HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!

On behalf of the Maple Grove Manor & Cemetery
Have a Safe & Happy Halloween!!!

Countdown - 1 day! 20 Rules of Halloween

In lieu of Cemetery Tuesday, I bring you the...

20 Rules of Halloween

1. When it appears that you have killed the monster, NEVER check to see if it's really dead.

2. Never read a book of Demon Summoning aloud, even as a joke.

3. Do not search the basement, especially if the power has gone out.

4. If children speak to you in Latin or any other language, which they should not know, shoot them immediately. It will save you a lot of grief in the long run. However, it will probably take several rounds to kill them, so be prepared. This also applies to kids whose eyes glow and speak with somebody else's voice.

5. When you have the benefit of numbers, NEVER pair off and go alone.

6. As a general rule, don't solve puzzles that open portals to Hell.

7. Never stand in, on, or above a grave, tomb, or crypt. This would apply to any other house of the dead as well.

8. If you're searching for something that caused a loud noise and find out that it's just the cat, GET THE HELL OUT!

9. If appliances start operating by themselves, do not check for short circuits; just get out!

10. Do not take ANYTHING from the dead.

11. If you find a town which looks deserted, there's probably a good reason for it. Don't stop and look around.

12. Don't fool with recombinant DNA technology unless you're sure you know what you're doing.

13. If you're running from the monster, expect to trip or fall down at least twice, more if you are of the female persuasion. Also note that, despite the fact that you are running and the monster is merely shambling along, it's still moving fast enough to catch up with you.

14. If your companions suddenly begin to exhibit uncharacteristic behavior such as hissing, fascination for blood, glowing eyes, increasing hairiness, and so on, kill them immediately.

15. Stay away from certain geographical locations, some of which are listed here: Amityville, Elm Street, Transylvania, the Bermuda Triangle, or any small town in Maine.

16. If your car runs out of gas at night on a lonely road, do not go to the nearby deserted-looking house to phone for help. If you think that it is strange you ran out of gas because you thought you had most of a tank, shoot yourself instead. You are going to die anyway, and most likely be eaten.

17. Beware of strangers bearing strange tools. For example: chainsaws, staple guns, hedge trimmers, electric carving knives, combines, lawnmowers, butane torches, soldering irons, band saws, or any devices made from deceased companions. (or chipper/shredders, remember Fargo).

18. If you find that your house is built upon a cemetery, now is the time to move in with the in-laws. This also applies to houses that had previous inhabitants who went mad or committed suicide or died in some horrible fashion, or had inhabitants who performed satanic practices in your house.

19. If your parents move you to a town where you find out the high school gym burnt down during Prom night, or hear that a maniac gets loose from a sanitarium every Halloween, then it's time to run away!

20. When trick-or-treating and you come to a house made of gingerbread and gum drops...RUN!! RUN FOR YOUR LIFE!!!

source

Countdown - 2 days! Maple Grove Cemetery

I think I'm pretty happy with the set up now.  I had to do some moving around to put all of the skeletons out.

 I still may move the blowmolds somewhere else and have a strobe on Bobert & Billiam.

 This ghost is called "the Union Rep".  When I was setting up, all the blowmolds stood in the garage for well over a week.  One day I told the hubby that they wanted to go out to play, so I needed to get busy.  He sarcastically asked who was the spokesperson for the Blowmold Union.  Since this ghost was one of my first acquisitions, it was him.

Terrance & Phillip

 The only disadvantage of the leaves is that you can't see the giant chain & Jack's old collar attached to the dog house!

This area between the houses gets all the wind straight out of the west, but Walter & Matilda has been standing nicely!

 

Here is a night shot from a couple days ago.  

Oh yes.  Next year I already know there will be some new additions.  I just won both of these on eBay auctions this weekend.

Edit @ 0830
Token weather report for Macomb County / SE Michigan from the National Weather Service...

..WIND ADVISORY IN EFFECT FROM NOON TODAY TO 5 PM EDT TUESDAY..

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN DETROIT/PONTIAC HAS ISSUED A WIND ADVISORY...WHICH IS IN EFFECT FROM NOON TODAY TO 5 PM EDT TUESDAY.

HAZARDOUS WEATHER...

 * NORTH WINDS WILL INCREASE TO 20 TO 30 MPH THIS AFTERNOON WITH GUSTS OF 40 TO 50 MPH EXPECTED. THESE STRONG WINDS WILL PERSIST THROUGH THE NIGHT AND INTO TUESDAY AFTERNOON.

And this isn't even from Sandy! She'll get here later.  This is from our Canadian friends!

So all the skeletons and driveway ghosts got moved into the garage and the taller stones laid down flat.  I'm hoping the lower stones and blowmolds will be OK, since they're sitting on wood dowels and still plugged in. 

Countdown - 3 days! Tillson Street Plus!

Tillson Street is located in Romeo, Michigan.  As of yesterday, there were exactly 3 houses not decorated - one never is (they need to move & let me have their house) and the other is up for sale and looked empty, I don't know what was up with the other.
So I took Jack and explored.

I'd heard houses on the next street over were done, too.  So we looked and only a few were decorated, but they were REALLY decorated!
Here is Pleasant Street.

 OMG, I WANT this house!!!

 Those trees are awesome!!

Alrighty, now around the corner to Tillson St!

 They were still setting up.
All these JOLs will be on the giant scarecrows.

 Jack had to check out the pirate.

 This is my favorite house!

 Where did they find bluckies without freakishly long arms??

This guy was pneumatically driven to sit up.
Jack didn't know what to think of it!
I had a good laugh.

According to the website, they get over 2000 ToTers on Halloween!   Crazy!
A lot of the houses do mostly the same set up every year, but there are some new additions and tweaks here & there.  Which is all the more reason I need to move there, because that's what I do!

***EDIT!***
I didn't get any more pictures, due to the literally hundreds of people lining the sidewalks, just to see these houses.  And my favorite house, shown above?  There was a group from the local dance studio performing in the front yard (and was critiqued by my daughter who is, of course, extremely biased).  Very cool!
However, I did stop to purchase one of their T-shirts in support of various groups at Romeo High School.

I also decided that I probably would NOT want to live on this street.  For at least half of October, you would not be able to get out of your driveway any time after dark and any part of your lawn that isn't fenced off, is completely destroyed.
I'd be happy to live on Pleasant St.