Fear

Fear is an interesting thing. I guess that's why I've done the haunted house thing after all. It has been an examination of the human condition - especially emotions. For the rest of this particular blog I believe I need to get back to my examination of fear - especially in myself. I'll keep you posted.

A Couple of Blogs

So folks - if you came across this blog let me point you to my other one at

MySpace

I plan to do something different with the one your looking at now and am working on it even as we speak. Stay tuned. The one at

MySpace

will end up being a little lighter in format and relate more to my Halloween intersts and paying for them.

Scary Mary

My letter to Ritchey's Christmas Tree Farm

Patrick Nottingham
1803 First Ave
Altoona, PA 16602



Ritchey's Christmas Shop
3466 Mill Road
Duncansville, PA 16635


Dear Ritchey’s Christmas Trees,


It had been a long walk over J.B. Treefarm and we hadn’t been able to find any trees of sufficient size when we decided to make the drive to Duncansville and try you folks. Fairly quickly my wife spotted a large tree nearly ten feet tall. I should have recognized the vine growing up it, but I had never seen a specimen quite so thick before. In retrospect, I suppose, others had spotted the vine and had left this tree alone which is probably why it had gotten to such a size. Anyway, after felling our tree and dragging it up the hill a nice young fellow helped us put it in the back of his truck and we rode up to pay.

I wondered if it were true when the fine and helpful lady we paid identified the vine and
removed it for us. After all I’ve seen Poison Ivy before, but never a vine so thick. I should have known better and worried more. But I never really reacted too much to it before, and my wife had never had it all despite the fact that we have spent much time camping and hiking in the past. Yes, I know a dead looking vine can still give you the rash but I still figured I was safe and was confident in washing up at home.

And so here it is and I’m still on Prednisone steroids and Benedryl and Claritin for the break out I have, and my wife is in even more misery. It’s probably an omen that I came home for lunch and found the tree laying on it side mocking me with it’s prickly branches. I am now a convert and will take this opportunity to remove the vile thing from my house and put in it’s place a lovely plastic fake tree. I plan to place it in the back of my truck and drive far up the mountain and release the thing back to where its wild cousins grow free. So, I must say that despite being nice folks with lovely Christmas wares, I would suggest that as your trimmers shape the pines on your property this summer that it would behoove you have them take a weed whacker along and cut out any plants that have “leaves of three” growing on them. Don’t worry about me because we shan’t be back to the wild again.

Happy Holidays and still scratchin’ here,


Patrick Nottingham

Tom Straub Haunted Art

Some new stuff from Tom Straub with our house in it!

Green is the new Red

If you at all care about your civil rights as an American and want to preserve them then I suggest you follow this link. Green is the new Red is only one of the first steps down the slippery slope to all out fascism in this country.
www.GreenIsTheNewRed.com

The Shac 7

Have you ever heard of the


Shac 7


if not I suggest you follow this link and read the summary of this case against some animal activists. Even if you have no interest in animal rights the case of terrorism against these folks - who apparently did nothing more than operate a web site speaking out against an animal testing lab - is one of the worst and least publicized assaults on our civil rights that I've seen recently. This era in America is a return to the paranoia of McCarthyism where instead of people being labeled Commies or Reds they are instead being labeled Terrorists. The Terrorists are everywhere and you must be vigilant against them. Turn in your neighbors and keep silent and safe. That's it, now go and read the case - then worry for your freedom my friends.

I wonder if by posting this I could now be considered a Terrorist?

Procreation

Enlightenment is what I need.

In past years doing a haunted house I’ve always noticed that the November post-season is always a bit of a bummer. I try - and no ladies I am not pretending I know what it is like to give birth - to liken it to giving birth. From my own modest observations I have seen that women tend to swear off ever getting pregnant again in the months preceding and especially right after the actual birth of the child. Who could blame them. The constant running to the bathroom, the physical discomfort and eventual pain that I can’t imagine that is tied to passing something the size of a bowling ball out of an orifice that under normal conditions wouldn’t do such a thing. However, usual after a few months the memory of the pain and discomfort are lost in the background of memory and the maternal desires to procreate return. There is, I must note, a time when a woman will have her last child. Rarely these days with the widespread use of contraceptives does this time come when she can no longer biologically have children, but instead comes from a conscious choice - either due to financial or physical toll. Haunting has always been that way for me.

November comes and I swear that I’ll never do that again. The winter holidays loom large and so do the added financial costs that are inevitably there - yes buying presents - and fixing up the house for the visitors to our house. It’s at these times that I’d really love to have the money spent on our “Free” haunt in the bank instead of lying around in props and decor in my other house. But as November wanes I find my thoughts sneaking back to prop making and haunt themes - at least in the past they have.

This year, though seems different. With the added strain of having to deal with inspectors this year and the looming hoops I’ll have to jump through for 2007 - if we can manage them at all - I wonder if perhaps the Nottingham family has had its last haunted child. The procreation of the various haunts may have reached their inevitable end as it were. As Thanksgiving is upon us I find myself not thinking of new props, but rather of dumpsters and yardsales to dispose of it all. I also wonder what it would be like to complete projects that involve drywall, paint, and new flooring for my real house with the money saved on the haunt. Things to ponder and resolve soon so I can plan a vacation that might involve sunny skies and alcoholic drinks in a lounge chair instead of cleaning house and cooking food for the army of monsters that stay with me in October. Hmmmm, I wonder.

Haunted Art

OK - here's another guy I've been meaning to post about. I love his work. The photos look even better in person than on the internet. I first saw his stuff posted to one of the Halloween lists - and then I conned him into giving some free stuff to the PA Haunters Gathering as a door prize. I now own several of his pieces - and some were hung through my haunt. Here's some watermarked images - and yes, I think you can contract with him to put you in one of his works. Click the link below for his MySpace page.

Tom Straub Haunted Art

Haunted Hot Sauce

I've been meaning to post about a fantastic product that I love. Check out Haunted Hot Sauce products at www.HauntedHotSauce.com My wife's favorite happens to be the Ghoul Drool flavor. This stuff has some serious bite to it but still manages to be full of real flavor. The ingredients are true Cajun style, and best of all it has a Halloween/Horror theme to it. It even comes packaged in coffins and each bottle has a toe-tag and a zombie paper mask on it - right down to the rubber maggots in the coffins the little details are not over looked. Check them out.

Senator Sanitarium

A few days ago I posted about PA's on-the-way-out Rick Santorum (Sanitarium). I sent him a nice email letting him know how happy I was that he lost re-election and told him I thought he was a fascist. Here's his response and it is yet another proof that his office paid no attention to anything his constituents said.

>>>>>>

Dear Mr. Nottingham:

Thank you for contacting me. As always, I appreciate hearing from you. As you
may know, the United States Senate is currently in a period of transition.
Accordingly, your concerns may be better met by contacting your new Senator, Bob
Casey, Jr. You may call the Capitol Switchboard for Senator Casey's contact
information at 202-224-3121. I also recommend that you contact Senator Arlen
Specter or your Representative in the House.

Thank you again for contacting me.

Sincerely,

Rick Santorum
United States Senate


This e-mail, a copy of which has been archived in the United States Senate, is
an official Senate communication intended for the individual or entity named
above. Any improper alteration or fraudulent misuse of the contents of this
e-mail may constitute a violation of federal law (18 USC 1030; 18 USC 2511; 18
USC 2701), and/or state laws governing defamation and misattribution. If the
reader of this message is not the intended recipient, please notify us that the
message was received in error and then delete it.

Scotland

For some strange reason I've always been pulled to all of Britain. I discovered the band whose music is the back ground for this video a few years ago. Albannach can be found at the link above. Enjoy the images of Scotland.

Monty Python's Lumber Jack Sketch

Here's a classic for your enjoyment. Just wait for the song. We used to sing it lots back in high school. No wonder I didn't get many dates.

From a Buick 8

Just finished "From a Buick 8" by Stephen King. I really think he shoulda made it his last book like he said he was. It was not really the top of his game - but it was entertaining enough. You can find it in the bargain book section of most bookstores now.

Monster Mash

I just thought I'd post some of the mayhem at Castle Nottingham just in case you got here by accident and not through one of our other sites.

See ya Rick

I just gotta say that thank goodness the biggest facsist in the US Senate has lost his election. Rick Santorum - a Republican from my state - PA who has in the past said things like women should stay at home and that homosexuals should have no rights is now on the way out. Please feel free to go to his website and send him a little email to say so long.

Santorum

Messin with Sasquatch

Whilst I'm wasting time watching youtube videos here's one never aired on tv.

Go Vegan

Here's a website to check out if you're at all interested in eliminating animals from your diet.

http://www.govegan.net

Whoa

So far I've tried to blog on MySpace. However, since I'm adding content that has nothing to do with the home haunt I started this one instead. Hopefully some interesting stuff will occur for me to post about. For awhile I'll be posting the same stuff in both places and eventually migrate it all here.