What does RIP mean, gug?

"What does RIP mean, gug?" My granddaughters were curious about the meaning of the three letters appearing on many Halloween displays in the neighbourhood.

It means "rest in peace," I said. It is a pleasant wish that the deceased will find tranquility in the afterlife. "Oh," the little  girls replied quietly.

I don't think it had ever occurred to the little girls that one could be anything other than tranquil after death, very, very tranquil.

We may have to have a little talk. The oldest one didn't sleep all that well last night. 

Ghosts and cemeteries adorn Canadian homes

 When ghosts and cemeteries adorn Canadian homes, it can only mean one thing: Halloween.

Have Halloween lighting displays appeared in your neighbourhood?

 

In the daytime this display not so great but at night these Halloween lights add colour to the neighbourhood. It was not until the 1960s that large numbers of folk began the tradition of stringing rows of small, coloured electric lights along the eaves of the home. The practice caught on and today's LEDs are both efficient and inexpensive.

Now, the practice of stringing small electric lights on bushes, trees and eaves around the home is beginning to show signs of becoming a Halloween tradition as well as more and more homes are illuminated at night.

Some kids like simple decorations light on the horror

  

On Halloween night, follow the white cats to the front door of this home to be rewarded with some candy and chips. 

My granddaughters are not fond of the homes decorated with fake body parts and oodles of simulated red blood. But a couple of white cat cutouts stop the two little girls in their tracks. The cats say fun. The other displays leave the two kids feeling uneasy.

Isla loves the googly eyed door

Folks seem to think that ugly scenes of death in someway celebrate Halloween. It wasn't like that when I was a boy. These googly eyes spotted by my youngest granddaughter are a bit of a throwback to those times now somewhat faded but clearly not gone. The googly eyes on the door attest to that. Simple silliness with no dark side still has followers.

Isla saw these eyes from our car as we drove past on our way home. She dragged me back to get this picture. And she was awfully happy to have gug get the shot and to share it on the Internet. 

I'll another shot or two from our walk in the coming days.

Cheers and stay healthy! 

A warm fall day to celebrate

 

Some days are too nice to stay inside and today was one of those day. A perfect fall day. Warm but not humid, breezy but not windy, and all-in-all just plain inviting.

And so a very happy seven-year-old hit the street skipping and laughing as she headed off to inspect the Halloween lawn decorations to be found all about her grandparent's neighbourhood.

At Halloween skulls are decorations

 

It's Halloween and skulls are popping up like mushrooms in neighbourhood lawns. With COVID-19 still raging, I was concerned most folk would pass this year on Halloween. Nope. The decorations are out and the number of displays is growing daily. I'm thinking lots of kids will hit the streets for trick or treating and virus be damned!