So you plan to go trick-or-treating tonight in the south-to-north blocks that extend from, the stoplights at Vine Street in the area near the downtown all the way to the spotlights halfway to Lake Mallalieu. In the main Victorian era area, historically speaking, thus springing from town. And we all know the kids of gothic things those oldsters were into.
There are various bends and sidestreets that can be taken to lumber along that way, and here are some of the just slightly awful takes on frights you might see, even if the night brings them in veiled form, as Daylight Savings Time again did you a favor.
On the Second Street jog, see all those pink flamingos in front of a newly pink-silled house. With such colored chairs on the broad front patio too, maybe giving out treats. And don’t forget their angels, even if you are in slightly evil costumes. All these were just added to a house that a long time ago had been converted to four, count em, apartments and given a makeover at the height of the Barbie craze.
This is Halloween-themed since it’s now in the same color scheme as another newly-decked-out house just two blocks up to the (icy) north — known as the Goth Castle, but madeover just before its nearly neighbor did in its twist of the new pink bold, to the point of being shocking. One wonders what wonderful wonders await those going to this year’s (invite only?) Halloween party, where one conceivably could be cool even if that older-ad, white-haired version of Ken, shown in the movie. The new digs are called Barbiecore, a sign on the front porch says so, rather than the possibly former metalcore. There are still many gingling green, what-look-like big teeth, hanging on a rope over the porch. Owner Brooke Fleetwood was shown in the local newspaper that is my new colleague looking much like a pop diva and posing next to a ready-for-prime-time pink sorta pickup truck. There is a like colored bus also, and lamp-post of the same. A national cable TV channel or two had even recently chatted about such an extreme, but elsewhere, Barbie dream house. This one had, in past parties, reminded just a little of Tom Cruise in his Eyes Wide Shut flick.
Of course, on Halloween eve, the nearby historic Third Street district is all-in and all-it for treat-or-treating, catering to hoards.
The local police will have some of the area streets basically a bit barricaded, but not going so far as to bar trick-or-treaters in the form of a blockade. Rather, it will be in the form of no parking on much of Third Street between 5-9 p.m. But overnight on the last two evenings, all kinds of creepy creatures made their appearance, many large in size and often in the form of big over-inflatables.
Heading over that way …
Even a stark wall can have appeal on this holiday, and what prey tell is lurking behind it, especially if it is long and tall — like across the main drag and just to the south of the hot pink. Or not that high but running the length of a long driveway. Maybe just a basic building, like the ones often seen at the end of a creepy block, that are slate gray with a Deep Purple tint, simply put.
Or three churches spires lined up as one, across barely two blocks, (and then there are two more atop bed and breakfasts). They grow more steep as you walk along this way, but in which direction? And varying bands in their width, spindly mixed with girth, make (gothically organ?) themed music on this given night, all of souls and saints and other sodden actors. Primped up in the many historic Victorian houses for this occasion.
Here and there, but not everywhere, are fast browning and thus getting gnarly gardens and their plants, with spur-like things, creeping outward everywhere, high and sideways, big flowered heads with bitty edges becoming burnt red for the occasion, with their only pedals tiny balls.
On burning bushes a bit beyond are hell-fire red budding leaves, and even berries underlying still green foliage.
Chairs set in place, midstream, out on patios were in threes, not twos, and one noteworthy trio was in bright red — could have been metal man Ronnie James Dio sitting at the left hand of the devil; OK that’s a myth on this mythological holiday, as Dio wasn’t really this evil old guy.
In one place — condemned building and more on that later — a 35-foot-long stray stem with squash and/or pumpkins spreads out almost to the sidewalk, moving at quarters. It looks out of place and off-kilter combined with the scalped grass all around the yard it crosses, now buried in leaves of all shapes. And their bushes have only hacked-off nubs on the end of their still-thick branches, making the place look very vacant.
One of the area murals that extends into two different blocks has it all — frogs and toads, (no newts or even their eyes), long and at times coiled snakes, various snails, many worms, bugs of all types, ants by the number — and to change it up a calm fox. They almost seem to tell a story ala Alice In Wonderland. Flora intermingled. But few delicate little pedals. Little Flower would have to be another time.
In the vein of storytelling, there are more than one of the free mini-libraries set up on these streets, including one outside the eight-sided, like spider legs, Octagon House. Ghost stories galore?
At the end of that block with the main mural, on Vine, is very much a spooktacular too, hawked heroically at the Living Word Church, on the corner where you’ll watch trick-or-treaters go by, (could they quite unlike the church itself be the undead?) Fall colors galore on their sign. And kitty-corner across the block is a sculpture that looks like a living-room-size spider stretching above a set of stairs.
Lumber through leftover leaves …
The leaves are finally now turning — first brought by the sumac that is everywhere alongside the many roadsides that lead to many roadhouses and what you might find in their backwoods — then in turn those maples, those seen in great number along Third Street, as their mid-purples provide the picture. Ghost of Prince? So here we go, Halloween anyone?
Of course I must mention, smaller yard decorations. Things like little witches hiding in corners of brick walls. One of the first I spotted was a skeleton that looked somewhat bigger, pumped-up puma size but positively pre-Jurasic, and a set of creatures, three feet apart, balancing a tied bag between them that just coulda housed a body!
You just gotta think one may have been left behind in that condemned house. Signs on the door and windows indicate that all who can enter are authorized personnel. Like a coroner? Just ask the owl, nearby, keeping watch over … what?