At last we've reached what is,
without a doubt, the best part of every year. That final stretch of
the last four months which cram all the best holidays, snacks, video
games, and everything wonderful into a straight marathon that makes
life all-around better. Consider this the introduction to our
Halloween coverage. For the next two months, everything we cover will
be spooky in some form of fashion. Obviously for most of our regular
content this won't pose an issue though topics like Star Wars novels
are shelved for the time being. Sorry fellow Jedi, these nights are
meant for the works of Masterton and DeFellita, not space wizardry.
To kick off the season we're going to
talk about several items but let's start with a tiny tradition of
mine. Granted this season is full of traditions ranging from pumpkin
carving and haunted houses, to strolls through the woods and library
book sales. One of my smallest yet most important practices was
inspired by a film focused on an entirely different holiday,
Christmas Vacation.
Anyone who's seen the movie knows the
general idea. Clark Griswold invites a large chunk of extended family
to visit for the holiday in order to pull off the perfect Christmas
everyone dreams of having. This isn't a completely selfish goal
either as he intends to give everyone lasting happy memories. After
countless challenges and set-backs everything works out, just not the
way he planned. In the end he looks to the starry night sky and says
with pleased exasperation “I did it.” As a fellow holiday nut
this scene always speaks to me.
Let's face it, if you're anything like
me you put a ton of effort into your Halloween festivities. Picking
out the right horror movies, carving tons of gourds, making your own
decorations, listening to scary tunes, gathering family and friends
for different activities. It can seem nearly impossible to fit in all
the great experiences available. Often times you'll fail to fit in a
couple items yet when all is said and done that push to enjoy
everything to the fullest makes it all worthwhile. That's not to say
the journey towards all Hallows Even won't have a speed-bump or two,
but that's where each year gains its own character.
And so on Halloween night there are
two itty-bitty touches that complete the journey. The first comes
immediately after we finish handing out candy. I stroll out to the
middle of the road and yell out “Happy Halloween!” to the entire
neighborhood. This occasionally earns a reply though that's hardly
the point. That one is sort of my thank-you to everyone who came by
the house to enjoy the show.
That second part comes much later into
the night, after a few horror flicks and more than a few pumpkin
beers. Usually one of the dogs will ask to go out and I'll accompany
them to the backyard. It's at that time, standing out in the cool
night air, listening to the near silence of post-celebration
exhaustion that I look up at the sky, thinking back on everything I
accomplished during the season and finally utter the words “I did
it.”
It's a great feeling to pat yourself
on the back for a job well done. And that's a feeling I encourage
you to chase this year. Take every chance to walk through the Autumn
colored park, fit in a few good nights of ghastly board games by
candlelight, just live life a bit bigger than usual. Then give
yourself a personal thanks for doing your best. Cause let's face it
while Halloween does indeed make everything better, life can still
find a way to dig its claws into ya. Live like Griswald and accept
that the journey can be rocky at times. It's important to focus on
all the good you were able to take in during the season, even if it
was just a few decent nights of horror flicks and cheese-balls you
pretended were tiny pumpkins.
With the pep-talk out of the way,
let's get kicking with one of the major new snacks for this year,
Pumpkin Spice Frosted Flakes. I was actually able to get my hands on
these at the halfway point of August though I barely got a bowl in as
my pumpkin-spice hating nephew broke character and devoured the box
overnight. Maybe that should serve as incentive for you to pick up a
box as it can apparently work wonders on non-believers. Personally I
only like these a little. They're alright but they just don't strike
the proper balance for me. The smell is crazy over the top while the
flavor is more subtle, taking time to be unleashed by soaking in
milk. Perhaps your level of enjoyment will come down to how you fell
about this flavor in general. If you're an outsider it may be just
the thing for you, personally I'd like something a little bolder.
Either way, I'm not one to turn down a new cereal.
I do wish the art department had
worked a little harder on the box. It's just so spartan and basic,
very much lacking in autumnal touches. Even throwing a few falling
leaves on there would have been a major improvement. Usually I don't
get this worked up over packaging but this one sort of feels like
it's trying to be separate from the season going so far as to have
the back be about Tony the Tiger having a music festival. There's
nothing about changing colors, fields full of vine-fruit, and nothing
remotely close to Halloween. It may be a good snack for relatives but
a display piece it is not.
Of course there are plenty of other
avenues to find some spooky fun. This is when I usually get the
greatest influx of new titles added to my horror movie stash and this
year is off to a good start. In the photo you can see an old Anchor
Bay VHS for Plague of the Zombies, a Hammer flick I've wanted
to see for sometime that hasn't been available stateside since the
early 2000s. While far from a great Hammer movie it still has the
classic atmosphere that make their work such comfortable viewing.
Plus I adore these old full plastic Anchor Bay cases.
Also got the Paul Naschy Collection
vol II from Scream Factory. If you've never had the opportunity
to watch Naschy's work I'd strongly suggest you remedy the situation.
The man made more than a few stinkers in his time but when he got it
right the results are pure trashy fun.
Finally we have something that took me
completely by surprise. While visiting Wal-Mart earlier this week I
came across a Jeepers Creepers double feature that claimed to
be from Shout/Scream Factory yet had zero special features and cost a
mere ten bucks. After getting home I searched out some info and found
this is the second time both companies have worked together to create
cheap double-feature blu-rays that dump the bonus material. The price
made this a no brainer for updating my very old DVD and maybe giving
the sequel another chance.
I've also nabbed yet another Pumpkin
Masters pattern book along with metal corn stalks for the front yard
yet would you believe I'm keeping things on the cheap? That's my
challenge in the coming weeks as I held off on job-searching while I
worked on getting school set-up which means there's a pretty strict
budget in place. That's my life challenge for the year. Remember,
that's why you gotta approach holidays with the Griswold outlook.
With this sampler-platter of topics
done we can consider the Halloween coverage officially underway.
There's a whole bunch of items planned during the upcoming weeks
ranging from Tales from the Darkside episodes, old Playstation
games, a movie showcase or two, and whatever treats spring up. As
always I encourage you all to share stories of adventures and
acquisitions since holidays are always better when shared. I'll most
likely be back this weekend with our first full topic but for now
I've gotta start clearing space in the basement in order to dig out
the decorations.
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