Well, not quite rested. Did a run out to a few stores to see what was about.

Hit one of the Dollar Tree stores and got those bottle labels everyone was talking about

Also got a couple of the barbed wire, and a 4 pack of squishy bats brains

Went to Big Lots and wasn't that impressed to be totally honest. They have a mummified cat, which I have not seen anywhere else, but the rest seemed to be the same old same old. The don't seem to have half the selection from last year.

Went to Party Depot, and they had most of the Halloween stuff out. Only problem was we got there at 6:50 and they close at 7:00. So it was a flying visit to say the least.

Next hit was Target ... disappointed that they only had one aisle done and only half full, mainly lights and motion activated stuff.

Finally went to K Mart on the way home. They had quite a bit of they Halloween goods out, but most was the same as last year. Didn't really see any "must haves" or "I Wants".

I have to be honest and say that Dollar Tree have been the only store that I've been impressed wit6h this year so far.

So no further progress on props at this particular time, but it's only 9pm !!

I collect halloween latex masks and could'nt resist the mask website that i found www.merlinsltd.com there real face masks fit on your skin just like in the movies ...I could'nt stop looking in the mirror!

Just completed installing the motor into the cauldron for the stirring motion. Works just great ! the rotisserie motor runs at just the right speed. So now I need to get the witch down from the attic and modify her arms to move freely. Also need to get the old cauldron down and use the lighting that gave a cooking glow

I now have a new project to work on. The apparel department where I work have a mannequin that was damage and was going to put it in the trash compactor !!

Well needless to say, I stepped up to the plate and salvaged it. Due to some strange setup where you can't be seen to be given anything as a gift (even though it was going to be trashed) I had to pay a nominal amount to purchase it. So I got a full mannequin (one with out the head) for 25c !

All that is wrong is the arm need fixing on !

... and I could not get started on anything today

Maybe I exhausted the creative streak over the last few days. At the moment I am trying to come up with the stirring motion for the witch and cauldron.

The arms of the witch will need to be "loose" to allow the stirring ... I have a couple of ideas on doing this. So once the motor is established I can do a dry run

Where can a ghoul go (sorry - bad pun) to get it's mitts on such an album? I was 4 when this came out, about 6 when I remeber actually listening to it - I still recognize the sounds when I hear them today. Yes, the "speaking Chinese" thing is out of line by today's standards. Of course, so is the "Red Man" number from Peter Pan. Just embarrassing to listen to. But I don't mean to start a whole thing here; it's a classic album from a classic era!!!

And the columns are all but finished !

Just need to add some more aging especially to the top and spheres



Now to move on with the next project ...

More progress on the columns, final design for the top now decided on. Should look pretty good when completed but I will save any details until they are completed and I can take pics of them.

Started to work on the oscillating fan I am going to use for a prop with a moving head, yet another project underway ! Cage and blade is off, now need to decide if I need to cut down the shaft. Maybe I should decide on the head for the prop before deciding

Made a small flickering candle using a battery operated candle I picked up at a yard sale (in fact I picked up two )

They were both missing bulbs, but by rewiring a flickering tealight to extend the LED, I made a candle in a brass holder (the brass holder came with the battery operated candle. )

I still have one to do, so I will make this an how to ...

More progress reports to follow

Sorry for the late reply. I just found this blog thingy

Anyhoo...I agree completly. i think what it comes down to is celebrity are a marketable item. They need to have their faces out there to make money and get work, and others want to use a celebrities face to sell a product. In this case the product is, say, a presidential candidate. I think that the "endorsments" are more on a business level than a political level. I fully believe most of these celebrities don't vote themselves. I never see pictures of celebrities coming out of the voting booth...just falling down drunk or showing their...well nevermind. It's probably better they don't vote, though. These people don't even know what's good for themselves, let alone the country. Don't know if any of that rant made sense, but I feel better saying it!