T Shirt 2009

So all the Halloween goodies have finally been put away for the year. I can actually park the cars in the garage again and everything has been stowed in the attic. But before I put everything away, I did manage one last shot for the season. Here is this year's t-shirt that I made for everyone who helped this year with Highbury Cemetery. You can see the matching poster that I did here.

 A big thank you to Skaight at Psycho Reindeer for hooking me up again this year with the screen (I still have one shirt left for you!). If you get a second, why not buy a shirt from Scott, as he has excellent taste in shirt models.

Hobgoblin

So another Halloween has unfortunately come and gone all too quickly. Months of planning and building, and then in 3 short hours, it's all over. Everything has been put away for another year and there is a hollow void in my free time. Fortunately, Jenn and I made it out to Halloween USA and Spirit Halloween and picked up some really great pieces for next year, all at 50% off.

But how was I to know that the best score was yet to come? After the excitement of getting some great pieces for next year, we decided to stop at our favorite burger-and-beer joint, The Winking Lizard. Good food and an even better selection of beer. Always cures what ails 'ya. A great thing about The Lizard is that they feature a collectible "Glass of the Month" special. I normally don't pay much attention to the Glass of the Month as it's usually some goofy pint glass with some goofy beer, but we happened to be there on November 1, the first day of the new glass. I glanced down casually at the menu when all of a sudden I glanced upon this...

 

The greatest mug in recorded history! Just when my energy had dwindled to zero from the night before--boom! Pegged!! This thing features a green goblin, which doubles as a handle, sitting over an old black cauldron; a wicked, 17-ounce concoction of Hobgoblin English Brown Ale.  I've never had Hobgoblin before, but it isn't all too bad. The local grocery store carries it and I've dropped a few in there since bringing it home. We've almost reached the middle of the month, so if you live near a Winking Lizard, get down there quick, because when they're gone, they're gone. And you know that December will bring some goofy Christmas pint...

Fame Is A...

So my local newspaper ran a story (written by my neighbor) on a guy who does an annual home haunt. If you think you know where this story is going, you're wrong. It wasn't me. I'm STILL waiting to get in the paper for Highbury Cemetery. But I'm not bitter. Really.

The story talks about this guy, 18-year-old Dave Shonk, who is putting on a free haunted house with 13 rooms throughout his driveway, garage and back yard, called The House of Morbidity. The cover photo is great! It's him standing in a morgue, in front of an autopsy table with a mannequin's guts all over. It looks really well-done. I read the entire story and I'm very interested in checking it out. 

So Sunday night, Scrapes and I drive over to see it. When we get there, there are no other cars on the street. "The day after Halloween," I say. "Everyone has already been to it." We continue to walk up and immediately notice a slew of props in the front yard cemetery. Great lighting and even better prop work. We are excited to go see the rest (and secretly compare it to ours). We get to the entrance, where we meet Dave himself.

It's at this point, he tells us that while they are open, they only have 5 rooms open. What!? Apparently, with all of the exposure from the newspaper story, it got the interest of quite a few people. Unfortunately, one of those people was the city Fire Marshall who came over and promptly shut them down because of fire code violations. The ultimate letdown. We did end up hanging out for a while, talking with Dave and the rest of the actors. And although there were only 5 rooms, I must admit that they were really good. I would have loved to see the whole thing. The morgue room was unbelievable.

So Dave, if by chance you ever read this, a tip of my zombie cap to you and everyone at the House of Morbidity. Keep the Halloween spirit alive (and add some exits to your haunt next year!).

And while you'd think the story ends there, it doesn't. The story was also posted to the paper's website, where a heated debate erupted in the comments. Be sure to read it in all of its glory here. It's hilarious!!

And Dave, be sure to thank the Akron Beacon Journal when 2,000 people show up next year!!

Highbury Cemetery 2009 - Part 2

After an hour of makeup application, the sun went down, the lights went up, the fog began to roll and the children hurried towards us in frenetic packs...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A BIG thank you must go out to Jenn, Jeff, Sharon and Karen for their help in making Highbury Cemetery what it is. Without your help and support, I would be just a guy sitting on my stoop passing out candy with one jack-o-lantern at my feet. (And Jenn, I promise to get a picture of you next year. The butcher shop wouldn't be the same without you!)

Thank you to everybody who stopped by to have a beer with us, talk with us or just to come check out what all the screams were about.

And thank you to all of the children of the neighborhood (and to those that were shuttled in), for allowing me the opportunity to chase you all the way down the street...

Highbury Cemetery 2009 - Part 1

Halloween started off with rain, but made way for some sun, allowing us time to get everything set up in the yard. I snapped a few shots before it was time to get into character and let the fun begin.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Fresh Meat

For record keeping purposes, I'm Scrapes, a new author on the Highbury Cemetery blog. I have a long history with the caretaker, and more specifically, with the Highbury Cemetery haunt in Akron, Ohio.

Like him, I too have been intrigued with Halloween, horror movies and haunted houses since my early years.

An aspect of Halloween in which I have taken particular pride is my costumes, and one of my next posts will contain a collage covering twelve plus years worth.

Until then, thanks for reading, and even more thanks should you care to contribute by commenting.