Freek A Leek

A brief run-down of the weekend that was.

• I discovered very quickly this weekend, that I can not, in fact, out drink my parents.
• I also learned the phrase "Fuckle-Up and Drive Safely" will undoubtedly make my aunt laugh every time.
  
• I decided this morning to make some vegetable soup. Yeah, I'm not so sure why either. I am cooking with leeks for the first time ever. They looked fun at the grocery store yesterday. Some people impulse buy Kit-Kats. I buy produce.
• I'm trying to justify why I buy a Sunday paper every weekend, because I never read it thoroughly. I don't even clip the coupons. I think I just want the people at the store to think I'm reading it when I buy it.
• Yesterday I bought a cashmere sweater for $8. Quite possibly the bargain of the month.
• This morning, I was awakened by a man in another apartment shrieking. I'm not sure whether to be alarmed, intrigued or concerned. One thing I am sure about though, is that I need to move.
  
• One more thing I learned: a shot of Crown Royal and sweet lime juice is actually not as bad as it sounds.
• I have been burning Nag Champa Gold incense and playing Radiohead CDs practically the entire time I've been in my apartment this weekend. I'm either becoming Indie on the outside, or an emo-stoner. I can't decide which is better.

Boo!

It's finally here! My favorite holiday, All Hallows Eve. Although, it does seem a little strange this year. I already celebrated Halloween on Saturday with Jen-nay and Julia's party, so my festiveness is done. But, I thought it would be fun to do some reminiscing about Halloween and what made it my favorite holiday of the year!

My parents were very into the holiday when I was growing up, and I think that transferred to me. Both my mom and dad were pretty awesome pumpkin carvers. We always carved about a dozen or so every year to display during Trick-Or-Treating. (Note: my last pumpkin of the season, Herman Munster at right) In particular I remember my mother always did a very intricate wizard and a two-pumpkin haunted house which had one smaller pumpkin inside the other. We always took them to my grandparents house during trick-or-treating because our house was in the middle of nowhere. I also remember instead of candles we put old school big colored Christmas lights in the pumpkins which made them a bit spookier.

In addition to the pumpkins, my family usually had some sort of display set up in my grandparents yard for the trick-or-treaters. Some of the better ones I remember are a vampire (my dad) jumping out of a coffin, and another year a mad scientist (my mom) eating the brains out of a head on a platter (me). I also remember a Halloween party my parents threw for my friends my sophomore or junior year of high school. They transformed our entire house into a sort of haunted house. The basement was the location of the party, and it was covered in gauze and lights and other spooky things. In the basement bathroom there hung a mutilated body in the shower and bloody hands floated in the punch bowl. Upstairs, the guests had to come through the kitchen where my mother dressed as a witch stirring a huge pot of guts on the stove, and pulled cookies out of the oven shaped and decorated like body parts. My father lay in a coffin in the living room (which was decorated to look like an abandoned and scary funeral home). My mother ushered the guests into the living room and made them just sit there with the "dead" body in silence until all the guests arrived. (Occasionally my father would open his eyes or jump up to scare the shit out of my friends.) I also remember someone standing outside chasing people with a chainsaw. My parents always kicked ass, but especially during Halloween.

Some of my past costumes have been (from most recent back):

• Pimpin' Pope Drewby the 69th
• Ben Franklin's gay lover
• Julius Caesar
  
• Judge Judy
• Out of work Parisian artist
• Zombie professor
• Chucky (from the movie)
  
• Disco dancer
• Carrie (again, obviously from the movie)
• Hippie
• Juan Valdez (Colombian coffee guy)
  
• Old Lady
• Cat in the Hat
• Clown

When I was younger, our town was a great spot for trick-or-treating, and we had the evening schedule down to a science. You always knew what houses to hit and which to skip so the two hours would be most efficient. I always skipped the old lady who made every child come in her house, take off your mask and tell who your parents were before she gave any candy, and the house that made you sign a prayer list and the treat was a prayer book. (Usually the house to get toilet papered and egged at the end of the night, thank God.) I never missed the houses that handed out the full candy bars or cans of pop, or the house with the homemade peanut butter and chocolate. (We lived in a small town where homemade wasn't really an issue). After the candy run, I made my way back to my grandparents house where the was always hot apple cider and glazed donuts (usually homemade).

And there it is, a not so condensed version of Drewby's Halloweens past. What are some of your favorite Halloween memories?

HAPPY HAUNTING!

White And Nerdy

I just finished reading Stephen King's book "Cell" which I enthusiastically give two thumbs down. I lost interest somewhere in the middle of the novel, but felt obligated to finish. (I started the book sometime in early August, if that's any indication) . The premise is a little creepy, yet completely unrealistic. Someone, somewhere created some sort of sonic wave that transmitted through cell phone currents so that whenever anyone answered or spoke on a cell phone, they turned into a nocturnal zombie like creature with no regard for anyone else and is lulled to sleep with soft elevator-esque music. The three main characters travel from Boston to northern Maine to flee for safety. Oh, did I mention the zombies can read minds too? The ending was sappy but didn't tie up any loose ends and never really explained the origin of the "boom". Maybe it's because I'm just not into science-fiction type reading or movies, but this book was a snooze. I used to be an avid reader of Stephen King, and especially loved "Dolores Claiborne" and "Misery". (Both movie remakes, by the way, are flawless). "Cell" seems to be a throwback to King's earlier book "Desperation" or even "The Regulators" (written under Richard Bachman). Both of which have a similar world-ending science-fiction feel.

But, with the completion of this book, my summer reading pile is officially completed (with the exception of a book about atheism, which reads more like a textbook than a novel, so that was just skimmed for ammunition).

My newest book is somewhat of a classic by Nobel Prize winner Herman Hesse "Siddhartha", which is a story about a young boy in India who meets the Buddah and eventually becomes enlightened himself. It's a short book, and was recommended to me by a colleague. I also saw it on a list of "life changing books" somewhere, but I think that might be a little too much pressure for me in 120 pages.

After "Siddhartha" I plan to start "On The Road" by Jack Kerouac. I never knew much about Kerouac until earlier last month when it seemed almost every magazine or newspaper I picked up had an article about the 50th anniversary of this book. Kerouac became big with the "Beat" movement in the 50s, along with Allen Ginsberg. ("Howl" by the way is probably one of my most favorite things ever written). I always thought the Beat generation was very interesting, and actually, when I was in Ecuador got to meet an author who was big there at that time. A very cool experience. (Insert finger snapping here).

Travel Tuesday

Today's Travel Tuesday destination is someplace I've wanted to visit for a very long time; Machu Piccu
Although I've been to South America twice, I've never been able to make it into Peru to visit the ancient Inca city ruins. I've always found South America fascinating, especially ancient civilizations, and fell in love with it when I was there studying. Several friends and I are trying to plan a trip to Machu Piccu this coming summer, but it seems I don't quite make enough money for that right now! I did see in last month's Men's Journal a little snippet from wildland.com about an 11-day trip hiking along the Inca Trail, but you stay in lodges with fireplaces and Jacuzzis. (MY kind of hiking) All to the tune of about 4 grand. Although I would love to do the hike, I think I'm going to have to do it the old fashioned hippie way, with a pack on my back and granola in my hand.