Ghoul Friday Bits & Bites

Hello fellow creepers! I decided to leave my computer turned off this holiday season so that I would be refreshed and ready to go once more for the new year.

Ah, New Year's Eve. While I can appreciate the affection some people have for the holiday, I generally associate it with being dragged out into the city where you're forced into cramped quarters with drunken strangers to pay too much for very little. And then you spend the end of the evening trying to get home in the freezing cold, hoping the person beside you on public transit doesn't throw up on your shoes (and people think Halloween is scary).

To be fair, I've spent the last few New Years in the comfort of a friend's home for a gathering of friends, so I shouldn't be so surly.

In the spirit of the holiday, I'll take a moment to reflect on the past year in terms of the darker delights. My Ghoul Friday had its official launch this year, and I want to thank my faithful posters (and faithful lurkers) for visiting and making it all worth while. I hope all of you have a safe and happy new year, and I look forward to seeing you in 2009 for more ghoulish discoveries and creepy creations.

Hello all! Many people living in urban areas associate the springtime with construction to improve roads. In the home haunter world, I find Christmas to be the time many haunters are working to speed traffic along - on their websites.

While my blogs have been quieter than normal the last month, it does not indicate an absence. I've been working behind the scenes to optimize images and improve some areas of the website.

This website officially launched in summer of 2008, and the focus at the time was to get content up. Now, I'm a little wiser and have a better idea of how I want things displayed. This means undertaking the painstaking task of revising the site and editing images.

So I'm still here, my little loathlies. I'm just behind the cyber curtain.

Recently, I've spent most of my time ranting and raving about the current political situation in Canada. I'm finally at the point where I think I can blog without boring my readers with my views on politics, since that's not what this website is about.

For example, I wouldn't want to get off track and complain that many Canadians don't seem to understand the basic structure of their own parliamentary system, and what the real implications are for what's happening. No sir. I wouldn't want to do that.

Instead, I will promote Playdead Cult's Christmas sale happening this Saturday December 6th from Noon to 7pm, and Sunday December 7th Noon to 5pm. They are promising new affordable art pieces of varying sizes and lots of great discounts (10% - 65% off selected items). As well, you can enjoy complimentary snacks and beverages, music, live art and screen printing and "Playdead style gift wrapping"!

And don't forget to ask Santa for a new Prime Minister. I'm asking for Don Newman.

Hello friends and fellow fiends. For my first after-strike blog, I've decided to be a little self indulgent and talk about what's been going on with me. I won't be hurt if you skip these ramblings and wait for something more fun, but if you're interested in some introspective chat, read on.

Whenever Halloween has come and gone, I wait and see what my mood will be. Most years, I mourn the passing for a week, venture out to discount sales and see if there are any treasures to be found, and think about what I am going to do next year before the flurry of Christmas takes over.

There is a level of patience that goes beyond and above expectation. I believe I've reached the outer limits of mine when it comes to the excruciatingly slow loading times on this website. So I've decided to go on strike.

Perhaps strike isn't the right word, because there has already been conversations to discuss this problem and how my needs aren't being met by my hosting server.

Ok then. I'm going on a blogging strike. I need the extra time to harass Yetch into picking a new provider. And besides, someone in this house will suffer physical harm if I have to continue dealing with 30 second load times. It's better for all involved if I just step away from the computer.

I'm hoping this will be resolved by early next week. See you then.

After a record breaking 10 hours to take everything down, sort it into storage bins and then clean up (normally I can do it in 5 hours), I've been somewhat burnt out this last week. I need a bit longer to get back into the swing of things and to take a little break for myself.

Last night I dreamt that I'd built a new prop for next year - a sure sign that I need to take it easy still.

In the meantime, here's a video from another haunter I've mentioned before (Dave the Dead) showing his decorations obediently marching themselves back into storage.

If only it were that easy.

It's all gone. Not a prop to be seen on the main floor.

I'm left feeling torn in three directions. First, I feel a bit sad that it's over. Conversely, I'm very happy to have my house back to normal (everything seems so spacious!). And finally, I'm starting to ponder what the theme for next year will be.

In the meantime, I invite you to take a look at images from this year's theme in the Art Ghoullery.

The children's restaur-haunt was a nice change since it allowed me to have fancier items in the front room (gift shop), and a real party atmosphere in the dining area. It also was designed in a way that it didn't interfere much with day to day life, so I could set up most of it early on.

I hope all of you had a great Halloween. I still have a couple of party ideas to post from this year. After that, it's back to enjoying gems found online and in my city.

So farewell for another year to my seasonal visitors; come back in September to see what new ideas I've come up with.

As for the rest of you, I'll be updating the blog as usual. Stick around, my lovelies, as we start the countdown to 2009.

It's finally here.

I wanted to post Halloween wishes to you early this morning, my dark little darlings, before I head out the door for a whirlwind day. And as a present, I am sharing one of my favourite David Hartman pictures. I keep meaning to do a proper post about him, but it will have to keep for another time.

With bright sunshine and warm temperatures (at least here in Toronto), I imagine it will be a pleasant Halloween for all (though is it really a Canadian Halloween if all of your costume isn't covered by a hat, scarf and winter coat?).

My wishes and thoughts for you on All Hallow's Eve:

Enjoy yourself today. Take time to breathe it all in.

Buy yourself a treat (the kids aren't the only ones who deserve it).

Be safe.

Respect the hard work of home haunters and their props. And look out for the little ones being bullied by bigger cowards while trick or treating (bullies are the real monsters).

I don't normally post cutesy things on my blog, and I NEVER post random pictures found online (at least not without a backstory), but I had to make an exception with this image. It's called "Weiners on Safari" and you can find the original on the Globe and Mail website, along with more Halloween pet pictures.

I think the zebra looks like a mexican wrestler costume.

On a related note (newspapers, not pets or wrestlers), yours truly has been interviewed by Patrick White who writes for the Life section of the Globe and Mail (a very large newspaper here in Canada). After stumbling upon my site, he contacted me to have a chat for his upcoming Halloween article on Canadian Haunters - understanding people who go beyond the basics at this time of year.

This year in the party room I used an idea from another haunter and created floating candles to go along with the other decorations hanging from the ceiling.

It's a quick, inexpensive project using battery operated candlesticks, fishing line, hot glue and tacks. Anyone can make this prop. Check out the how-to in my monster workshop.