Where's the Ghoulish Spirit?

Seems like Halloween has faded with the years.
When I was little, I remember Halloween being such a huge deal.

It was such an exciting time back then, with decorations everywhere, carved pumpkins by each doorstep, tons of kids were all over the streets with one of a kind costumes and the candy was the real deal.

Where's the creativity these days? The costumes today are just plain horrible! not to mention expensive.
Little girls look like (?!!!^%$#) and boys, whatever new action figure that just hit the theaters.
Where are the Witches,Pirates,Princesses,Draculas,and Ghosts?

I noticed older kids come to my door, some taller than me! and they come back for more! you don't see carved pumpkins much anymore, and if you forgot to bring your pumpkin indoors you will find it smashed to pieces all over the street the next morning :(

Kids are not allowed to wear costumes in school,and trick-or-treaters go to organized events more than door to door.
What happened? Have people become too paranoid?
Aren't parents ruining the fun for their kids?
Ok, we'd hear stories of tampered candy but it never stopped us from trick or treating! Our parents verified all our bags, today parents steal all the good candy!

Maybe I've lost my Ghoulish Spirit this year,maybe the overpowering Christmas Decorations in all stores has turned me off completely...

This year, I decided to leave everything in my Halloween Bin.
There won't be any treats at my doorstep. And No tricks either.
Maybe next year It will be different.

But I will NOT pass up the opportunity to bake some really good pumpkin cookies and roast some yummy seeds :)

* UPDATE.
I gave in. I did Halloween only because it was for the kids and I started feeling guilty.

Harvest Festivals

I have one memory that comes to mind around this time. On a crisp autumn morning going to the country to visit my mom and dad. It would take nearly 2 hours from the city; you had to drive through some small towns. I can almost smell the air, with the landscape already displaying fall colors. What a treat to see the rows of pumpkins from the road. I recall one place we'd stop at, An outdoor market full of fresh produce.
On special occasions we'd get mom flowers, and during the holidays a fresh cut Christmas tree.
There was also a fair we could go to, go visit the horses and other farm animals, sit on a pic-nic table and have a snack to eat.
I miss those days, and I miss the simplicity of it all.
You could meet the farmers and have a sample of their baked goods.
By the apple orchards you could help yourself to a bag of freshly picked apples and leave your money in a box.

The Harvest Festivals here just aren't the same, thousands of miles away.

Dried Sweet Basil

I love the smell of Basil :) Basil has done very well in my garden. I was a little sad to snip the stems but it was time. Parts of it had started to flower.
I cleaned them and laid them out to dry under a cloth. Its been several days now, and this morning it is ready to crumble.
Dried Basil, great for sauces, mixed with olive oil and Pesto! Yummy!

Heat Be Gone

Well this is the perfect weather! The heat has gone now and the veggie garden has come to life! My Lettuce and Endive look perky and happy. The extended heat wave and damaging winds with hail wilted everything a while back, and I was worried about losing them. But this morning It felt good to see everything bouncing back. Gets my day started in the right mood :)

Loving October

It's October now, some heavy rains and hail have come through the Valley in the last 2 days and did lots of damage. The bamboo covering in my garden has caved in due to the heavy hail, the baby veggies, flattened. The yard, flooded. There are pine cones and branches everywhere. What a mess! The chickens ran for cover poor things, they're lucky to have a nice place to keep dry.


Just as I was feeling a relief from the heat this had to happen :( My concern was my veggies mostly, but it's not as bad as it first looked. Hopefully they will recover, while the rest of the place dries up. I'm very happy about the rain though, my rain barrels over flooded :)

The dogs were definitely excited about running in the mud and bringing it all over the house....

Well at least there was no Major damage and all ended with a beautiful double rainbow :)

Seasonal Changes

It's looking like we are done with the triple digits, some relief at last! this will surely help in the garden. I have beans, tomatoes, corn, carrots, broccoli and brussel sprouts that will soon be ready for transplant. This weekend I prepped the garden beds and formed mounds. I am beginning to think that my veggies are doing better in containers, I am almost afraid to move them in their new home :( The last transplant didn't work. Crossing my fingers and toes here...