaily.spaces.live.com
6. http://www.rampantbicycle.com/blog/
7. http://skiptomylooloo.com
8. http://www.misszoot.com/links.php
9. http://theinbetweenismine.com
10. http://www.ramblingsandotherthings.blogspot.com

As promised, here's a repeat of a story called Death and Blood that my cousin, Mel, wrote for me in October 2004. It's Part 1 of 4 and I'll post an entry Monday-Thursday; next week will be the second story she wrote for me...and the third week (Halloween week!), possibly a new one...enjoy!

Armed with her new digital camera Jan went to shoot some pre-Halloween photos at the old Melville Cemetery. Years ago, after the closing of the Bleeds Plastic Factory in Melville the town had sunk into financial ruin. The once pristine cemetery had become an overgrown mess.

She was going to get them. She had a plan already forming in her head. HA, HA!!!

More to come, my dears!!!

As the house came to life that morning, Larry and MB were rushing to eat breakfast and get ready for work. Knowing they were busy and not really thinking straight was the perfect time for Jan to ask them to go with her to the cemetery on Halloween night. "It'll be fun! Maybe we'll see a ghost or two. Please?" she pleaded. Neither was enthusiastic, but they agreed to go as they ran out the door.

That day at work Jan sent out an email appeal to all her friends, she wrote, "Please help me play a joke on Larry and MB? Dress in bloody death-like costumes and hide out at the Melville Cemetery at 10 PM! I'll owe you big time!" Without hesitation they all agreed.

After work that evening Jan made one stop on her way home. She wanted to take a few pictures of good places where her friends could hide in the cemetery on Halloween.

When she got home she went straight to the computer to down load her pictures and in the excitement over her plan of revenge she forgot the messages that had appeared on her computer screen. As she quickly made the connection to download her pictures the screen flashed as before and this time the word "TERROR" appeared. It flashed again and this time in quick succession the words DEATH, BLOOD and TERROR flew across the screen in red. It caught her totally off guard.

Then up popped her latest pictures and she just shrugged it off smiling to herself at the thought of getting even with them for their Halloween prank.

The next day was Halloween and Jan could hardly contain herself! The day just seemed to drag by. Everything was ready for a night full of terror that Larry and MB would never forget!

Here's last Wednesday's picture:

This is what it was cropped from:

Michelle, aka the Big Cheater, got it right, but it's not fair to guess when one "has prior knowledge" as rampantbicycle said, right? So the real winner is: Carmen, closely followed by most of the rest of you LOL! Carmen said "Is it one of those 'Smores statues?"! Sure is! Laura's comment "THAT my dear is a bar of dark chocolate held HIGH up on a pedastle for all the world to worship - RIGHT where it belongs....", Maribeth's comment "Your personal shrine to Snape" and Colleen G's comment, which combined Laura's & Maribeth's "LOL on Maribeths' guess. But I think Janet's shrine to Snape would be slick black ebony with manacles and other intriguing objects. ;-) [Colleen...have you been peeking in my window?] And as for this one, I must agree with Laura who said it's dark chocolate, high up where we all can pay homage to it." just cracked me up...as did Carl's, who managed to mention Christ, the Virgin Mary AND Richard Nixon in his guess ROFLMAO!

So this week...

what is it?

Had a bit of a birthday celebration last night with Smoochie!

We decided on Sel de la Terre in downtown Boston; by the time I arrived she'd made friends with the folks at the bar, of course. We each had a drink (perfect extra dirty martini), then adjourned to our table, but not before her new friends at the bar all wished her a happy birthday LOL!

On to dinner! We started off with a first course of "tartlet of confit Vermont goat, house smoked bacon, roasted parsnips and caramelized onions; watercress, shaved fennel and Capri goat cheese" (her) and a most delicious pumpkin-apple soup with a ginger biscuit in the center (me). Yum!

For dinner, Michelle chose the "hand crafted truffled cauliflower ravioli with sauteed mushrooms, McIntosh apples, escarole, pine nuts and Red Lillet jus", I had the "spice roasted monkfish with smoked ham and parmesan risotto, napa cabbage and butternut squash broth; lavender flowers". Perfect, smallish portions of deliciously flavored food...it was the last night on the menu for the monkfish, so I was glad to have tasted it.

For afters, we had mint tea (her), coffee (me) and split a sampler of their dessert menu, which included small tastes of:

- bittersweet chocolate Marquise with sesame tuile and orange cardamom reduction (ohhhhh, it just melted in yoru mouth! It's the second best chocolate dessert I ever had; the first being the reve du chocolat at the Black Cow in Newburyport)
- vanilla creme brulee with fresh fruits (best creme brulee I've ever had; the top was perfection!)
- ganache frosted semolina carrot cake with candied carrots (eh)
- four spice ice cream (delicious!)
- Vermont maple cheesecake with pecan shortbread crust (loved it)
- Pear almond tart with strawberry preserve and ginger creme fraiche (eh)

We had a great time, even with taking the T home (what interesting folks on the Red line LOL).

Finally it seemed that all of the !!!trick or treaters!!! had come and gone. It was nearly 10 PM. Larry was complaining about going to the cemetery. He'd had enough of Halloween and just wanted to eat one of the left over candy bars and go to bed. MB was worried about being cold out there in the middle of the night. Jan was tempted to tease them about being afraid of the graves but it might somehow give away the surprise that was ws in store for them so she just sighed and reminded them that they had promised to go with her and after all they knew that Halloween was her favorite holiday!!!!

Moaning a little bit they put on their jackets as Larry said, "Let's get this over with! And I am not staying more than ten minutes."

MB wrapped a scarf around her neck and Jan grabbed a flashlight and her camera. They set off walking down Main Street with Wolf leading the way. Not a soul was out now. There were some smashed pumpkin remains in the middle of the street. There were lights shinning out from some of the houses. The moon was barely giving out any light as some clouds had blown in creating a light cover over the sky. The wind and night air were quite cold and as they walked along MB pulled her scarf around her face as she began to shiver.

Jan's blood was racing through her body keeping her nice and warm! The moment she had been waiting for was near!!

Shortly they came to the front gate of Melville Cemetery. There were no cars in sight. Jan had told her friends to park a block away so Larry and MB would not be suspicious.

As they got to the front entrance Larry reached out to push the gate to open. He had forgotten his gloves and his bare hands felt the cold steel, but also he felt something sticky, wet and warm. "UGH!" he muttered as Jan switched on the flashlight. The three of them looked at Larry's hands and then at the gate. It was dripping with red blood. MB just laughed and said, "Leave it to the kids around here to think of a prank like this, it's pretty cute!"

"Here you touch it then." said Larry. Secretly Jan was thinking that her friends had not failed her. What a great job they were doing, and she hadn't even told them to add the blood to the gate.

Just then the light from the flash light died out and they were left in the semi darkness.

1. The Joy of Cooking by Rombauer & Becker: I've had this since the early 80s and used it VERY often
2. Julia's Kitchen Wisdom by Julia Child. THE best potato salad recipe ever. Just ask Jack!
3. Japanese Cooking: A Simple Art by Shizuo Tsuji with an introduction by MFK Fisher
4. The Japanese Kitchen by Hiroko Shimbo
5. At The Japanese Table by Leslie Downer (When I moved back from Japan, I was SO homesick for it I went out and bought these three books because some of the recipes in them were exactly how things had been cooked in Japan. Fantastic, all three of them!)
6. The Cotton Country Collection by the Monroe, LA Junior League. My friend Gaylen gave this to me for my birthday one year; I can remember laying out on a blanket in her yard, sunbathing and lazily flipping through the pages. One of my staples for Thanksgiving, Sweet Potato Casserole, I found in this one.
7. The Frugal Gourmet by Jeff Smith: Yes, he may or may not have done some horrible things, but prior to finding that out, I so enjoyed his shows and books. Every Saturday morning, and old boyfriend and live in love, Michael and I would watch Julia, Jeff, Justin (Wilson, the Cajun Chef) and PeeWee's Playhouse before we'd go do whatever the day had in store.
8. Wild Women In The Kitchen: 101 Rambunctions Recipes & 99 Tasty Dips: My friend MaryEllen gave this to me as a joke, but I love the little stories and recipes.
9. Nantucket Open House Cookbook by Sarah Lee Chase. I think I bought this for my friend Diane, but fell in love with it and kept it for myself. The design of it alone is pleasing to the eye :-)
10. Celebrate San Antonio: A Cookbook by the San Antonio Junior League. Michael (mentioned above) traveled to San Antonio area often for work (Azzy, you know what I'm talking about) and he'd always bring me back something. He knew I collected cookbooks and gave me this...it has a fanTAStic recipe for gumbo in it!
11. Scottish Cookery by Christopher Trotter. Bought this on a trip to Scotland, hey, a girl might need to make a haggis sometime, och aye!
12. Betty Crocker's New Picture Cookbook: My first MIL gave me this book for Christmas one year...in the book was a note she'd written to me: I got this cookbook at a yard sale. They don't make new ones like this. If you don't want it, just bring it back, okay. The frosting you like is on page 174, white mtn. frosting. Make sure you cover saucepan immediately when you put it on flame. If you guessed by that note that we had a difficult relationship, you'd've guessed right. Love this cookbook!
13. 100 Years of Family Recipes & Memories 1890-1990 by Rosamond Stevens. This book was put together with much love by my Auntie Rosa (MB & Mel's Mom). She not only wrote down all the old recipes, but she included many of her memories of her entire family. I treasure this book!

My cousin sent me an interesting link today...here're the results:

My date of conception was on or about 29 September 1956 which was a Saturday (waaaay too much info!)

I was born on a Saturday under the astrological sign Cancer. My Life path number is 5.
- most compatible with 1, 5 & 7
- get along well with 3 & 9
- may or may not get along well with 8
- least compatible with 2, 4, 6, 11 & 22 [ok, who of you are these numbers, I wanna know so I know who to avoid!]

I were born in the Chinese year of the Rooster; my Native American Zodiac sign is Woodpecker and my plant is the Wild Rose.

I'm 592 months old [that one's for you, ME!]

My age is the equivalent of a dog that is 7.05 years old.

My birthstone is Alexandrite, the mystical properties of which include: assisting one in centering the self, reinforcing self-esteem, and augmenting ones ability to experience joy. [funny...I think I need one of these!!!]

Some lists consider these stones to be my birthstone: Pearl, Moonstone, Opal

My birth tree is the Fig Tree, the Sensibility: Very strong, a bit self-willed, independent, does not allow contradiction or arguments, loves life, its family, children and animals, a bit of a butterfly, good sense of humour, likes idleness and laziness, of practical talent and intelligence. [totally sounds like me!]

The moon's phase on the day I was born was waning crescent.

Random and Odd wants us to take a picture of what our "fall" looks like (and by "fall" I'm sure she means autumn, cause me falling is not a pretty sight!):

1. Show me your season changing:


From a bright green, to beautiful shades of red, orange & yellow, there is nothing more beautiful than autumn!

2. Show me the beauty of where you call home:


The beautiful leaves on the tree, pumpkins piled underneath, some hay bales thrown in ... this is my favorite autumn picture!

3. Your favorite part of the weather changing:


Sweatshirts!!! Ok, not so much the plaid pants, but that's why they're on the scarecrow and not on me LOL; plaid shirts are fine, however :-)

Courtesy of Megan:

1. I'm superstitious about...walking underneath a ladder, blacks cats crossing my path, spilling salt, midnight and..."the black mark" (spit 3 times, turn in a circle, shake your hands and look disgusted) (10 points if you can tell me what movie that's from!)

2. The last pumpkin I decorated/carved looked like... a very scary creature! *shivers*

3. I'm going to dress up as ... a vampire for Halloween; I wish I had those freaky contacts!!!

4. Dear Fall... I just wanted to let you know how much I love you! You're an amazingly talented artist and your use of color just floors me. I'm glad you come around each year; I just wish you could stay a bit longer and delay the arrival of Winter. I really don't like him very much.

5. Marilyn Manson... would play me in a movie about my life.

6. It's the weekend! Woohooo! I'm gonna... [postponed]; I'll also go to a pumpkin festival on Boston Common [oops, that's next weekend, this weekend is the Harry Potter corn maze!] and enjoy Fall as much as I can!

and you?

Wolf as a baby...c'mon, you know you want to say awwwwwwww!

I was thinking today how different Max and Wolf are personality-wise, but I guess it gives me the best of both worlds.

Max LOVES to snuggle and cuddle, but he can be grumpy and growly sometimes (not snappish, tho!) and he's almost never needy. There's nothing he loves more than to runrunrun in the woods! He's great off the leash, and I never worry about him running away.

Wolf is perpetually happy, but he can be quite demanding sometimes [Wolfdude, Lost is on, I'm not going to play tug of war with you; here, have a treat and leave me ALONE!]. He's not a snuggly type dog; the one exception is first thing in the morning. When he realizes I'm awake, he waits to be invited onto the bed (usually; if he gets impatient, he'll let out a short, sharp bark, which of course wakes me up), leans his body into mine and gives me lots of kisses (his nickname then is "kissy boy, you're a kissy shiba, yes you are!"). I wish he could be trusted off leash, I'd LOVE to see him run through the fields, but alas...I'm wicked paranoid about him running away. I do use a 20 foot lead on him tho, so he can kind of run :-)

Yaaaaaawwwwwnnnn...what a great weekend!

Friday the 13th was atypical in that nothing spooky happened; in fact, it was quite the normal day (knock on wood). I relaxed and watched some Tivo'd stuff and that was about it.

Saturday, I ran errands and then drove to Portsmouth, RI with Megan to check out the corn maze at Escobar's Farm. Additionally, it was Harry Potter Day there, so there were lots of kids dressed in robes, running around with wands and casting spells (not really) (well...maybe). Megan and I stood in line (it was CROWDED) to purchase tickets for the maze and headed in. Those of you that know my directional abilities know that we were lost within two seconds. Megan took over navigational duties and had us hitting each numbered point, look outs, Snape's potions dungeon AND out in record time! Well done!

That evening I headed to Diane's, unfortunately 2 hours late, which meant I missed her husband's surprise party. But I did get to see Diane, her two adorable girls and Bailey, their cutie dog (and her husband, who made me a yummy dirty martini) as well as Maureen. We caught up a bit, and I finally gave Diane the pictures of her daughters I'd taken a couple months ago.

Sunday, I met up with Maureen at Blue Heron Tattoo in Derry, NH; Monique met us there (with Freya!). Maureen decided on a HUGE tattoo in the shape of a belt in celtic style...um...OUCH! She set up her appointment for 11/11; my appointment follows hers, and Monique's follows mine...girls day out at the tattoo parlour! Anyone else want to come get tattoos with us?

Maureen & Freya

I came home, picked up the dogs and went to Salisbury for a run on the beach. The sky was absolutely gorgeous today!

And finally, I closed my Pampered Chef catalogue party tonight. I want to thank Megan, DebR, Krista, Monique, Lauren & Heather for purchasing things which enabled me to hit my goal of getting the knife I wanted for 60% off. Thank you for not being offended by my emailing you with my Pampered Chef request, and thank you for responding. Woohoo!

See the knife? Isn't it purty? Just in time for Halloween, muhahahahah!!!

How was your weekend?

Here is Part I of the second Halloween story my cousin, Mel, wrote for my blog:

I was sitting in my office, playing on the computer, which is what I normally do, when I heard a knock at the window. I went to turn around to see, but then thought...we're FIVE floors up! What could be knocking, and a bit insistently, too, at MY window???

I couldn't help myself, I had to look and see who was knocking on my window way up here.

I was so amazed when I turned and saw that bumping against the window was not a person but a large box wrapped up in white paper with a red bow.

It was hanging from a rope that was tied around it and the wind was blowing it and making it hit, hit, hit so it sounded like knocking.

I ran to the window, opened it and lifted the box inside, undid the rope from around the box, threw the rope back outside and closed the window.

Now should I open it...I had to, so I pulled off the bow and tore away the wrapping paper. With that done the box opened up all by itself and a steamy cloud of glittering rainbow dust flew up dancing in the air all around me.

What happened next was even more amazing!

Part I

When the rainbow swirl of dust had cleared, there in front of me were three small boxes. Each said, open me either first, second or third.

He handed me the second box!

Here's last Wednesday's picture:

This is what it was cropped from:

and here's the finished product:

Maribeth got this right, "I told you not to show your belly button like that!", but as she's not seen my bellybutton in years and as the tattoo is not mine, I don't know how she did! There were quite a few guesses this week that made me laugh, here are two from quite different points of view:
Carl said, "It is a poster for The Vagina Monolouges, isn't it?"
MaryEllen said, "It's LOU!!!!!"

So this week...

what is it?

Boy, did I make a mistake! I just realized that the first two chapters I posted were not from one of Mel's Halloween stories...in fact, it reminds me of something quite different, indeed, and I'll post the whole story in it's entirety in December. So I do apologize for leaving you hanging; if anyone really wants to see the rest of it now, just email me, ok?

In the meantime, here are are three chapters from her second annual Halloween story, The Golden Goblin; I'll post Chapter 4 tomorrow, 5 on Friday, 6 on Saturday and the final Chapter on Sunday. Then...next week...a NEW Halloween story (I hope!)

Chapter One of The Golden Goblin:

"The October sunshine was pouring in the windows, but the air outside was crisp and cold the day before Halloween. As Jan walked by the kitchen table she noticed a large piece of bright orange paper. It was strange--she did not remember it being there just a few minutes ago when she had grabbed the newspaper. She had heard her father get up early and go out long ago so there was no chance he had set it there in the last few minutes. "I just must not have seen it before", Jan said out loud and then thought that maybe the headache she had must be the reason she had not noticed the paper earlier.

Before she drank the shimmering blue liquid, though, Jan ran inside the house, grabbed her camera and snapped several pictures of the bottle for her blog. She couldn't wait to post this. Then she twisted the cap off the bottle and in a loud voice, just in case anyone was hiding nearby, she laughingly said, "I'm going to drink the blue liquid, yum! I hope I don't keel over and die!" With that she tipped the bottle up to her lips and drank."

Chapter Two of The Golden Goblin:

"The blue liquid had tasted strange. It was salty, smoky, with a hint of mint and citrus. It was the consistency of a raw egg, sort of slimy. There was something else almost earthy tasting too! Not good, but not exactly awful either. As she expected, she felt nothing. No earth shattering changes or strange floating feelings. Nothing, zip, nadda!

When she started to move around the backyard she could hear the rattle of her own bones. She felt the wind blow through her bony frame along with a few dried brown leaves. Then a deep dark blue cloud surrounded her and she fell to the ground and lay there as nothing but a pile of old dried bones."

Chapter Three of The Golden Goblin:

"A leaf fell and landed softly on Jan's face. That was enough to awaken her from what felt like a very deep sleep. When she opened her eyes she realized it was starting to get dark and she was lying on the ground in the backyard in the pile of leaves she had raked up the day before yesterday. She was confused as to why she was there. Perhaps, and she really hated to admit it, but maybe she really had overdone the dirty martinis at Grendel's with Michelle last night!

"This is going to be interesting," Jan thought, and at that moment the dancing ceased and each head looked up at her with their eyes glaring."

The End of Chapters One throught Three! What do you think?

And if you've made is this far, as a reward, here is a list of Haunted Places in Massachusetts for your Halloween fright pleasure. Enjoy!

1. “All the vampires walkin through the valley / Move west down Ventura Boulevard” - Tom Petty, Free Fallin’
2. “I saw a werewolf with a Chinese menu in his hand / Walking through the streets of Soho in the rain / He was looking for a place called Lee Ho Fook's / Going to get himself a big dish of beef chow mein” - Warren Zevon, Werewolves of London
3. "girl I'm just a jeepster for your love / I said girl I'm just a vampire for your love / I'm gonna suck you” - T-Rex, Jeepster
4. “Vampires, mummies and the Holy Ghost / These are the things that terrify me the most / No aliens, psychopath or MTV hosts / Scare me like vampires, mummies and the Holy Ghost” - Jimmy Buffet, Vampires, Mummies and the Holy Ghost
5. “Just like a ghost, you've been a-hauntin' my dreams / But now I know, you're not what you seem. / Love is kinda crazy with a spooky little girl like you.” - Classics IV, Spooky
6. “From my laboratory in the castle east / To the master bedroom where the vampires feast / The ghouls all came from their humble abodes / To get a jolt from my electrodes” - Bobby “Boris” Pickett, Monster Mash
7. “She likes the dark / On her milk white neck / The Devil's mark / It's all Hallows Eve / The moon is full / Will she trick or treat / I bet she will” - Type O Neg, Black no. 1 (Little Miss Scare-All)
8. If you cannot get rid of the family skeleton, you may as well make it dance. - George Bernard Shaw
9. A house is never still in darkness to those who listen intently; there is a whispering in distant chambers, an unearthly hand presses the snib of the window, the latch rises. Ghosts were created when the first man awoke in the night. - J.M. Barrie
10. One need not be a chamber to be haunted; One need not be a house; The brain has corridors surpassing Material place. - Emily Dickinson
11. By the pricking of my thumbs / Something wicked this way comes. - Shakespeare
12. Dreams in which there came the howl of hunting wolves and the cries of goblins.- J.R.R. Tolkien
13. My mind is wrought to a fever by the moonbeam that hangs o'er. - Edgar Allan Poe

Aging is such a bitch! It made me forget to wish my good friend Aislinn a very happy birthday yesterday!

I met Azzy at work a few years ago...we discovered we had some things in common, the Air Force being one of them, and LOTR being another, just to mention a couple. We spent many lunchhours playing LOTR Trivial Pursuit, and she's the only one that stood a chance against me :-) For old time's sake, Azzy, here's a question from for you from the game:

What does Legolas tell Aragorn is the certain fate of all the Rohirrim at Helm's Deep?

And no, the answer is NOT a date with me ;-)

She's pretty dang happy in her life now, the lucky so-and-so is going to Paris & London soon, and I'm pretty dang happy for her!

That's Aislinn on the right :-)

Won't you wish her a happy birthday, too?

Chapters 1, 2, and 3, here.

"Jan felt the broom dive into the middle of the silent group. As it neared the ground the broom tipped down and Jan slid off. Even her strong grip on the handle could not keep her from falling.

It had always been a dream of Jan's, to be a part of a Halloween ceremony with witches. Here she was smack in the middle of just that! Jan could hear several witches whisper to each other as they glanced her way. At last one rather tall and particularly ugly witch approached her and motioned for Jan to roll up her sleeve. Reluctantly she did it as several others looked on. The first witch moved very quickly pointing her bony fingers at Jan and as she did this Jan realized that she was paralyzed from the neck down and unable to move. A short, stout witch appeared next to her with a huge spider in her hands. Jan was horrified. More than almost anything in the world Jan hated spiders. Another witch joined them holding a bubbling pot. As each bubble burst it let off a strong, unpleasant odor.

The witch holding the spider dipped it into the bubbling pot and held it there for a moment. Then she lifted it out and moved closer to Jan's exposed arm. A piercing scream escaped from Jan's mouth as the spider was placed on her arm. Immediately she felt like a million hot needles were being stuck into her skin. She wanted to pull away but could not move.

When she felt the spider being lifted off she turned her head to look. There etched on her arm was a perfect web and in the center of the web was imprinted a new moon with a star cradled just above its inside curve. It was amazing! Somehow it glowed sending rays of light into the night.

At this point she was able to move again and was guided toward the dancers who circled the caldron. Jan started to dance slowly and gradually moved around faster and faster. Off to one side Jan realized that her regular body stood taking pictures. At this point the dancing changed to a more frenzied pace until Jan felt she was being lifted off the ground and her body was hurtling toward the uncovered cauldron."

Random and Odd has given us an easy one this week:

1. The Kitchen Sink:

Dirty dishes and all!

2. Something you need to fix:

My poor garden. It needs attention badly!

3. Something you're going to throw away right after you take the picture of it:

And no, I didn't use it for THAT! I used it to wipe excess moisturizer from my face LOL!

Courtesy of Megan:

1. If I was... a vampire I'd... live forever!

2. If something I'm eating drops on the floor I... let the dogs have it, unless it's bad for them, then I pick it up and throw it away.

3. My favorite breakfast cereal is... Life! I adore Life, yummy!

4. If I were a cat, my name would be... pussy von pussinator.

5. When I was little I... I loved going to the Cape to see my cousins!

6. This weekend I shall... get my hair done, do some shopping, find my halloween costume from last year, go to Salem, check out the pumpkin festival in Keene, dinner with a friend, and celebrate my brother's birthday.

and you?

Chapters 1, 2, and 3, here
Chapter 4, here

"In the dark that now surrounded Jan she felt as if she was nothing more than a faded shadow. Somehow as she was hurling to her death she had escaped falling into the cauldron and then along with her camera rode on the sparks and smoke from the cauldron up into the night sky.

She had no way of knowing which way was up or down since she could see only blackness. She felt strangely cool and crisp, a feeling that made her think of getting into bed under the coolness of smooth cotton sheets. A feeling that would be most welcome at the moment. Jan managed to get her bearings and to enjoy the sensation of floating around. It was at that moment that she saw some dark clouds and realized that she was being led though the air by a transparent being that could only be a ghost.

Jan thought she might have dozed as they traveled along but she wasn't sure. She felt like a parachute and billowing out around her was a light shadow of whiteness. She was drifting down like the silk and seeds out of milkweed pod.

The landing was not soft or graceful, however, and as Jan looked around she saw that she was hovering in front of the door of an old deserted house. Her companion drew her to the door and as Jan reached out to touch the knob she found that she had moved through the door and inside the house. She was alone in her ghostly form except for the dust that was so thick it hung heavily in the air. There was little furniture only a few odd broken pieces of wood here and there. Cobwebs hung down everywhere and seemed to catch the light that came from a flickering candle.

Then out of the corner of her eye she saw a hideous looking body coming toward her. A bandage wrapped around its neck was soaked red. It was then that she saw herself once again holding the camera. As the flash lit up the entire room Jan could see the worms, slugs and bugs that wiggled in and out of its ears, eyes and mouth. As it moved closer to Jan the creature moved its hand up to its neck where it grabbed the end of the bandage and pulled. As its head fell off Jan heard a terrifying scream and even though she made no noise it was her voice she heard."

Chapters 1, 2, and 3 of 7 here
Chapter 4 of 7 here
Chapter 5 of 7 here

Here's someone to keep you company while you're reading:

Without further ado, Chapters 6 & 7:

Chapter Six:

"The floor opened up and she fell down into the darkness. With her eyes closed she waited for the impact that would end her life, but it did not happen. At last when she opened her eyes she found she was standing in a dank stone chamber illuminated by tall and ornate candelabras. In front of her was a coffin with the lid closed. A shiver of fear ran down her spine. Jan was no longer a ghost and she noticed that she was now wearing a gorgeous white dress with a fur-lined cape hanging over her shoulders and down her back to the floor. The dress felt smooth and soft, as the silky material lay close against her body. There were heavy chains around her ankles and wrists that were attached to a ring on the wall. They made an escape impossible.

A large open window behind the coffin caught her attention and hanging low in the evening sky was a full moon with creepy dark shadows on its surface. The silence in the room was interrupted by a creaking noise and Jan saw the top of the coffin slowly lift up.

Then in through the window flew at least one hundred bats. They wildly flapped around the room circling Jan and landing and getting tangled in her hair. She could feel their wings brushing against her body as she tried to push them off and away from her.

The flash of her camera went off from the corner of the room where once again she could see herself standing. The largest bat flew onto Janet's neck and she felt a deep piercing pain as it bit her and drew the blood that was it's life-giving force. When the bat was finished the chains fell away and Jan sank to the cold floor. From there she watched as the bats flew out the window. The bat that had bitten her however did not follow them and flew under the cover of the partly open coffin. After a minute or two there was a stream of light coming from inside the coffin as the lid started to open wider. Jan bit her lip to keep from screaming, tasting her own salty blood as she bit down harder. A large hand pushed up till the lid was fully open and there lying in the silk lined box was the dark figure of a Vampire."

Chapter Seven:

The figure sat up and Jan recognized at once that it was Snape. She was not frightened...just completely amazed to see him. He climbed out of the coffin and stood before her looking stern. He reached out and took her hand in his and said in a low voice, "We don't want to be late, come quickly!"

Jan felt the coolness of his hand and then she heard thunder and saw a flash of lightning. Her body seemed to be moving even though she was not walking. There was a windy tunnel, darkness again and once more a flash of light. She held onto Snape's hand, afraid to let go.

They emerged and without being wet they came up from underwater entering a large hall. Snape pulled Jan through the crowd of strange creatures; it looked like everyone was dressed for a Halloween party. As Jan and Snape neared the front of the crowd Jan saw a display of frightening photos. Among them she spotted her own work. There were large prints of a bony skeleton, a wild dancing witch, a hauntingly ghostly being, and the last pictures of her being attacked by a vampire bat. They were amazing, frightening, eerie, and strikingly vivid. All were photos she had taken.

At that moment a ghoulish looking creature stood on the stage and said, "Happy Halloween! It's now time to announce the winner of this years photo contest!" The ghoul tore open the envelope that he had in hands and looking pleased, he shouted, "How wonderful! She has taken great photos for years and is deserving of the Golden Goblin Award! JAN!!! Please come forward, my dear."

On the arm of Snape, who looked tall and proud, she was escorted up onto the stage as the crowd went wild. Champagne bottles were popped open and trays of glasses appeared out of nowhere.

Jan was handed the Golden Goblin and held it high above her head. The crowd shouted, "Speech! Speech!" Jan stood before the microphone. She heard what sounded like echoes of a distant voice.

She felt her body jump and then she opened her eyes. She was in her own room, in her own bed with Wolf close by. "What a fantastic dream! I'll post it today for Halloween!", Jan thought as she slowly stretched and got out of bed. Then something caught her eye as she passed in front of her mirror. She looked down and was shocked to see a spider web tattoo on her upper arm. It had a crescent moon with a star in the middle of it. "This is crazy! How can this be?" Jan thought but as she turned back toward the bedroom door she gasped and her breath caught deep inside her throat; because sitting on the chair in her very own bedroom was Snape with a slight smile on his face and he was holding The Golden Goblin in his hands!

Today is my little brother's birthday! Well...he's not so little anymore:

Larry and Wolf

But he's still younger than me. Wait...I can't rag on him for that anymore, that's a GOOD thing! Hmmm...anyway...happy birthday, bro!

Poor Legolas was traded in for a new model this weekend ;-)

BNL! Who doesn't like them? Ok...that would be me, back when they first appeared on the scene. I can remember Megan just loving them, but oh no not me...especially hated the song "If I Had A Million Dollars". Then....I saw them at Great Woods along with a bunch of other bands and was like...WHOA! They're GREAT! Funny and fun and man, can that Steve Page SING (and he shares a birthday with me)!

So anyway...guess who I saw in concert last night? LOL! Met my friend Mo up in Manchester NH last night, along with a friend of hers. We headed to Margarita's for some pre-concert noshing (man, it felt cold enough to snow last night!). Mo had an extra ticket, so I called a few friends and on the third call, struck pay dirt; my friend Diana, who I haven't seen in forever, joined us!

It was fun, especially the flailing guy in front of us who seemed to think he was at a Phish concert LOL!

Here's last Wednesday's picture:

This is what it was cropped from:

DebR got this one, "I think it's the droppings of a berry-eating bird, smeared on a windshield." Carl said, "Although I figured you were a much sweeter person I realize we all have a dark side. That's the heart of your ex on the cutting board, isn't it?!?!??" which cracked me up for two reasons...1) that he thought I was sweet and 2) that my ex's heart would be that big ;-) Cudos to all who said it looked like a heart; that's what I thought, too!

So this week...

what is it?

1. When it appears that you have killed the monster, never check to see if it's really dead.
2. If you find that your house is built upon or near a cemetery, was once a church that was used for black masses, had previous inhabitants who went mad or committed suicide or died in some horrible fashion, or had inhabitants who performed satanic practices in your house - move away immediately.
3. Never read a book of demon summoning aloud, even as a joke.
4. Do not search the basement, especially if the power has just gone out.
5. If your children speak to you in Latin or any other language which they should not know, or if they speak to you using a voice which is other than their own, shoot them immediately. It will save you a lot of grief in the long run. NOTE: It will probably take several rounds to kill them, so be prepared.
6. As a general rule, don't solve puzzles that open portals to Hell.
7. Never stand in, on, above, below, beside, or anywhere near a grave, tomb, crypt, mausoleum, or other house of the dead.
8. If appliances start operating by themselves, move out.
9. Do not take anything from the dead.
10. If you're running from the monster, expect to trip or fall down at least twice, more if you are of the female persuasion. Also note that, despite the fact that you are running and the monster is merely shambling along, it's still moving fast enough to catch up with you.
11. If your companions suddenly begin to exhibit uncharacteristic behavior such as hissing, fascination for blood, glowing eyes, increasing hairiness, and so on, get away from them as fast as possible.
12. Stay away from certain geographical locations, some of which are listed here: Amityville, Elm Street, Transylvania, Nilbog (you're in trouble if you recognize this one), the Bermuda Triangle, or any small town in Maine.
13. Beware of strangers bearing tools such as chainsaws, staple guns, hedge trimmers, electric carving knives, combines, lawnmowers, butane torches, soldering irons, band saws, or any device made from deceased companions.