The Juvenile Grapevine

 Just watched another good NetFlix Movie "Collateral" {2004}, starring Tom Cruise, Jamie Foxx and Jada Pinkett-Smith.  It's an Old one, Older than Princess T, but I had never seen it, so, I enjoyed it.   Until we got NetFlix I didn't watch a lot of Movies, and never Streamed, so there's many I haven't seen that probably everyone else has whose been doing it a long time.  When a 20 Year Old Movie is "New" to me, well, that speaks volumes, No?  *LOL*   The Son watched it with me even tho' he'd seen it way back when he was still in High School.  *Smiles*  He gets a kick out of what all is "New" to me still.  *Bwahahahaa*

The Man and I had a good Monday, he Traveled well, we went to "Snooze" for Brunch.   This was the Monte Cristo Brioche French Toast topped with Gruyere & Jack Cheeses, Shaved Ham, Chives, crispy Prosciutto, and a Poached Egg... Strawberry Salad... Bacon But Different, which is rubbed with Brown Sugar, Cayenne, Chili Flakes and drizzled with House Made Sriracha Maple Syrup... House Made Raspberry Pepper Jam, with an Iced Lavender Latte, Sublime!   This is the flavor profiles I taste in my Dreams and Jones for eating again.  *Smiles*  The Man had their House Made Corned Beef Hash Breakfast, it's so good he eats it all and without playing with it.  *LOL*  Our Cute little Young Waitress was a Goth slash Hippie named Winter, with long Black Dreadlocks and lots of Tattoos and Body Piercings, Adorable. 

We stopped at an Antique Mall in Scottsdale and got such Deals, they were having a big Sale and some Vendor had ridiculously low prices.  The Man got large Vintage Fancy Hunting Knives in Tooled Ornate Leather Sheathes for only Six Bucks each and a Stone Arrowhead for a Buck!   I got Pendants made out of various Semi Precious Stones and Crystals with tiny Silver Charms affixed for a Buck apiece!   So, I got 20 of them, all different.   I got an Antique Tibetan Pendant Necklace in Brass with Carved Turquoise and Red Coral Buddha, the 'Chain' is multiple strands of small White Stone Seed Beads with Ornate Brass Beads every so often to connect them together, about the thickness of a Rope when combined. 

  And an Antique Red Glass Bead and Golden Rosary with Red Seed Stone accents on the Crucifix and Centerpiece.  That Vendor had everything at great prices and then was giving another 15% Off those prices!!!   I got a Tiger Eye Carved Stone Skull for Six Dollars.  And Two Pair of Eyeball Earrings and Mermaid Earrings.   All Smalls, but great Scores nonetheless.  We hadn't expected to find so much for so little.  We like that Antique Mall but rarely get over there to Scottsdale to visit it.  It's a fairly large Mall with numerous Vendors and more quality Merch than a lot of them... even some very high end Merch, but, a lot of Bargains too, not just expensive items.  The Man likes that they have a lot of Vendors that Specialize in Vintage Militaria and Mantiques.   

I watched "Halloween Ends" {2022} with Jamie Lee Curtis, allegedly the final of the sequels.  It was pretty good, as sequels go.  But, I still like the original "Halloween" {1978} and usually watch the Cult Classic every October.  *LOL*   It's like when you watch the original "Home Alone" {1990} or "National Lampoons Christmas Vacation" {1989} during the Christmas Season... and Yes, I do.  *Smiles*   I do enjoy a good Cult Classic Movie.  "The Rocky Horror Picture Show" {1975} used to have Midnight Showings in Theaters near the University and we'd go and throw Toast at the Screen during the Dinner Scene when Frank proposes a Toast.  Yes, Silly, but it was Cult Classic Movie Fun... I don't know if they still do it or not now?   And we'd sing The Time Warp.  "Beetlejuice" {1988} was a Cult Classic and I'd like to see the sequel on the Big Screen at a Theater.   In Europe "A Clockwork Orange" {1971} was a Cult Classic.   I don't usually like sequels, they're never as good as the originals IMO.

Princess T came Home with Two Small Pumpkins and a miniature one from the Pumpkin Patch Rusty took her to.   They're much smaller than what she'd usually pick out to carve into Jack O'Lanterns, so, don't know if she intends to carve them or not?   But, they are perfectly shaped small Pumpkins and the mini one is Cute.  I have Three mini ones I found when we were doing Environmental Cleanup, someone left them behind, so, I brought them Home to put in my Vignette behind the Sectional Sofa.   Mini Pumpkins are edible and are the Jack-Be-Little Variety... but there are other Mini Varieties such as Baby Boo, Munchkin or Sweetie Pie.  For Interior Vignettes I do like the Mini Varieties and they last a long time and are inexpensive.  I J'Adore Gourds too, I've Kept some Dried ones for Years before they need to be tossed out.

I'm completely done with Halloween Decorating now and adding to my Vintage Halloween Collectibles for this Year.   Well, unless I stumble upon something so Primo and Inexpensive I would be a Fool not to Buy it.  *Winks*   I did Win the Two Vintage Halloween Noisemakers that ended Today, but, got Outbid on the Box Lot I Bid on... and they've Bid higher than I want to go, so... que sera sera, still Happy with what I did Win.   This Week I'm probably going to Buy at least one Heirloom full sized Pumpkin, I saw some nice ones at TARGET and I get 5% Off if I use my Red Card there, which is linked to my regular Debit Card, so if TARGET has something I usually will be Buying anyway, I get it there and discounted.  The SUPER TARGETS have a full Grocery section.  And, they have a great Halloween section too, which is still well stocked compared to everywhere else.

Above is my little Free Pumpkin Trio, which have knobby Skins that give them a very cool and kind of creepy textured look.  Below was a very innovative Zipper Face Costume Idea that only costs the price of a Zipper and some faux blood and bruising color makeup.  It looks so realistic, yet is so simplistically Genius.   This Cashier at SAVERS had done such a good job with it I asked if I could take her pix and kept it in my Photo Archives for Inspiration for an inexpensive realistic Horror Costume.  I really don't know if I'll bother with a Costume on Halloween Night since we don't go anywhere nor do we get a whole lot of Kids coming to the Door Trick-Or-Treating.  We had more last Year than usual tho', so, you never know... if you give out good Candy, or handfuls of any Candy rather than a single piece, Word seems to get around the Juvenile Grapevine.  *LOL*  

Since in our Mini Farm Community the Homes are Spaced further apart than Residential Properties, we usually try to make it worth their while.  So, I Buy the Candies I know my own Family Love and we always hand out more than a single piece to each Child.  In the past I've even made up Halloween Treat Bags to hand out.  They Sell the Halloween Graphics Decorated Cellophane Bags at the Dollar Stores and are like those you'd hand out at Birthdays as Treat Bags.  I might do that again this Year since they're Fun to make up and you can Buy some of those Plastic Halloween Toys and Stickers to include with the Candies that are like the Toys you'd get out of a Gumball Vending Machine.   One Year I even Scored the little Capsules filled with Gumball Machine Toys at a Chazza... someone with a Vending Machine Business must have Donated some of their Inventory.  Another Year I Scored some Palm Sized rubberized Squishy Pumpkins in various Neon Colors that had a Strobe Light you could activate inside of them.

After just watching one of the "Halloween" Movies on NetFlix, this Iconic Mask is one I'd like to Source and put in a Pickle Jar.  I saw that Idea at one of the Events this Year and thought it was Simple, yet Brilliant.  I'm always looking for good Halloween Props to put Outside in our Exterior Displays every Year.  The Weather here is harsh on them, so they only last a few Seasons before they deteriorate and you have to replace them.  I'm Surprised at how many Years I've gotten out of some of my Original Faux Pumpkins actually.  Anything synthetic in this Heat just gets brittle, melts or disintegrates completely.  This Morning tho', when I took Princess T in to Work at just before 6:00 A.M. it was only 57 Degrees!!!  That actually felt like Fall!!!  So, perhaps by Halloween it will begin feeling more Autumnal?   I can't wait for our Utility Bill to go down, I'm still making additional payments to pay off my high Summer Bills when we had AC, Insulation and Ductwork Issues.

I also wanna spend more time working on and in my RV Garage Mahal and my She Shed areas.  If it's Chilly in either I can bundle up, but, when it's too Hot, it's just too Hot to be in there.   We still don't have The RV Garage largest Door repaired, the Motor burnt out so we have to raise and lower it by Hand, which is a Two Person Job.  It's not difficult, just a Pain in the Ass and very inconvenient.  Everything going out at once is also cost prohibitive and right now I don't have the Budget for more Home Repairs and high Dollar Maintenance Issues.   The Son is giving me more Money to Help Out and now Princess T can throw me some Money too, now she's Working, it all Helps.   The Daughter has decided to try to stay in Mexico until the New Year, now that some of Maria's extended Family has agreed to Help out and she's feeling less overwhelmed.   She says the Oldest Child is working so hard that she doesn't want to leave her feeling all Alone in this Situation they now have either.

Truly, if she leaves, those Two Oldest ones are more like Orphans.  Since they'd not have any Adult in the Household or anyone looking out for them on a daily basis, they're truly on their own and have had to Grow Up too fast.  I can't even Imagine being a Young Teen and in that Situation, it would be intimidating and scary.   They handle it well, and even tho' the Old Lady hadn't really been able to be The Adult for Years, and needing Full Time Extreme Caregiving, her presence there had been comforting to the Kids.   So, they didn't Feel all Alone.  They realize their Mom has a profound Disability, and really can't be a responsible Parent, but, she's still an Adult, and she's trying her best.  So, they do still look up to her and appreciate that she Cares enuf to step up and step in right now in the absence of anyone else doing it.   I think their Dad and his New Wife will have to stay out of the picture if extended Family make it a Condition to their Help.  It's a necessary Condition actually that must be enforced for the Kid's sakes.

A Blast From Halloween Past Nostalgic Photo of a Wee Princess T and her supersized Pumpkin she chose that Year and fell Asleep on during the Ride Home.  *LOL*  It was a Big Day for a Little Girl... she often fell Asleep on Rides Home from any Adventure.  She still takes Naps in fact, she's never been a Kiddos that has trouble Sleeping anywhere, anytime.  She probably Sleeps as much as her Cat and they often take their frequent Cat Naps Together.  *Smiles*   She and any Cat she's ever had have always been exceedingly close.  So, I'm glad that I gave in and allowed her to have Eli after a Year of not having a Cat when Miss Priss Died.  I don't want the responsibility of an Animal Outliving me and not knowing who would be able to take it in and Care for it, it's the only reason I had not wanted another Pet.  And of coarse when they Pass it's like losing a Beloved Family Member, so the Grief never gets easier no matter how many you've had or for how long.

 

I think I'm gonna be ready for Taco Tuesday, I have just about all the ingredients and we'll be making these with Al Pastor Meat... which is marinated.  The difference between it and Carnitas Meat is Al Pastor uses Pineapple, Onion and a Spicier Adobo Sauce... which makes it Sweet and Savory.  I like making the Street Taco Size, which are small and easy to eat.  Tacos are always a Family Favorite and I know nobody will be fussy about wanting to eat them.   Plus, even if you're not a Culinary Jedi, you can't mess up a Taco.  *Smiles*   We have some Guacamole and some good Salsa too, so all I need to Score now is some Fresh Cilantro and grated Cojita at the Grocer Today.   I'm missing The Daughter being here since she liked to Cook with me and she'll eat anything, so you can feel rather like an accomplished Cook.  *LOL*  She's had Food Insecurities for so long now that any Food is Good Food to her. *Smiles*  The Son has always eaten damned near anything too.  It's the Two Fusspots that I don't like Cooking for.  *Winks*

One of the Granddaughters obliged with some new Pixs of this Great-Grandson who just turned One already!!!  He's her Youngest of Three, he has Two Big Sister.  They had such a big Party for him you would have thought he was Graduating!  *LMAO*  That Granddaughter loves to Host big Parties and her Buffet spreads are envious... his Birthday Theme was Football.  When Younger I Hosted kick Ass Parties myself that were Over The Top, so, I totally understand how much Fun it is to Organize a good one.  But, she's way more Extreme than I ever was!  I know, hard to Believe anyone is more Over-The-Top than Yours Truly, but, she is!  His Mama also likes to Buy Special T-Shirts for every Occasion, so, his Sisters had new ones they wore that said Sister Of The Birthday Boy.   This Granddaughter is also well known for Buying matching Outfits for the entire Family when they take Family Photos.  Her Wardrobe Budget is clearly vast.  I don't even think I've ever seen them wearing the same Clothes twice!?  *LOL*

There was a progression to how he received his Football Birthday Cake... from Terror and Loathing...

To, hey, this shit is pretty good, and messy, so, I'm totally diggin' it now!!!  *LOL*

And then the Hose Down afterwards... since, every Baby Eats with their entire Being... and comes out looking like they were in a Horror Film!!!  *LMAOROTF*

And the other Great-Grandson that the Middle Granddaughter has went out to the Pumpkin Patch to make his selection with his Grandma and Cousins.

I can clearly see he has his Great-Grandma Dawn's weakness for Heirloom Varieties and Gourds... LOL... in a Field full of mostly your Garden Variety Pumpkins, hey, what's THIS?!  *Smiles and Winks*

Yep, it's definitely The One!!!   And look at what a big Strong Boy he is!   No Help Needed, I got this!!!   *Ha ha ha*   So glad that the Grandchildren Share so prolifically on The Book Of Faces, since, we're missing all of this in Person.   But, they'll all never leave Pennsylvania and we'll never leave Arizona, so, here we are... and they all Grow Up so damned fast, in the Blink of an Eye!   So, I'll end now with one more Blast From Halloween Past of a much Younger Princess T Voguing for the Camera, and Dressing Up, as she's always been prone to doing.  *Smiles*

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Happy Autumn my Friends... Dawn... The Bohemian