Last Minute Halloween Costume Ideas

Maybe you were busy and Halloween sort of snuck up on you, or you got a last minute invite to a Halloween party. There's no need to join the crush at iParty and empty your wallet while you're there. Here are a few costume ideas that you might be able to pull together in a few minutes with stuff around your house.

Lame Excuse – post its that say “traffic”, “dog ate it”, “it’s in the mail”, etc. and walk with crutches or a cane.

Cereal Killer – attach empty mini cereal boxes to yourself with plastic knives sticking out of them

Smartie Pants – attach smartie candies to your pants

Static Cling – pin socks, bras, underwear and dryer sheets to your clothes; tease hair if possible

Q-tip – wear white top and pants and stick cotton balls to a stocking cap and cotton balls on some old shoes.

Gum Stuck on Shoe – dress all in pink and attach a shoe or flip flop to your head

Leftovers – wrap yourself in aluminum foil

No Pest Strip – dress in all yellow and stick rubber bugs to your clothes

Tourist – big hat, camera around neck, fanny pack, Hawaiian shirt, shorts, crew socks and sneakers; maybe carry a map

Deviled Egg – dress all in white, attach a big yellow circle to the front of your shirt, wear devil horns and carry a pitchfork

Dr. Pepper – wear scrubs or a doctors jacket with accessories such as a stethoscope, mask, etc., and attach pepper packets to your clothes

Bright Idea – dress in yellow or something boldly colored and write “IDEA” on your chest

Identity Crisis – buy a box of “Hello My Name Is” stickers. Put different names on all of them and stick them all over your clothes

Someone You Can Count On – dress in black, cut out numbers from white felt and attached them to your clothes randomly

Publisher’s Clearing House Sweepstakes Prize Patrol – wear a blazer, carry a bunch of balloons and a piece of poster board that you’ve made look like a check

Shot In The Dark – dress in black and wear a shot glass around your neck

Movie Theater Floor – cut out a piece of cardboard that will cover most of the front of your body, paint it black and attach some straps so you can wear it in front of you. Stick on theater candy, popcorn and empty drink cups.

A Salt and Battery – glue a salt shaker and a battery on a baseball hat and wear it. Also put black makeup around an eye, maybe wear a sling or use crutches.

Have fun and Happy Halloween!

Halloween Photo

So tired, so cold, so wanna go to bed. I'll leave you with Pipsqueak as the beheaded queen and me as Raggedy Andy.

Halloween Q and A

I needed an easy post tonight, since I've been crazy busy getting ready for Halloween. Thanks Irregular Tammie, for posting this meme.

Which urban legend scared the bejezus out of you as a kid?
There were so many urban legends and most of them centered around a shopping mall. I was a gullible country bumpkin then and believe them all, and we didn't have Snopes back then to debunk these things. The scariest was probably the truck driver following the woman in the car and he keeps honking the horn which terrifies her. She finally pulls over where she feels safe and gets out of the car. The truck driver comes over and tells her that a man was hiding in her backseat and he kept sitting up, ready to attack her with a knife, but when he honked the horn, he'd duck down again. They check the backseat of the car and there's no man there anymore, but he left the knife behind.

Which horror movie has the best premise?
I don't watch horror movies because they aren't fun for me. If I must watch them, I like the old ones like "House of Wax".

What is the most disappointing "treat" to receive in your bag on Halloween night?
Apples or hard candy.

What's the best non-candy item to receive?
Cash. But I guess that house would be really busy. Realistically, pencils or stickers.

Did a monster live in your closet when you were a child?
No, but snakes lived under my bed.

Which supernatural creature sent chills up your spine when you were ten and still does?
I'm not sure they are considered supernatural, but I'm terrified of flying monkeys. I ask Pipsqueak to hold me when they're shown on "Wizard of Oz". Werewolves are pretty scary, too. I guess it's furry things for me.

Which supernatural creature makes you yawn?
Zombies. They move so slow that I think they'd be really easy to get away from.

What's your favorite Halloween decoration?
Jack o'lanterns. I love carving them.

If you could be anywhere on Halloween, where would you be?
Salem, Massachusetts. I just saw a bit on TV about the Salem witch trials and the huge Halloween celebration they have there. It sounds crowded, but fun.

What's the scariest book you've read so far this year?
I haven't read any scary books this year, but there are two scariest in my life... Intensity by Dean Koontz and a short story by Stephen King called "The Mist".

Haunted houses or haunted hay rides?
Neither because I don't really like being scared and feeling trapped in my scariness.

Which Stephen King novel/movie would you least like to find yourself trapped in?
Definitely "The Mist". It's about creatures in the fog. "The Cell", about people turning into murdering maniacs because of something on their cellphone, would be pretty scary, too.

Which is creepiest: evil dolls, evil pets, evil children?
Dolls don't scare me because I could get rid of them with a hammer, a washing machine or a car. Tough call between pets and children, but I'll go with children.

Now, it's time for me to go to bed and have nightmares.

Wet Felted Pumpkins

I was itching to do a little wet felting with wool (get it? itch. wool), so when we went to the Vermont Sheep and Wool Festival last month, I bought some orange roving. Roving is fiber fanatic talk for wool that has been cleaned, carded (combed) and possibly dyed.

We found a ball in the dog toy basket that was the size we wanted... slightly smaller than a baseball. The ball had to have a smooth surface so it would slip out easily later. We then wrapped the roving around the ball in a couple of layers, dipped it in warm soapy water and rubbed and smoothed, rubbed and smoothed until it looked felted and uniform without any visible seams. Then we rinsed all the soap out under cool running water and squeezed it out in paper towels.


I cut a small incision that was large enough to slip the ball out using an Exacto knife. It didn't need to be a huge hole because the wool stretches some when it's wet. Then we left it overnight to dry thoroughly.
Once it was dry, we cut a brown stem and a green leaf from felt and sewed them to the top from the inside so the stitches don't show too much. Finally, we packed the inside with stuffing and needle felted the seam closed. A felting needle has barbs on the pointed end that are barely visible to the eye. When it's repeatedly jabbed through wool, it pushes and pulls the fibers into one another until it's felted together. I let Pipsqueak do this making sure she kept her fingers clear. One jab of that needle and she wouldn't be interested in trying it again.

Here is the finished pumpkin. I'd like to try needle felting some black yarn to make the vertical ribs, but no time now. Pipsqueak wants to give one to each of her teachers this week.

Beer Braised Sirloin Tips with Mushroom Sauce

This is a great recipe for a work/school night. I had dinner ready in under an hour tonight, and it was lick-your-plate yummy. This is another recipe that calls for 1 cup of dark beer, so buy the big bottle and sip the rest of the bottle while you cook.

1 t dry mustard
1 t brown sugar
1/2 t dried thyme
1/2 t ground ginger
1/2 t paprika
kosher salt
1 1/2 pounds sirloin tip steaks
1/2 pound fresh mushrooms, preferably half shiitakes and half crimini
2 T olive oil
2 T unsalted butter
4 scallions, thinly sliced, white and light green parts separated from dark green, but using both
1 c dark ale or porter, such as Guinness
2 t Worcestershire sauce

Mix the mustard, brown sugar, thyme, ginger, paprika and 1 t salt in a large bowl until well combined. Add steaks and toss until well coated.

Remove and discard stems from shiitakes, if using, and trim stem ends from the crimini. Wipe all mushrooms clean and slice 1/4" thick.

Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. When oil is shimmering , add half the steaks and sear them until nicely browned, 2 to 3 minutes per side (the steaks will brown quickly because of the sugar in the spice mix). Transfer to a plate and repeat with remaining steaks.

Reduce heat to medium, and 1 T butter to the pan, and let melt. Add the mushroom and scallion whites. Cook, stirring occasionally until mushrooms soften and begin to brown, 4 to 6 minutes. Pour in beer and Worcestershire sauce. Scrape bottom of the pan, and raise heat to medium, bring to a boil and cook uncovered until liquid is reduced by half, about 4 minutes.

Return steak and any accumulated juices to the pan, cover tightly with lid and reduce heat to low simmer. Braise, turning the steaks after 8 minutes, until tender and cooked through, about 14 minutes total. Transfer steaks to plate or serving platter.

Cut the remaining 1T butter into four pieces and swirl them into the sauce. Stir in the scallion greens. Serve steak topped with sauce, along with mashed potatoes and steamed broccoli.

Serves four.

DMV

I can't do it. I can't not post. I told Sweetie that I was taking the night off, but NaBloWriMo guilt set in. So how about a quickie? ...

I went to Vermont DMV today to renew my license. I hear people complain about DMVs a lot... the lines are long, the wait interminable, the employees cranky and clueless. I've got to hand it to Vermont DMV because none of those things are true. I was in and out in six minutes, there were two people ahead of me, and the woman waiting on me was friendly and efficient.

I have only one complaint. My photo looks horrible. The focus is soft, the lighting is horrible, and I should have lifted my chin so it wouldn't look like I had two or three of them. But I suppose at $45 for four years, I shouldn't be expecting something framable.

And I have a confession to make. My weight on my license is what it was when I got my license when I was sixteen years old. I'm now ten twenty thirty pounds heavier, but I won't change it. It says "weight", not "actual weight", so we'll just say it's a "goal weight."

So, tell me what your DMV is like and whether or not the weight is accurate on your license.

Long Trail Brewery

I was tempted to skip today's post, but my conscience got the better of me. Here's why I'm feeling like such a slacker...
I had a beer sampler with my lunch at the Long Trail Brewery in Bridgewater, Vermont... six 4 ounce glasses of sedation. The selection is (back row right to left) Blackberry Wheat, Long Trail Ale, Hibernator, (front row right to left) Double Bag, IPA and Imperial Porter.

My favorites were Double Bag and IPA. I've always been a fan of IPA, but this was my first taste of Double Bag. It's only recently become available in stores having only been served on tap at the brewery. It figures I would like it since it's 7.2% APV. A standard beer is around 4% APV.

My third choice was Hibernator, a rich flavorful brew without being too dark. The standard Ale was good, but a little boring in comparison to the other choices. Blackberry Wheat was too light and flavorless and Imperial Porter (or as I renamed it "Imperial Storm Trooper") was too dark. I'm just starting to enjoy dark beers. I'm a fan of Guinness, but this was too bitter for me.

Not only does the Long Trail Brewery have good beer, but the pub fare is great too. I had a hamburger cooked just the way I asked. I hate being asked how I want it, and order medium rare to have it arrive well done because they're afraid of being sued if I get sick. I would rather sign a waiver than eat a shoe leather burger. But LTB throws caution to the wind and serves a burger that's pink in the middle. The fries are perfect too... nice a crunchy on the inside.

With that said, I'm going to go back to slacking for the rest of the night.