Halloweeners

-
As a result of the many intertwining strands of fun, obligation, entertainment and pain currently afoot in our lives, this is late by a month now. I'm determined, however, to get this up before the next holiday, so I'll be brief (too late, I know). As Marc Anthony and Cleopatra, we made the rounds Halloween week. On Tuesday, I picked Christina up from work, where we changed into costume in the Teachers' Lounge before darting out to the car.

[caption id="attachment_150" align="aligncenter" width="720"]Before our failed attempt at sneaking out undetected. Before our failed attempt at sneaking out undetected.[/caption]

We were not quite fast enough to avoid being spotted by one of her students, who later noted that I had shut my cape in the door. Quite embarrassing, but, then, my garments generally hew much closer to my form than that. The Zeta Game Night consisted primarily of Bingo, Chips and Dip. I was much better at the Chips & Dip than I was at Bingo. Being both the youngest and male-est present, though, I wasn't exactly pining for the prizes, which I knew to consist primarily of spa sets compiled from Target's Dollar Spot. Our costumes went into hiding until Friday, when we finished up distributing candy to the youths who braved our punkin-lit path, and headed out to a party with less bingo and better snacks.

[caption id="attachment_151" align="aligncenter" width="720"]After the fete After the fete[/caption]

Christina, I believe, is generally used to the feeling of being the most dressed-up person in any given situation, be it the Post Office or High Tea, just as I've become comfortable knowing and relaying more information than is expected in most circumstances. However, excesses like mine are invisible until I open my mouth; hers are hard to hide. So it was at both our All Hallow's Week celebrations, I got a rare taste of being overdressed, being one of few in costume, and one of only two in something so elaborate. I'm not sure how she manages the burden of self-consciousness that comes with it, but m'lady looks great doing it.

Popular posts from this blog

Halloween Man vs The Invisible Man, by Drew Edwards and Sergio Calvet

-
The second entry in Drew Edwards’ series of Halloween Man specials, Halloween Man versus The Invisible Man melds emotional realism with the titillating and the fantastical to create a gritty and satisfying adventure. Solar City’s fetish community has been rocked by a series of unexplained deaths when the grand dame of the scene, Claudette, comes to visit her old frenemy Lucy Chaplin, or more precisely, Lucy’s beau, Solomon Hitch. Our hero is reluctant to engage in this sort of heroism; while he’s commonly called upon to thwart the ghastly and creepy, the problem is a mystery, and he’s no detective. While comic book heroes often express token reluctance in order to build suspense, it can usually be chalked up to a gruff misanthropic streak or false humility; in this case, Solomon is genuinely out of his depth and has good reason to defer, only taking the case out of a sense of solidarity with a subculture that is marginalized and sensationalized by the media in the same way he is. The
Read more

A Year on the Strida Evo 3

-
When I resolved to rationalize and expand my bicycle stable, I realized that my trusty, elegant commuter and reliable little folding bike would have to go. Ivy Mike was a lightly modified 2011 Novara Fusion that met all my on-road needs in style. However, when he was in the shop, or I needed to be flexible with my transportation plans, it was Nightbeat, a 2014 Novara FlyBy that took up the slack. In order to make room for a folding mountain bike and a folding road bike to explore the many trails in Austin and the many long organized rides around Austin respectively, the roles of my two steed would have to be met by a single new bike. What folds small for logistical flexibility, has multiple internal gears, disc brakes for wet stopping, fenders, and can mount panniers? I'd been pining after the Tern Verge S8i for some time, but at $2,100, it was simply more than I was willing to spend. I examined its features and picked what I could reasonably compromise on. Hydraulic discs were n
Read more

Halloween Man: Hallowtide, by Drew Edwards and Lucio Inzunza

-
The world of Drew Edwards' Halloween Man is, despite it supernatural flavor and horror pedigree, very down-to-earth. Opponents are dispatched with physical weapons, often of the melee variety, and generally have at least one bloody bite taken out of them by the hero. When greater powers do appear, they may be mysterious, but they're not exactly revered . The mystic who made Solomon Hitch into the titular hero, Morlack, is such a greater power, as well as a lush, a slob, and an all-around horse's rear. While Solomon and Lucy do the heavy lifting of dispatching Spring Heeled Jack, whose powers flow from a source similar to Halloween Man’s, the engrossing part of this Samhain story is the embroidering of the universe in which it’s set. While it’s a small window into Morlak’s lengthy past, it helps round out the enigmatic and frustrating character by  adding a few data points about just where his line between right and wrong is drawn, as well as a better idea where his moral c
Read more