Post Halloween Post

Lovely sunny and breezy day yesterday, ripping the painted leaves off the trees on Ontario Street. Leaves swirling around carved pumpkins and caught in faux spider webs wrapped around manicured hedges. I soaked beans, hung up the Halloween lights and melted chocolate for the graveyard cake. For me, tidying and decorating always seem to go hand in hand, so the closer together the occasions, the tidier the house. Ules remarked "Is someone coming for dinner? Only I've noticed you only clean the table when we have people over." Busted. So busted.

The pressure was on as the night before Halloween at 9 o'clock I was asked where was the mask from last Halloween. Blast. I ended up looking in every plastic tub in both porches until minutes before school the next morning, the pumpkin grimace was unearthed. I started the day with a sore back in a foul mood.

Luckily, things went better from there. The beans cooked and the ingredients I dug out of the pantry and fridge gave it flavour: dried mushrooms whizzed to crumbs in the food processor, bits of fresh tomato going soft, tomatillo salsa and tomato paste. I grated two zucchinis from the garden for the chocolate cake and made the sugar cookie graves.

J brought an excellent salad, blush wine, and bread. I served up a roasted chicken from Choices along with the chili and some "witch's teats"--roasted purple fingerling potatoes. The doorbell rang and I served 6 t&tr's--the only ones all night.

The boys headed out with C's grandma who helps make his fab costumes. Yesterday it was a Bugati. Ules says it neither he or C could see very well, so he used his cane to tap his way up and down the stairs and C's windows kept fogging up. The Bugati was a big hit, with C scoring many bonus candies for his awesome costume.

I stayed home and washed dishes and then Anakana came over and we chatted while she knitted. Knitting is therapeutic even for those who just watch it being performed. Men should knit in prison. It would probably save a lot of grief. Men in the navy used to knit. It probably kept them sane on cramped ships and submarines. Knitting for sanity. Perhaps I should take it up.