Fixin' Leaks and Leeks

A wild wind whipped its way through our neighborhood, sending animatronic monster décor spinning into a short-out in the streets. That happened about midnight on Friday evening. By 8 a.m. Saturday morning, the power was still out, but that didn’t stop me from sounding the craft alert. It was just starting to be daylight, but… Continue reading Craft Alert in the Dark

Trickin’ out my wardrobe is a terrifically frightening treat. It’s frightening because I never thought of my everyday clothes as potential Halloween costumes, but it turns out my dresses and skirts are just one odd accessory away from hell. Such a lucky break for when the workplace wants to do a whole week of themes… Continue reading Happy Halloween, from the Closet

Pumpkin patches are writhing with fall enthusiasts, jacked up on spiced lattes—and they’re ready to squash someone if they’re not scared witless in the corn maze. Nate, Alex, and I have been these enthusiasts, and after spending a lot more than we thought we should, we decided we could scare ourselves witless for free. We… Continue reading DIY Ghost Stories: The Haunted Hot Tub

Creepy looking fingers, served on bread plates, add a real nail-biting touch to a regular Saturday night at home with the family and the cat. Throw in a Halloween-themed lounge-act that was turned into a CD at least ten years ago, and you’ve got yourself a party. Also, you’ll want to get your hands on… Continue reading Pumpkin Soup and Finger Foods

Creepy cans of cannellini, smothering wadded-up bags of chips, will no longer give me the evil eye. The nightmare is over. We finally plastered the glass window door of the kitchen pantry with “frosted glass” cover paper—and now it’s lights out for everything in that closet, thank goodness. The glass window pantry was not my… Continue reading What’s Behind the Door?

If spooky season isn’t spicy enough for you, take the “Paqui One Chip Challenge,” and send your tastebuds to a fiery dungeon where demons stab them with pitchforks. That’s the only way to describe this experience—and I didn’t even really complete the entire challenge. The “Paqui One Chip Challenge” consists of opening a coffin-shaped package… Continue reading Scary Hot

In search of exciting, complex spirits on National Ghost Hunting Day (September 24), we traveled to one of our favorite happy haunts (Winthrop, Washington), to see if we could scare up any saloon ghosts or jilted dead brides, but we found something better: Blackberry Raven Cider. If Welch’s Grape Juice had a tipsier sister, with… Continue reading A Toast to Good Spirits

Cryptic creatures called “fruit snacks” showed up at my parents’ house in the mid 80s—along with leg warmers, shoulder pads, and some creepy-looking dolls that had been hanging out in cabbage patches. At first, these snacks seemed a little strange. Were they actually fruit? Were they candy? What were they thinking? What were they up… Continue reading Taste for Nostalgia

Bring on the space aliens! The hot tub has landed. For those who may be new to this blog, I’ve often joked that the minute I get a hot tub, unnecessary and invasive visits from extra-terrestrial beings will commence. So far, this has not happened, but the hot tub is only a few months old.… Continue reading Be Careful: I Drip

That intoxicating, just-fell-in-the-garbage-smell is right within reach if you go on a whale-watching tour with Nate on his birthday. It means that a whale has chosen you for a special treat. An adorable humpback whale named “Two-Spot” spewed water through his blowhole onto the people standing out on deck, and when the people outside came… Continue reading Whale, It’s Nate’s Birthday!