a bowlful of blood

As part of my son's eighteenth birthday celebrations, we went out for dinner to his favourite Chinese restaurant.  Where we immediately ordered, as we always do, a plate of fried wontons.

Now I'm not sure if the bowl was filled with just a little too much cherry dipping sauce or if our waitress was having a bad day. But when it reached our table, it looked like this.

At which point we simultaneously commented on its resemblance to a dripping bowl of blood. And I reached for my camera.  Such a simple yet brilliant Halloween condiment idea deserves to be recorded for posterity.  By the time I had taken the photograph, most of the wontons had been devoured by my family. With only one remaining on the plate in the background. A testament to the voracity of their appetite for Chinese appetizers, also recorded for posterity.

they're alive

The first pumpkin plants have broken through the soil.

The Halloween countdown can now officially begin.

eighteen halloweens

My son turns eighteen today.  Eighteen years of being every bit as much of a Halloween enthusiast as his mother. It was difficult to choose just one Halloween photograph.  But this is a favourite.

Happy Birthday!

summer reading

There is an historic home, not far from my home, which holds an annual used book sale as a fundraiser for its community projects.  Each year, I use the occasion to compile my summer reading and to add to the stack of books at home that I plan to read.  Someday.

This year was especially sweet because I managed to stumble upon The Ghost's Companion. A collection of short stories to get me through the cold, damp days of summer (just in case the weather never improves) and a copy of Edgar Allen Poe's Tales of Mystery and Imagination, which, shockingly, I have never owned.

Now if only that neighbourhood historic home was haunted . . .

pumpkin patch 4.0

Anyone who's been following my pumpkin growing adventures over the past several years might remember the heartbreak and the joy I've experienced on my road to home-grown jack-o-lantern glory.

And now, as June begins and the danger of frost has (hopefully) passed, it's time to do it all again.

It's been a steep learning curve and the lessons have been significant:  don't plant pumpkins in partial shade; don't plant pumpkins on the lawn if you plan to mow it in August; don't  allow fledgling pumpkins to grow between the posts of the veranda.  And on and on . . .

My education has been invaluable.

 

 I expect great things from the crop of 2012.