Midsummer Scream in Long Beach, CA, kicked off the 2019 Halloween season with spooky flair and a fair amount of nostalgia. Now, the largest Halloween and haunt expo on the west coast, this year’s theme was the dark side of Tiki, featuring artwork from world-class artist Jeff Granito and Tiki Terror entryway designed by SoCal’s famed haunt builders, CalHaunts.
Haiku of the Week
fresh pumpkin
halloween is coming soon
smiles return
Happy Caturday!
Darkest Before the Dawn
I’ve been struggling with my writing for several days. Weeks, really. The summer blues have had a strangling hold on me this year. I had several ideas on how I wanted to approach this month’s blog post. At one point, I wrote out a long piece about suffering from summer depression. It read like a book report on Seasonal Affective Disorder, and it had nothing to do with Halloween. As my deadline came and went, guilt followed, then, the shame of failure set in, and soon, it was hard to write anything at all, not even one of my goofy movie lists.
Group therapy
I belong to a few Halloween groups around the web, wherever I can find like-minded creatures. Halloweenophiles always seem to find each other. It’s nice not to feel the burden of being the weirdo sometimes. It’s a sure bet, the second Halloween merch hits the stores, people post pictures and store locations. We know how to comfort each other, most importantly, we understand why it’s important to do so, no explanation needed.

Sensing the buzz, off I went, in search of Halloween, looking for pumpkins, skeletons, black cats, and any sliver of orange and black. My local Michael’s did not disappoint.
Haiku of the Week
familiar smile
pumpkins on the shelf
summer’s end

Recipe of the Month – Halloween Avocado Toast
It’s the last Friday in July. It’s hot. I don’t even want to think about turning on a stove.
Some people actually dread the early weeks in Fall because they live in states where the weather is hot and humid. Being from SoCal, I understand this. So, when I came across this Halloween Avocado Toast breakfast idea from Brit + Co., I immediately thought, a fun no-bake recipe that quadruples as a snack, breakfast, lunch or dinner? This is genius!

Ingredients:
- 4 avocados
- 1 Tablespoon lemon juice
- 2 sheets of seaweed
- radishes
- black olives
- mini dill pickles
- grape tomatoes
- walnuts
- 1/2 red bell pepper
- 4 pieces of toast
The entire recipe instructions can be found here: https://www.brit.co/get-in-the-halloween-spirit-with-our-avocado-breakfast-recipe/
Pretty sure this qualifies as crafts project too, since kids will love making little monster faces with all the cool cut veggies.

Bonus: Brit + Co make Halloween Bento Boxes too. We might never have to cook again!
Haiku of the Week
night whispers
listen to what they say
asking me to leave
Haiku of the Week
sinister thoughts
dark voices never stop
save me from myself
Haiku of the Week
pumpkin leaves
a new season takes shape
autumn dreams
Happy Caturday!
Rejoice, Halloweenophiles! Now, that July 4th is officially over, the unofficial start of the Halloween season is creeping closer. Soon, we’ll start seeing Halloween merch in craft and retail stores, haunt announcements will follow, party planning begins, and Halloween will be in full swing before we know it. Until then, enjoy some spooky kitty art by Joanna Nelson.
To view more of Joanna Nelson’s art, please go here: http://joannanelsonstudio.com/gallery/

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