On or around this day each year Chick-Fil-A
5 years in prison, no chance of probation, mandatory SATOP classes, and mandatory sex offender registration for life...And a finding of guilty of a federal offense, effectively taking away the right to ever own a gun, vote, or hold a really good job.
That's what the predator who molested my daughter got as his sentence today at court. Clifton Everett Junkins III went straight from the courtroom to Greene county jail and is sitting there now, waiting for transport to prison.
*smile*
I got to stand up and read a statement that I had painstakingly prepared over the days prior, and the prosecutor said that it really helped to get the most severe sentence possible.
I've spent my entire life thinking that sexual predators only ever got a smack on the hand and set free. I've always thought that the state could not be trusted to put away dangerous criminals, but finally, one of these sick bastards is being put away.
Finally, justice is served!
I can only hope that the work I and the state prosecutor did, pays off in the security of the children who are now safe from just one of the many real monsters of this world.
Life is good.
Once long ago, in a small sleepy town,
lived the incompitent virgo, and his wife, oh so round.
With baby she was, and 'bout due to pop,
a romance he had planned, that nobody could top.
He researched and studied, for weeks he did plan,
'till he had made the best bath in the land.
Rose petals and oil he gathered aplenty,
when the water was right 'n' candles were ready,
He turned off the lights
and he guided her in
Blind as she was, scarf tied 'bout her head,
she trusted him, sure she had nothing to dread.
Into the wall he tossed her with force,
as he made panicked noises and with relief, cursed.
Soon they did halt, having come to the tub
and he told her to enter her bath, made with love.
Stepping inside, she slipped on the bottom
saving herself only because she caught him.
On her way down, settling in,
dread she did feel, as something stuck to her end.
Grainy and coarse was the surface she sat on,
covered in oil, being greased up just felt wrong.
Determined of course, to not grimace to loudly,
knowing this gift he presented so proudly.
Unknown to her, the ordeal was not over
as he left for the milk and brought a cup closer.
Still she was blind, bewildered, confused
He said "lean forward, I have something for you".
Straight down her back, the ice cold milk ran,
fresh from the fridge, what a wonderful man!
Unable to hold herself in check any longer,
she screeched, tore off blindfold, and gazed on in wonder.
An email last week from a local restaurant wanted to know if they could could get a "what-what" for some upcoming special event they were having.
And I can't help but wonder;
What the in the leaky hells is a "what-what"?
Why would anyone, much less a restaurant, want one?
Is this a new word for 'positive exclamation'?
Am I getting so old that new versions of 'cool, phat, jammin', hot, radical, neat, fly', and so forth seem incurably moronic to me?
OH NOES! I just realized that I typed the equivalent of four generations' worth of positive exclamations into that single line...
Okay, so I'm officially old, now what? *chuckle*
Just facts:
1) Large churches often donate a gift to every kid in a chosen public school during the holidays.
2) There are children of many economic backgrounds in our nation's public schools.
3) Giving to those who have no need is potentially wasteful of said gift.
4) Donations and giving to non-profits and community assistance organizations is at an all-time low this year.
5) More people are without jobs, and even homes this year.
6) More children this year, than any other year in recent memory, will be entirely without a Christmas.
7) Applications for holiday help for families are at an all-time high this year.
8) Extravagance and wealth are not signs of Godliness, but rather, compassion and thoughtfulness are.
9) Due to churches buying gifts for entire schools, many children will get extra gifts that they do not want or need, while other children in the same local area go completely without during the holidays.
10) Giving high-dollar items to random children who might not need them instead of helping out the poor during the holidays confuses many people, and makes some who work, volunteer, or even get assistance from the cash-strapped local assistance organizations disappointed and sometimes angry.
Now for the opinions:
1) Buying a bicycle for a poor child who doesn't have one: Great
2) Buying a bicycle for a middle-class child who has an electrified Razor scooter and a massive trampoline in their backyard: silly and rude to the kids who have nothing.
1) Giving a small token gift to all of the school-aged children in your local area through a carnival or other public festival: Generous and kind
2) Singling out only the students at a single public school to receive a large gift: preferential and prejudicial.
And for what prompted this:
Someone who asked on Facebook, what her associates thought a church had gotten for her children's entire school that was "big and heavy" and might require a truck to move, especially if a mom had several children in that school...
I'd love to hear your thoughts on the topic.
So that was interesting to say the very least!
I was getting ready for bed the other day when my neighbor came out and told me that there was some woman in my old car I'm trying to sell, saying the car was hers, and tossing things out the window, all over to the ground nearby.
To make a long(er) story short(er), I put on my robe and walked outside with my phone in and after telling the girls to stay inside. Once I saw that there was someone, indeed, in my car, I dialed 911 and reported the event. 911 is the only way to get an officer dispatched.
To assuage any worry, I did not approach her or try to engage her in conversation, and I stayed well out of reach of both her, and the car door, should she try to open it. Now, for the rest of the story.
As I waited on the phone with the 911 operator in my robe and bare feet, standing on a pile of broken safety glass, I listened to the woman in my car. Obviously seriously troubled, she spoke out loud to people who weren't there, threatening, accusing, bossing, and more. She was violent, but only with her words, and appeared to also be hallucinating, especially considering how she repeatedly ordered the invisible people to stop shining lights onto her, because they were blinding her. There were only the parking lot lights, stable, and unchanging.
She sat there, in shorts, a hoodie, and a pair of socks, her long, dirty blonde hair tied in a bun, and a second hoodie tied around her waist. At one point, she offered to trade my car back to me, in exchange for a cigarette...
In the back seat of my car, the waifish girl in her early 20's babbled incoherently, and twirled in her hands, one of the tissue paper flowers the kids and I made over a year ago, and had left in the car, abandoned and forgotten.
As I waited on the phone for the police to arrive, this girl stated that she was serious about "it" three days ago, and she was serious about "it" three years ago too. Whatever "it" was, must've been something that had been troubling her for quite some time, and maybe what was bothering her now, was an ongoing thing, in need of serious intervention.
When the police arrived, she told them it was her car, then recanted and said that the car was her daddy's, then that it used to be her daddy's... She said that she'd love to leave the car, but that no one would let her out, then said that she wasn't getting out because she wanted someone to carry her, because her feet hurt. All statements fired off in rapid succession. It was very clear to me that my newest little acquaintance was in dire need of a potentially-extended stay at the Mental Marriot.
After tearing down the header, ripping up most of the carpet in the back, and other violent damage, as well as tossing everything out the window, the only thing she was gentle with was that single, discarded flower.
Even after getting into a fight with the police when they finally showed up, I found that she had set it to the side, gently, before getting physical with the officers.
So when they took her away to sit in a police car and continue talking to her invisible family members, the police came to myself and my neighbor to get the full report. I saw the damage to my car when looking for things that may have belonged to her, and nearly freaked, seeing as how there were now so many more things that were broken or damaged than before it was broken into.
As I talked to the officers, I cleaned up the mess surrounding my car, and they warned me about bare feet and glass, then commented on how much tougher my feet must be than theirs. I told them matter-of-factly, that I simply was not going to go back inside, as them/this needed my full attention at the moment.
But before they carted her off to jail, I had to do one small thing. Regardless of what she had done to my property, regardless of how crazy she seemed, that one, simple, discarded tissue paper flower had somehow brought her a small bit of peace or joy...
So I made the officers take it with them for her. To me, it was garbage, just more flotsam to be moved to the landfill, but to her? To her, it was obviously something greater, and I couldn't bear to let her leave without it.
So they left, taking her and her flower to jail, and leaving me with a seriously damaged car and a police report paper.
I hope I can get the money it would cost to get the car repaired, but that is highly unlikely, and honestly, not the most important thing on my wish list this Thanksgiving. Instead, I wish, for her, that she finds peace, love, and comfort, both within her own self, and in her life, from whatever external sources she may encounter.
And I'm thankful. Thankful that that wasn't me, when there have been so many times in my life where that is exactly where I could have been, had I chosen to move in a different direction than I did. Thankful that I was able to start the woman in my car to what I can only hope is recovery and a better life. Thankful for my family, for my positive outlook in life, for little goals that lead to big dreams, for health, and for my dear, dear friends, without whom, I would be adrift and alone in the sea of humanity.
Happy Thanksgiving everyone, and may you find your one small thing that brings you peace and joy this year.
I hope you find your own, battered paper flower this holiday season.
In the news recently was a piece on how Baby Einstein videos are one of the greatest parenting scams of the current generation. In the article, the end piece asked "So now what? Lose the Leapfrog? Whisk away the Wii?" I'm a bit miffed that the fully interactive line of educational LeapFrog products were somehow thought of in anywhere near a similar light as staring dumbly at a screen as to have been mentioned in this article. LeapFrog products are great. Some are better than others, I'll admit, but each and every LeapFrog product is interactive, requiring the child to actually get involved in the learning and entertainment process, which aids in memorization AND true learning. There also is a marked (and positive) absence of negativity when you get an answer wrong! It only says things like "try again". Their line is expandable, and grows with your kids, allowing you to pick positive and effective teaching-assistance tools for your children. Now, I don't work for LeapFrog, and I don't hold stock in the company, I just love the products. Please note that I did NOT say that these items were meant to be your child's sole teacher. They aren't. They ARE, however, a fabulous addition and enhancement to your child's regular studies, that adds another dimension to their education, and thus, helps to ensure their success. From baby items like the LeapFrog Learn & Groove™ Musical Table One of the biggest problems with families today is lack of personal interaction. With one-on-one time comes intelligence, social skills, and so much more. Too many parents seem to think that a child is simply some sort of pet that requires more expensive pet-sitters, when in reality, children are developing adults in progress, and need to be nurtured, not ignored and passed from person to person or center to center like some sort of inconvenience. Love, time, patience, attention; These are what a child needs most. Not even a beneficial product can do much good without a parent's involvement and encouragement in their child's life. You want your time fixing dinner to be good for your child's developing brain? Sit them in a high-chair or baby safety seat and sing to them while you work. Talk to them about what you are doing. Honestly, your time is what works best, even if divided amongst other tasks at times. Tried and true since birth for both my 15 year old and my 8yr old, LeapFrog products have helped to teach my youngest how to read (she did it by herself!), and aided my eldest a lot in her geography, mathematics and foreign language studies. The products are so fun, that I enjoy playing with them and learning from them too! Definitely NOT what I would expect to see mentioned, even in passing, in an article focusing on deceptive marketing, false advertising, and high hopes, dashed to the stones below. LeapFrog products are great. We don't watch television, so I have no clue if they advertise, or what their advertisements look like if they do. I DO know that when I went to the store to find a good toy that was a bit more than simply fun, I tested LeapFrog against everything else there, then purchased it for my kids. We sometimes play with the toys together, as a family.
I have yet to be disappointed.
Interesting little note on Craigslist today, using my full name and everything.
Anyone know of a good slander/libel lawyer in Springfield?
Downtown Springfield early yesterday morning was like a scene from an LA news report.
Large crowds, officers arresting a man with a gun, brawls breaking out in the middle of the intersection of Campbell avenue and St. Louis streets, a canister gun, police dogs, pepper spray, and billy clubs at the ready.
Before we got out our phones, we saw the police stop a car moving south down north Campbell street, and arrest him. At the time of the above images, he was in the third police car east of the intersection. We also saw them take a loaded gun from him and empty the bullets out of it, onto the street.
The Springfield Missouri interactive crime scene map has "weapon violation" and "notes" for the happenings, but nothing else.
Talk on the street, and basic conjecture based on what we saw with our own eyes leads us to believe that the following is as close to the full story as we are going to get.
The police raided a wild party that was happening at ERA, one of the local rental venues downtown. When one of the participants tried to run in his car, a short chase ensued, which led him to drive the wrong way down a one-way street. They headed him off at the pass, so to say, and blocked his passage, effectively trapping him in place. When they approached his car, he brandished a handgun, which they quickly removed from his possession and place in an officer's car, then removed him from his car, handcuffing and pushing him against his vehicle for a quick search before placing him into one of the nine attending police cars.
Not very many people were around for that part, just a few curious onlookers on their way to to and from the bars downtown, and us at the top of Rendevous coffee house, who had let our Tupperware fund-raising meeting screech to a halt in order to view the unfolding events.
As the crowd grew, however, things got rowdy. I can only assume that after busting the party, the police screened the attendees and let them go, which resulted in a huge amount of individuals and groups, headed straight for the parking areas around the square. Most of them walked straight up Campbell street, and the trouble began.
At first, it was just a few, seriously impaired (via drugs or alcohol) individuals in a small group, who approached the police, looking like they were trying to start a fight. More folks filtered in rather rapidly then, about 3/4 of which looked like they were under some pretty strong influence from some substance or another.
These new folks were alternately throwing things at the police cars, sitting on the hoods of the police cars, and attempting to start fights with either the police or one-another, that it was really hard to keep track of everything at once. We saw men removing their shirts to throw at the officers, and females appearing to try to seduce groups of officers at once.
Then the presiding officers called for more backup.
At a whopping eleven police cars and a paddy wagon, they brought out the pepper spray, several dogs, and, from reports, either a canister gun for tear gas or a rifle with rubber bullets. (our informer couldn't tell which it was) A female officer was called onto the scene, and all of the officers on location were brandishing their night sticks, seemingly as much for their own protection as for the intimidation of the growing crowds, which surrounded them on all sides.
The police were finally able to shoo nearly all of the crowds away and get people to move on to their proper destinations, but the whole shebang lasted over an hour, during which, we meeting attendees could not leave the coffee house with assurance that we would be safe, so we watched and took pictures from the upstairs windows.
A pretty okay shot of the dogs after the crowd dispersed for the most part.
These folks were told to move along, but they couldn't because the police cars had them trapped.
And the paddy wagon arrived for extra backup.
The police blocked off Campbell street for a while.
After it all calmed down, they were able to tow the perpetrator's car away to finish searching it.
Side note: See the little heart made of light on the trash can in the foreground? A sure sign of brighter days to come!
Pardon the quality of the photos, all I had was my mobile phone when this was going on.
Update 10/1/09: I just learned that the police's version of events was on a news report not long after I posted my report here. Unfortunately, there were no first-hand accounts of what happened, so they were unable to get the full story. While my data is rather incomplete without their report, their report is glaringly false on several points.
I have left the above post unedited to preserve the integrity of my blogging. What I learned from their report; The party was at Remington's, not ERA, as I had heard. There were fights inside the venue.
Where their report was wrong or misleading; A man went to his car and pulled out a gun, hiding it in his waistband, which the police saw and arrested him. (No mention of a car chase, and I'm sure he hadn't parked facing southbound on Campbell avenue with police cars behind and in front of his vehicle). The fights spilled out onto the street. (We observed several hundred people walking peacably, if drunk, north up Campbell avenue, only breaking into fights when they neared or arrived at the intersection of Campbell & St. Louis, where the police were concentrated, and the mass of the crowds were gathered.)
I have also learned from my daughter, who was there with me at my meeting, that she had counted 13 police cars from the safety of the upstairs window, not 11, while I was out gathering first-hand reports from others on the sidewalk after the crowds had cleared out.
[Where: 65802]
So my birthday started out with a lost wallet, which made everything else get pushed back for several hours. But that wasn't the crappy part.
No, the crappy part was the time before we went to Lamberts.
My mother had to take a stool sample to her doctor's office, ad she forgot it in her house. So we had to go back, and get it for her. Turning the car around to pick up a load of forgotten crap? Crappy enough, right?
No, we had to deliver it too.
Of course, my mother is MUCH slower than everyone else in the car so we had to essentially draw straws over who had to deliver it into the office. I lost, so I had to run in a sack of poop to the lab.
Wandering in, I had to wait in line, and when I got fed up with waiting, I set it on an empty desk, and told them that the poop Currier had arrived with their poop delivery and walked off.
Then they called me back, and asked me what time the waste was deposited into the containers inside the bag. I told them that it wasn't my crap, and I had no idea, but I wasn't walking outside again and running back in like some crazed messenger pigeon so I could deliver their precious information. So I asked for their phone number and forced my mother to call them from the car while I drove us to the other place that she needed to go (on my special day, I am forced to run errands). *rolls eyes*
Onward I drove to the med supply place to exchange her CPAP, and after signing her paperwork for her, I was finally able to get us down to Lamberts for my birthday dinner.
I wasn't able to go visit the few friends I had wanted to because everything was so late, but I went home full, and was able to drop by the potluck at The Radish (late), before I finally went home with friends (who had shown up at The Radish while we were there), and had a good time visiting and eating junk food until the wee hours of the morning.
All in all, it was a pretty decent birthday, and I was surprisingly happy for most of the day, despite the excessive delays.
A crappy day to be sure, but only in prevailing theme *chuckle*
Well, we had court on the 5th, to testify for the prosecution, but there was a snafu with the law.
Something about an edit to a law pertaining to the case, where the lawyers aren't sure if the edit was actually applied to the law or not. They rescheduled the hearing until they find out if anything happened to the law or not.
But there was a funny little highlight to the event, that made the waiting time worth it, even though nothing else productive happened.
As they were discussing the recent snafu, the judge looked at the lawyers and said something along the lines of 'Surely you aren't suggesting that the Missouri legislature is confused?' Ten they ALL laughed.
LAUGHED!
Now I don't know about you, but I've never seen a lawyer laugh while at work, nor have I seen a judge laugh while on the bench. I've seen a judge hold in a chuckle before, but never actually laugh. And to see the judge, prosecutor, and defense attorneys all laugh over a shared joke was simply priceless.
Our new court day is in June, and I await the arrival of our new pieces of green paper demanding our presence. (subpoenas)
Until later -
Alright, time to come clean I guess. A LOT has been going on here since we last talked, and I can't really be sure of where to start, being as how I have thoroughly neglected all four of my blogs, but I haven't forgotten you.
Actually, I think of you several times a week, not that you'd know by my absence here, however.
So here's the dish, short and sweet.
The reason I've been gone so long, and the reason my posting was so sparse before I up and disappeared. Or, at least the biggest reason, anyway.
The man I had been calling husband for four years was in the paper a couple of Saturdays ago, under a headline that read, simply, "WANTED" in two inch letters on the front page. He was there with three other criminals, who were wanted for either molesting children, murder, or armed robbery, depending of whom we speak.
He's now in jail awaiting trial, and Ladybug, who has now changed her name to Pirate, and I have been subpoenaed to attend his preliminary hearing, as wittnesses for the prosecution, since he was stupid enough to plead not guilty after confessing his crimes to no less than three separate government agencies. But I digress.
Yes, I'm being intentionally vague, but if you don't know of what I speak, then mayhaps it is better for you that you don't. If you really want to know, there are ways to fill in the details for yourself, which you can also figure out yourself.
An aside:
I the past year or so, I have had to sensor myself a bit, in order to prevent the wrong kind of people, mainly predators, sociopaths, and stalkers, from preying on my children and I as they have attempted to do in the past. If they are reading these words themselves, which I don't doubt in the least, they should remember that I still have all of the information collected previously, and all of the protective measures are still in place, including the information garnered from the repeated attacks and attempts at manipulation via MySpace and YouTube. My willingness to call the police and report the harassment has not wavered. I will not hesitate to press charges.
Amusing tales arise out of every tale, of course, no matter how bad the situation is, and this time is no different...
For example, I don't know of anyone else who has berated a U.S. Marshall and gotten away with it, much less twice, and received two apologies in the bargain.
It all started when I got a knock on my door the Tuesday after the article ran in the paper. I was rather surprised to see un-uniformed men at my door with badges hanging from their necks, but then I'd never seen a U.S. Marshall before either. When they asked me if I knew where that man was (after verifying my identity), I retorted by asking them if they were too lazy to open his file. Probably not the best possible reply, but after having learned not long before That he'd had a warrant since January, and the police hadn't bothered to open his file enough to actually call or write him at his contact address and ask him to come in for "some more questioning", I was pretty ticked. Especially since he...Maybe I should start a bit earlier in the story...
After he broke the law, he went in to the police department and confessed to his crime. They thanked him and sent him on his merry way. In the process of their investigation, to build a case against him, several other folks from government agencies interviewed him, and he confessed to his crimes each and every time. That's Social Services/CPS/DFS, The police, the prosecuting attorney for the state, and the district attorney. During all of that, he repeatedly told them, and verified extensively, his contact address and contact phone number. The police knew where to go to contact him, at ALL times, and simply didn't bother...
The paper published an article whining about how our poor police force was SO low on resources that they couldn't catch the hardened, dangerous criminals that were out on the street. There was another criminal, a murderer, that the police knew he was the entire time, and didn't bother to pick him up. After all of the people in the neighborhood calling the police repeatedly, and filling them in on where he was and when on his daily trek (same times, same places, every day, mind you), They still said that they didn't have the resources to "track down" the most dangerous criminals on our city's streets. This is despite the fact that out of the four criminals whined about in the paper, two of them were VERY easy to find, and would have been relatively simple to apprehend.
Of course, I'll be one of the first to agree that our police force is seriously lacking in resources. In the winter, spring, and fall, when our college-town's population explodes, we're at an extreme shortage of officers. When those few available officers spend their time stalking homeless people down the street and harassing harmless kids on the square, that's squandering the department's meager resources. But I digress.
Okay, enough with the flashback, we return to the U.S. Marshals.
After I asked them if they were too lazy to open his file, they looked taken aback for a moment, before telling me that they had not been given his file. "Does the idiocy of our city's police department never cease?", I wondered to myself. Seriously, send out professionals to do the job you were supposed to do, but don't give them any of the tools or information you have gathered. Make them start from scratch, and see how much longer it can take to get the job done.
I made my feelings clear about the incompetence of my local department, and the Marshals apologized for how long it was taking, and promised me that they would be able to actually do the job right, and quickly.
So I gave them the information that he had so often provided, that same information that was in his file, and after a bit of further discussion, they went on their way.
About that further discussion though, that's were the funny happened...
So these armed men and I are talking outside of my front door, and one of them spits into one of my potted plants that I had just recently brought outside to get some sun. Spits his nasty tobacco-juice in my plant! I looked back and forth from him to my plant a couple of times, then said "That's my plant.". He looked down at the plant and back up at me, with a guileless look on is face, and replied "Yes, I'm helping it, see how dry it is?", but I told him that he wasn't helping it, in fact, if it were a tomato plant, he'd be killing it. I asked him if he'd ever heard of Tobacco Mosaic Virus, and when he repeated the name, looking confused, I went on to educate him in what it was, and what it did, as well as how tomatoes contract the disease. Realizing that he had committed a serious faux pas, he apologized rather profusely (for an agent of the law, anyway), and proceeded to spit in the parking lot from then on out, until they both left.
About 20 minutes later, I got a call from Clifton's mother, saying that the police just left with him, having just picked him up. He didn't put up any fight, and was very cooperative when they came for him, having discovered them in his mother's house when he returned from having purchased a beer for her. I guess they had meant it when they said they would get him into custody quickly.
About 10 minutes after I got off the phone with Flo, the U.S. Marshall calls me to let me know that they have picked him up, and to thank me for my help. Not that I did anything that the police couldn't have done by providing even a part of the case file on the crime, but if they want to give me credit, fine, I'll take it.
So now you know.
Paul Harvey passed from this world on February 28th, 2009, in a hospital in Phoenix, AZ, near his summer home. He was surrounded by his family when he left this plane of existence.
If you are one of the rare few who has never heard of him*, Paul Harvey was America's most beloved and well known radio personality. He popularized the idea of the 10pm news, and through his creativity and conversational style, captivated a nation for generations.
Though we never met, he had a profound impact on my life; my strange mix of extremely conservative thoughts & ideals, mixed with staunch support of personal freedoms for all individuals, I learned from him through my radio.
Paul Harvey was an integral part of my childhood, and my favorite, and surely the most entertaining teacher I have ever had. A pillar of integrity, he never endorsed a product that he didn't personally believe in, and he taught me, by example, how to live many of the things that I still hold and value to this day; strength of will, assurance, trust, courteousy, manners, and always calmly yet firmly standing up for what you believe in, no matter the consequences.
I still think of him every week, and always will.
I am sad for the loss that all Americans have suffered by his passing. I had always hoped that my children would learn to love him as I have.
I offer my sincerest condolences to his family during this tough time, and my most heartfelt thanks to them for sharing this wonderful man with the rest of us.
The world is truly an emptier place without him.
*For more information on the soft-spoken man who helped to shape our nation, one story at a time, visit his website.
Well, my mother is back in her own house now. The girls and I were supposed to go and visit her the other day and bring her some things, but she called and left a message on my voice mail saying not to bother bringing the things she had wanted, because she was coming home instead! Of course, this really boggled the hells out of me, especially since we still had some minor things to finish up at her place before it would be ready for her, most of which were simply time-intensive and required us to wait around for things (like her pillows in the dryer and such).
Of course, the sudden change of plans threw off everything else I had going for the day, so the girls missed one of their classes, I missed an appointment with a friend to make some money for us both, and lost out on both turning my cans in for recycling and returning bottles to the dairy for their deposit refund.
All of that made for a busier day the next day, as I woke up super-early (for me), so that I could try to cram in everything that I had missed out on the day before, in addition to everything I had already planned for that day. *pulls out hair*
We did eventually get it all done, though, and have just the regularly scheduled tasks ahead of us for the next little bit (aside from being at my mother's beck and call for the next three months because she isn't allowed to drive, that is.)
Some of the nice party-crazy college kids next door have come to supply us with their empty cans after most of their parties so that we can recycle them for extra monies for the girls' educational supplies. We're managing to get about $7 a month or so out of aluminum, and every little bit helps in these troubled financial times.
Soon we plan to set out fliers in the nearby neighborhood advertising recycling pick up twice a week. Hopefully that will increase our income a little more, as more people in the area learn of our project. *smile*
We had hail on Halloween morning, but the weather cleared up nicely for the yearly stranger-begging ritual, leaving us with warm temperatures and clear skies.
Ladybug went as Glenda the "good witch" in her younger years. She was "popular" but her poor dress didn't fare very well throughout the evening...
Z-Man ran with his pirate costume again this year, and looked dapper as usual, while his father went army (not pictured).
Littlebit went faerie in the riskiest color of all, white. No worries, she lived up to expectations and damaged it beyond salvation. *chuckle*
Faith Dressed like the pretty pink girl, which got more elaborate and fluffy as the evening wore on, due to Ladybug's dress frayed and tore.
I was a disgruntled homecoming queen, with gun, of course. *smile* All homecoming queens have to have guns, dont'cha know? Loosing all that weight made the gown fall off of course, so I had to safety-pin it to my underclothes with Faith's help in order to keep it on for the night. Almost time to retire or repurpose it.
There were all sorts of neat houses to visit, and this was one of the most popular on our route, replete with a long line, the cotton candy house! Three people were manning the cotton candy maker, and here we have a photo of Faith's hubby getting a bit of candy for himself. This was one of the only houses that all the adults begged at as well.
From house to house we walked, gathering goodies, making new friends, and singing filk songs.
Everyone really gets into the action in our favorite neighborhood, decorating their homes and themselves. I really enjoyed this house's creative and artfully carved Obama pumpkin!
Even in two-inch tall platform sneakers, Ladybug couldn't stop stepping on the gown she had been given (thanks Faith, she loved it to death!), and about half-way through the evening, the front had ripped off, and she rubber banded some of the shredded bite to her wrists and became a gypsy.
We did some reverse Trick or Treating this year, giving fair trade chocolate and informational fliers to those who shared their candy with us. For more information, or to bring next year's event to your neighborhood, visit Global Exchange. Fair trade chocolate is the best I've ever tried, seriously, buy some, you won't be sorry, and the good feeling you get from supporting ethical farmers doesn't hurt the flavor one bit. *grin*
I had never seen this sort of costume before, so I grabbed a picture, but the one that shocked me most was the little Sarah Palin. She looked very accurate, and had obviously put some planning into her costume. I didn't manage to get a photo of it, but Faith did, and will probably post it on Gather here in a couple of days. Her ID is Faith IB, so go on over and have a look at what she's already posted, and keep an eye out for the Palin costume.
Despite her initial misgivings about going candy-begging, Ladybug danced the night away in her beautiful gown, until finally, almost all of the toole was gone, and she draped a large chunk of it over her head and started saying she was a pink bride. *laugh* Way to roll with the punches!
There was a house with a haunted house, and another with a kid-friendly Halloween movie playing in their garage on infinite loop. Note the puzzle cube in the photo. It was a really creative year, that's for sure. Among the greatest costumes not captured were Mr. Perelli from the movie Sweeney Todd, a peacock, Edward Scissorhands, three great gothic lolita costumes, and a Joker in a nurse's uniform.
The house parties were great too, giving everyone the opportunity to be as silly as they'd like, and even the adults came out in their full splendor.
They didn't end up with a lot of candy this year, but we all sure did have a lot of fun together, and that's what really counts!
After we finished Trick or Treating, Littlebit went home with Faith for a little overnight care, and after hearing that the college kids next door had taken all of our parking places, we just drove over and parked near our next event, the Rocky Horror Picture Show!
RHPS is a great place to get pictures of really fun costumes, so I dragged out my camera again after the event, and grabbed a few more shots of some of the more interesting costumes.
Pinocchio was a huge surprise.
For some odd reason, I thought the aerobics instructor look was dead, but all things rise from the dead on Halloween, no matter how awful they are!
And our final photo, you would never expect to see in a million years, Eddie (meatloaf), and The Goblin King posing together for the strangest photo of the evening.
It was a really long night, but worth every minute for the fun! How was your Halloween?
