A Ghastly Halloween Deed

Pictures are of my hand carved Frankenstein pumpkin and some of my hand painted pumpkins.

I wanted to make pumpkin pies from scratch one year. I bought a medium size pumpkin, cooked it, scraped the pumpkin meat from the skin and started mixing. Good grief, I had forgotten that the bulk of a pumpkin pie is eggs, milk and sugar. I ended up making 28 pies. Oh, I didn't bake them that night, I made the crust, fluted the edges and put them in the freezer to chill. When the pumpkin custard was mixed I poured it into the crusts sitting on the freezer shelves and let them freeze. Then wrapped them in a freezer bag to be baked later. I only make a few at a time now.....good lesson!

I love the fall, the crisp temperatures with a few sunny days here and there. The leaves changing color and making their yearly trip to the ground. Fresh apples to be picked at the Nisqually Game Reserve. This is the time of year I make my apple, pumpkin and berry pies for Thanksgiving and Christmas, bake my cinnamon and dinner rolls, pop them in the freezer and they're ready.

Here's a poem I penned just for this 2005 Halloween.

A Ghastly Halloween Deed
By Carol Glitschka, 10/05

They took me home today
I sat around a while
Wondering what was happening
Wishing I could smile.

I heard some funny noises
Metal clinking and a paper crinkle
I really felt like frowning
But my forehead wouldn’t wrinkle.

I felt warm hands upon my skin
Holding me very firm
The knife cut deep into my head
I couldn’t even squirm.

Then I heard the scraping
Why were they doing these terrible deeds
I felt those little hands removing
My insides and my seeds.

Again I felt a stronger grip
And on my skin a slice
Soon both eyes were opened
Strangely, It felt rather nice!

I saw my guts and seeds
On the paper, in a pile
Soon I had a mouth and nose
It took them just a little while.

I could feel the smile they carved
It spread across my face
And soon there was a candle
Lighting up the place.

I caught a glimpse in the mirror
Of my handsome Jack-O-Lantern face
As I was carried to the porch
And set in my proper pumpkin place.

Floral Paintings in Varied Media

I'm tired tonight and can't think of a topic to talk about so I'll post a few paintings and maybe a poem.

Above left is a small, wooden, heart box with a sliding lid. I covered the top of the box with a piece of wallpaper cut to fit. It was the same wallpaper I used to have on the diningroom wall. The painting was done in acrylics and is a typical Folk Art rose.

Top right is my watercolor Hibiscus. I now have it matted and mounted in a frame. It hangs in one of the bedrooms with other florals. I love the way watercolor fades and runs together, finding it's own path and eventually forming a hazy backdrop. It has a dreamy quality and tends to peak your imagination.

Just below the Hibiscus is a floral done in acrylic washes. Washes being more water than paint making them more transparent. These types of paintings are usually done on a light background, the shading is painted in first using a Blackgreen color. The painting dries well and is misted with Krylon Matte spray before the washes of color are applied. The transparency of the color washes permits the shading to show through. This can be a challenge.

Last is my painting of flowers in a glass vase, one of my favorites, done in oils. The picture doesn't include the frame that was simply 1 inch quarter round, mitered and glued to the surface of the board. The board was sanded and painted a blackgreen, gold leafed on the outside of the oval, the painting was completed, dried and varnished and then the mitered quarter round was painted and glued on the edges of the board with the rouded edge facing the picture and one of the flat edges flush with the outside edges of the board.

This has been an exceptionally full month for me. Working every spare minute to complete the project I started of creating a home office has been exhausting but well worth it. Too many late nights, midnight and 1 a.m. don't make for a relaxed fun work day.

As I type this I am enjoying the peace and serenity of my long awaited and greatly desired work space. Everything I need is close by and organized. The colors are restful and very European.

I have also managed to work my way through years of teaching files and a lot of unused art supplies, with one thing in mind - toss or donate! My husband has been cleaning out our home and business files, the drawers actually roll out smoothly, unimpeded by bulging files and untamed collections of paperwork. There is space - space - between the file folders....whew!!!

Still have a large mirror to hang and a couple of shelves and under-shelf halogen light bar but for the most part the room is finished and I LOVE IT. Will post a few pics when I have them.

I just purchased some books from one of the vendors that displays them where I work. They will be gifts for some of my grandchildren this Christmas. The vendors that bring books and other gift items to sell are very nice people, interesting and have good products. We had a bad experience with one several years ago that prompted me to write a poem. I hope his attitude has changed since then, I would hate going through life the way he was.

THE AMERICAN BOOKMAN
By Carol Glitschka, 3/99

Delivering books he
Stomps through the door
Drops the big load
With a ‘BOOM’ on the floor.

His attitude shows
With each line on his face.
His mouth curved downward
Pulls it all out of place.

He's a cloud of gloom
wherever he goes
The American Bookman
Full of sorrow and woes.

We don't want him here
We don't want his books
We don't like his style
And we don't like his looks.

We don't like to order
From a list we can't read
He's disgusting and ornery
And he acts out of greed.

The look on his face
When books don't sell
He's angry and difficult
He has one foot in hell!

There's a chip on his shoulder
A chip on his head
A curse on his business
that soon will be dead.

he throws books around
He's rude in his talk
The American Bookman
Can just “TAKE A WALK!”

Goodnight!! I'm going to finish my glass of Gewurztraminer (wine) and head to bed!