October 2006 - Posts
People struggled a bit with this week's question, and I can see why. As parents herded their little ones through the Creepy Campus Crawl Friday at the Old Capitol Museum, I asked them this: If you were a ghost, who or what would you haunt, and why?
A lot of people picked a place to haunt. That makes sense. Even though we can all think of people we wouldn't mind getting back at - the bully from elementary school, the militant boss or the unfaithful ex, who wants to name names in the paper? Those who did pick a person got around the finger pointing by being vague, and I'll do the same.
Here are my potential answers to the question:
- The mustang I drove in high school. It earned the nickname "bustang" because it was always busted. It looked cool, but the amount of money I spent fixing that darn thing could have paid at least a year's college tuition.
- The restaurant that overcharged me by $70 when I signed a receipt for a $20 meal. My checking account went into the red, and the restaurant owner refused to call me back for a week as I tried to get him to credit my debit card. When he finally did get back to me, he was unapologetic and rude. I boycotted the place and was sure to warn all of my friends about the bad experience.
- The college professor who ripped on my writing so harshly that I thought I had no business being in journalism. Constructive criticism is one thing; crushing a student's hopes is another.
If I did haunt someone, I wouldn't be a bitter ghost that stuck around forever. I'd be like the ghosts in "A Christmas Carol." I'd haunt just long enough to give my hauntee an epiphany, and then let them turn over a new leaf and go on with their lives.
Check out Monday's Gazette to see who or what other young adults would haunt.
And, if the Creepy Campus Crawl is held next year, go. It was a great free family event that showcased the newly renovated Old Capitol Museum, and it was a lot of fun seeing the kids parade around in adorable costumes ranging from Tigger to an iPod. The event also included spooky tours at the Museum of Natural History, and spooky cinema in Trowbridge Hall.
Tune in next week. I'll either be at a political event, or family fun night at the North Liberty community center.
I wandered through the antiques and collectibles show today at Sycamore Mall in Iowa City asking people what they collect. The people I talked with collected cool things, like "Rolling Stone" magazine covers, antique jewelry and records.
What do I collect? Nothing. Nothing on purpose, anyway, but people have made me collect things.
How, you wonder, could a person accidentally collect something?
Easy. People hear you like something - magnets, bells, whatever - and that's what you get as a gift every year for your birthday or Christmas.
It has happened to me twice.
First, I found myself collecting cats. It all started in grade school. I liked real cats, and we always had two or three as pets on the farm. I named them goofy things like Bootsie, Chocolate Marshmallow, Mr. Pesky and Popcorn, put them in my dolls' play pen was even kind enough to give their whiskers a trim until my dad told me that wasn't such a good idea.
My grandparents knew I was fond of the farm cats, and they collected antiques. So, each time they came across something cat-related at a flea market, garage sale or auction, they bought it for me. Other people caught on, and before I knew it, I had cat stuffed animals, cat clothes cat figurines and cat calendars. Cat everything.
More recently, it was frogs. I went through a phase of liking frogs around age 17 or 18 and, I guess for the heck of it, got a small frog tattoo on my foot. (So, yeah, I can see why people felt compelled to buy me frog stuff, but I never intended to start a frog collection!) It was too late, though. Word got out that I liked frogs, and I got frog everything. Frog pajamas. Frog towels. A frog umbrella. A frog clock. A frog water fountain. Truth be told, I'm still getting frog stuff.
I'm not complaining, here. I still have the cat collection somewhere at my parents' house, and I'd never get rid of it because the cats remind me of my grandma, who passed away when I was still in elementary school. As for the frogs, I know that people are putting thought into the gift, so I don't mind.
I'm just pointing out an amusing phenomenon. I'm not the only person who's experienced it. I talked with a co-worker whose friends and relatives bombarded her with horse stuff. And last year, around Christmas, I talked with someone whose relative gave her dozens of nativity sets.
Check out Monday's Gazette to see what other young adults collect (hopefully on purpose).
Stay tuned next week, when I'll be at the "Creepy Campus Crawl" at the University of Iowa. At the Old Capitol Museum, you can make scary postcards and hear ghost stories. At the Museum of Natural History, you can learn about nocturnal creatures and take spooky tours. At the Department of Geoscience, you can watch movies about real-life beasts, the end of the world or "the land that time forgot." If you want to go, it's from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Friday. For details, call the Old Capitol Museum at (319) 335-3591, the Museum of Natural History at (319) 335-0606 or the Paleontology Lab at (319) 335-1822.
Hope to see you there!
OK. I'll admit it, I'm a huge wimp. I've been through two haunted houses in my life and the second time was only to impress my now husband on one of our first dates. I hide my eyes through scary (and even not so scary) parts of movies. It's true. I'm a wimp.
So, it's amusing that I ended up at the North Liberty Jaycees Haunted Barn on Friday the 13th of all days for this week's On The Street. I was worried that it might be a sparse crowd on the opening night of this ghoulish Halloween tradition in the corridor. In the end, organizers said they were pleasantly surprised with the number of people that turned out. But, for me, it wouldn't have mattered. I got the royal treatment from the men and women who work behind the scenes at the haunted barn.
They led me through the barn - with the lights on - to see what it was like before the show started. And, yes, in total light I did scream when one of the monsters caught me unawares. And, yes, my heart was thumping even though I could plainly see that everything was fake and my life was not in peril. I guess that's the sign of either a really good haunted barn or a really wimpy person. I'll let you decide.
My tourguide, who's haunted plenty of houses and barns is his day, said the key to a good scare is timing. People love to have their irrational fears exploited. I guess that's true because when I asked people what scared them, many people answered things like "people jumping out at me." And, that's exactly what they were in store for as soon as they entered the barn.
Of course, I didnt' go in once lights were out. But I heard plenty of screams coming from inside and one group of teenage girls I spoke to were getting ready to go in for a fourth time. Check it out for yourself. The barn is at 2359 Mehaffey Bridge Road in North Liberty. It's open 7 to 10 p.m. Oct. 19; 7 p.m. to midnight Oct. 20 and 21; 7 to 10 p.m. Oct. 22 and 26; 7 p.m. to 1 a.m. Oct. 27 and 28; Kids’ Day, 3 to 5 p.m. Oct. 29; 7 to 10 p.m. Oct. 29 to 31. Admission: $6 per body; bring a canned food item and receive $1 off admission beginning Oct. 19. Kids’ Day Admission, 3 to 5 p.m. Oct. 29: $2 children; adults free. For more info, go to www.nljaycees.org/
Somehow I managed to go 25 years without ever carving a pumpkin. I've painted them and eaten plenty of pumpkin pie and cookies. But, until last week I'd never carved a single one. And, now I’m here to tell you that my pumpkin carving experience might have begun and ended last week. It's hard work. I have a bruise on my arm to prove it. And, for $2 a pop you get exactly what you pay for when it comes to those flimsy little carving saws.
But, I digress. I brought up my carving debacle because this week I had another first time pumpkin experience: the Anamosa Pumpkin Fest. Luckily the second pumpkin-related even went a lot smoother than the first.
Saturday, the day of the event, was gorgeous. I was overdressed for such a warm fall day in jeans and a zip-up hoodie. But, nevertheless I was happy to be outdoors enjoying the beautiful fall weather. I think a lot of other people had the same idea. There were swarms of festival goers lined up at every food and craft vendor. The entire length of Anamosa’s Main Street was literally flooded with people. And, of all the people I talked to, only two were from Anamosa. So, word of the event must travel well.
After walking Main Street up and down several times, I saw many people but not one single pumpkin. A couple of the folks I interviewed even asked me if I knew where the big pumpkins were. After all, weren't we at a PUMPKIN fest? Eventually I found them beyond the festival at the far end of the street in the community building.
Most of the monoliths didn't look anything like the perfect pumpkins people I'd interviewed had described. They weren't orange, round, symmetrical or standing up straight. But, they sure were HUGE, waist high and more girth than I could get my arms around. These pumpkins were definitely not for carving. I'd like to see one of those teeny tiny carving saws take on those 800 pound beasts. But, since my carving days are numbered, I'll go back to my favorite form of pumpkin. I wonder how the big 'uns taste in a pie?
Next week, we're gearing up for Halloween. I'll be in Mt. Pleasant for the Midwest Central Railroad's Ghost Train in the Night. Yikes!