The Order Of The Halloween Tree

A photo series tribute to Ray Bradbury's classic tale.

This series comes to an end with Chapter 6:  Ralph Bengstrum 

Ralph stood in his Mummy costume, stunned, watching the last shadows go.

“Is that why I’m dressed like a mummy?” He fingered the bandages. He touched his clay-wrinkled ancient face. “Is that what my part of Halloween is all about?”

“All, boy, all,” murmured Moundshroud. “The Egyptians, why, they built to last. Ten thousand years they planned for. Tombs, boys, tombs. Graves.  Mummies. Bones. Death, death. Death was at the very heart, gizzard, light, soul, and body of their life! Tombs and more tombs with secret passages, so none might be found, so grave robbers could not borrow souls and toys and gold. You are a mummy, boy, because that was how they dressed for Eternity.  Spun up in a cocoon of threads, they hoped to come forth like lovely butterflies in some far dear loving world. Know your cocoon, boy. Touch the strange stuffs.”

 

“Why,” said Ralph the Mummy, blinking at the smoky walls and old hieroglyphics. “Every day was Halloween to them!"

Trailer - Out There: Crimes Of The Paranormal

This looks REALLY interesting.

Click below...

Graverobber Unholy Rye Whiskey

It's baaaack! Friday, September 13 will mark the resurrection of Graverobber Unholy Rye Whiskey (750ml, 80 proof, $34.99), a wickedly delicious spirit crafted with maple syrup tapped from mature maple trees grown amid a colonial era graveyard on New Hampshire's Great Hill Farm — right down the road from Tamworth Distilling.

Revived due to popular demand just in time for Halloween, the sinister sipper is now available in a larger and scarier bottle – year-round! Previously, it was a limited-edition annual release hand-bottled at 200 ml and sold out quickly every year. Tamworth Distilling, known for its innovations and unique flavor inspirations, refined and upgraded processes to bring this highly sought after whiskey to a bigger audience.

Brave imbibers are encouraged to order a bottle if they dare…. Graverobber Unholy Rye is available now  for pre-sale, and will be on shelves in New Hampshire state liquor stores soon after. 

Click here for their site.

Memories Of Halloweens Past

Received a really terrific memory from fellow haunter Jeff (from the always-awesome Ragged Grin Haunt).  

Jeff shared, "My Halloween memories could fill volumes. Trick-or-treating in a town that celebrated and valued the holiday, building and designing the youth group haunt in my church basement, my big brother babysitting me while working at the local Jaycee's haunted house, and one of his female classmates dressing me up as a hobo and walking the queue line at 7 years old asking for change in exchange for fresh eyeballs. All of these experiences would instill and shape the love for the holiday that I hold so dear to this day. 

One thing however stands out that I will forever remember, the Scarecrow. My father was a hardworking, salt of the earth, gruff sort of man. Stern, but always fair. But "Big Harry", as he was called, had a mischievous side that not many got to see. His was a difficult upbringing.  He was the third oldest son in a family of eight kids, his two older brothers drinkers and troublemakers.  My father quit school in the 10th grade to go to work and learn construction because both of his parents became ill. By the time he escaped Clarington, PA for a construction gig in Pittsburgh, he had seen all of his younger siblings graduate and find purpose. For years I sat puzzled as my aunts and uncles referred to him as "Had" for reasons I wouldn't understand until my teens. But the Scarecrow - Dad liked to have fun where he could, "one could only put up with so much seriousness," so one of my earliest memories of Halloween was helping, basically handing him stuff, while he built a scarecrow from old work pants, boots, and a red flannel shirt stuffed with bagged leaves. A burlap sack with one eye cut out and an old wide brimmed hat finished the deal along with some old work gloves.  And soon, Patch the scarecrow sat in an old rocker on the front porch about a week before October 31st. As the big night approached (school parties, etc.), I became aware that my parents were occasionally discussing the event while in the kitchen over dinner prep, dishes, etc. and laughter often ensued. Come Halloween night, I would abruptly and vividly discover why.  Dad would routinely wear green work pants and a consistent rotation of plaid flannel shirts to work, always the same brand, colors, and patterns, bought from the same store, and always tannish Red Wing boots on his feet. When I left to join my friends and a parent on the sidewalk to begin this most spooky of events... Patch stood up to see me off.  I nearly landed on the roof and many on the sidewalk shrieked in shock. 

My dad...was cool! 

I would learn that Dad had gotten the idea from a coworker and thought it would be a fun thing for he and I to do...and he could scare the piss out of me and everyone else in the process. Sometimes it was him, sometimes just a bag of leaves and clothes. Sometimes the dummy was laying half askew in the lawn and his "twin" would sneak out from the sides of the house. Then one year, long past my first encounter with Patch, there were two chairs.  Then after a few more years only one, and eventually none. One of my last conversations with my father revolved around that first year and how much fun we had in ensuing Halloweens. Having been adopted and looking nothing like my parents and extended family, I'll always cherish the few, undeniable similarities between father and son, so vastly different, but alike in tangible, powerful ways as well. 

Long after Big Harry passed and I had my own kids, my oldest son would help me build, I believe, an even scarier version of Patch...red plaid shirt, green work pants...with a wry smile and one visible eye. 

Many swore he moved as well."

Thanks, Jeff!  Really appreciate you sharing that about your dad.  It's a wonderful memory.

For anyone interested in submitting, you can email me at pumpkinrot @ gmail . com (remove the spaces, of course!)

And click here to see past entries!

The Woods

"[When] we got home, we immediately called our local sheriff… a few days went by, and he showed up to let me know that we were not imagining things, and someone really did chase us. I asked what they found and who it was. He looked down at the ground and then looked up, and said, ‘I'm not going to tell you what we found or who it was because if I do, you will never hike anywhere again. What we found was not normal and will not happen up here again.’ I never found out what they found or who it was. I never hiked that section of the trail again, and it completely burnt last year."

Image source.

Text source.

Do They Know It's Halloween?

Neat little song and video Jenna introduced me to that I never knew existed.

From the North American Hallowe'en Prevention Initiative.

Click below...

Smoking Cauldron DIY

Click below (and make sure to watch the video at the bottom of the link)...

Teaser: Wolf Man

The official teaser for Universal's WOLF MAN.  I'm excited.  Same director as THE INVISIBLE MAN (which I loved).  So I'm really hopeful.  Though I'm worried about the lack of fur in the trailer.  I like my wolfmen with fur. 

That sounds terrible.

Click below...

Bloodshot

Image by The Nuge.

The Order Of The Halloween Tree

A photo series tribute to Ray Bradbury's classic tale.

Chapter 5:  Hackles Nibley
 
“Mr. Moundshroud, is that you!” cried Tom.

For towering forty feet above them in the sky, an immense scythe in his hands, was this cowled figure, its face in midnight fogs.

The blade swung down: hisssssss!
 
“Mr. Moundshroud, let us be!”

“Shut up.” Someone knocked Toms elbow. Mr. Moundshroud lay on the earth beside him. “That’s not me. That’s—”

“Samhain!” cried the voice in the fog. “God of the Dead! I harvest thus, and so!”
Sssss-whoooshhhh!
 
“All those who died this year are here! And for their sins, this night, are turned to beasts!”
Sssssswooommmmmmm!

“Please,” whimpered Ralph-the-Mummy.

“Sssssssttttt! The scythe zippered Hackles Nibley’s spine, ripping his costume in a long tear, knocking his own small scythe free of his hands.

“Beasts!”

And the harvest wheat, flailed up, spun round on the wind, shrieking its souls, all those who had died in the past twelve months, rained to earth.

The Art Of Pam Wishbow

Such an amazing style.

Click here for her shop.

and here for her IG.

Memories Of Halloweens Past

The next entry for this nostalgic blog series comes from my gal Jenna.  I've had the pleasure of seeing this neat item up close, so it was really wonderful hearing about its backstory.

Jenna writes "Over the years people have often asked me, 'Why do you like Halloween so much?' or 'Why do you like such scary things?'  I don't really have an answer for them. Truthfully, I have always found myself drawn to darker interests. Poe and R.L. Stine in grade school. The Twilight Zone and heavy metal in middle school. But when thinking about my favorite memory of Halloweens past (thanks to Mr. Macabre), my thoughts kept coming back to a very non-scary subject: My Grandmother, from now on referred to as Grandie (a nickname of her own creation). She is decidedly not spooky, or scary, and does not relate to my love of horror movies and dark art, but she was formative for my love of Halloween. 

Grandie and my Grandfather lived out in the country, not far from the previously mentioned Hex Hollow. In fact, my first haunted hayride as a kid was the local fire hall hayride that took you though Hex Hollow the week or so before Halloween.

She was Martha before Martha - making loads of homemade candy, Golden Grahams smores bars, and soft pumpkin cookies with caramel frosting in the days leading up to the High Holiday. The house was filled with decorations - a sound activated laughing witch (long gone), tons of paper Hallmark party goods, and a unique ceramic pumpkin that she would save for me to put together (once I was old enough to be trusted not to break it). 

This particular decoration encompasses all the imagery I love and associate with Halloween - ghosts, a spooky tree, a cemetery, and a jack-o-lantern. Each year, I would arrange the ghosts around the tree, always in the same places, like a ritual. The tombstone and the jack-o-lantern were my absolute favorites, and would go in the very front, so that I could take them out and hold them whenever I wanted.  It wasn't truly Halloween until this pumpkin was on display. 

Grandie is still with us and turned 98 this year. Knowing my love of Halloween, she handed down her recipes and decorations over the years as she downsized and moved into a retirement community. I think the ceramic pumpkin was the first decoration she gave me when she moved - she knew how much I loved it. Now I am the one decorating and hosting for Halloween, and though she doesn't always understand the darker decor, she loves seeing how we spend our holiday, and will forever be an important part of my Halloween."

For anyone interested in submitting, you can email me at pumpkinrot @ gmail . com (remove the spaces, of course!)

And click here to see past entries!

Now Playing: Haunted

This entire album by Caleb R.K. Williams is primo.  Would be perfect as a soundscape for a Home Haunt too, something with blue light and dark shadows, and lots of tombstones.  Seems to only be available on Bandcamp.  

Click below...

Final Girl Blog

Looking forward to seeing what the Halloween season brings for this blog from the golden age of blogging.

Click below for the always-funny Final Girl blog.

Now Playing: Psycho House Horror Ambience

Click below for a really nice soundscape tribute to the classic film...

Sweetbriar Studio Art

Some neat designs here.

Click here for the Etsy shop.

Autumn-Feeling Morning

67 degrees and breezy here.

Happy Labor Day, everyone.

The Skeleton Key Returns

It's September 1st, and for the past 13 years that meant the return of the seasonal Halloween blog The Skeleton Key.  Checking in on this wonderful blog has always been a fantastic part of the Halloween season... even more so in these past few years as Halloween blogs are becoming more and more scarce.

Click below for K.O.'s The Skeleton Key blog...

Strega Liqueur

The sky is purple, the flare of a match behind a cupped hand is gold; the liquor is green, bright green, made from a thousand herbs, made from altars. Those who know enough to drink Chartreuse at Mardi Gras are lucky, because the distilled essence of the town burns in their bellies. Chartreuse glows in the dark, and if you drink enough of it, your eyes will turn bright green.

- Poppy Z. Brite, Lost Souls

Since the days back in the 90s when I was reading the horror novels of Poppy Z. Brite, I always made sure I had a bottle of Chartreuse liqueur around.  Over the years, I loosened up that tradition and allowed my one bottle to wither away, unaware that demand for this odd green spirit had soared while the Carthusian monks who produce it refused to increase production.  Word spread online about this shortage, and it became impossible to find. 

A week ago, Jenna surprised me with a yellow liqueur called Strega, with a neat Witch design on the bottle.  According to the manufacturer:  The life of Strega Liqueur began in 1860 evoking the old legend that places the city of Benevento as the former seat of witches’ rites. It is stated, in fact, that witches, from all over the world, gathered at night around a magical walnut, and that they had created a magic potion that united forever couples that drank it.  Turns out this thoughtful and impromptu gift has a very familiar flavor.  Despite being yellow, the combination of herbs and spices has made this liqueur taste extremely similar to the mysterious Chartreuse mentioned in those old horror novels. 

So until the demand diminishes or the Carthusian monks produce more, we'll keep a bottle of the Witch around.  Not sure if Poppy Z. Brite would approve of the substitution, but these are desperate times.

Now Playing: Derelict Spaceship Mix // Dark Space Ambient

A great mix from Cryo Chamber's label.

Click below for a soundscape (and a mesmerizing video)...

The Order Of The Halloween Tree

A photo series tribute to Ray Bradbury's classic tale.

Chapter 4:  The Devil Boy

"But, let me introduce myself! Moundshroud is the name.  Carapace Clavicle Moundshroud. Does that have a ring, boys? Does it sound for you?”
  
It sounds, the boys thought, oh, oh, it sounds … !

Moundshroud.

“A fine name,” said Mr. Moundshroud, giving it a full sepulchral night-church sound. “And a fine night. And all the deep dark wild long history of Halloween waiting to swallow us whole!”

“Swallow us?”

“Yes!” cried Moundshroud. “Lads, look at yourselves. Why are you, boy, wearing that Skull face? And you, boy, carrying a scythe, and you, lad, made up like a Witch? And you, you, you!” He thrust his bony finger at each mask. “You don’t know, do you? You just put on those faces and old mothball clothes and jump out, but you don’t really know, do you?”

“Well,” said Tom, a mouse behind his skull-white muslin. “Er—no.”

“Yeah,” said the Devil boy. “Come to think of it, Why am I wearing this?” He fingered his cloak and sharp rubber horns and lovely pitchfork.

Now Playing: Seance

This song came on during a nice drive last weekend and we couldn't get enough.  Turns out it's from a composer named Mort Garson.  He released an album called The Unexplained back in 1975 under the name Ataraxia.  It's a perfect addition to our Halloween playlists.  With track names like Tarot, Sorcerer, and Astral Projection, it's like a strange horror soundtrack from the 70's that you'd find playing on some late-night radio station.

Click below...

Or click here for youtube.

House Of Shock

I see a light up ahead.  It must be a way out.

Click here for more images.

A Pope And Some Pizza

Growing up in a suburban area packed with row homes, apartments, and strip malls meant a windfall of candy every Halloween night.  Heavy pillowcases FILLED with the stuff.   

At the end of our night of begging for candy, we'd drop off our trick-or-treat bags and walk a couple of blocks to a strip mall with a pizza shop at the end of the long row of stores. Each Halloween they gave out free slices of pizza. That's a pretty cool thing to do (though they were about half the size of a standard pizza slice [I don't blame them as there was a perpetual line of local kids stretching out the door and winding around the building]). One year, as we got down there, my brother's Pope costume got the attention of some older kid dressed as a police officer. Gun pulled; he started yelling "IT'S THE POPE! LET HIM THROUGH!!!  LET HIM THROUGH!!!!"  My brother in his cardboard Mitre got an escort and a lot of attention.  Me, in my would-never-do-that-today costume, received no escort at all. Thankfully, I still got pizza.

Now this is the neat part.  As part of this ritual of dropping off our candy bags at home and getting free pizza, we would then head off to a neighborhood near that strip mall for what I can only describe as a Halloween variety show.  To this day I have no idea who organized the event (or who built the massive wooden stage in the center of a terrace).  But we all knew it was going to be there... when trick-or-treating was over.  When Halloween was ending.  

I recall lots of lip-synching routines, mostly from teens dressed as their favorite heavy metal bands or singers like Mick Jagger or Tina Turner.  I can recall a magician at one point and maybe a comedian.  We stood in the audience in that cold October 31st air clapping and cheering and laughing.  After it ended, the pack of friends with whom I trick-or-treated would head back to our homes on near-empty streets.  Walking past darkened porches and jack-o-'lanterns with dying flames, as each of us parted ways (to be reunited with our candy loot and to head off to bed).  Going to a Catholic School meant that the day after was a day without school... making the Halloweens of my youth even MORE glorious.  

I haven't thought of that Halloween concert in a long time.  I wonder who organized it... and who took it all down after. 

Here's a previously-posted photo of us on that incredible night of faux police escorts and wonderful Halloween pizza (just ignore my costume).

Classic 80s Halloween Commercials

Click below...

Halloween Hostess

More images here.

American Daydream Antiques & Miscellanea

Some fun Halloween shopping in York, PA today...