Small Talk: Out of Genoa

[peacheslatour]

Thanks. From the thumbnail I thought it was the silhouette of a witch flying in front of the moon.

[Cupid Stunt]

17 minutes ago, peacheslatour said:

Thanks. From the thumbnail I thought it was the silhouette of a witch flying in front of the moon.

It's scarier. It's Warren Zevon at his most vivid, twisted, dark, sardonic, original, and fearless.

 

[jewel21]

September 9th was the six year anniversary of when I got Steve. Facebook reminded me and asked if I wanted to share my memory. The first post I ever made about Steve reads as follows: "My bird won't eat or drink. He just sits like a statue in his cage and occasionally hisses at me. I should have gotten a cat." My, how far we've come. Yesterday afternoon he flew onto my bed and took a nap beside my arm. Ask me if I had ever thought that was possible six years ago, heh.  

Edited September 12, 2018 by jewel21

[boes]

2 hours ago, jewel21 said:

September 9th was the six year anniversary of when I got Steve. Facebook reminded me and asked if I wanted to share my memory. The first post I ever made about Steve reads as follows: "My bird won't eat or drink. He just sits like a statue in his case and occasionally hisses at me. I should have gotten a cat." My, how far we've come. Yesterday afternoon he flew onto my bed and took a nap beside my arm. Ask me if I had ever thought that was possible six years ago, heh.  

Love sometimes takes a while, but when it sticks nothing will undo it!

Happy Anniversary to you and Steve!!

[FairyDusted]

2 hours ago, jewel21 said:

September 9th was the six year anniversary of when I got Steve. Facebook reminded me and asked if I wanted to share my memory. The first post I ever made about Steve reads as follows: "My bird won't eat or drink. He just sits like a statue in his case and occasionally hisses at me. I should have gotten a cat." My, how far we've come. Yesterday afternoon he flew onto my bed and took a nap beside my arm. Ask me if I had ever thought that was possible six years ago, heh.  

I love this soooo hard! Happy Anniversary! Thank you sharing your highlight with us!

[Cupid Stunt]

Tower of Voices -- Flight 93 National Memorial

Shanksville, Pennsylvania

 

 

More than 1.5 million ordered to evacuate as Hurricane Florence threatens Carolinas 

[Cupid Stunt]

9/11 is a 2002 French-American documentary film about the September 11 attacks in New York City, in which two planes were flown into the buildings of the World Trade Center. The film is from the point of view of the New York City Fire Department. The film was directed by Jules and Gedeon Naudet, and FDNY firefighter James Hanlon. 

 

 

Pictures of Hurricane Florence barreling toward the Carolinas

[jewel21]

Aww, thank you all for caring. 

I can't believe 9/11 was 17 years ago. We were talking about it at work today. My manager was living in NY at the time and saw the towers fall. She was still emotional about it. So sad. 

[babyhouseman]

On 9/11/2018 at 9:10 PM, Cupid Stunt said:

9/11 is a 2002 French-American documentary film about the September 11 attacks in New York City, in which two planes were flown into the buildings of the World Trade Center. The film is from the point of view of the New York City Fire Department. The film was directed by Jules and Gedeon Naudet, and FDNY firefighter James Hanlon. 

 

 

 

Pictures of Hurricane Florence barreling toward the Carolinas

I'm in Eastern NC, and we're still waiting. The storm took a southern turn that may be good for us. I just hope everybody in the path will be OK.

[Cupid Stunt]

Stay safe, babyhouseman.

Let us know how you're doing.

[babyhouseman]

16 minutes ago, Cupid Stunt said:

Stay safe, babyhouseman.

Let us know how you're doing.

I will. The worst will be Friday and Saturday, it looks like.

[Cupid Stunt]

Pat Robertson Casts 'Shield Of Protection' Ahead Of Hurricane Florence

 

 

 

Oy ...

[boes]

41 minutes ago, Cupid Stunt said:

Pat Robertson Casts 'Shield Of Protection' Ahead Of Hurricane Florence

 

 

 

Oy ...

I doubt his "Shield of Protection" is more powerful than his better known and more often invoked, "Fart of Fear" and "Burp of Brimstone."

[valleycliffe]

11 hours ago, babyhouseman said:

I will. The worst will be Friday and Saturday, it looks like.

are you away from the water? i mean inland?

and yes, stay safe.

[Tippi]

I hope everything will go well with you, babyhouseman!  Southeastern Virginian here--for a while they were thinking we would get a lot of heavy rain and tidal flooding but we appear to be out of the woods this time.  It's an awful feeling, just waiting for these hurricanes to hit!

[Cupid Stunt]

12 hours ago, boes said:

I doubt his "Shield of Protection" is more powerful than his better known and more often invoked, "Fart of Fear" and "Burp of Brimstone."

If I remember correctly, the ever-present stench of the "Fart of Fear" and uncontrollable "Burp of Brimstone" were unsuccessful in quashing the Plague of Homo-secularists and Rash of Forensic Accountants; Pat abandoned hope to shut down the Feminazis.. The "Shield of Protection" is going to be as effective against the ferocity and fecundity of Hurricane Florence as the sixty year old condom in Pat's wallet.

-- Safety first Preverts!

 

It seems as if the tropical depression affecting the East Coast is having an effect on shooshes of all sorts of religiously observant folks -- Alabama pastor cuts up Nike gear during sermon, as congregation cheers, laughs

Neither Pastor Dr. Mack Morris, or his white studio audience, seem to realize that Nike already has their money from their purchases and is laughing all the way to the bank. Nike wants you to draw more attention to their products and marketing blitz with Colin Kaepernick and Just Do It.

 

-- Please, more yelling and protesting and racist feces-throwing. And feel free to burn your old Nike gear. We're selling a quality product, volunteer and support youth sports, have lots more stuff for sale and our stock price is rising along with the prices. Just Do It!

 

Fucking morons.

Edited September 13, 2018 by Cupid Stunt

[Cupid Stunt]

We had a request Last Supper for Thing 1 last night -- Greek salad, chicken and dumplings, Boston cream pie. She left this morning with a car full of furniture (neighbor had an estate sale) and rebound/repaired books for San Francisco. Her first class of the semester is Monday. Mr.Stunt was the first to tear up. I'm happy we had the whole summer together, and she's on the same continent.

Le sigh. 

[peacheslatour]

11 minutes ago, Cupid Stunt said:

We had a request Last Supper for Thing 1 last night -- Greek salad, chicken and dumplings, Boston cream pie. She left this morning with a car full of furniture (neighbor had an estate sale) and rebound/repaired books for San Francisco. Her first class of the semester is Monday. Mr.Stunt was the first to tear up. I'm happy we had the whole summer together, and she's on the same continent.

Le sigh. 

(((HUGS))) She will have a wonderful time and be back to see you before you know it!

[PatsyandEddie]

16 hours ago, Cupid Stunt said:

Pat Robertson Casts 'Shield Of Protection' Ahead Of Hurricane Florence

 

 

 

Oy ...

......gevault. 

You are not Jesus so please just stop. 

[valleycliffe]

san francisco is a beautiful city...

also, she is just a day roadtrip from you......

i was watching cnn and they are talking about the hurricane on the east coast..

one of the segments was about the wild horses...i think they were on an island off north carolina...

apparently, they said the horses would probably be safe, they had been thru hurricanes before and they would know what to do..

sure hope they're right...these horses were called spanish something or other..

sure a lot of fools still on the beaches, families with little children...they are staying put and not leaving..

sure hope they will still be alive for rescue workers to find after the hurricane leaves.

[peacheslatour]

Harry R. Truman (October 30, 1896 – May 18, 1980) was a resident of the U.S. state of Washington who lived near Mount St. Helens. He was the owner and caretaker of Mount St. Helens Lodge at Spirit Lake near the foot of the mountain, and he came to fame as a folk hero in the months preceding the volcano's 1980 eruption after he refused to leave his home despite evacuation orders. Truman is presumed to have been killed by a pyroclastic flow that overtook his lodge and buried the site under 150 ft (46 m) of volcanic debris.

"If the mountain goes, I'm going with it."

My mom signed her credit card slips Harry Truman for years after that.

[babyhouseman]

9 hours ago, valleycliffe said:

are you away from the water? i mean inland?

Yes. We're inland about an hour from the coast. We will feel the effects tonight. It's starting to hit the coast. You don't have to be right on the water to get flooded. Family and friends have gotten flooded out in the country who are a few miles from creeks in past hurricanes. It depends on the amount of rain.

 

4 hours ago, valleycliffe said:

one of the segments was about the wild horses...i think they were on an island off north carolina...

There are several places on the NC coast where the wild horses are. Horses are at Cape Lookout where one of our lighthouses is. They're also on Ocracoke Island and Carolla on the Outer Banks. In Beaufort, NC, you can see horses on  a distant island. Boat tours go there. I've lived here in NC all my life, and we just went to Cape Lookout last year. It's beautiful with horses, lighthouse, and blue water.

[Cupid Stunt]

6 hours ago, peacheslatour said:

(((HUGS))) She will have a wonderful time and be back to see you before you know it!

Thank you, Peaches. I'm really proud of her. This is Thing1's senior year, and she's returning the conquering hero after her internship. She has several offers for grad school already. Her last week in LA she was dancing around, chomping on the bit to get back to Stanford. That's my girl.

 

6 hours ago, valleycliffe said:

san francisco is a beautiful city...

also, she is just a day roadtrip from you......

Exactly. She lives in a garage apartment on the same property as my brother-in-law, so family is a stone's throw. If it's urgent I can get on the shuttle to SF -- $90.00 and all the salesman sexual innuendo you can stomach … Nudge nudge. Say no more?

Quote

i was watching cnn and they are talking about the hurricane on the east coast..

one of the segments was about the wild horses...i think they were on an island off north carolina...

apparently, they said the horses would probably be safe, they had been thru hurricanes before and they would know what to do..

sure hope they're right...these horses were called spanish something or other..

CNN -- Wild horses lean on instinct to survive Hurricane Florence in North Carolina

The News & Observer -- What happens to NC’s wild horses when a major hurricane like Florence hits?

Quote

sure a lot of fools still on the beaches, families with little children...they are staying put and not leaving..

sure hope they will still be alive for rescue workers to find after the hurricane leaves.

A few common reasons people don't evacuate

There are myriad environmental or personal reasons why people don’t evacuate.

• There are people who don’t leave due to disabilities — they simply can’t get out of their homes and don’t have anyone to help them.
• Then there could be cases of people who don’t hear the warning. But in an age when warnings can be blasted out via radio, TV, and smartphones, and through old-fashioned door-to-door notifications, this is becoming less likely.
• And then there are people who can’t stand to leave their pets behind. A 2011 poll sponsored by the ASPCA found that around 30 percent of dog and cat owners who live in the South (where hurricanes are more common) wouldn’t know what to do with their pets during an evacuation. In 2006, Congress passed the PETS Act, which mandates that disaster preparedness plans take into account companion animals, though adoption of the law has been scattershot, a 2013 report found.
• Even people with greater means sometimes refuse to evacuate. Some won’t leave in fear of their home being damaged or looted, Cuite said. Or they’ll remember weathering a previous storm and feel confident in their ability to survive the current one.
• And some research suggests that if public officials make evacuation orders mandatory, people are somewhat more likely to heed the orders and flee. One study in the Journal of Transportation Engineering concluded that mandatory evacuation order increases the likelihood of evacuating by 6 percent (using data from Hurricane Ivan in 2004). A voluntary order increases the likelihood by 4 percent.

 

2 hours ago, babyhouseman said:

There are several places on the NC coast where the wild horses are. Horses are at Cape Lookout where one of our lighthouses is. They're also on Ocracoke Island and Carolla on the Outer Banks. In Beaufort, NC, you can see horses on  a distant island. Boat tours go there. I've lived here in NC all my life, and we just went to Cape Lookout last year. It's beautiful with horses, lighthouse, and blue water.

My family and I took a vacation this summer on Chincoteague Island, Virginia for the pony swim in July. We visited south through the barrier islands to Cape Lookout, NC. We had a wonderful time. It is an amazing, beautiful place.

[Snaporaz]

I'm not very religious in any conventional sense, but I'm doing my own brand of praying for babyhouseman, Tippi, and all of the people and animals in the storm's path.  I've never been through anything like that and can't even imagine what I'd do.   

[Cupid Stunt]

Live surf cameras show impact on Carolinas

*Note: Surf cams may experience sporadic technical difficulties due to high traffic and adverse local conditions. If you are using an ad blocker you will have to disable to watch the Surf Line feeds.

Frying Pan Tower; North Carolina

Cherry Grove Pier; Myrtle Beach, South Carolina

Folly Beach, South Carolina

Carolina Beach Pier; Carolina Beach, North Carolina

Bogue Inlet Pier; Emerald Isle, North Carolina

Oceanana Pier; Atlantic Beach, North Carolina

Frisco Pier; Frisco, North Carolina

North Buxton, North Carolina

Rodanthe S-Turns; Outer Banks, North Carolina

South Washout; Folly Beach, South Carolina

[boes]

10 hours ago, Cupid Stunt said:

We had a request Last Supper for Thing 1 last night -- Greek salad, chicken and dumplings, Boston cream pie. She left this morning with a car full of furniture (neighbor had an estate sale) and rebound/repaired books for San Francisco. Her first class of the semester is Monday. Mr.Stunt was the first to tear up. I'm happy we had the whole summer together, and she's on the same continent.

Le sigh. 

It's Stanford, right?  That's such a beautiful campus.  Thing 1 is blessed to have you and I'm sure, a blessing for you as well.

[Cupid Stunt]

10 hours ago, boes said:

It's Stanford, right?  That's such a beautiful campus.  Thing 1 is blessed to have you and I'm sure, a blessing for you as well.

(((boes)))

Yup. My mathlete loves it there. 

Thing 2 returned to UCLA this week. He's got 18 months and he graduates with an engineering degree. He hasn't decided to continue with grad school yet, and is seriously considering the Peace Corps. I think it's a good place for Thing 2 to exercise his collective knowledge and physical plant -- He's bored with school and dissatisfied with the culture -- "Everything's FUCKED UP!" It's hard to argue with that assessment, but he keeps scratching at a solution for his malaise. Mr.Stunt tries not to frown when the subject comes up and pushes Thing 2 into the garage to work on their Concours d'Lemons/Lemon Rally project. Thing 2 has a part-time business with a high school friend making floor/ceiling/table/wall lamps with found objects and ceramics. They have a booth at the Rose Bowl and Silverlake flea markets, and does custom work for decorators and boutiques; the friend is not happy his creative/scavenging department is thinking about leaving the country for a year+. Decisions, decisions, agreements and responsibilities … Adulthood sucks. He has time to decide, and find a like-minded dumpster diver/artist to fill in should he leave the country. 

Ack! <And other panicky mother noises>

 

And now for something completely different … When someone requests A Steve Vai song you try to do your best.

Edited September 14, 2018 by Cupid Stunt

[babyhouseman]

I'm fine after the hurricane, thank goodness. We lost power, cable, and the landline, but everything is working fine now. There's more damage to coastal towns. All I know is Flo is slow, the slowest hurricane I've ever seen. 

[boes]

Just now, babyhouseman said:

I'm fine after the hurricane, thank goodness. We lost power, cable, and the landline, but everything is working fine now. There's more damage to coastal towns. All I know is Flo is slow, the slowest hurricane I've ever seen. 

That's GREAT news!  

[peacheslatour]

13 minutes ago, babyhouseman said:

I'm fine after the hurricane, thank goodness. We lost power, cable, and the landline, but everything is working fine now. There's more damage to coastal towns. All I know is Flo is slow, the slowest hurricane I've ever seen. 

Thank heavens, so glad! Now we just have to worry about Tippi.

[Tippi]

I'm fine!  Virginia really got off very easy this time.  We practically had no effects.  We had more rain last weekend before the storm hit, than this week.  For a while, the track was showing the storm stalling off the Outer Banks and possibly coming up this way.  It didn't turn out that way at all, but all the emergency systems around here went into effect around Wednesday in the Tidewater Virginia area.  We have flood zones and some people in low lying areas were forced to leave; as it turned out, they could have stayed.  In one way, this was like a "dry" run for what could happen, but in another way I could see this causing people to not evacuate when the big one does hit.  If a Category 4 does ever hit NC/VA, the devastation will be immense.   I'm a Virginian, born and bred (my family was here before the Revolutionary War,)  but I just dread these hurricanes.

I am so, so relieved to hear that babyhouseman escaped with minimal effects!  I have seen on the news that areas of NC were getting 20 inches of rain.

[babyhouseman]

15 minutes ago, Tippi said:

I'm fine!  Virginia really got off very easy this time.  We practically had no effects.  We had more rain last weekend before the storm hit, than this week.  For a while, the track was showing the storm stalling off the Outer Banks and possibly coming up this way.  It didn't turn out that way at all, but all the emergency systems around here went into effect around Wednesday in the Tidewater Virginia area.  We have flood zones and some people in low lying areas were forced to leave; as it turned out, they could have stayed.  In one way, this was like a "dry" run for what could happen, but in another way I could see this causing people to not evacuate when the big one does hit.  If a Category 4 does ever hit NC/VA, the devastation will be immense.   I'm a Virginian, born and bred (my family was here before the Revolutionary War,)  but I just dread these hurricanes.

I am so, so relieved to hear that babyhouseman escaped with minimal effects!  I have seen on the news that areas of NC were getting 20 inches of rain.

We probably got a few inches. The heavy rains were on the coast. My father has family in the Tidewater area including his 94 year old aunt. We like to go to Colonial Williamsburg and have been to Busch Gardens many times.

[Snaporaz]

Thanks to the Chinese hoaxsters, there's an even stronger storm than Florence in the Pacific.  Let's also send some good thoughts to the Philippines as they recover from Super Typhoon Mangkhut, which is now headed to Hong Kong.

[peacheslatour]

16 minutes ago, Snaporaz said:

Thanks to the Chinese hoaxsters, there's an even stronger storm than Florence in the Pacific.  Let's also send some good thoughts to the Philippines as they recover from Super Typhoon Mangkhut, which is now headed to Hong Kong.

Hey, Zeus.

[Cupid Stunt]

7 hours ago, babyhouseman said:

I'm fine after the hurricane, thank goodness. We lost power, cable, and the landline, but everything is working fine now. There's more damage to coastal towns. All I know is Flo is slow, the slowest hurricane I've ever seen. 

5 hours ago, Tippi said:

I'm fine!  Virginia really got off very easy this time.  We practically had no effects.  We had more rain last weekend before the storm hit, than this week.  For a while, the track was showing the storm stalling off the Outer Banks and possibly coming up this way.  It didn't turn out that way at all, but all the emergency systems around here went into effect around Wednesday in the Tidewater Virginia area.  We have flood zones and some people in low lying areas were forced to leave; as it turned out, they could have stayed.  In one way, this was like a "dry" run for what could happen, but in another way I could see this causing people to not evacuate when the big one does hit.  If a Category 4 does ever hit NC/VA, the devastation will be immense.   I'm a Virginian, born and bred (my family was here before the Revolutionary War,)  but I just dread these hurricanes.

I am so, so relieved to hear that babyhouseman escaped with minimal effects!  I have seen on the news that areas of NC were getting 20 inches of rain.

 

There's a lot of damage and bad weather ahead for the East Coast with Florence, but I'm very relieved you are safe and sound.

 

4 hours ago, Snaporaz said:

Thanks to the Chinese hoaxsters, there's an even stronger storm than Florence in the Pacific.  Let's also send some good thoughts to the Philippines as they recover from Super Typhoon Mangkhut, which is now headed to Hong Kong.

Besides watching manufacturing videos, my favorite online sites are the NOAA Satellite and Information Service and Mike's Weather Page.

Good information.

[jewel21]

Steve says hi.

[valleycliffe]

he's such a handsome boy jewel21..............

tell him valleycliffe says hi back.

[peacheslatour]

Hi Steve! Looking good.

[Cupid Stunt]

Hello, Handsome! Steve McQueen in the house!

 

Hurricane Florence Pictures from the Carolinas

 

 

Mr.Stunt and I are going to the 27th Annual Point Break Live Action Party. Our friend Mary was an assistant to the film's producer Peter Adams, and fell madly in lust with Keanu Reeves. And since her experiences on the set, has celebrated the first day she met Mr. Reeves with a party where the drunken attendees read/act out the character parts from the final draft of the script (she had 30 copies hard-bound) as the film plays on a 35mm screen. The guests dress for the occasion: bikini tops and cut offs, surf shorts, old tee shirts and don't forget your boogie boards, wet suits and NERF machine pistols! It's a scream.

To get an idea on just how ridiculous this party can develop and morph over the years, Mary's ex-husband took it with him to his art gallery for a similar, more formal celebration. The idea has gravitated to other venues, with other fans of the movie, Keanu or Patrick Swayze getting in on the act. It's a movement! Albeit a slow one. 

Mary's party was banned from the beach years ago -- Something to do with skinny-dipping, loud jams and revelry of a drunken nature. Odd how a long-running joke can become illicit in polite Santa Monica beach society … Any who, Mary rents a private party house adjacent her father's golf course, and we run amok there. 

Mary's having a short order taco truck for the food and set-ups, the guests bring hors d'oeuvres, desserts and their own poison -- Don't forget a chair! 

[boes]

15 minutes ago, Cupid Stunt said:

Hello, Handsome! Steve McQueen in the house!

 

Hurricane Florence Pictures from the Carolinas

 

 

Mr.Stunt and I are going to the 27th Annual Point Break Live Action Party. Our friend Mary was an assistant to the film's producer Peter Adams, and fell madly in lust with Keanu Reeves. And since her experiences on the set, has celebrated the first day she met Mr. Reeves with a party where the drunken attendees read/act out the character parts from the final draft of the script (she had 30 copies hard-bound) as the film plays on a 35mm screen. The guests dress for the occasion: bikini tops and cut offs, surf shorts, old tee shirts and don't forget your boogie boards, wet suits and NERF machine pistols! It's a scream.

To get an idea on just how ridiculous this party can develop and morph over the years, Mary's ex-husband took it with him to his art gallery for a similar, more formal celebration. The idea has gravitated to other venues, with other fans of the movie, Keanu or Patrick Swayze getting in on the act. It's a movement! Albeit a slow one. 

Mary's party was banned from the beach years ago -- Something to do with skinny-dipping, loud jams and revelry of a drunken nature. Odd how a long-running joke can become illicit in polite Santa Monica beach society … Any who, Mary rents a private party house adjacent her father's golf course, and we run amok there. 

Mary's having a short order taco truck for the food and set-ups, the guests bring hors d'oeuvres, desserts and their own poison -- Don't forget a chair! 

 

That sounds like such fun!!  

[Cupid Stunt]

It's a hoot! And so easy. Pick a movie and go nuts!

We have a couple of friends that have movie-themed parties, and they're good times. One is a Sergio Leone birthday party, and the guests dress as characters for any of the featured movies shown for the party. Last year it was the Dollars Trilogy: A Fistful of Dollars (1964), For a Few Dollars More (1965) and The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (1966). There were thirteen Man with No Name (Clint Eastwood) guests, so the host had a quick-draw contest -- Thankfully, no ammunition was wasted, because they were terrible and we laughed our butts off.

The other party revolves around Elvis movies. Last year were the Beach movies; Blue Hawaii (1961), Fun in Acapulco (1963), Paradise, Hawaiian Style (1966), Clambake (1967) -- Lots of grass skirts, Hawaiian shirts, coconut bras doing the Pony. One of the guests does a spot on Ann Margret -- Cadillac bumper bullet bra, red beehive hairdo, and that little girl catch in her voice. 

Edited September 15, 2018 by Cupid Stunt

[Snaporaz]

It seems like everyone in the Stunt Orbit knows how to throw a party!  Has Mr. Stunt started the Halloween preparations yet?  It's hard to believe it's here already, but the stores have been decked out for a couple of weeks now.

[Petunia13]

On 9/10/2018 at 9:41 PM, jewel21 said:

September 9th was the six year anniversary of when I got Steve. Facebook reminded me and asked if I wanted to share my memory. The first post I ever made about Steve reads as follows: "My bird won't eat or drink. He just sits like a statue in his cage and occasionally hisses at me. I should have gotten a cat." My, how far we've come. Yesterday afternoon he flew onto my bed and took a nap beside my arm. Ask me if I had ever thought that was possible six years ago, heh.  

The bond you share brings tears to my eyes! I know how much you love him, and respect him and how much he appreciates and loves you. What you have is a miracle. 

[valleycliffe]

12 hours ago, Snaporaz said:

It seems like everyone in the Stunt Orbit knows how to throw a party!  Has Mr. Stunt started the Halloween preparations yet?  It's hard to believe it's here already, but the stores have been decked out for a couple of weeks now.

our costco has xmas trees and lights and decorations out too.

i liked it better when a holiday was over before the decorations for the next one came out..

[Petunia13]

I have a feeling it's going to be a really nice Fall for all of us ???

[Cupid Stunt]

16 hours ago, Snaporaz said:

It seems like everyone in the Stunt Orbit knows how to throw a party!  Has Mr. Stunt started the Halloween preparations yet?  It's hard to believe it's here already, but the stores have been decked out for a couple of weeks now.

LA is a mecca for parties, and we do enjoy entertaining and to be entertained. Some of it is work/business adjacent, but out of that came a wide range of acquaintances and like-minded friends who put on great parties. 

Mr.Stunt took over a bay in the garage to build a mechanized Gruffalo ...

… but creepier than the book version. His Gruffalo is 7 feet tall, has a hinged jaw that will "speak" with a motion-activated recorded series of phrases. One paw will hold Mouse that spins slowly while being held by its tail ...

… and his other paw will clench his claws as his bilious yellow eyes blink and squint. Mr.Stunt has the mechanicals and servos operational, the head, body frame, paws and feet completed and texture painted, and is waiting on the fake fur body, padding and purple spikes to "dress" the Gruffalo. He's been working on this project for 5 years. It's horrible, with a sepulchral, echo-y voice. I'll be glad to have it greeting employees and visitors in Mr.Stunt's office lobby and not in the garage, looming and scowling at me as I park my car.

Halloween plans are coming along. I called the caterer about the food; burger bar (beef, turkey, veggie), ice cream sundae bar, mini cupcake tower of terror, salads, baked beans, and the cater waiters (They've served at our parties for many years and come in costume -- Jolly Good Fun!). The liquor store has been put on alert. I have the Bowling for Crap prizes mostly organized; I'm still looking for a few more untidy items at flea markets and charity shops. I paid the pumpkin farmer for a pallet load.  I pulled out the box of dishes, tea stained slip covers, window gauze and other linens yesterday, but I'm not ready to tear up the house … yet … Monday I suppose ... 

Melvin has been in a tizzy ever since Mr.Stunt pulled out the Choir of Skulls (line up of seven motion-activated skulls that glow, blink and sing snippets of Halloweeny-type songs) to decide where he wants to install it this year. I can't blame Melvin. The Choir was in our bedroom for a couple of weeks before the party last year (it became a buffet decoration), scaring the wits out of me when it activated into a roaring sing-along chorus of Nine Inch Nails Closer. I was ready to pitch it out the window like an animal!, but threw a beach towel over it, because he had problems with the on/off switch. 

It takes patience, vodka and cat tranquilizers to live in a Halloween house with the birthday boy. 

 

4 hours ago, valleycliffe said:

our costco has xmas trees and lights and decorations out too.

i liked it better when a holiday was over before the decorations for the next one came out..

We're offenders, but that's because Mr.Stunt plans for Halloween all year long. I start thinking about it when he starts openly posting The List (food, email contacts, phone list, shopping list, calendar, etc.).

It weirds me out at Costco, too. Christmas yard ornaments next to Halloween décor next to a stack of watermelons next to clearance swimsuits next to discount cookbooks next to polar fleece. Mr. Stunt calls it commercial holiday creep. I received a mail order catalog in June with Christmas decorations in a featured section. <sigh>

I do buy things that will make good Christmas gifts throughout the year, like when we were on vacation, but that's because the item strikes me as just the thing for the recipient.

[peacheslatour]

That sounds so awesome CS! I wish I were there. I usually start dreaming about Halloween in July when Hallmark has their wretched Christmas in July. Monsieur LaTour loves that horrible tripe so I decamp to the bedroom computer and start watching scary movies and shopping on line for yet more Halloween decor. I don't have any animated stuff except for my beloved Alice Cooper jack in the box that plays Welcome to My Nightmare. Lots of spooky candles, spider webs, lights and of course Jack O Lanterns.

[Cupid Stunt]

I got Mr.Stunt the Alice Cooper jack in the box for his birthday last year, and found the Ozzy Osbourne “Bark at the Moon” for Christmas the same year. They are adorable!

I bought a Rob Zombie "Dragula" last February, but Mr.Stunt found it before I could wrap it as a surprise gift. I walked into the kitchen and he was merrily turning the crank, dancing along to "Dragula." 

They make him so happy. He has them on his programming desk, inspiring him to horrific heights. What are you gonna' do?

 

I'm still scouting around for the Kiss Destroyer series.

[peacheslatour]

I wish they made more of them. I would love a Zeppelin No Quarter or a Alice in Chains Down in the Hole.

[FairyDusted]

I don't even do Halloween and I want a Jack in the Box Alice Cooper for my amusement. We did our yard all up and had exactly 1 T or T'er. What a bummer. 

I have to own up to watching Christmas in July. I've seen them so many times it puts me right to sleep. Gives my DVD player a break;) I also buy things throughout the year if I see something. I'm giving out lots of adult coloring books with a good set of colored pencils this year. The more offensive books the better.