Trick or Treat!

My roommates adore dressing up for Halloween. 

Anne + Gilbert 4Ever

This blog post from a Canadian wedding photographer who staged an Anne of Green Gables wedding shoot is phenomenal.  I LOVED Anne Shirley, both in L.M. Montgomery's books and Kevin Sullivan's movies.  These photographs make me want to go home, reread my Anne books, rewatch my Anne movies, and book a trip to Prince Edward Island.

Halloween Flicks

Since I am too much of a scaredy cat to have ever enjoyed horror movies, my go-to Halloween entertainment is of a tamer variety.  I have watched three of the following four movies in the last few weeks.  One more to go by Friday.

Real Talk: "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown" is not that great.  Blasphemy, I know.  I watch it every October and am reminded annually that this is far inferior to "A Charlie Brown Christmas."  A good chunk of this special is devoted to Snoopy's imagined World War I flying ace adventures and I have been rendered bored during those parts since I was a toddler.  But I am nothing if not a slave to tradition, so I will continue to watch Linus get boned by The Great Pumpkin each autumn.

E.T. was the first movie I saw in the cinema and it holds a special place in my heart.  It was also the first VHS movie we owned.  I have long questioned the sanity of Elliott's mother as she is easily tricked into believing a squat alien with giant feet is Drew Barrymore dressed as a ghost for Halloween.  Lay off the sauce, Elliott's mom! 

Michael, "Gertie"/E.T., and Elliott heading out for tricks and treats.

E.T. is the movie on the list that I haven't watched yet this month.  Looks like I have plans on Halloween after all.

Ryan and I went through a phase in the late '80s during which we watched Beetlejuice A LOT.  Our mum recorded it for us and we probably wore out the tape watching the two Harry Belafonte dance sequences over and over.  I had not watched this movie in its entirety in easily over a decade until I caught it on TV this past weekend.  I had forgotten that Ryan used to do impressions of Michael Keaton's titular character.  This was around the time that he was also honing his Pee Wee Herman impersonation.  Weird times at 8 Victor.

I saw The Addams Family at the movie theater with a group of friends in sixth grade.  I think it was the first movie I ever saw at the cinema without an adult chaperone.  When this flick came out on video, we bought the VHS as McDonald's.  Buying a movie and dining at McDonald's were life events back then, so I remember that night well.  My current Addams-Family-related life goal is to adopt a female black cat and name her Wednesday.  Too bad I'm at maximum feline capacity or that dream would become a reality by All Hallows' Eve.

Happy Halloween!

Weekend Movie Viewing

"The Fault in Our Stars" = 3 out of 5 stars
"Neighbors" = 4 out of 5 stars

Baby Rhino

One of our uncles used to call Ryan "Baby Rhino" so it appropriate that this video of a baby rhino trying to prance like a lamb has amused us both today.



I have watched and giggled at the video multiple times this morning.  When I sent it to Ryan, I got the following response:

"Oh God, I haven't LOL'd that much at an animal video since 1995's Babe the pig fell off the stoop."

Remembering 13-year-old Ryan dying laughing at the little pig falling off a ramp in the trailer for "Babe" made me laugh.  So this one is for you, Bro:

I'm freaking out, man!

To Do List

This weekend:  The Apple Farm in Fairfield, Maine

Next weekend:  Allandale Farm in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts

Growing up, Mum used to take Ryan and me to The Apple Farm every fall to choose pumpkins.  Back then, we could buy apples and carrots to feed to horses on the property.  Those horses no longer reside on The Apple Farm (or probably on this plane of existence), but I still love going there with my mother each autumn.  Mum and I will be carving jack-o-lanterns in a matter of days.  "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown" will be viewed.  Pumpkin cookies and apple cider will be consumed in large quantities.  Fall truly is the best time of year.