365 Adventures in 2011: Day 296 – Pumpkin spice scam
I enjoy pumpkin flavored food. Pumpkin pie is fantastic. Michelle’s pumpkin crunch cake is magically delicious. Pumpkin soup from Uno Chicago Grill is comforting. Even pumpkin seeds are quite tasty. But it has now become clear to me that “pumpkin” and “pumpkin spice” are two entirely different things. I recently tried “pumpkin spice” frozen yogurt at Pinkberry and thought it tasted awful, leaving me wondering why I wasn’t tasting any pumpkin flavor, only an overwhelming amount of cinnamon and other spices that are normally mixed with pumpkin to kick it up. Then tonight I tried “pumpkin spice” chocolate bark from Godiva. Again, blech. No pumpkin to be found. Now I was catching on. I read the label and found the dominant ingredients to be cinnamon, ginger, and mono and triglycerides. Then I turned to the package of Jello pudding sitting on our kitchen counter, finding that it was indeed “pumpkin spice” pudding and not “pumpkin” flavored pudding. And sure enough, some of the main ingredients are cinnamon, ginger, and those glycerides.
So what gives? Why do I want to eat food that’s flavored with the same spices that normally season pumpkins, but without the actual pumpkin? Yuck. Maybe next time I want a steak, I should just eat the dry rub and steak sauce by itself, with no actual meat? I won’t be fooled by this “pumpkin spice” nonsense ever again. Now someone get me a pumpkin pie.
365 Adventures in 2011: Day 295 – Halloween prep
After buying what I believe were the last additions to this year’s Halloween display (a few blue flood lights), I finally began to plan exactly where each prop, character, light, and effect will go in front of my house on Monday night. Hopefully the rain will stay away. This year’s Halloween will look and sound quite a bit different than the last few years so I’m really looking forward to putting it all together, offering the neighborhood something largely new. On the other hand, I’ve bought quite a few large new items this year and I have no idea where I’m going to store them afterward. But I don’t have to think about that until next week.
365 Adventures in 2011: Day 294 – Dark Souls
Yep, another trip to Halloween Horror Nights. But this time, I made sure to get a photo with someone/something other than Lady Luck. As I emerged from the Canyon of Dark Souls, I noticed one of the reapers was being “used” as a photo op. This year’s event is largely photo-free in the scare zones, with scareactors generally going out of their way to stay out of posed pictures and keep the scares going. But it was a particularly crowded night and sometimes it’s just safer to let everyone take pictures outside a foggy scare zone rather than trying to stop and fire off flash photos in the middle of a tight area. So I joined in the fun.
As I began to walk away after the photo, the reaper waved me back to him and asked me in a raspy, growling voice, “Are you Freddy Krueger?” He had noticed my new sweater. I told him I was slowly turning into Freddy, to which he replied, “His soul is trapped here,” or something to that effect. After being called “Waldo” earlier in the night by a random guest (Waldo has red and white stripes, not red and brown!), I was happy to see that at least one person at the Halloween event recognized the sweater.
365 Adventures in 2011: Day 293 – Cryptkeeper find
In a full day shopping extravaganza, I scored a full set of Tales from the Cryptkeeper action figures that are almost 20 years old. They were just $2 each in a toy store at the Florida Mall, still on their original cards! Great deal. The figures are from the 1993 animated kid’s show based on the HBO series “Tales From the Crypt.” I don’t remember the cartoon, but I’ll have to look it up soon, as I love the old live action HBO show. Cryptkeeper needs to make a comeback. These are the 2 Cryptkeeper figures in the full set of 8, which also includes a werewolf, mummy, zombie, and other horror staples.
365 Adventures in 2011: Day 292 – A new angle on HHN
Despite the fact that I’ve been to Halloween Horror Nights so many times this year I’ve actually lost count, I’m still seeing something new with each visit. One of tonight’s new sights was a well-placed spade/21 symbol, hugging the landscaped shrubs alongside the water. It’s a great vantage point of most of the park, with a little Halloween twist.
