Tag Archives: Halloween decorations

Good-bye, Halloween, and I Miss You, Brain!

Posted on November 7, 2016 by mohawkvalleygirl

I guess iced coffee is my current beverage of choice, especially when sipping and typing.  I must say, not as much fun as wine, but not at all bad.  And when I say iced coffee, I don’t mean that bottled stuff you buy or the various concoctions they make at Dunkin Donuts or Starbucks kinds of places.  I mean I filled a large glass with ice and poured over it the coffee in our pot that was left over from this morning.  We have a goodly amount left over today, because I did not drink any this morning, hot or iced (I’m not allowed hot yet, dammit!).

Incidentally, the glass I used is Ballast Point Sculpin India Pale Ale, which I acquired at a Steal the Glass promotion at Copper Moose Ale House in Little Falls last summer (did I write a blog post about that?).  Just to sneak in a local connection.

I am typing off the cuff as my husband packs away our Halloween decorations (those we do not keep out all year).  I am a little dopey (yes, more than usual, you wise ass) from pain medicine and probably from lack of food.  I ate some yogurt earlier so a not to take the medicine on an empty stomach, but I have certainly not been eating my usual amounts.  On the brighter side, I’ve lost four pounds.

So it is definitely Wrist to Forehead Sunday as I feel too brain dead to write a decent post, too body dead to do any more useful chores, and not a little sad to see Halloween go away when I feel I have not sufficiently appreciated the season.  We’ll blame my health woes for that.  But I will not go on about my health woes, because, you know, HIPPA rules and all that.

My ambition now is to NOT take the pain medication again but to rely on ice and stillness to keep my pain in check.  And I hope to salvage some Halloween enjoyment by watching a few more Halloween movies, possibly of the cheesy variety.  And as soon as I get my brain back, I hope to write a better blog post.

 

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Wussy Post about Cheesy Coming Attractions

Posted on November 3, 2016 by mohawkvalleygirl

I’m afraid it’s Wuss-out Wednesday.  Never mind why.  It just is.  However, due to  my perhaps unhealthy obsession with publishing a post every day, I will attempt to think of something that will entertain.

Halloween continues at Mohawk Valley Girl’s house. For one reason,  Steven has had no chance as yet to take down our decorations.  What, me take down the decorations?  I don’t want to take down the decorations!  I want to make Santa hats for the ghosts and witches.

More to the point, I have many Halloween movies I have not yet watched, or at least not watched this season.  I bet there are even some I have not written blog posts about.  You know how  I love to write blog posts about cheesy horror movies (and if you did not know I’m telling you now:  I love to write blog posts about cheesy movies) .  I have several movies awaiting me on my DVR, some previously viewed and/or written about, some not. Additionally, I purchased a new DVD last night while on our bat and skull mission.

We found Attack of the Killer B’s in the $5 bin at K-mart.  It is a 10 movie collection.  Some of the movies I have on other collections:  The Brain that Wouldn’t Die, The Killer Shrews, Eegah!  Some look vaguely familiar.  I may have DVRd them from TCM or something.  But a few are definitely new to me.  I coyly suggested Steven buy me the movie for my birthday.  He said, “If you want that DVD, we can buy it.”

So we did.  And this is my blog post about it.  I guess it’s kind of a  lame post for a Wednesday night, even one of the Wuss-out variety.  No matter.  It’s over 200 words and I’m hitting publish.  I hope to see you all on Non-Sequitur Thursday as well as for future posts when I write about  such movies as Teenagers from Outer Space or Invasion of the Bee Girls.

 

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Lame Picture Friday?

Posted on October 22, 2016 by mohawkvalleygirl

So there I was, trying to make a Friday Lame Post and not being very successful at it.  I actually wrote something earlier, but I did not finish and it wasn’t all that great anyways (I know, when is it ever?  But one does what one can).  In desperation, I took my dog, Spunky, for a walk.  I thought, “I don’t care how short of a walk; I’ll do a Pedestrian Post!”

So about a block and a half from the house (which, incidentally, was about as far as Spunky wanted to go), I was admiring the grey, gloomy day, thinking how it suited my mood, wondering how best to describe it, when I remembered, this blog has photos now!  I could post some lame photos!  This would be great!  Of course many things do not turn out to be as great as we hope, but you’ll have that.  Once we got home, I grabbed the tablet and went back outside.  Steven had been wanting to get a picture of his Halloween porch anyways.

20161021_165317I stood across the street to get the whole porch.  I hoped our monster tree was not blocking everything, but I think it is OK.  After all, a monster tree fits right in with the season.  I thought perhaps I could get a better shot of just the tree, because it is kind of unusual.

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Next I wanted to get a close-up of our newest decoration, the delightful witch we got at Pumpkin Junction (perhaps you read my blog post about it).

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Finally, I thought I would include a shot of some of nature’s own Halloween decorations, namely what happens to one’s Black-eyed Susans at the end of the season.

20161021_165514Hmm… I’m not sure how wonderful my photos are, but I’m working on it, and I feel this is definitely better than more whining about how I just can’t make a decent blog post.  And after all, who doesn’t like a picture of a witch?

 

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Short Shout-out with Skeleton

Posted on October 20, 2016 by mohawkvalleygirl
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Sugar Ray Bones seemed to be enjoying the ambiance quite a bit.

So yesterday Mohawk Valley Girl started something new by posting pictures.  It was FUN!  Although I suppose I could have done a better job at placing them and utilizing them to enhance my text.  Never mind, those things will come. Today I am having a kind of a Wuss-out Wednesday.  If I were to elaborate on why, it would be come Whiny Wednesday.  Nobody wants that!  Instead, I will give a quick shout-out to a business I have written about before:  So Sweet Candy Cafe in Utica, NY.

Steven had never been to the So Sweet, and I knew he would love it.  Additionally, Margaret, the proprietress, had posted pictures of her Halloween decorations on Facebook.  We made sure we had our Tablet before we headed out.

I took the above picture right away.  I LOVE skeletons!  The cafe had a naming contest for Sugar Ray Bones.  I did not enter, because I couldn’t think of any good skeleton names.  Red (which I did not think of) and Boney James (which I did) had already been taken by other skeletons I know.

We took some other pictures, but I have not downloaded them to my laptop yet.  My bad.  Then again, I can give the So Sweet another shout-out later.

Did I mention that today was Wuss-out Wednesday?  I guess I should have gone with Plan A and let this blog become All Splitting Issues All The Time, because I really have to wrap this up and get to dress rehearsal.

The So Sweet Candy Cafe is located at 531 Varick St . in Utica.  You can Like them on Facebook, and I totally recommend you stop in and see Sugar Ray Bones.

 

 

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Ooh! Look at the Skeletons!

Posted on August 25, 2016 by mohawkvalleygirl

One of the shortest stops Steven and I made on our Saturday adventures was at Hummel’s Office Plus in Herkimer, NY.  We had to get a birthday present for a young friend of ours.

I wanted to get her a blank book.  It is one of my favorite things to have, so I naturally think others will like it too.  First we looked for a pen in the office supply area downstairs.  Like many writers, I am fascinated by the tools of our trade, so I was happy to spend some time with the writing instruments.  We finally picked a green one, a pen I have gotten for myself many times.  Then we went upstairs to look for a blank book.

We were immediately confronted by the Halloween decorations.  I LOVE Halloween!  There were many decorations I had never seen before. I especially like the See No Evil, Hear No Evil, Speak No Evil Skeletons.  We went around pushing the buttons on all the ghosts and things that played music and/or danced.

However, we were there for a present.  After much debate, we picked out a blank book we thought our friend would like.  Steven asked the clerk to wrap it. What a good idea!  I am terrible at wrapping presents and I don’t know if we have any birthday gift bags.  At the cash register I saw a couple more Halloween things I would like to go back and purchase.

We had not spent much time at Hummel’s, but I felt it was time well spent. I’m not saying I will, but I just MIGHT  go back and buy those skeletons.  And maybe a green pen.

 

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Post Halloween Run

Posted on November 2, 2014 by mohawkvalleygirl

Let fanfare right and banner fly! Saturday Running Commentary is BACK! For today, anyways.

We got up at 3:30 this morning, because Steven had to work at 6:30. I had said I would have a cup of coffee then go running. I heard you burn more calories if you consume caffeine before your workout. I knew there was a danger that while I drank the coffee I might talk myself out of running, but it was a chance I was willing to take.

I was hungry right away, so I ate a banana with peanut butter a little after four and got ready to run by five. I was really looking forward to it by then. I have missed running. I wanted to run after work several days in the past few weeks, but Tabby would look so happy to see me and would so clearly want to go for a walk, that I just couldn’t disappoint her. It seems I am not capable of walking my dog and then going for a run. Perhaps I could work on that.

The temperature was in the low 40s, so I wore leggings and long sleeves. They were the leggings and mock turtleneck I had worn under my Halloween costume last night, so I felt all reduce-reuse-recycle. I was happy I found my reflective vest, because the clothes were black (Halloween costume, you know). I put a headband over my ears, found running socks and shoes, and I was on my way.

My hands got cold, but the rest of me felt pretty OK. My legs did not complain AT ALL for at least the first half of the run. My breathing wasn’t too bad, either. The cold air bothered my throat a little. I tried the “in through your nose, out through your mouth” thing, but as usual it did not work for me. My nose will just not let in enough air.

I ran down German Street towards the high school. I could see the sign blinking messages. I saw that the Herkimer Footlighters were going to present something, but a tree got in the way before I saw what. I’m sure it will be in the newspaper or I’ll see a poster somewhere.

I rounded the corner and ran down Church Street to Main Street. I was looking for Halloween decorations, figuring it would be one of my last chances to. It could be the streets I’ve been on lately, but I seem to see fewer Halloween decorations this year. I hope a lot of people will decorate for Christmas. I like decorations.

Main Street was quiet and deserted. No lights greeted me, no cars went by. As I passed Basloe Library I remembered that Guitar Group is starting up again. This is an open jam session held every Saturday in a room in the library. Anybody is invited to come play and sing. I sing quietly, so nobody need be put off by my possible participation.

As I ran by the post office, I reminded myself to write a few postcards to mail. I did not write any last week, which I feel was remiss of me. Through Myers Park and up Bellinger Street. This had not been a bad run at all.

I ended up doing 25 minutes, which I thought was good considering it has been at least a month since I’ve run. I didn’t even feel too tired. As Tabby walked my cool-down with me, I felt pretty good about myself. And I saw a few Halloween decorations to admire. I probably would have seen more if I had been running all through October. Let that be a lesson to me.

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Wuss-out Walk

Posted on November 14, 2013 by mohawkvalleygirl

For this week’s Wuss-out Wednesday, I offer a brief pedestrian post about a walk my husband and I took with our schnoodle, Tabby.

What I mainly wussed out of today was running. I spent all day at work trying to psyche myself into a running state of mind. I pictured myself running. I thought about various streets I particularly like to run on. I anticipated with relish writing a blog post about the run. All to no avail.

Well, you can look superior all you like, but the only ones who really are superior are the ones who actually did run today. To those readers, I hang my head in shame. To all others I explain, “Shut up.”

It has gotten cold in the Mohawk Valley, as one expects it to do in November. We even had some snow. Naturally I’ve been singing “It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas,” but not too loudly, because I don’t want to get punched in the nose.

All that long introduction is because the walk was actually short and uneventful. It was cold. I keep telling myself, not as cold as it’s going to be. I had on my insulated sweatshirt, toque and gloves, so I felt pretty comfortable. It was about to get dark, helped on by sporadic cloud cover. We could see the moon, at a little more than half.

“The full moon is Sunday,” I told Steven. “We’ll have to take a walk after dark then.”

Everybody’s Halloween decorations seem to be gone, except for a few rotting pumpkins here and there. Some scarecrows remain, as well as pots of mums, but those are appropriate for Thanksgiving and fall in general. We saw a lighted Christmas tree in one window.

“It’s too early, but it’s pretty,” I said.

Tabby trotted along in a businesslike fashion, stopping the usual amount of times to sniff. She led us down Bellinger Street to Meyers Park. We saw a few trees that still had colored leaves on them, although in the fading light it was difficult to see the color. The trees in the park were mostly bare. I love the sight of bare branches against a grey sky.

Going up Prospect Street, we passed the parking lot for Basloe Library. I had thought to go there tonight, before opting for the walk. They are open till seven Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. Perhaps I’ll make it there on Saturday. I haven’t gotten my library fix in a while.

We did not take a very long walk, but we enjoyed it. Another good thing about the cold was that a hot shower felt really good. I am now feeling all cuddly in my sweats. Having written my blog post for the day, I retire to plot real Mohawk Valley adventures for the rest of the week.

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Into the Gloom

Posted on October 24, 2013 by mohawkvalleygirl

Well, I wrote that title and have been sitting here, not looking at it but resting my head in my hands. I’ve heard that everyone who suffers from allergies is REALLY SUFFERING this year. No doubt some people are suffering more than me. No doubt most people do not want to hear about my suffering.

In fact, that title was not meant to refer to my health problems or the resulting less than sunny mood. It was a straightforward observation of the weather.

Steven and I took our schnoodle Tabby for a walk after dinner tonight. Cold fall weather has come to the Mohawk Valley, so I dressed accordingly. I put on a hooded pullover sweatshirt, put the hood up, and added a warm jacket with a print involving skeletons. If I would have put on gloves, my life would have been perfect.

I know what you’re thinking: It’s OCTOBER, for heavens’ sake! What are you going to do when the snow flies and it’s below zero? Well, I’ll be acclimated by then, of course. Anyways, I was perfectly comfortable today except for my hands, and hands are often problematic.

Getting back to the walk, it was well before sundown but cloud cover darkened things considerably. It rained a little earlier but had stopped. It looked like it might storm, but we thought we might have time for a couple of blocks.

We encountered two of Tabby’s canine friends, Chico and Bear, with their person. We stopped and chatted and sniffed, according to species. I petted Chico, and Steven petted Bear.

We admired several houses’ Halloween decoration. The gloom made the lights stand out nicely. I thought a couple strings of lights looked more like Christmas lights, but I don’t have a problem with that. After all, reduce, reuse, recycle.

“If we lived in that apartment with the bay window,” I said, pointing to one of the large mansions now split into apartments, “we would put a display in the window.”

Steven agreed.

“Look, the house is for sale. We could buy it and put a display in the bay window.” Pause. “If we had lots and lots of money.”

As we walked down German Street towards our street, we saw a man running towards us with a dog on a leash. Tabby doesn’t like to run with me. We got out of the way, but said hello as they went by. Tabby expressed an interest in following the dog, but we talked her out of it.

It didn’t rain while we were out, so that was good. It was a pleasant if uneventful walk. Reading over the above paragraphs, I deem this a pleasant if unexciting blog post. Maybe a step above Wuss-out Wednesday.

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Fun at the Mill

Posted on August 27, 2013 by mohawkvalleygirl

I thought I would write a little bit more about Sunday’s visit to the Fly Creek Cider Mill.

It is always an enjoyable drive from Herkimer to Fly Creek, over mountains with great scenic views. I looked at farmland, lakes and more. Luckily, Steven was driving.

We went into the main building while we waited for my sister and two nieces to arrive. I thought it couldn’t hurt to get a head start on some sampling. That is one thing I love about Fly Creek Cider Mill, lots of free samples. They have dips, sauces, spreads and more. My favorite this past Sunday was a spinach and artichoke dip, which they had heated up. We bought a jar of that.

We also tried a few of the wines. Hard cider was also available for sample, but I didn’t want to be greedy. The Mill is part of the Cooperstown Beverage Trail, which a lady gave us a booklet about. Could be a future blog post (or posts).

After the others had arrived, we had some more samples and wandered upstairs to look at the many gifts and decorations available. I almost feel it is too early to think about Christmas decorations, but, oh, I love all the Santas! Of course, it is never the wrong time for Halloween, as far as I’m concerned, so I thoroughly enjoyed looking at those things.

When we had browsed and tasted our fill, we made our purchases and went outside to see the animals. There are chickens, ducks and geese, walking around a fenced in area or swimming in what I think is Fly Creek. We fed them some corn, available in gumball-type dispensing machines for twenty-five cents. Note to self: bring more quarters next time.

Steven and I try to get to the Mill at least once every year. I hope to go again in a couple of months, when the drive down will be enhanced by the changing leaves.

Fly Creek Cider Mill is located at 288 Goose St., Fly Creek, NY 13337, phone number 607-547-9692. Their website is www.flycreekcidermill.com. You can also Like them on Facebook.

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Well, We Enjoyed It

Posted on November 14, 2012 by mohawkvalleygirl

I had intended to come home from work and run, thus providing myself with a blog post and some exercise. Well, apparently today at work I lifted with my back not my legs and something hurts. I’m thinking rest and ibuprofen will put things to rights but did not feel up to anything faster than a walk. Fortunately, I had a dog who was anxious for such a thing and a husband who did not mind accompanying us.

I put on a long sleeved shirt under my sweatshirt and a knitted toque (once again, rhymes with spook) on my head, left on my BDU pants from work but switched out my steel-toed work shoes for sneakers. I like to take a walk in the evening dressed like a crazy old lady. My only regret was that the temperature made the toque better than the actual crazy old lady hat.

It was chilly, a grey, gloomy evening. Just what I like. As we walked, I wondered if I shouldn’t have put on my insulated sweatshirt instead. Steven had sensibly worn a coat. Oh well, too much trouble to turn back. I would suck it up.

Tabby surprised me by walking all the way down Bellinger Street to Meyers Park rather than turning left on Church Street and making for Herkimer’s Historic Four Corners. After she did her business opposite the park, I turned us into the park, so I could throw out the poo in one of the handily located trash cans.

One of the houses opposite the park still had pumpkins on the porch, one with a face carved in it. It looked in pretty good shape. Sometimes the jack-o-lanterns get really scary looking after Halloween when icky black stuff starts to grow inside them. Another house had extensive cobwebs on the porch as well as some pumpkin decorations hanging up and colored ghosts on sticks in the yard. I do like to extend the Halloween season (as evidenced by my desire to keep watching cheesy horror movies).

After the park I suggested we walk up Prospect Street. Steven remarked on garbage scattered on a lawn. He said our street looked like that and he wondered if it was some ill-mannered drunk.

“Oh, no, it was a wind storm,” I told him. “I lay there in bed listening to it. It sounded like a freight train (excuse the cliche) in the distance, then when it got closer I could hear the trash cans blowing around.”

Apparently Steven slept through it.

When we got to Church Street, Tabby tried to pull us to her favorite Four Corners, but I said no. We continued up Prospect Street to German, then back home.

It was, as you may have guessed, a rather uneventful walk. We enjoyed it a great deal as Steven and I spent the whole time chatting. I do like to talk to my husband. I’d like to say we were plotting Mohawk Valley adventures for future, better blog posts, but I can’t lie. However, I will do my best to entertain more betterly next time (“more betterly” is the technical term).

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