Photos from the Beat
October Books
I've made it sort of a personal tradition to choose and read an 'October Book' once a year.
It's usually horror, fantasy, or sci-fi literature, or a nonfiction account of a haunting or other appropriately chilling topic. In the past, some of my favorite titles have included The Bell Witch - An American Haunting by Brent Monahan, Lost Souls by Poppy Z. Brite, The Hundred Secret Senses by Amy Tan, Rosemary's Baby and The Stepford Wives by Ira Levin, and A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess.
This year, I chose a book I actually bought a few years ago on a press trip in Ireland. I knew it would make a great October Book, but already had a backlog ... so now I'm finally cracking the spine of A Bewitched Land: Ireland's Witches by Bob Curran.
Anyone out there reading any good October Books?
Rally, Pumpkins! (31 Days #3)
See, it's been sort of 'monsoony' in the east since June. According to New Hampshire's Concord Monitor, heavy rain in July and August and cool temperatures are perfect breeding grounds for mildew, making it harder to grow healthy pumpkins.
Mildew can attack the plant's leaves, preventing them from growing quickly. Funguses, like Plectosporium, can cause white lesions to appear on the fruit. All of that can cause a (gasp) pumpkin shortage during what should be their peak time of year. Word to the wise: get your gourds early!
31 Days, entry #1 -'Decisions'
It's October, my favorite month! I've decided that in honor of this crisp, autumnal, spooktacular time, I am going to try my best to post every day for the next 31 days, writing about all things Octobery.
That said, here's post #1, wherein Justine and Jax talk Halloween costumes, and Teen vascillates from Judy Garland to pirate wenches to the California Highway Patrol:
Justine: I was thinking of going as Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz ... can you believe I've never gone as the lead character from my favorite movie?
Jax: I think I'd make a mean Sarah Palin.
Justine: You would with the glasses and all. So maybe Dorothy for me ... or I was also thinking maybe Kiera Knightley's character in Pirates of the Carribean, or the blond guy from CHiPs.
Remembering Max
JaxBro and Jenny's dog, Max, passed away this week and we'll all miss him very much.
I was lucky enough to spend a nice weekend with Max last summer, house- and dog-sitting while I caught up on freelance assignments. By this time, he'd already lost his sight and had trouble moving around, but he'd settled into a routine that punctuated each day we spent together. In the morning, I'd walk outside with him to let him do his business, and he'd always instinctively know to walk a little off to the side, into the woods. Then he'd patiently wait for me to reattach his leash, and together we'd walk back into the house. Max would dutifully place his big Akita paws where I guided him to, with little prompts like 'step, step ...Good boy! Treat?'
We'd repeat this little ritual three times each day, and in between, Max would stretch out on the hardwood floor near the fan. Even though his big legs shook when he got up, though, he'd always stand up on all fours when I returned to the house from an errand, waiting for a scritch on the ears and maybe a cookie - but somehow, the cookie always seemed secondary. Max always seemed most content with a pat on the head and a little bit of love.
Goodbye, good boy! I hope you're on the beach somewhere chasing seagulls and sniffing shells.
Get By With a Little Help from my Tweets
I just returned from a Tweet-up held in my honor at the Northampton Brewery, and to recycle an old joke from the old, bull-pen newsroom, 'a good time was had by all.'
I felt loved to be joined by some of my favorite Tweeps for a couple of brews and paninis, to talk about life, new projects, new directions, and the power of friends.
Who are these wonderful people? Give their blogs a gander.
"People first. Then money, then things." Suze Orman
