Day 76: Halloween music

Between You, Me and the Lamp Post

Day 76: Halloween music

Your house may be decorated to give even those with nerves of steel the hibijibis; your costume may be as lifelike that even your family doesn’t recognize you, but if you’re playing happy, carefree music, the Halloween spirit you are trying to create will go right out the window.

What you need is a Halloween music playlist, tunes so creepy, so blood curling, they will scare the pants off anyone attending your party.  The following is a small selection to consider.

Thriller - Michael Jackson

From the first note, this song will indicate that you mean business. Whether your guests are dancing or stand around talking, when Vincent Price starts his dialogue, hitting off with “Darkness falls across the land, the midnight hour close at hand”, all of them are sure to feel their neck hairs rise.  Not to mention Vincent Price’s laughter concluding the song. That will rattle a few bones.

The Monster Mash – Boris Picket and the Crypt Kickers

Whether your guests were born in the fifties or nineties, everybody loves The Monster Mash. Although scary and as such suitable for Halloween, The Monster Mash is perfect to end all conversation signaling it’s time for your guests to start kicking up their heels. 

Black Magic Woman - Santana

Of course, wild dancing can only last so long.  Every now and then you’ll have to throw in a slow tune so your guests can catch their breath and smooch a little without leaving the dance floor. Rely on Santana and Black Magic Woman to do just that. 

I Put a Spell on You – CCR

Keep a slow pace without losing any of the Halloween atmosphere. Spells and potions are right up there with ghosts and witches.  Put a spell on your guests with the help of Creedence Clearwater Revival.

Soundtracks

​If you don’t like individual songs, how about some movie soundtrack music? Think Psycho, think Poltergeist, any of the Freddie Kruger movies or even some Resident Evil tunes.  All of them are guaranteed to be bone-chilling and if your guests have seen the movies, the music will bring back some memories.

Alternatively, you can go for the soundtrack of the classics such as Dracula or Frankenstein movies. The visuals were scary, but it was the music that had many on the edge of their seats and gave them nightmares.

Whatever you decide, mix up the fast with the slow; the old with the new; and give your party guests a Halloween to remember.

Day 12: A recent scary event

Between You, Me and the Lamp Post

Day 12: A recent scary event

It just dawned on me that I haven’t told you about a recent scary event.

While working for a North York company, I got into one of six elevators on my way down to get the mail, when the elevator suddenly violently shook and then came to a stop. Now what?

Don’t panic, I told myself, you’re perfectly fine. Still, I had to do something so I pressed the phone button. A few seconds later a crackly voice came on the line.

“Yes?”

“I’m stuck in the elevator.”

“Which car, ma’am?”

“Car number four.”

“Do you have any medical issues?”

“No.”

“Are you alone?”

“Yes.”

“Are you prone to panicking?”

“No.”

“Okay, ma’am, help is on the way.”

“Thank you.”

Ten minutes passed, then the voice echoed through the elevator car again.

“Hello ma’am, are you still there?”

“Yes.” (Where would I have gone?)

“Are you still okay?”

“Yes.”

“We’ve called for help and someone is on the way.”

“Thank you.”

Since this was obviously going to take a while I figured I might as well sit down.

I waited another fifteen minutes and decided to press the phone elevator button again.

“Yes?”

“I’ve been here half an hour. I thought you said someone is coming?”

“A technician is coming ma’am, but he’s stuck on the highway. Do you work in this building?”

“Yes.”

“Is there anyone we can call for you? The receptionist of the company for instance?”

“I am the receptionist.”

“Oh, well sit tight and the technician will be there as soon as he can.”

Great, I was stuck in an elevator and he was stuck in traffic. 

At that point I was getting rather bored. If this had happened on my way to work or on my way home, I would have had my bag with me, holding my book, my phone and glasses, but as I was on my way getting the mail, I had nothing. I had nothing to read, no phone to play some games on, and no glasses to follow the news on the elevator TV screen.

“Hello ma’am … are you still okay?”

There was the crackly voice again.

“Yes I’m fine, bored but fine.”

Silence ... she obviously didn’t know what to do with that.

“Well, the technician is almost here.”

“Great. Thanks.”

Another fifteen minutes later the door finally opened.

“Hello there, sorry it took so long, I had to come all the way from Kipling and there was a lot of traffic on the road.”

“So I’ve heard.”

“Are you alright?”

“Other than bored I’m perfectly fine.”

“You didn’t panic.”

“Why should I? I’ve seen enough TV shows to know that there’s plenty of oxygen and an elevator is unlikely to fall unless there is a bomb.”

“Glad to hear TV is so educational. You should tell that to my wife.”

After that he extended a hand to help me up because I was rather stiff from sitting by now.

I was instructed by the technician to visit the concierge before heading up to my office. As I did so, the security guard asked my name, where I worked, what had happened, how I had reacted etc. etc. etc.

When I came home and told Dieter about this event, he said that whenever this happens in his building, the unfortunate person receives flowers from the building management.

I’m still waiting for my flowers.

Halloween shopping

Nearly twelve years we’ve been in Canada and for the first time we’re gonna decorate for Halloween. Previous years we may have hung a spooky little something on the front door, or placed a little pumpkin on the coffee table, but that was pretty much it.

Being from Europe we don’t actually celebrate Halloween. In Belgium we observe All Saints on November first and All Souls on November second by way of a trip to the cemetery. No, not to scare the living daylights out of visiting mourners, to place flowers on loved one’s’ graves. A beautiful sight it is too, when the dull cemetery is transformed into a sea of flowers. Mostly white, yellow or purple chrysanthemums .

But not this year, this year we’re throwing our heart and soul into decorating. In preparation for the big day, or big night, we did a little shopping. Most stores were a bit of a disappointment though. Other than a few pumpkins, cauldrons and face masks they didn’t stock any Halloween decorations. So we went to the one store where I thought we might have more luck ... the dollar store.

They usually go all out with their Christmas and Easter decorations, so I figured they would stock an abundance of Halloween decorations too. And I was right, the dollar store held aisles and aisles of decorations: crows, rats, cats, bats, spiders, jack o lanterns, bloody severed limbs, gravestones, etc. etc. etc.
Short of the bloody limbs and the spiders, we got a bit of everything. We walked out of that store with two big bags to the value of $46, so you can imagine.

Part of the decorations will be for home and part will be for our work cubicles.  We can do more decorating at work than we can at home because at work we don’t have five cats roaming around, taking an interest in anything and everything. I mean, we could place some decorations on top of cabinets and tables at home, but how long would they remain standing? Not long, I can tell you that. Birds, rats and cats would be knocked off their socks; bats would take a flying leap; and as for graveyard stones and jack o lanterns ... let’s just say they wouldn’t live long.

So we’ll be doing some decorating tomorrow and the rest will be taken to work. It’s a safer environment for the scary bits there.