Happy Halloween

Australia doesn't really embrace Halloween all that much, but it always pays to have a stash of candy at the front door on Halloween night, just in case any trick or treaters pass by. Most years, I don't get any visitors - so I have to eat the evidence.

Shucks.


Twisties' Bag of Ghosts!

Just in time for Halloween 2011, these crunchy and "spookily flavoured" snacks (above), from the makers of regular Twisties, are spiced with paprika. Yum! It's unusual for Australian food companies to bother with Halloween-themed foods.

Nostalgia news!

1969 Halloween toy advertisement in Tri City Herald, Oct 20, p85.

This daily newspaper, based in Kennewick, Washington, USA, carried a very cool Halloween promotion way back in 1969. Notice the discounted listings for several glow-in-the-dark phenomena: a Green Ghost Game for $US 6.66, Daddy Booregard representing the Kooky Spookys finger puppets at 87 cents, and Glo-Juice varnish for 77 cents a bottle! "Things for Halloween to make the night 'spooktacular'!"

I seem to recall that, in Australia, Green Ghost retailed at $12.99 at Christmas; I can almost picture the price sign at Coles in Rockdale. (I received it that year as a birthday present.) I think the Kooky Spookys retailed here for $1.69 each. I just checked and the US exchange rate was 0.90008 in 1969. That would be about right, with freight charges added.

My PhotoPeach slideshow about Kooky Spookys is HERE!

Happy Hallowe'en!

Mr Potato Head strikes it lucky!

What a pity! No trick-or-treaters in my street, so I ate their candy. Well... someone had to do it!



Happy Hallowe'en, everyone!

Happy Halloween

I found this old pic (from 1975) in an album. The tall figure behind me was one of those "Seven Foot Monsters" posters promoted in the back of comic books in the 60s and 70s. He had glow in the dark eyes, which were actually just little round stickers, packed separately.

Making mentoring meaningful

Well, that was funny! Tonight was episode #1 of "The Librarians", a new Australian TV series on the ABC, in the timeslot recently held by the hilarious and pithy "Summer Heights High".

I happened to say to a few friends that I expected the series to be successful and funny, and probably rather close to the bone re my experiences in school libraries, studying with teacher-librarians at university, working at SCIS/Scan for the Department of Education & Training's State Office, and my connections with ALIA (the Australian Library & Information Association).

Yesterday and today, I was relieved at school (by another teacher-librarian) so I could act as mentor for a fellow teacher-librarian undergoing her training. Well, as if I'd read the script ahead of time, the plot of the first episode of "The Librarians" saw the main female character, frustrated Frances (Robyn Butler) dealing with Book Week, and being a mentor for the main hunky male character (played by Josh Lawson). When she should have had eyes for how he was coping with his librarian duties, she couldn't keep her eyes off his butt.

I'm rather glad the episode didn't air a day or two earlier - and probably the female colleague I was mentoring thinks so, too!

And hey! Not one "Trick or treater" knocked at my door this Halloween night. Drat. Now I have to eat all this candy all by myself.