Falling back and such

Since we still haven't solved that whole Daylight Savings nonsense, tonight we'll be changing a bunch of clocks (and the rest tomorrow). Right now, I am making the most of what is left of Halloween by watching Practical Magic. I stayed home to hand out candy while Hubby took Kiddo around the neighbourhood and then off to Oak Bay to see the bonfire.

She loved her costume this year -- Ahsoka, from Star Wars: the Clone Wars -- but was frustrated by how often she had to explain it. She had more fun earlier when she tried on Hubby's V for Vendetta mask:

(BTW, I saw several people wearing that mask yesterday among the many protesters in Centennial Square (some of whom later caused enough of a ruckus that the route for the Olympic Torch Relay had to be adjusted to avoid them).)

***

Bonus: linkdump!

• Supernatural Collective Nouns by Wondermark -- I immediately bookmarked this for future reference and amusement.
• Star Wars zombie art -- yeah, I think I am over zombies now... but this is still an amusing set.
• Cell size and scale -- if you haven't already seen this, go look, play with the slider, and break your brain a little. Then show your kids. It's edutastic!
  

Oh, and if any of you are on Google Wave, let me know. I can't invite others (yet?) and I'd like to see if more people would make it suck less. (Right now, it seems kinda sucky and pointless.)

Starting tomorrow, it's PeGeStuDoMo!

E is for Exhausted.

After being sick most of last week, we still took Kiddo out trick-or-treating. It was actually really nice to do a fairly quick route around the neighbourhood, meet some of our neighbours, and then sit around while Kiddo answered the door for the dozen or so trick-or-treaters who showed up here. Oh, and she looked great in her costume... as Sarah Palin.

(Yes, she chose that costume and I think she will actually be sad if the McCain-Palin ticket fails to get to the Whitehouse. Sigh.)

I also think her trick-or-treating years may be numbered; it already seemed like she wasn't interested and yet she had heaps of fun working the door and handing out candy to other kids.

Saturday we popped up to Nanaimo and got a wardrobe for the bedroom plus a nice electric lawnmower that was being cleared out at the end of the season. I still have to put together the lawnmower, but there's no rush until the rain lets up enough to dry out the lawn a little.

Today we finished putting together the wardrobe (we started last night... it's a bit of a beast even as flat-pack furniture goes, but it looks good in place) and did some shuffling downstairs. Hubby took a load of construction debris out of the basement to the dump then we cleaned and moved boxes while he framed in a closet.

Anyway, I am still tired but determined to go back to work this week, even if my mind keeps drifting to thoughts of preparation for the craft fair at Kiddo's school at the end of the month -- I've committed to a table and the organizer from the PAC was very excited to hear that I would be bringing plush toys and finger puppets.

Happy Halloweeeeeeeen!

First, a fantastic snapshot from UCLA's Digital Collections:



Ahh, the 1940's... when it was still OK to send a little girl out trick-or-treating in blackface. Also, all the whining about how provocative Halloween costumes are this year? It's nothing new; check out these women posing in costume back in1947.

I'm still at home (sick) today, though really I am feeling much better. My problem is that I didn't sleep much last night so I need to take a nap or three today. Tonight, Kiddo will be trick or treating in the new neighbourhood -- seems like many of the neighbours are quite excited; lots of yard decorations among the piles of fallen leaves. My mother-in-law will be handing out candy while we shadow the kid. I will, of course, post photos later.

Halloween Link-O-Rama

1. Etsy's Costume Contest (this was only open to Americans. Sigh.) -- Winners did show off some very clever costumes; my favourite is probably the shrimp costume for an infant. [Another great/simple costume idea: be a LEGO brick.]

2. Skeletal Looney Tunes Characters on display; not nearly as impressive as the 3D Looney Tunes skeletons by Hyungkoo Lee, but still amusing.

3. Best use ever for an old Mac: Mac-O-Lanterns. (Yes, I do think it's better than the MacAquarium, because it takes less maintenance!)

4. Has Al Gore got to you? Some thoughts on how to go Green for Halloween.

5. Feeling the need for something creepier? Here's an easy way to put a head in a jar and a sea creature that is likely to give me nightmares... or at least make me less likely to put my finger in the touch-and-feel tank at the aquarium.

6. Last but not least, please consider watching this educational video on How to Survive a Zombie Attack:

Pint-Sized Halloween Fun

Well, we survived Kiddo's first shot at hosting a Halloween party. There were six guests and some loosely planned activities; the two biggest hits were the Sculpey creations -- we started out by getting the kids sculpting some monsters and other Hallowen-y things which we then baked for them to take home -- and reading I Spy books (Spooky Night then Treasure Hunt) -- an on-the-fly activity I started when one guest had bored of crafting but we weren't quite ready for the next activity; soon most of the kids were gathered round helping each other find the hidden things in each picture.

Once the kids realized they could tuck in to the treats, they dove in -- Cheezies® were the overall hit; I think every guest had a bag (and I suspect we'll be finding strays under furniture for a few days yet....). At this point, the kids started amusing themselves; some playing gate-keeper, others watching Monsters Inc. which was playing in the background.

Next was Halloween Grossology (not scientific at all -- more like the old campfire game where bowls of goop are passed off as body parts); guests were blindfolded and led into the kitchen where hubby let them feel bowls filled with various things -- cold tea bags, spaghetti and pumpkin guts, and peeled grapes. This too was a hit; more than one kid wanted a second chance!

All in all, I think everyone left happy, andKiddo was certainly pleased. Hubby and I were both pretty much exhausted, but we'd happily do it again.

.

Back in the Saddle

Monday morning was back to work, albeit only for half a day. In that half day, I got about 15 minutes of work done -- mainly because people kept asking how I was doing, but also because I had a meeting to attend. Yesterday was a bit better, but I didn't have access to my computer as my profile was being migrated to a new server. This meant I didn't have access to my calendar program and didn't get the notification about a meeting yesterday... which I subsequently missed.

Sigh.

Meanwhile, my evenings have been busy-ish. Monday I had to finish a review for a Nancy Drew DVD Game (yes, you play the game on your DVD player), The Curse of Blackmoor Manor. Last night, I spent a couple of hours putting together kiddo's costume for this year: a spider. It's not quite done yet... but if she had to go now, she could.




Next challenge: prepping for the Halloween party she is hosting on Saturday afternoon.