Only three more weeks…

Ah, the horrors American parents inflict upon their children.

Most of those images come from this site, if you’re interested.

Other than missing my family, there isn’t a lot of stuff that makes me think, “Man, I really wish we lived in the US.” But you know what does? HALLOWEEN. I know, I know. You’re saying, “Kris, what about your dream of bringing this fine holiday to the Australian people? Don’t give up the dream!” And you’re right. It’s just hard! Especially when I see all the truly awesome Halloween stuff you can get in the States that simply doesn’t exist here. To whit: I-Mockery’s Ultimate Guide to the Halloween Candy of 2006. That? IS AMAZING. God, I hope Mom is sending me some of that in her care package! (Link courtesy of Bex, who probably didn’t mean to bring on such a bout of melancholy and nostalgia, but it’s cool.)

AskMetaFilter tackles Halloween costumes for couples. I liked Spy versus Spy, Bob Ross and Happy Tree, Yoshimi and a Pink Robot, and the one where one person is a pilot and one is a snake. (That will never not be funny.) Fortunately no one came up with the concept the Snook and I will be using this year. I CAN’T TELL YOU BECAUSE IT’S A SECRET, but it’s going to be great.

Crochet Eyeballs (PDF). Now I just need to learn to crochet before Halloween! (Link courtesy of Julie.)

I think we may have found this year’s Halloween centerpiece: Behold the Meat Cake. That is BEAUTIFUL.

Finally I got off my butt today and uploaded the photos from this year’s party. The highlight of the food was definitely my Enormous Crocodile as seen there on the right. It was a complete pain to make, but luckily as I was going as Hiroyuki Sakai – Iron Chef French – I was able to channel some of his “Delacroix” skill to put Mr. Crocodile together. Guest costume highlights included Facial Peel victims, bruised and bloodied nursery rhyme characters, and the Phantom’s nips. Seriously.

Congratulations to Tricia and Jeff, who used their “corpse bride and groom” costumes to announce their engagement. Hooray! In related news, the Snook and I will be opening a Japanese restaurant.

We had a trick-or-treater tonight! It was a little girl with her dad. I gave her a glow-in-the-dark plastic skull full of candy, which was all I had left. (I took the rest of the party leftovers to work today.) They were nice and I turned the skeleton lights on for them, but I really wish non-American trick-or-treaters would learn that you don’t go to houses without their porch lights on! It was pure luck I had the candy. These are the unwritten rules, world! Learn them.