“I will not negotiate with the undead!” ― David Wellington, Monster Island

I was in Barnes and Noble's the other day and they had a cute lil display of a few Halloween items. What really drew my attention was the pile of Zombie books just in front of the cutesy-poo display.

Zombie Haiku

Lost Zombies

And your essential guide on how to survive a Zombie Apocalypse.

I'm thinking I might need to put a new twist on a old theme: Zombie Pirate!

Something new to scare the kiddes with!.

"Are these the shadows of the things that Will be, or are they shadows of things that May be, only?” ~Scrooge to the "Grim Reaper" (Ghost of Xmas yet to come)

OK...I know....the clock says 50....but it's only 40. Which scares me enough, cuz I'm so not ready to even start yet. BUT, that picture is the countdown clock that I bought a couple years ago at the after Halloween fire sale at Spirit of Halloween. And it will remind me to take it out of our attic and begin the countdown.

To that, there is no Spirit near me this year. I'm genuinely depressed. There is one across town. So what. I had one just up the way from me the last couple years and spent a LOT of lunch hours there.

Although, with Halloween so commercial now, a lot of props for mass market are getting cheaper looking. It's been almost impossible to find a fun addition to my Spooky Town. Terrible paint jobs and cheesy themes abound. I do have a pretty big spread, so I really don't need anything more. But ya know....it's fun to add.

And if you keep in mind what you might be adding for next year, like I do, you can get great deals after the holiday, if you hurry. Folks clear out Spirits after the holiday. Boy do they! Last year I got a great deal on a projector for a DVD player. I want to put a sheet inside the windows of the sunroom and project old black and white horror movies on it! I think that would be fun as the backdrop to the graveyard on the lawn.

Yes.....I'm that serious about it. Do you all not know me by now?

Everyone hail to the Pumpkin King ~ This Is Halloween

It's the lil things.

Rounding the corner at the local grocery store and seeing a maze of decorated boxes with Halloween candy in them. Candy corn on the impulse buy area of the checkout line. And that lil hint of fall in the air.

Or something so innocent and simple as my wife texing, "Would you like a re-usable pumpkin bag?"

The answer is always, "Yes!"

"IS IT SO SMALL A THING TO HAVE ENJOYED THE SUN?" ~MATTHEW ARNOLD

I love the beach. I'm a second generation Cali beach girl. My mom was the original Gidget: sand volleyball, hours in the sun, walking to the beach every day. My favorite moments were sitting at sunset, my toes curled into the cooling sand, breeze off the water, watching the sun slip past the horizon.

Syracuse...is landlocked. Yes, there are lakes, rivers, fake beaches with imported sand on bodies of water. But that's not the ocean. The mighty ocean. The rumble and roar of the surf, pounding the earth. I would roll in the waves until I was body tired, climb to the shore and crash on my towel. When my heart stopped beating so loud that was all I could hear, the voice of the ocean would replace it, through the towel, through the sand, just past the squawking gulls. The rolling thunder of the might ocean

When the opportunity came to stay at Cape Cod, the promise of laying on sand and playing in waves, was like a breath of life! When we got there, it was just like the pictures I had found on line: sea grass and grape stake fences. The sand, a lil coarser. The waves, a lil shallower.

But all in all, a fantastic replacement for my long lost west coast beach. After 8 years of visiting the Atlantic, I've created a new set of moments and memories. We got a puppy 7 years ago and now that beach will never be the same without Roxy running up and down it. Lifeguard towers, as only that Cape can do, now adorn our Christmas tree yearly as an ornament, due to the one right across from the house we rent. I can also say I've experienced 2 hurricanes there. (possibly a 3rd this year?) Never had to worry bout those on the Pacific!

And I can say I got married next to the Atlantic, on that east coast beach in the Cape. Our "first anniversary" this year, after said wedding, will be celebrated right where we stood.

I know the sun isn't good for you, but I just can't resist the warmth and berry brown glow on my skin that comes from it. So we go, as far east as we can, to find the beach once again.