Frog on the Pumpkin

cause I seem to be posting food all of a sudden..... I think I am avoiding the video post....I know I am :)

....the pink color gave it away to me immediately :) * BTW - that smiley face is especially for William .

that we are nothing but impressed with Zach and Jeremy aka The Bloodshed Brothers . We followed them on line and were impressed on how great they could make cardboard look (we mean that as a compliment!) in their yard haunt. The amount of work the two of them put into their display is more than admirable. We are quite impressed. Then one day I finally got to reading more about their haunt and found they were located in Temecula California. Means nothing to most of you, but it seriously made husband and I laugh. Why? Temecula is very close to where we used to live in California when we worked on our haunt over 20 years ago. Must be something going on down their that fosters haunters....maybe something in the avocados! :) (Temecula used to be mostly avocado groves when we lived there....now they have wine....great, after I leave they make wine. I mean I like avocados and all but, wine is better. Life is not fair.) We stopped laughing and started crying when we realized that they were not...

" Basement Husband " It is official, after 20 years of living in our house and sharing an office....it is over I sent husband to the basement. :) Well, not exactly sent, he went willingly, I think he was just as tired as I am of sharing the same office. So we worked on converting one of the store rooms in the basement to an shiny new office for him. He currently has the nicest room in the house, all the wiring is new, it has insulation and regular walls (lath and plaster walls are evil). I would say that I am jealous, except that this gives me my own office.....an office that I can keep clean and tidy and paint any color I want. As much as I say I want my own office I am sure I will miss having him right there to talk to...and I am sure he is going to take his Universal monster statue collection with him.....I kinda like those :D So now that he is "Basement Husband" - does that make Hal a "basement cat"? :D

"I can't carve a face...can you carve a face?" "No." (Darn I was hoping he had been hiding his sculpting talent from me all these years!) Husband foolishly asks "if I can live with it the way it is?" I married him for his amazing sense of humor :D ------------------------------- Well, this sucks....how about if we take a foam wig head, buy the expensive expanding foam and cast it a few times until we get something that is twice the size and has a face. Cool! We order a male wig head.....but then I find the cost for the expanding foam...ouch, you have got to be kidding....really, that is really expensive? I bet we could have artist carve us a head out of foam for less than that. Just an note that just like our talented Dan who thinks that rare earth magnets can solve any problem....husband feels the same way about Smooth On products.....the answer to most life's mysteries lies in their catalog. :D So, we go back and forth on this for a while and the...

and we started working with video projection about the same way that all the other projects start. Frog queen to husband. "Wouldn't it be cool to have a signing bust like at the Haunted Mansion?" Husband to frog queen "Yes, but we cannot sing." (now I think....whoa...I wasn't thinking about actually singing...I mean that would be scary in the not good way!!!) FQ to H "How about if it just...." I look over to notice that he is rolling his eyes at me....again... H to FQ .....then finally....."you do know it rains here....we cannot have a projector outside in the rain." FQ hang head, crosses her arms, stomps her feet and sulks in the corner ....cause I am mature that way :D After a few days husband says "I have been thinking about....." Those have turned out to be some of my favorite words....little did I know at the time that those lines were the beginning of a pattern that would go emerge each time I came up with a "crazy i...

from the dead...or something like that, I think I promised to talk about video projections. But first you have to check out these cool Batman pumpkins that I found over at Old Fashioned Halloween's blog. Yeah, I already ordered mine ! Thanks Old Fashioned Halloween for the link!!

do today is post some pictures that I took of my garden shed about the same time I took the picture of my new work area. This is my potting bench area directly to the right of my frog queen follies area....... this is where the garden magic is born...I know, not nearly as interesting as the Halloween stuff....but a girl has to diversify ....at least a bit. And I do have lots of pumpkins and skeletons in my garden, so that is Halloween related? Right? Kinda, sort of....does that count? :D Should be back to normal blog posts on Friday.....wasn't I going to talk about projections? Yeah, I better start collecting that information....might have husband guest blog on a few of those....since he is a primary part of those features. Oh, tandem blogging....this could be fun, or the end of my marriage, lets give it a try shall we?

is the Frog Queen sick....but her kitties are not doing so well. :( My "kittens" yes, I know they are almost 3 years old....but they are younger than Hal....so....anyway....just details.....they had to have some major dental work, looks like a genetic problem .....poor things. Anyway....I have a big tuxedo cat (Mason 16 lbs) and his very small sister (Dorie 8 lbs) wandering around the house bumping into walls, falling asleep randomly and looking pathetic because they are on major pain medication for a few days. Normally, when my cats fall down the stairs it is funny. I chuckle (after I check for broken bones), likely they were chasing something and then tumbled down in their cute adorable way and look at you like "What? I so meant to do that." Now they trip down the stairs and look at you like..... "Was I at the top of the stairs a moment ago? (they blink with glassy eyes.....) Where there always stairs there?..... .....Really? What evil force created those? Do...

Part II Sorry, I have been sick, but I will be back soon. I promise! :)

over a Pumpkinrots blog about projections. Showed lots of interesting ideas, not something I need more of :D We love projection effects, they are very cool, we use them....a lot. They are how all the ghosts in the graveyard are created. So it got me thinking....how many do we have now? The whole yard set up is kind of a whirlwind...and I just know "what we have" not how much of anything...except I know that we have 62 tombstones...yeah, that is a ^&*% lot of tombstones...but I digress. So let's count the projection effects from oldest to newest. talking head....the one that started it all ghost in the crypt (definitely the centerpiece of the display) ghost in the church (she replaced the FCG a few years ago) preacher ghost coming out of the front door (my favorite) ghost children in the back of the yard (added 2009) that is five projectors and players that have to be set up and taken down each night (usually in the rain)....no wonder set up is so stressful! :D And i...

you will find just by cleaning! Who knew that in my garden room I had room for a workbench for my Halloween Frog Queen follies!!! Just like husband and I not working well in the same office, that also goes for the workshop. Since the shop it technically his, I really don't have a whole lot of pull on how the space should be organized or the condition (although that does not stop me from constantly trying to clean and organize it!) I have been trying to work on a few frog queen follies, but have found that working in the same space as husband I am always "in the way". So when we were moving some shelves out of the basement into my garden room for storage. I was able to make a whole work area for me to make some of my frog queen follies that are too messy to do in the house. Woohoo!!! There is already a cue of projects that I need to work on....I am so excited!!!

I was sensitive about my short comings....defensive almost. :) " I am not blah, blah, blah" ...or " I do not more blah, blah, blah" But as I get older....don't care so much. Yes, I am bossy and opinionated and....I really have no patience, and I thought they were all bad traits, one of them might not be so much so. But this LOLcat set me straight about my lack of patience.....I think I like this one...it is my new motto.

to the 'dungeon'. Husband I love each other very much, but after years of sharing the same room as an office for the both of us, we are going our separate ways....office wise :D We are remodeling a room in the basement for his office. We have been tearing out and rebuilding for the last few weeks. A big part of this project was getting rid of truck loads of stuff that we have been collecting for over 20 years....some of it I sold on ebay (I have a few boxes more to get to) and the rest of it....well, it made our local Goodwill very happy :D I promise to stay out of his office new and not clean it, no matter how bad it gets, and he promises to quit rolling his eyes every time I say that I am moving a Halloween prop into my office in the off season. :) Hopefully by the end of this month we will have our own separate offices and a happier marriage :)

as keeper of the Graveyard very seriously. Here he is guarding (and checking the packing slip) on the latest shipment of skeletons :) Now if I could just get him to stop scratching the tombstones.......

going to do this the way it should be done. Here it is....the slap together version of the... West Coast Haunter Convention wrap up via the Frog Queen First of all - BIG kudos to Ed at the Oregon School for the Deaf and the Nightmare Factory Haunt (in the school) for putting on this amazing first year event. It was small, but it was the first year and I think the event went rather well all in all. I know how difficult it is to put on something like this and I think he (and a few helpers) did great. Really looking forward to next year. Not only did I get to meet ShellHawk , spend a day with Leonard and Jeannie , but we got to see some of our old friends: Hey, I don't I know you from somewhere? Guy from House Bloodthorn -he is the artistic genius behind the Hauntcast site and the revamp of ShellHawk's blog (and I think Johnny Thunder also - even a rumor he might do the Haunters Video Award site....someday :D ) and resurrector of the Ms Rose haunt from Skull and Bones . He is ...

over my head for way too long. I am so glad these are finally taken care of! I could tell you the whole long story of why the Haunters Video Awards are going out so late....but it is really boring and just one silly situation after another :) But yesterday the awards were dropped off at the post office and are on their way out to the winners. We sent John at Haunted Attraction Magazine the list of winners, so all the winners should also be getting their one year subscription starting with the next issue. Congrats to all the winners! Best Yard Haunt - Spencer & Debra in Broomfield, CO – Casa Fear Best Yard Haunt (Vanguard) - Guy in Tualatin, OR – House Bloodthorn The Resurrection of Rose Best Indoor/walkthrough Haunt – Russ & Carol in San Diego, CA – McKamey Manor Asylum Best Indoor/walkthrough Haunt (Vanguard) – Baron & Baroness Reuwsaat in Medford, OR - Darkwing Manor Morgueorium Museum Best Static Prop – Craig in Simi Valley, CA – Haunted Tiki Island Best Static Prop (Va...

pretty evil . . . .

that there could ever be a show on TV that I would have to watch, but if this guy wins, it just might happen. Apparently Oprah is having some contest where she is asking people about ideas for hosting their own show. And you guessed it, there is a guy out here pitching a show about haunting. It looks something like a haunt off kinda of competition. Sounds like all kinds of fun. Although it looks a bit out of my league (the Graveyard is not really a haunt and if I win I rather have my choice of stuff from a hardware store than a decoration warehouse) but it looks like it would be fun to watch. And I am all over supporting anything that promotes decorating for Halloween! (The more the merrier I say!) The guy has a great idea and it really looks like his heart is in it. And you cannot tell me that it would not be a kick to see haunters compete - imagine all the inspiring things we would see. So, head over and give James your support by voting for his idea.

that is my name. "Halloween Cat" aka 'Hal" perched on the ledge under a sign bearing his name. :D

reading tarot cards since ....well, I a long time. I have several decks, but I would not call myself a collector, I like to be personally attached to them in some way. Just another one of those frog queen follies. Although it is not a set of cards, when I heard that Chris (brilliant name) over and Designs by CK had created a book of his set of major arcana cards, called Halloween Tarot Dreams I had to get myself one.....and another as a gift for my door prize give away at our Halloween party. If as an artist you wonder if it is a good idea to participate in those giveaways, the answer is yes. I won one of his pieces a couple years ago and I have since become a fan and now I have a small collection of his work in my office! His work shows his talent and his tremendous heart. And as in my tradition, I am changing out my Etsy link to his store. Hop on over and check it out.

see a horde of demons or dragons crawling out of that... That is not (likely) photoshop...it is actually a sink hole in Guatemala that was allegedly caused by a busted sewer pipe....wow, now that is scary!

find someone as crazy as yourself. Just to let you know that you are not alone on the planet and those other normal people are really missing out on having friends like ShellHawk . :) We (husband and I) got the great privilege of hosting Shell when she came up for the West Coast Haunters Convention. (I know this post is really late.) Let me tell you a secret.....she is just as cool in person as she is on her blog...actually, even cooler, if that is possible :D We started the weekend having way too much wine at our favorite wine bar Wine:30 in our little downtown Milwaukie, then we gave her a quick tour around the house and headed off to bed so we could get going to the convention Friday morning. Since husband had to work, Shell and I braved it alone on Friday. Yeah, that has trouble written all over it. BTW - this woman knows how to present herself at a convention....wow, never felt so plain before . . . . wait, yes, I have, every time I hang around my friend Macy....but that is anoth...

on my mind, even though it is not even remotely horror/Halloween related....I have to share. I would not so much call this a movie review...as me venting because I feel like I am in some kind of nightmare. Seriously...... .....I do not, for the life of me, get all the hoopla about Avatar.....if one more person tells me how "great" that movie is....I am going beat them with my copy of Princess Mononoke . :) I mean that in the nicest way possible :D Now back to prop building!!!

bright colorful places full of plants that have lovely names like Dalia, Delphinium, Lady's Mantel, Swan flower, Inca lily....soft and lovely. Leave it to me to buy: a rose called Black Magic (I think I now have two), a tomato called Black Prince and a black bell pepper (Mavras Bell ). I could say I that the name had nothing to do with influencing my buying decision....but I would be lying :D

call the vendor that does the plaque printing for both my work and the Davis Graveyard and give him a (in jest) piece of my (admittedly rather small) mind because our plaques for the awards I ordered 3 weeks ago were not done. I call, no answer, just his voice mail....hummmmm, never got that before. That is odd. Don't want to be funny on an answering machine, cause we all know how that could easily be misunderstood :) I leave him a short message asking if he has gotten a chance to work on my order and to give me a call. I then get distracted with the West Coast Haunters Convention. Before I go I remember that he has not called me and now I am getting a bit irritated and give him another call. I was going to say - forget the order, I will find another person...when I find that I cannot leave a message because his mailbox is full...... ....irritation suddenly turns to concern. The guy in question is a retired and works out of his house not too far from our neighborhood....I worry a b...

Hum, that is a good question. I have been busy lately, but I have been busier before and managed to blog. The truth is that I have not been too fond of my posts lately, not that I am a great writer or all that entertaining, but I just don't like what I am writing. Usually I can make almost any situation laughable. Lately not so much so. Have a lot of things that I need to get done, most importantly, must get those haunter awards out...I can not tell the winners enough how sorry I am that they are late. The whole process this year has been one delay after another - so this current one, although no surprise to me....just adds to the whole situation that from the outside makes it look like Davis Graveyard has dropped the ball....partly true. Stuff happens, really, in the grand scheme of things....this is the little stuff. (I just made myself LOL - I can say that because we did not win an award, I can remember our first (actually second) award* and I thought it was a pretty big deal . ...

a giant spider!!! ((shudder))