People will be putting this into their mouths and eating it for
Thanksgiving.
It’s called
” Tofurky “
Here’s what I will be truly grateful for this Thanksgiving:
I WON’T be eating this.
a.m.m.
Holidays
My Favorie Part Of The Turkey ( is the skin )
I asked my Sister if she wanted me to give her a hand this around the kitchen this
Thanksgiving.
She said no.
Strange.
Who couldn’t use an extra set of hands when making a big meal.
So I called her again and said I would love to bake some cookies…how did that sound?
Great she says.
Wonderful I tell her.
I just love to make Gingerbread Cookies I reminded her.
She asked me if I wouldn’t mind making them with heads this time.
I always make them with heads I laughed.
Attaching the gingerbread heads to the gingerbread bodies would be a nice touch she says-and it would be something new for me, wouldn’t that be nice she asked.
Sure, I think I could really ENJOY baking boring cookies.
So this morning I sent my Sister an e-mail.
I asked if I was still banned from carving the Turkey.
Damn straight, was her speedy reply.
Brother.
I tell one silly story about a dissection class I took while carving the Christmas Turkey and I get forced to use plastic SPOONS for the rest of my freaking life at family holiday meals.
Some people have NO sense of humor.
NONE.
Well.
There must be something I could bring to dinner I said to my sister in a phone call this evening
that would not make
the people in our family think about things without a pulse and smelling like formaldehyde.
Not a chance says my Sister says after a very long pause.
Well.
I don’t know what your Thanksgiving will be like this year, but apparently
I
will be dining with a bunch of weirdos.
What can I say
besides
I hope your
Thanksgiving is as interesting and fun
as mine.
Hang Him On A Hook and Let Me Play With Him
A few sweet Halloween Memories
scene from Hocus Pocus- Psychos Disney Style-
(click the pic above to find out how to make your own apple heads)
I used to make my very own shrunken heads.
I didn’t use this kit though.
I used my own.
Ahem.
Brraiiiiinnnnssss
Brains Panna Cotta with Pomegranite Sauce
1 cup milk
5 teaspoons unflavored gelatin
4 cups heavy cream
1 cup + 1 Tb sugar, divided
pinch salt
2 Tablespoons vanilla
8 oz. pomegranate juice
1/4 cup cornstarch
Place milk in a small bowl and sprinkle gelatin over the top. Stir and let sit for about five minutes so the gelatin can rehydrated a bit.
Combine cream and sugar in a pan and bring to a boil over medium heat. Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla and salt. Add the gelatin mixture and stir again until combined. Pour into (brain) mold, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate overnight or until mixture is completely set.
To unmold, gently tilt mold so sides of the Panna cotta pull away a bit, then place on platter or plate. You can also dip the bottom of the mold into warm water to help in unmolding.
(For non-brain occasions, pour into small custard cups, ramekins, or a large bowl)
For the pomegranate sauce, I just got a small bottle of Pom Wonderful, added three heaping spoonfuls of sugar so it wasn’t so tart, mixed in about 1/4 cup cornstarch, whisked like crazy, then brought it all to a boil in a small saucepan while stirring. The consistency is rather disgusting, but that’s the whole point!
This looks especially creepy set out on a really nice platter. Also quite effective on a carving board with a large chef’s knife plunged into the center
P.S. If you don’t have time for this recipe, jello works wonderfully!
for more Ghoulish Recipes visit Creating a Happy Home
There you go, some sweet memories….I hope you found them…. tasty….
Pirates- Its What To Be For Halloween
There are Zombie Pirates
and Keith Richard Pirates ( thank you for that Johnny Depp )
and of course
Pirate Wenches
But there is only one
Ching Shih.
Ching Shih was the most awesome Pirate ever: Ching Shih and her fleet were known to rob markets, towns and villages from Macao to Canton.
She was unstoppable- so the Chinese Government offered her ‘amnsesty’ and she retired.
In the end she got to keep her loot, her freedom and she died at the age of 69 which is something like 100 in Pirate Years.
Ching Shih-
My First Choice
In
what to be
for
Halloween
Now
for some
fun pirate stuff-
A Fun Pirate Song:
And last but not least
some fun
Pirate Clipart Sites:
I should mention: I grew up in and around Seattle, so there is no WAY I could not mention the
Seattle Seafair Pirates.
They are awesome they are Sprit of Seattle and I forgive them for the time they took my little sister at a Seafair Parade in the early 1970’s
AND BROUGHT HER BACK!
Seattle Seafair Pirates
Pirate Kings Of The Pacific Northwest since 1949
VISIT THEIR SITE HERE–
My Favorite Pirate Flag
I Dare You
Some Tricks AND Treats
for your loved ones
who have
passed on.
and now for some traditional Halloween Fun:
now I’m off…
I hope you all have a great Halloween!
a.m.
You Rock Barbara Jo
I don’t know who Barbara Jo is, but she has created the most awesome cake ever.
It’s Called A Zombie Cake.
I admire her work on so many levels…the first being, it’s obvious this cake takes a lot of work, my Dad was an excellent Chef and he admired what it took to bake so when it comes to sugar and patience- I am humbled.
Second of all, I truly hate Zombies, not because they scare me but as a horror fan they offend me.
If you are a character in a horror movie and you get chased down and killed by a creature who is rotting from the inside out-
or the outside in
and the monster’s brains are turning to water in their skulls and they can still figure out how to trap their victims you SO deserve to die
and in turn
I deserve to lose whatever money I paid to watch it happen.
So I guess that’s why I like the idea of turning a zombie into a cake and carving it up with a kitchen utensil….
a sharp one.
By the by:
Barbara Jo also created these:
They’re eyeballs made from maraschino cherries-
which were soaked in rum.
I think that’s hilarious.
Not only do they ( you have to read THIS to find out why Barbara is a THEY ) bake truly gruesome cakes they do movie reviews for shows like ” The Werewolf Vs The Vampire Women ” and “Wizard of Gore”
Barbara Jo just made my Halloween a little sweeter…hope they do the same for you
So let’s go visit Barbara Jo…I’ll drive and please
don’t mind my friend in the backseat…
he’s dieing to meet you
Legend Of The Georgetown Morgue
UPDATE:
FOR INFORMATION ON THE 2012GEORGETOWN MORGUE
:::click on the picture below:::
Today I read an article that debunks the story about The Georgetown Morgue.
I don’t do the haunted house tour thing ( you know, after you’ve worked in a Funeral Home and had to visit real morgues and years later all you can remember is the taste of McDonald’s French fries because you were consistently assigned removals in the afternoons- just before lunch)- Morgues don’t exactly scare me-
the thought of them now just makes me hungry.
For French Fries.
The super-sized serving.
Anyway.
I thought the setup for the Georgetown Morgue was a fun idea, a very neat story and the building the “morgue” is staged in is way over the top and looks the part.
Most funeral homes, let’s face it, were supposed to blend because they were either near churches or in neighborhoods and people actually lived in them.
However subtle- some of them are they are weird if you know what to look for the weirdness- take a look at the garage doors and back doors which are wider then normal to accommodate you know, things which require a lot room to move through, and though the writer of the above mentioned article does toss in the small smoke stacks at the Evergreen Washelli Funeral Home and how unscary they are but he fails to mention the actual creepy thing is the mirror mounted on the roof and tilted upwards towards the smoke stack.
The Funeral Directors use this mirror to make sure the smoke doesn’t turn dark during the cremation process…see CREEPY.
You just need to know where to look to find it.
However- there’s always an however isn’t there?
On a visit Dubque Iowa, I saw this amazing funeral home called Behr’s- which looks scary by any measure.
So what do I think about the ‘debunking’ of the Georgetown Morgue?
Well.
I’d say the writer who did this didn’t prove anything other then the only story he could come up with was the deconstructing of another writer’s work.
Creating a world and a story and legend for you to follow isn’t easy, placing it in terms that invite readers to want actually walk ( or drive ) to that door is actual work, bringing a building and people who never existed to life, takes effort, writing a vindictive little hit pieces to ruin the moment for people who wanted to visit the “Georgetown Morgue” ?
Geeze- now that’s just mean spirited.
So visit the setup site for the Georgetown Morgue, it’s actually well done- I thought the way they wove bits of Seattle’s real history into the ‘legend’ was pretty clever – the earthquakes, the hint of the Wa Mee Massacre, the death of a famous local musician wrapped in media hype- made it possible for present day for local residents to ‘relate’ to this building and to the story.
So no- I wouldn’t visit the haunted house- I couldn’t even be bribed with French Fries…however…if someone were to tell me more stories about the Georgetown Morgue– they would have my undivided attention.
After all, this is what we do during Halloween- we spin yarns, tell tales and for one night not only do we get to face the monsters-
we get to face them down.
It’s all part of the fun.
So.
Try.
A few of you, more then others…
to have a
Happy Halloween.
The Georgetown Morgue: Gruesome true story or fabrication?
From Ghoulies and Ghosties…
“From ghoulies and ghosties and long-legged beasties, and things that go bump in the night, good Lord deliver us.”
(Old Cornish prayer.)
Halloween In The Prep Room
“Morgue Halloween Fun For You!”
Mummies…they’ve got them at
KING’S CAPUCHINS’ CATACOMBS OF PALERMO ITALY
Urban Legends?
That’s what they say they are:
at
Halloween Ghost Stories dot Com
Halloween Games- Grave Robbing is not on this list, I checked. Here’s a link to what they do have on the Halloween Games List at Party Ideas dot Com
Merry Christmas From Anita’s Bridge
Just a few shiny decorations to help you get into the Spirit ( ha, ha ) of things during Christmas- of course I write about werewolves and curses and pychos sooooo…..it may not be the traditional sparkly stuff but it is fun.
Happy Christmas from
Your Faithful Storyteller:
amm
And open this door ( well, click the Pic ) and enjoy a
Universal Horror Christmas Carol
moar funny pictures
GO TO:
Don’t ask why…just click
now- go forth or stay in the shadows-
whatever jingles your bells
and
like my Mom says:
It’s the Holidays, it’s for everyone
enjoy yourself!
A Christmas Tale For Eventide
They were a Mother, Father and three children on a Ferry Boat sailing from Duwamish Bay to visit their Grandmother in Seattle.
It was Christmas Eve and the children, two girls and one boy were dressed up. The little girls sat up straight, careful not to mess up their hair or wrinkle their dresses.
The little boy was picking his nose and wiping it under the wooden benches they were sitting on as the black waters of Puget Sound parted dark and quiet below them.
The Children weren’t wearing jackets and they weren’t wearing hats or gloves and it was snowing outside, but it wasn’t in Kincross Benandanti’ s nature to involve herself in why people did or didn’t do things the way you’d expect them too.
Human nature wasn’t something Kincross understood very well and it probably had something to do with the fact she was of a loner of sorts.
That didn’t stop her from noticing things though.
Kincross noticed that even though the Pale Family were still and quiet their eyes never stopped moving from one passenger’s face to the next.
She also noticed when she looked up and out the window that the family were sitting next to that she could see her own reflection and the reflections of the passengers as they made their way around the cabin…
But the Pale Family cast no reflection in the window at all.
Kincross went back to her book and every once and awhile she looked up at the Pale Family and sometime during the ride the Mother looked straight into Kincross’ face and smiled.
Kincross smiled and nodded and went back to her book.
Then the woman leaned over to the little boy and whispered into his ear and then she handed him something and pushed at his shoulder.
The boy took his time and turned a 10 second walk into something that lasted for almost five minutes. When he got to Kincross he reached out and handed her a little cookie shaped like a bell decorated with little red and green sprinkles.
She handed him a Kleenex and winked and the boy went back to his Mother and he sat quiet as a shadow for the rest of the trip.
After awhile Kincross stopped reading and then she set her book down onto the empty seat to her left. She fished for a coin from her purse and when she found one she held her hand out palm side down and placed the coin on top of her fingers.
Then the coin seemed to crawl and weave from finger to finger and with a snap of her fingers it disappeared.
She looked at her hand and then she muttered to herself, ” now how do you bring it back-” she reached for her book and started to read when she saw the two little girls standing in front of her with their hands folded across their chests.
” Are you a Magician? ” one girl asked
” Trying to be.”
The second little girl said, ” You’re not very good are you? “
” No, not yet. “
The two little girls wished Kincross a Merry Christmas and when they skipped off they did it without making a sound…it was like their feet never touched the floor.
Kincross tried over and over to bring the coin back and when she decided it was lost she decided to get up and stretch her legs. She also decided to toss the book, ” 1001 Easy Magic Tricks ” overboard.
It was when she was coming back into the observation cabin that she noticed the man in the black jacket for the first time.
He was standing in a doorway watching the Pale Family.
Kincross watched the man and when he moved she jumped a little.
She had not expected the man with the flat dead eyes to do something as normal as turn and bump his shoulder and say ‘ouch’ as he left the cabin.
But that’s what he did.
Curious about the living man with the dead flat eyes she decided to follow him.
She followed him down below to where the cars were parked and she watched him open a van door and reach in and when he stepped back she saw he was holding a black bag.
She heard it rattle as he reached into it.
She watched him take out a silver mallet that he set on top of the Van’s roof and then he reached back into he bag and bring out five silver spikes.
Kincross frowned as she watched him inventory the rest of his bag…then she watched him carefully repack it.
She followed him as he made his way back up to the passengers cabin and then she watched him standing in the corner with his dead blue eyes locked onto the Pale Family.
And then she noticed they weren’t so dull and flat anymore.
They were burning.
Seattle was ahead of them, wrapped in fog and cold and darkness.
Kincross followed the man out on to the observation deck and she walked up behind him and said, ” cold night, isn’t it? “
” Very. “
” Get into Seattle very often? “
” Only when I’m needed ” he said ” and it looks like I’m going to be needed for a few days. “
” It’s Christmas Eve, maybe you should take the night off. After all the rest of us are.”
He backed away a little and when his back hit the door Kincross reached over his shoulder and held it shut.
He couldn’t move that arm, it was as solid and strong as an iron bar and Kincross said, “ I work out…a lot.”
Then the Man found he was staring down into eyes so dark and black that it didn’t seem like there were any eyes in that face at all.
” Your eyes…” he whispered ” you have no eyes…”
” I can see you just fine. ” Kincross assured him.
Then as she leaned close the man choked and gasped and he said, “ your teeth…”
Kincross said as she brought her mouth to his neck, ” I know! I know! They’re huge… it’s a family curse.”
Halloween Fun At Anita’s Bridge
On Halloween Night we used to love to do things like test drive Mortality.
Here’s how we did it:
Bloody Mary
You know that legend about Bloody Mary? You’re supposed to stand in front of a mirror, in the dark ( well, use some candles I mean- duh- if you can’t see what’s going on you’re out of luck ) and chant the name ” Bloody Mary ” three times- then she comes out of the mirror and kills you.
I’m not sure how she does it- though I’m guessing sharp objects are involved.
I think the idea is to get somebody you don’t like to do this- but I could be wrong.
We tried it- doesn’t work
but it was fun.
The Girl At The Side Of the Road
Every Halloween some Dead Prom Queen is supposed to be on some road waiting for somebody to give her a ride home
From what I understand this story involves a girl who dies in a car accident on her way home from the Prom and somebody will pick her up and drive her home and when they get there they turn to the back seat and she’s gone and her parents come out to tell you her sad story.
We went looking for her too- but we decided if we found her we’d make her go ” Shoulder Tapping ” with us.
Shoulder tapping is what we called it back in the 70’s when you’d hang around in front of the 7-11 and try to get people to buy beer for you- which shows you how smart we were- we always did it in our neighborhood so we were always sober by the end of the night.
And we didn’t see a ghost either.
Darn.
Thirteen Steps To Hell
We have at least two cemeteries here in Washington with stories about how in one crypt or in one grave there are Thirteen Steps Leading to Hell. The Doorway to the steps is guarded by a Witch who will give you the Second Sight if you sell your Soul to the Devil who is waiting for you at the bottom of the 13 Steps to finalize the deal.
To bad the Sight doesn’t kick in before you get to the Bottom of The 13 Steps.
Then You’d see clear as day that the Devil takes you to Hell and if your plan was to rule the world with your Powers- you are so going to be disappointed- toasty- but very disappointed.
Message From The Beyond
Everyone goofs off with a Ouji Board on Halloween.
Everyone knows those things are demonic.
Everyone doesn’t get together three or so friends, agree on a phone number
as the ‘message’
let their inncoent bystander ( and former ) friends call it
only to let them learn they’re dialing
the intake desk at a local Mental Hospital.
Hey, it’s funny-and like I said you shouldn’t mess with those things…
and on Halloween of all Nights.
Dingbats.
To end this let me remind you:
Life is short-
Enjoy Halloween and all the
rest of the year too
amm
From Ghoulies And Ghosties….
From Ghoulies and Ghosties
and long leggety beasties
and things that go bump in the night,
Have A Happy Halloween!
How Sweet It Is
I have so many wonderful Halloween Memories…
this is one of them
and it concerns:
Today I read about a Lizzie Borden Halloween Prop that costs THOUSANDS of dollars.
Robot Lizzie swings an Ax up and down.
Sure, whatever.
When I was a kid this family had a Haunted House set up in their basement and the Dad used to dress up like Lizzie and chase people around with an ax and he’d be screaming ” Forty Whacks! Forty Whacks for you all!”
And the entire time he- well, she is doing that, we’d be screaming for Jesus and our Moms and diving under furniture and swinging our plastic pumpkins like around medieval war weapons and trying to climb out the windows.
I wouldn’t trade that memory for anything-
not even for THOUSANDS of dollars.
amm
A Midnight Dreary
I not only write ghost stories
I’ve lived some.
enjoy
About 10 years ago my husband and our three kids moved back to Mountlake Terrace. When we moved to Terrace we moved into a brand new Apartment Complex, I think there had been less then a half dozen renters in the place.
So it was new and spiffy and energy efficient.
About two weeks after we moved in I was in my bathroom brushing my teeth before bed.
It had been raining and thundering all evening, so when I started to see flashes of lighting it wasn’t exactly a surprise.
Anyway, I was looking into my bathroom mirror- I saw myself, I saw my bedroom window over my shoulder and then I saw blinding white light in the mirror and then my teeth slammed together and there was this deafening roar and all I could think was, ” I’m in trouble. ”
I wasn’t in trouble- but the tree outside my bedroom window was.
The next day we found out it had been hit by lightning and you could see the scorch mark down one side and two of its limbs were blasted off and another was left dangling.
The kids played and tugged at the damaged tree limb until it came off. I remember them dragging it around for a while and the maintenance man broke it up and threw it away.
It was shortly after that when the ghosts came.
My youngest son is a social animal.
At the age of 7 and after only a few weeks of living in our new place he knew everyone. By that I mean he knew names and who lived where and what they did and their pets names and millions of other little details.
Don’t ask me how he did it.
Then he changed.
It was a gradual change- my son started to sleep a lot during the day, he started getting dark circles under his eyes and when he started hiding his favorite toys around the living room I thought that maybe the move had affected him after all.
One day I was pulling his collection of Ninja Turtles from out of my bookcase (he had hidden them behind the books) when he went walking by with his skateboard under his arm and said he wanted to take a nap.
It was about 2:00 in the afternoon and enough was enough.
I asked why he was so tired and he said, ” this little boy comes into my room at night and plays with my toys and he’s keeping me awake.”
” Is that why you’re hiding your toys? ”
” Yeah. ”
Is it working? ” I said trying to play along.
My son shrugged and went into his room and took his nap.
It was a little while after the toys in the bookshelf incident when my Sister came over for a visit.
My kids had insisted on a pet hamster because not only did their Mom have a cat she had pet rats and the boys decided pets shouldn’t be something only Moms got to have.
They named their new pet Scooter.
My Sister and I were alone in the apartment- the kids, my husband and her husband were all out buying pizza.
We were in the kid’s room playing with Scooter.
We put him into one of those little balls hamsters can run around in and I remember my cat was sitting in the doorway and I was going to push the ball with the hamster in it towards him.
My cat had been raised with my rats and he had this thing were he wouldn’t go for rats or hamsters and my Sister didn’t believe it.
So we both look up to where Wolfgang had been sitting when this little boy ran right passed the bedroom door and down the hall towards my bedroom.
” Who’s that? ” my Sister asked.
” Probably a neighbor kid. They walk in all the time. ”
I went to get the kid when my cat sort of slinked around the corner and he looked up at me and growled.
I don’t mean that cat growl- it was big and deep and his ears flattened against his head.
I went to push him out of the way with my foot and he reached forward and grabbed my ankle with his teeth. Then he started to jerk backwards with these little snaps to his neck and the entire time he’s doing this he’s looking up at me and growling.
Then he sort of turned without letting go and tried to pull me back into my kid’s room.
My sister was yelling, I was screaming because my cat was holding onto my ankle and the blood was starting to run and no matter what we did or how loud we yelled he wouldn’t let go.
Then his ears went back up; he let go of my ankle and he walked out into the living room.
” There’s no one in the apartment except us…is there? ” my Sister asked.
I remember I couldn’t answer because I didn’t know.
I’ll leave you with this final ghost story-
Out of a dead sleep I woke up at exactly 1:45 in the morning and standing beside my bed was my Grandfather.
I was really glad to see him- it had been about 14 years since he had died. He’d missed my Wedding and my High school Graduation and a million other great things.
Now I was going to get the chance to tell him all about it and I remember trying to wake up more so that I could get my husband to wake up and meet my Grandpa.
I was surprised- but not that my Grandfather was there but that he looked so young.
He looked like he did in his late 30’s- I’d only seen pictures of him in those days and I wasn’t sure why he looked like that and not like the man I’d known.
But that was okay- all that mattered was that he was here now.
This went on for a week- I’d wake up at the same time and there he was standing by me looking happy and relaxed and pleased to see me.
At the end of the week my Grandfather’s sister passed away.
I was heartbroken- she was a great lady and she use to tell this great story about performing in a childrens choir ‘back in the day’ for Prisoners in an honest to goodness Prison.
They were singing for genuine convicted killers and robbers.
I use to ask a million questions about what it was like inside of a Prison and she was happy to tell me.
Plus she could whistle through her teeth.
She had a great life if you ask me.
Anyway, I never asked what time she died- I was sure I already knew.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
So there are my stories- are they true?
Did they really happen?
Did they?
Did You See That?
Just doing my part to spread the Halloween fun…
so here are some treats to get you in the Halloween Spirit
enjoy
For some Devilish Delights ( and I DO MEAN Devilish Delights)
visit
at
He says it’s all about Pies, but for real Tony loves that spooky stuff so check him out at Tales at Twilight
I AM NOT WORTHY I AM NOT WORTHY visit my heroes Mark and Mark at Weird New Jersey –they so rule.
And to get that little chill- you know the one that runs up and
down your spine just as the lights go off…
read Max’s Ghost Story
Want to see something really strange? Then vist the West Midland Ghost Club in the U.K. ….
or you could stay local like me and hang ( ha ) with the crew from A.P.A.R.T
FOUR MORE DAYS! FOUR MORE DAYS!
NOW GO FORTH AND HALLOWEEN….
Spend H’Ween with A.P.A.R.T
contact info:
note from
FROM
REGAN:
I just wanted to add as well that we’ve done a couple additional investigations, with great results.
But you have to come see us to discuss those results, hear them, and see them.
*wink*
This is a kid friendly event.
!!!!!EXTRA!!!!
for an exclusive article by
Regan
from
A.P.A.R.T
CLICK HERE
Six More Days!
As you may know Halloween Is Coming
Here’s a song about a Mummy-
Okay, you know this isn’t what you think it’s going to be about, right?
So enjoy.
Once Upon A Midnight….
Me and some of my friends from The Soul Food Cafe
Have started to put up some Halloween Posts at
Mrs Parson’s House.
It’s bare bones ( ahem ) for now but we hope to flesh it out ( ha ) as we get closer to the big day-
So stop on by for some Halloween Fun HERE
Lator Gators
amm
By Livia Longyear
Every Halloween people pay good money to stay at the Longyear Hotel in a little town called Duwamish Bay.
By candlelight they listen to stories about the odd history of Duwamish Bay and the strange story about a woman who wrote books for another person whose name is very famous in the world of horror and about how she buried the dead by night and how sometimes she would haunt the roads and hills by moonlight looking for stories.
Once a man from a little town in Kansas flew all the out to Duwamish Bay and he checked into the hotel and asked for Livia’s room.
” Guests don’t stay in that room, ” Mr Longyear, the owner of the Inn said. ” We actually rent out her writing room, which if you’d care to see it-”
” I wouldn’t ” Parker Overland said ” I’d like to stay in Livia’s room, isn’t that your stock and trade here? Stay in the room where a real, how do you put it ” Ghost Writer ” once lived?”
” Sir, that’s what I’m saying…she wrote her novels upstairs in the sitting room – she didn’t write them in her bedroom…”
” I understand you, what I’m saying is, I want to stay in Livia Longyear’s bedroom, I want to know what she saw just before she fell asleep at night and I want to know what it was she saw when she opened her eyes. That’s what I want.”
” Mr. Overland, it’s bare bones in there and not very comfortable. Livia’s bedroom is the oldest room in the house. Her sitting room though is available for private parties- and we do have a few hours free where you can have the room to yourself. We even have a guide available to – ”
” Look Sir ” Mr. Overland glared down into the small dark face of Mr Longyear ” I want to get inside of this writer’s head, I want to know why she wrote stories for someone else that made them famous and why she allowed her to die in obscurity as a retired gravedigger in a town whose main stock and trade is a permanent Sideshow and an abandoned Insane Asylum. I want to understand it all.”
” A lot of people ask those questions Mr Overland and they don’t need to stay in Livia’ bedroom to do it. ”
” Of course they do, but this woman has been inside of my head for over 30 years and I think it’s only fair that now I get inside of her head and walk around for awhile.”
Mr Overland’s face was not filled with excitement or curiosity. It was not earnest. He looked like a man who had spent a sleepless night being tormented by a mosquito.That’s what Mr Overland looked like and he was doing it right in the middle of the place Livia Longyear called home.
An hour or so later Mr. Overland had his way which was no a surprise to him.
Parker Overland was used to getting it and at the moment he was very annoyed at the short uppity man with the funny name who thought he could change that simple fact of nature.
Mrs. Longyear came into the Parlor with a little drink for Parker and she handed it to him.
” I’ve called my daughter in to get Livia’s room ready. She takes care of those things for me. “Cardela Longyear held her hands up; they were twisted and swollen with arthritis. This is what happens when you get old I suppose.”
” I suppose. “Parker held the glass up to Cardela and downed his drink and placed it back on the tray and then Cardela turned her back and right there in front of Parker Overland eyes the world filled with stars and then darkness and he fell into it over and over and over again.
” Done? ” Cardela called to her daughter who was working in Livia’ s room.
” Yeah Ma, but let me tell you it wasn’t easy. Wow that was a mess. Whose idea was it to let her bedroom? Lolo’s?”
” It was your Father’s.”
Sunny leaned against the door and asked, ” how come this guy? ”
” Your father has a good sense about people Sunny. If he thought it was best to give this man what he wanted then it was the best decision. Besides, this Mr. Overland was specific. He wanted to see what Livia saw when she opened eyes.”
” Whatever. People are weird. When’s dinner I’m starved…”
Sunny was about to walk by her Mother when Cardela swiped at her daughter’s arm. Sunny grabbed it as if a board had just hit her and she hissed, ” Cool it Ma that one hurt.”
” You’re not done, I’ll bet you left the lights on and a mess in there…go finish.”
Sunny rolled her eyes up and opened the little door that led from the kitchen to Livia’ s bedroom downstairs.
Everyone in the family knew that Livia wrote her books in her bedroom. And in Sunny’s opinion it would have made her family a lot more money if they’d just told the truth.
But Cardela didn’t want people walking in and out of her kitchen all day so they moved Livia’s desk upstairs and left all the rest downstairs.
Besides, Livia’s desk was the important thing- that’s where the family would find her neatly written manuscripts waiting for them to send out when she was done writing.
Sunny walked across the room she had fixed up and she guessed, as she swept up the dust from around the marble crypt in the center of the room, that just about now Mr. Overland was about to see what it was Livia saw when she opened her eyes.
Monster Mash At The Bridge!
Hands down ( at least six feet under ) this is the BEST Monster Mash
Video around so check it out and
GET DOWN!
Story Start-lers!
Here’s a little treat for you….these are my favorite spooky story starters from the Soul Food Cafe
Enjoy!
ANITA'S OWL CREEK BRIDGE 
