Happy Halloween to all my dreadful readers!  I hope you have a magical day.  I got a big treat this weekend in the form of a new Dahlia Jane design by Noneta.  Noneta is an illustrator living in Malaga, Spain.  She specializes in cheeky and adorable little ladies and she did such an amazing job.

I love everything about this illustration from the mesmerizing eyes to the wild hair, the tiny manicured hands to the supernatural setting.  Thank you Noneta for this brilliant picture!  To see more of Noneta’s work, visit her website or her Myspace page.

There are only five days left until Halloween and my apartment is craft central.  I’m still working on two costumes, makeup, greeting cards, and some baking.  I’m vacillating on pekingese  Audrey’s costume for the Halloween dog parade.  And I have a nice long list of things I still need to pick up by the weekend: a short petticoat, fishnets, black and white face paint, fake black flowers, and flesh colored elastic.  There aren’t enough hours in the day.

Saturday I finally got my Pullip Lunatic Queen doll.  She was pre-ordered because it was love at first sight.  She’s as stunning in person as she was in her promotional pictures.  I haven’t found a good place for her yet though.  I planned on giving her her own cube in my expedit shelving unit, but her hair makes her too tall and she can’t sit because of her hoop skirt.  Right now she’s on top of the shelving unit, but it’s pretty dusty up there.  So I don’t know where she’s going to live.

I’m updating last year’s plague doctor costume post to include a new mask by friend to the blog Brian Griffin.  The mask is handmade and traditional.  Brian is practically giving these away!  There are still four available on Ebay for $115 and there’s probably still time to get one for this Halloween.  Add a black robe and you’ve got a sinister costume.

So how are you doing on Halloween preparations?  Anybody have any tips for getting “Gorilla Glue” off the skin of my fingertip pads?

According to the National Retail Federation, Halloween spending will be up 17.7% this year compared to last year.  In total, Americans will probably spend $5.8 billion on Halloween, which works out to an average of $66.28 per person.  $23.37 of that goes towards a costume, $20.29 on candy and $18.66 on decorations.  Two out of five Americans will dress up in costume.  11.5 percent of those costumers will also dress up their pets.

$5.8 billion is a huge and almost intangible number, but the average $66.28 figure is way too low for me.  I can’t believe most people who dress up only spend $23.37 on their costume.  I usually spend around $20 just on my dog Audrey’s costume.  While I’m all for helping friends come up with cheap costumes created with things they already have around the house, personally, I love elaborate, well-made costumes and it’s hard for me to spend less than $100 on a Halloween costume when you add up all of the pieces.  And I usually need more than one costume per season.  As for the $18.66 on decorations, that might get you a pumpkin and a styrofoam tombstone.  I would guess I spend another $100 or more on decorations most years too.

I definitely don’t spend $20.29 on candy, my building doesn’t even get trick or treaters.  I might reach that figure if I add up all the theme junk food I usually have around for the holiday including candy, cupcakes and cookies.

This survey does not even take event spending into account.  I have to figure in tickets to attraction park haunts and club events and the food and drink I’ll purchase while there.  I would guess my average Halloween spending is $3-400 and I’m making something of an effort to control myself.  Halloween is my major holiday and the only one I decorate for.  I don’t feel I need to justify my spending because I derive a lot of pleasure from the holiday.

Now I’m curious.  How do you compare to these statistics?  What do you spend the most on: costume, candy or decorations?

Unable to renew their stock of sodium thiopental, a drug crucial for lethal injections, states are facing difficult choices as execution dates approach.

Sodium thiopental is a barbiturate primarily used for medical purposes as an anesthetic or to induce a coma.  It has also been used for euthanasia of the terminally ill and animals.  Hospira Inc. of Lake Forest, IL is the only US manufacturer. They blame problems with their raw material supplier for the shortage.  While Hospira previously promised to have new stock in July and then October, they now say it will not be available until January 2011 at the earliest. There are no FDA-approved manufacturers of sodium thiopental overseas.

Of the 50 US states, 35 still have the death penalty.  All 35 require sodium thiopental for executions.  Two states, Ohio and Washington, use a single 5 gram dose to administer death.  The other thirty-three states use a cocktail of drugs which include a smaller dose of 1.5 grams of sodium thiopental to make the prisoner unconscious, a paralytic called pancuronium bromide, and finally potassium chloride which stops the heart.  Hospira manufactures all three chemicals.  Sodium thiopental is not the only part of the cocktail officials are having trouble getting.  When a competitor’s supply of pancuronium bromide was recalled due to quality control, demand for Hospira’s supply increased unexpectedly.

States cannot simply substitute other drugs or alter procedures.  Fordham University Law School professor Deborah Denno explained that administering the second two drugs without injecting sodium thiopental first would constitute cruel and unusual punishment.  The paralytic and the harsh toxin would cause extreme pain.  The cocktail has been widely used since the 1980s and was established in many states after lengthy court procedures.

“We are working to get it back onto the market for our customers as soon as possible,” Hospira spokesman Dan Rosenberg assured the press.  Some question if this is really the case.  As recently as March of this year, Hospira has circulated letters to states that use their drugs in lethal injections.

Ohio State University surgeon, Jonathan Groner, who is against the death penalty, speculated that the shortage is caused because sodium thiopental’s medical uses “have shrunk to the point that the company doesn’t want to make a drug that has no use but to kill people.”

Hospira spokesman Dan Rosenberg denies that the shortage is a political statement, but it’s fishy.  On the other hand, it’s hard to believe a corporation would sacrifice profits in this economy.

There are seventeen executions scheduled to occur before the end of January in nine states.  Oklahoma has two convicts scheduled to die in October, but only one dose left of sodium thiopental.  Arizona sees no way to perform an execution set for the end of October unless they find a source of the drug.  Kentucky’s governor abstained from signing two death warrants a few weeks ago because the state is almost out of its supply.

Here in California, the shortage is causing immediate legal snarls in a decades old case.  56-year-old Albert Greenwood Brown is set to die at 9pm on Thursday, September 30, just three hours before California’s remaining supply of sodium thiopental expires on Friday.  Brown was convicted of abducting, raping and killing 15-year-old Susan Jordan as she walked to high school in Riverside in 1980.  Brown strangled Susan with her own shoelace.  He followed the murder by calling Jordan’s mother that evening to tell her that she would never see Susan again and hinted at the body’s whereabouts in an orange grove.  Brown has since used up all of his appeals.

Brown would be the first inmate executed since a moratorium was enforced in 2006. Since the moratorium, the state has constructed a new death chamber and instituted new training for executioners.  Last Friday, US District Judge Jeremy Fogel of San Jose, the judge who originally instituted the moratorium on executions, denied a stay of execution.  Then Monday night, the Ninth US Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco demanded that Fogel reconsider the stay of execution, expressing fear that the execution date is hurried because the drug’s Friday expiration.  When a Marin County court upheld Fogel’s ruling on Monday, the execution was set for Wednesday.  Then Governor Schwarzenegger granted a 45 hour reprieve explaining that a state court injunction against executions was not set to expire until Thursday.

California has the largest number of inmates on death row: 700.  Including Brown, six other inmates convicted to die have lost all of their appeals.  Having run through his appeals, Brown’s attorneys are taking advantage of the drug’s shortage in the wake of the moratorium’s cessation to further stall the execution.  If they are able to delay the execution past Thursday, Brown would have an additional three months of reprieve at least.  The manipulation of the system disgusts me.  For the sake of Susan’s parents, who have been waiting for justice for thirty years, I hope the execution occurs.

UPDATE: Brown’s execution was cancelled by Judge Fogel who ruled that he needs more time to review the new procedures put in place.  California will not be having any executions until 2011.  The system that allows criminals sentenced to death decades of life at the tax payers expense while families wait for justice is a disgrace.

Not being much more than an occasional visitor to the world of gaming, I need to call in outside assistance whenever I want to do a game post.  Luckily I happen to be related to an obsessive gamer who takes offense if I recommend any unworthy games.  I asked him if there were any games that would fit the monster theme I’m currently exploring, and what follows in italics is his response.

Betrayal at House on the Hill is the correct answer:

It’s been out of print for a while, but it’s getting a reprint (rumored to have removed the one genuinely creepy card) this year. I’m surprised you’ve never played it, I’ve had it for years.

[So you make me play that stupid train game, Ticket to Ride, but forget to show me a game featuring a haunted mansion.  The new edition of Betrayal at House on the Hill is being released on October 5.  Actually I don't see any monsters described in the press release of the game:

Betrayal at House on the Hill quickly builds suspense and excitement as players explore a haunted mansion of their own design, encountering spirits and frightening omens that foretell their fate. With an estimated one hour playing time, Betrayal at House on the Hill is ideal for parties, family gatherings or casual fun with friends.

Betrayal at House on the Hill is a tile game that allows players to build their own haunted house room by room, tile by tile, creating a new thrilling game board every time. The game is designed for three to six people, each of whom plays one of six possible characters.

Secretly, one of the characters betrays the rest of the party, and the innocent members of the party must defeat the traitor in their midst before it’s too late! Betrayal at House on the Hill will appeal to any game player who enjoys a fun, suspenseful, and strategic game.]

Other, less correct answers:

Arkham Horror

Very similar game built on the Lovecraft mythos filled with lovecraftian monsters. Personally I think the game itself sucks, here’s what I think happened:

1. Self-styled game designer who’s actually just a huge Lovecraft fan furiously masturbates onto the blank pages of “rulebook” with no thought for game mechanics or fun.

2. Nerds assume anything with Lovecraft’s name on it must be high quality because knowing about him puts you in some sort of counterculture, superbrain clique.

3. Game sells a million copies and 10 expansions come out.

[Okay, so we're not recommending Arkham Horror.]

Touch of Evil

I’ve never played this, but I think it’s exactly what you want. The setting is 19th century European hamlet and the players play scenarios that pit them against classic monster villains like Dracula, Frankenstein, werewolves, etc.

[This game sounds pretty cool to me.  Although I might rather be a monster than a monster hunter.  Here's the description: A Touch of Evil, The Supernatural Game is a fast-paced game of fiendish creatures, dashing Heroes, and high-adventure. Each player takes on the role of a unique monster-hunting Hero, racing against time to stop the forces of darkness from claiming another foothold in the world of man. Only by investigating the town and building your Hero’s strength can you hope to hunt down the Supernatural Villain to his Lair and defeat him in an epic Showdown. Players can race Competitively to be the first to defeat the Villain and save the town, or they can work together Cooperatively to defeat a much stronger Villain.]

Thank you Michael for your input. Has anybody played these games? Can you think of a monster game we might have missed?

With all the attention vampires and zombies (and to a lesser extent werewolves) have been getting the last couple of years, the rest of the monsters have been getting neglected, even by me.  It’s been months since I even flinched at the one living in my coat closet.  I thought I’d try to make it up to them by focusing a whole week of posts on MONSTERS.  Then I found so many monsters shuffling about just waiting for someone to notice them that I thought I’d better make it two weeks.  Stay tuned for monster art, monster costumes and monster toys.  If you’ve had any monster encounters, I’d love to hear about them.

Upon a Midnight Dreary is one year old today.  (Tear) My baby is growing up so fast.  This blog began as a way for me to celebrate Halloween everyday and it’s become a showcase for the dark and macabre things that inspire me.  It’s important to me to thank my friends and family for being so supportive of my website, even when they worry that I’ve gone off the deep end of creepy.  Thank you to Kukubee for designing the blog’s banner and creating the first portrait of Dahlia Jane.  I don’t know how they bring my crazy mutterings to life so exquisitely, but the site wouldn’t be the same without them.  And I want to extend a huge thank you to my friend Megan for accompanying me on several adventures over the last year.  It’s always more fun with you along.  I can’t wait for the crazygonuts things we’ll do this year.  Most of all, thank you to all the readers who motivate me to make the site the best it can be.  I hope you keep visiting.

As a further thank you to one lucky reader, I’m giving away a fantastic prize from Peter Pauper Press.

The winner will receive more than $80 of booty from Peter Pauper Press including:

Vampires, Werewolves, Zombies: Compendium Monstrum: This is my favorite book of the last year.  I reviewed it here.  You need to carry this entertaining pocket manual with you at all times to protect yourself from supernatural beasties.
Vampire Bride 1000 piece Puzzle: The gorgeous dreary graphic on this puzzle makes it perfect to while away a rainy afternoon or sleepless night.
Vampire Journal (Diary, Notebook)
Black Skull & Crossbones Roller Ball Pen with Gift Box (Rollerball Pen)
Celtic Address Book
Shadow Tapestry Boxed Designer Desk Notes (Stationery, Note Pad)
Skulls i-Clip Magnetic Page Markers (Set of 8 Magnetic Bookmarks): I don’t have these and I don’t really want to give them away, so if they’re missing from your package you’ll know why.
Calligraphy i-Clip Magnetic Page Markers (Set of 8 Magnetic Bookmarks)
2 Vampire Beaded Bookmarks
Keep Out! Beaded Bookmark
Wolf Beaded Bookmark

For your chance to make out like a bandit and get this haul, leave a comment to this post telling me what you want to see more of on this blog in the year to come.  The comment must be at least one full word .  The contest starts now and will close at midnight EST and nine PST on Sunday, July 18.  Thank you so much to Peter Pauper Press for helping us celebrate!

I’m not much of a gamer, but my brother is.  Whenever we get together he invariably presents a new boardgame or card game and convinces me to yeild to the complicated new instructions and pretend to be a good sport as he repeatedly trounces me.  Yesterday he showed me two new games: Mr Jack, a boardgame for two players, and The Misadventures of PB Winterbottom, a computer game.

Mr. Jack

I had high hopes for Mr. Jack, since Jack the Ripper is a slight obsession of mine.  To play Mr. Jack, one of the two players takes the identity of Jack the Ripper and the other is a detective trying to catch him.  Jack is hidden in one of the eight character pieces on the board and only the Jack player knows which piece he really is.  The detective has to figure it out, but he only gets one guess.  Jack wins by escaping detection.  The game requires strategy to outwit one’s opponent.

Compared to some of the strategy games I’ve tried to learn over the years, this one was relatively easy to pick up.  Considering the game is named after a notorious serial killer, however, I expected some slashing and debauchery.  I played Jack the Ripper, and at no point was I allowed to kill another character despite my protests.  Also, multiple people who had already played the game told me that it’s harder to win as Jack, which seems wrong.  The real Jack the Ripper evaded capture so if the game is going to be slanted one way or the other, it should be in his favor.  (It’s possible that I’m a sore loser.)  Given that, I have to say this game was just okay.

The Misadventures of PB Winterbottom

After failing as a nineteenth century fugitive, my brother convinced me to get on the computer to try The Misadventures of PB Winterbottom.  In this game you are Mr. PB Winterbottom, a gluttonous little man with one goal in life: to consume endless quantities of pie.  You’ve fallen into an alternative universe where pies float just out of reach.  With your understanding of machinery and the ability to clone yourself, you may be able to overcome the forces that try to keep you from your beloved pies.

This puzzle game takes place in a dark and dreary nineteenth century inspired cityscape.  Winterbottom and his clones are adorable.  The story is charming in an Edward Gorey sort of way.  My favorite part of the game is using the Z key to smack the little Winterbottoms around the screen.  The game has over 80 puzzles.  I’m sort of stuck right now in the middle of the second level, but my brother assures me that once he shows me one quick thing I’ll be back on my way.  He says he beat the game in about three hours.  That means I’ll probably need ten.  And while I wouldn’t say I’m addicted yet, it’s defintely fun.

The Misadventures of PB Winterbottom is available through Steam Powered, a platform for buying, downloading and playing games, for $4.99.

Decapitated and dumped in a street, Maria Corona was discovered at approximately 11am on Monday by a postal worker.  A trail of blood led the police back to the one story brick house she shared with her family.  In the back of the pickup truck in the driveway were two chain saws with gory, bloody blades, one still running.

Police in Lewisville, Texas, where the murder occurred, have named Maria’s husband, Jose Fernando Corona, as the suspect.  Maria’s son-in-law admitted to getting a call from Jose where Jose said he “had done it, he had killed her and was going to drag her body next door,” according to the affidavit.

Police have an arrest warrant for 49-year-old Jose, but have been unable to locate him.  He seems to be on the run.  After abandoning the Toyota SUV he used to flee the scene in a parking lot, police believe Jose stole a gold 1991 Ford Ranger pickup truck.  He posed as an interested buyer taking a test-drive about about three hours after the murder.  The Ford truck has the Texas license plate AA2 4004.  Jose may have crossed the border to Mexico where he has friends and family.

According to the Coroner, Maria was still alive when she was decapitated.  The cause of death was multiple chain saw injuries “due to assault by another person.”

“Witnesses in the neighborhood did hear a chain saw running, but that was all they heard,” Lewisville police Capt. Kevin Deaver said. “It was an extremely gruesome scene. The method of death was brutal.”

Jose had no prior criminal record.  The couple had six children together between the ages of seven and twenty.  What could have pushed Jose to the point of committing such a heinous crime?

via Yahoo News.

If you’ve been following this blog it should be obvious that its author delights in all things macabre.  Perhaps less obvious is my passion for the nineteenth century.  Poe, Jack the Ripper, mourning jewelry and corsets are just a few of my historic obsessions.  I share this affinity for the nineteenth century with Steampunks.

Announcing…

What the heck is Steampunk anyway?

Shrugs… Even self-proclaimed steampunkers cannot agree on a definition.  The word subculture is appropriate since steampunkers share beliefs and practices.  At the heart of steampunk is the romanticization of a past that never existed.  Influenced by science fiction literature by authors such as HG Wells and Jules Verne, steampunkers blend technology, the Victorian age and fantasy to create a world filled with airship pirates, gentlemen scientists and intrepid explorers.  Steampunkers can be found all over the world.

This week will celebrate all things steampunk, with an emphasis on the darker, more macabre aspects where steampunk and goth intersect, because after all, the name of the blog is “upon a midnight dreary” and I really can’t help myself.