Articles and Ideas August, 2007
by Michael J. Smajda
Never again on a Halloween night
Will I ever go near a graveyard site.
For when last I did, this is what I saw
Zombie-like creatures, large and small,
Ascending from their graves, one by one,
Moaning and groaning in unison,
Wandering about like flocks of blind sheep,
Relieved to be awakened from years of dead sleep.
Having never seen corpses upright before,
Much less, decomposed, I viewed them in horror.
And seeing skeletons still wearing their coffin best,
Did very little to slow the heart in ...
Posted in Poems & Short Stories, Stories, Myths & Legends | No Comments »
Author Unknown
Five little pumpkins sitting on a gate.
The first one said, "My it's getting late."
The second one said, "There are witches in the air."
The third one said, "But we don't care!"
The fourth one said, "Lets run, lets run."
The fifth one said, "I'm ready for some fun."
Ooooooo went the wind,
Out went the lights
And five little pumpkins went
Rolling out of sight.
The End
Posted in Poems & Short Stories, Stories, Myths & Legends | 1 Comment »
Russ and Pam Leno, Sleepy Hallow Master Pumpkin Carvers, are pumpkin sculptures extraordinaire as witnessed by their sculpting of this massive 1,262 lb pumpkin.
We first discovered the Leno's last year when we featured them in "Halloween Goes Patriotic" in Happy Halloween Magazine (Vol. 4, Issue 4). They carved a 912-pound pumpkin depicting the Firefighter Memorial for the Washington State Fair in Puyallup last September.
During our interview we discovered that they had sculpted yet another larger pumpkin in 2001. Entitled "Geneva's ...
Posted in Halloween | 3 Comments »
Deck the boughs with scary ornies! Yep! Festive trees and ornaments aren't just for that other holiday anymore. There is a full genre of sparkling, twisted decorations suitable for the big haunt. We're talking black fir trees, specialty lights and grizzly ornaments.
Beginning with the basics, let's consider the fundamental tree. Were you aware that your essential trees now come in a variety of colors from the original green to white, gold and now even Halloween black? Black trees can come ...
Posted in Halloween Decorations | No Comments »
Book Review
By Anne Broyles
Halloween deserves it's reputation as the holiday that welcomes everyone as shown in this beautifully illustrated and touching book set in the 1930s.
For Anya, Dasha, Irina, and Diminitrii, newly arrived to this country, Halloween seems a wonderfully strange and exciting holiday. They enlist an upstairs neighbor to help with their costumes, and Papa agrees to take them out trick-or-treating. But when Papa comes home sick that evening, it looks as though the children will be watching the ...
Posted in Halloween, Media Reviews | No Comments »
(To the tune of We Wish You A Merry Christmas)
We wish you'd quit trick-or-treating,
We wish you'd quit trick-or-treating,
We wish you'd quit trick-or-treating
And come back in here.
You do this ev'ry October,
You know trick-or-treat is over,
The night's getting dark and colder,
So please come inside.
You run place to place,
Still feeding your face,
We wish you'd quick trick-or-treating
Before you get sick.
Halloween is fine and dandy,
But you can't just pig out on candy,
You embarrass your mom and daddy,
So please come back home.
We wish you'd quit ...
Posted in Poems & Short Stories, Stories, Myths & Legends | No Comments »
By Edgar Allan Poe
Once upon a midnight dreary, while I
pondered, weak and weary,
Over many a quaint and curious volume
of forgotten lore--
While I nodded, nearly napping,
suddenly there came a tapping,
As of some one gently rapping, rapping
at my chamber door.
"'Tis some visitor," I muttered,
"tapping at my chamber door--
Only this and nothing more."
Ah, distinctly I remember it was in the
bleak December;
And each separate dying ember wrought
its ghost upon the floor.
Eagerly I wished the morrow; --vainly I
had sought to borrow
From my books surcease of ...
Posted in Poems & Short Stories, Stories, Myths & Legends | 2 Comments »
"What am I going to be this year?" is a common refrain heard spoken by the young and old alike every Halloween. But especially by those of us who are no longer kids with favorite cartoon heroes. You know you need a costume and you are really enthusiastic about wearing one but you just can't get a good idea of what you want to be. I always tell myself that I'll decide what I am going to be tomorrow and ...
Posted in costumes | 5 Comments »
An Analysis of Poe's Work
"Take thy beak from out my heart, and take thy form from off my door!"
Quote from the Raven, "Nevermore."
The above quote from "The Raven" may well been seen as prophetic. With the publishing of this poem in 1845, Poe's life would be forever connected to these dark, clever birds. He was quickly himself dubbed "the Raven" by his contemporaries, and there's some evidence suggesting he may have even reveled in his new nickname. Regardless of ...
Posted in Poems & Short Stories, Stories, Myths & Legends | 1 Comment »
By Dr. Jeanne Keyes Youngson
Baxter looked out his bedroom window at the street below. No kids in sight. Probably still eating supper, he thought.
Turning to admire his costume, which was carefully laid out on the bed, he smoothed the red satin lining of the cape with his fingertips. He grinned from ear to ear thinking of the treats he was going to have later.
He leaned over, picked up a set of plastic fangs from the bedside table and went ...
Posted in Poems & Short Stories, Stories, Myths & Legends | No Comments »
The Pumpkin Hall of Horrors is a collection of pumpkin vignettes, little scenes acted out by one or more pumpkins. They might be as simple as a white pumpkin carved with vampire teeth and a mouth full of pumpkin gore, next to a frightened pumpkin that has seeds spilling out of two puncture wounds. Or, the scene might be as complex as an entire Pumpkin Operating Room. Here you see concerned doctors, sweat beading up on their foreheads, a pumpkin ...
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Halloween and Fortune Telling
Today, we do not have as much emphasis placed on fortune telling with the celebration of Halloween as once was the case. In the beginnings of the holiday in this country, fortune telling was one of the most important events. There weren't Halloween parties and parades or costumes and trick or treating, but many a girl in the late 1800's and turn of the 1900's would be sitting in her parlor dropping a hazel nut in the ...
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By Roberta Beach Jacobson
Europe feels a wee bit spooky now and then, you say? No, it's not your imagination. The continent is filled with creepy, crawly things of all manner. Here are some of the ghoulish highlights:
Skulls and Skeletons
Due to lack of burial space, these skulls and skeletons were removed from area cemeteries during the Plague years and the Palatinate War. They have been stored in the cellar of St. Michael's Church in Oppenheim, Germany.
The Sewers of Pari...
Posted in Halloween, Spooky Places | 1 Comment »
A Halloween Book Review
Fangful Fantasy: The Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter series
Are you a secret Van Helsing fan?
Do you watch "Buffy the Vampire Slayer," cheering her on…but secretly miss the darker style of Faith?
Meet Anita Blake, vampire hunter.
She lives in a slightly twisted version of modern-day America. In Anita's world, vampires, zombies and werecreatures live side by side with regular humans. Laws protect the preternatural, giving them legal rights. But when they break the law, normal cops aren't equipped to deal ...
Posted in Halloween, Media Reviews | No Comments »
Children for Change During Halloween - Halloween Fundraiser
For over 55 years, children have demonstrated their power to promote change through "Trick-or-Treat for UNICEF," which commenced in 1950 when a group of young Philadelphia trick-or-treaters, along with their pastor, began the tradition of knocking on doors for UNICEF on Halloween. Their ultimate goal was not only to satisfy a sweet tooth, but also to help children in need overseas. By holding out empty milk cartons, they collected $17 and sent it ...
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Mystics seeking answers. Women touching on empowerment. Charlatans lusting after easy money. Depending on your viewpoint, all of these people made up the spiritualist movement.
Spiritualism is defined as "a system of religious beliefs centered on the assumption that communication with the dead, or spirits, is possible." The movement took the European world by storm in the mid-1800s. Following the thread of reason for spiritualism's wild popularity can make the researcher a little dizzy.
The world at that time was riding the ...
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During the past two decades folk and fine artists have quietly been whiling away the hours in their workshops creating masterpieces for Halloween fans. As quickly as they produce their wonderful works, they sell them to eagerly waiting hands. Many of these artists have become household names thanks to decorating magazines and television specials. Others have pieces residing in various art and other museums.
My mission in life is to collect as much of this wonderful artwork as I can; and ...
Posted in Halloween | 7 Comments »
Texas Fan Builds Replica Home of TV's The Munster's
Some Halloween fans are content to celebrate their favorite holiday once a year. Die-hard fans, however, find ways to keep the pumpkin flame burning all year long to feed their Halloween addiction. Some keep a few select collectibles on display year-round. With each glance they feel a twinge of excitement&emdash;their Halloween fix. Others gather with their fellow fans during the year and swap stories, share ideas, and generally have a Hallow-rific good ...
Posted in Halloween, Spooky Places | 4 Comments »
A Halloween Family Classic Movie - Halloween Film
My love for Halloween began as a child. The thrill of choosing a costume at the local dime store and then proudly parading around school in costume remains a favorite memory. When I was 11 my mother let me host a Halloween party in our basement, complete with spooky music, scary decorations, and eerie games. If any of these memories bring a sense of déjà vu to you, then the independent, short film ...
Posted in Halloween, Media Reviews | No Comments »
by Sarah Briggs
Cheap Halloween Decorations
I couldn't believe it! I had nearly worked myself into an early grave trying to make my Halloween party decorations, and yet the room looked so bare after I put all that stuff up! I'm talking costumed dummies, cob webs, skeletons, jack-o-lanterns, black lights and tons of jointed paper monsters of every ilk. I simply couldn't spend another dime on decorations, but I was so disappointed over how my party room looked!
You're not the only ...
Posted in 'How to' Halloween, Yard Haunters | 2 Comments »
