Halloween Street

I like All Hallow's Eve, more for the holy day we Catholics celebrate - All Saints' Eve - than the weird yard displays.  However, it turns out that the street on the other side of our block is known as "Halloween Street," and it's pretty cool.

We heard that people over there socialize with neighbors on Halloween, but we didn't have the whole story!

On the afternoon of the 31st, I walked up the street and was amazed at what was going on.  People were putting up huge displays - I think some people actually took the afternoon off work to do so!  I talked to a neighbor who was putting up the "Hollywood" display.  He informed me that the street gets 800-1,000 kids, and they have street performers come in!

I got pictures in daylight since I figured my phone wouldn't take good pictures at night.

Where the Wild Things Are

????????

The Woman Who Started it All

One Night Shot

Hollywood - Elvis is in the chair

Nothing like a guillotine and Mrs. Frankenstein lighting Your cigarette

Zombie Voting Booth - Kids could "vote" by putting a sticker  inside

We checked it out that night.  Everyone was out in their front yards with fires going.  We missed the Morris Dancers but saw some great costumes - one kid was dressed as a spaghetti dinner, complete with table around her neck.  We also met some more neighbors.  Including a young couple with a new baby!  I'm so thankful to finally have a new friend/walking partner close to my house.

Our neighborhood is cool....

Mushroom Madness

I joined the Minnesota Mycological Society.  I am now an official foraging nerd.  I went to one of their meetings, where I learned about easy-to-identify fungi like "Chicken of the Woods" and "Hen of the Woods.  There were a mix of people there; mostly older but a few young.  It was a fun, educational and random activity.

http://www.minnesotamushrooms.org/

Then a few weeks later, Tim and I joined them for a Foray at a park.  BUT NO MUSHROOMS!!  I think it was because there has been so little rain all summer and fall (until now).

I, however, found a number of too-old Chicken of the Woods.  We should go back earlier next year.

Specimen #1

Specimens #2-12

It was disappointing not to find anything, but it was a nice walk in the woods.

Tim likes hunting for mushrooms because he's Polish.  Half of the people on the foray were from Slavic countries.

A few weeks later, we found this specimen at a park right by our house!  It's an oyster mushroom.  I also found my finger in the picture.

Here I am cutting it off the log....like a maniac!

I made it into a soup, but I didn't get a picture of the soup.  It was delicious.  Although Tim was a little nervous (despite my careful research to I.D. it) we became neither sick nor poisoned.

I keep seeing those flying monkeys, though...