Green Lawn Abbey

I finally got inside.

It was worth the wait. The tour was great fun, with volunteers from the preservation society stepping out of the crypts of the people they were portraying (in costume) (one was the great-great-grandson of the gentleman he portrayed) and talking about "their" life story. Fascinating stuff. Some of the people they focused on were a several-term, popular mayor of Columbus, a prominent circus owner, Thurston the Magician, a Civil War soldier, and J.C. Penney's brother, H.R. Penney. They all did a great job. I will go back as frequently as they do this.

The building itself was so cold. So, so cold ... it was 65 degrees and quite nice outside, but inside, it was one cold pile of marble. The volunteers had scrubbed it out (resorting at one point to a leaf blower to get the inch of dust off the floors) and done a nice job, but just as its sister mausoleum, Amaranth Abbey smelled lovely, Green Lawn smelled ... let's just delicately say, off.

I know enough about mausoleums to have an idea why, too. And I'd have been so very disappointed if it didn't smell like that. :D

The outside:



Looking directly up at the pediment:



The ceiling, first floor:



The casket, (I am assured it was empty) used for effect:



A few more here, at my Flickr site.

Thanks for coming by all month, for following and commenting and downloading and helping make Halloween so much fun this year.

No post for tomorrow, and then on Monday, we'll turn the lights back on in this crypt.

Inflatable Reaper Carriage

WalMart, last year. If I weren't so poor, this would have been mine.

Not so sure it would have come down after Halloween, either. Like, ever.

Themes Day Pt.1!

Dark Shadows Theme

Tales of the Crypt

Halloween

Beware of the Blob

Dusty Springfield - Spooky

Siiiigh. She is so perfect. Ok, the hand gestures are a little much, but the hair! The makeup! The dress! I'm not in love with the skirt part, but I'd wear the hell out of the top. And that mod light box she's in!

Oh, uh, right. The song's named "spooky" so it's totally thematic. Enjoy! (Especially you, Karen. I just have a hunch about that.)

Damn

45%

I'm too damn noble for my own good, that's the problem.

Crypt

Bellefontaine, Ohio

Radio spot for the Last House On the Left

Deadcats - Crypt Zombie Hula

The Cat With Hands

I posted this during October last year, so it may be "cheating" to post it again. But it's so good and so creepy and there are people who come by here now that didn't a year ago, so here it is.

As the blurb on the youtube page says, "Directed by Robert Morgan. More info on his films here."

Another Receiving Vault

Oh, I know, but they never get old for me.

Bellefontaine, Ohio

You can see a closer view of those beaten, padlocked doors here.

Radio spot for Basket Case

David Bowie - Please Mr. Gravedigger

1883 Vault

Richwood, Ohio

Radio spot for Astro Zombies

The Revels - Midnight Stroll

Dungeon

A real dungeon! It was used as a makeshift jail when the town was founded back in the 1830s. If you want to see the inside, visit my Flickr page.

Malta, Ohio

Radio spot for Blacula

Lon Chaney Jr - Spider Baby Theme (one of my favorite movies)

Woodlawn Mausoleum

I like this one - looks a little like a tiny castle, and I like the multi-colored window.

Lima, Ohio

Radio spot for Ghost in the Invisible Bikini

Bessie Smith - Haunted House Blues

Pumpkin Swirl Brownies

The recipe comes from Martha Stewart's website, and sounded fun.

It was fun to make - messy as hell, but fun - and they're really good, so I'm sharing it with you. And if I could email some out to you, I would. Believe me, I don't need them all sitting in the kitchen.

(Makes 16) I used a 9 X 13 pan, and it made many more than 16

Ingredients

1 stick unsalted butter, plus more for pan
6 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped (I used half a bag of chocolate chips because I am lazy)
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 3/4 cups sugar
4 large eggs
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
1 1/4 cups solid-pack pumpkin
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 cup chopped hazelnuts or other nuts (I left them out)

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Butter a 9-inch square baking pan or dish.
Line bottom of pan with parchment paper; butter lining.
Melt chocolate and butter in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water, stirring occasionally until smooth.
Whisk together flour, baking powder, cayenne, and salt in a large bowl; set aside.
Put sugar, eggs, and vanilla in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment; beat until fluffy and well combined, 3 to 5 minutes.
Beat in flour mixture.
Divide batter between two medium bowls (about 2 cups per bowl).
Stir chocolate mixture into one bowl.
In other bowl, stir in pumpkin, oil, cinnamon, and nutmeg. (I also threw in 1/2 teaspoon of pumpkin pie spice on the recommendation of someone in the comments section of the recipe page)
Transfer half of chocolate batter to prepared pan smoothing top with a rubber spatula.
Top with half of pumpkin batter.
Repeat to make one more chocolate layer and one more pumpkin layer. Work quickly so batters don't set.
With a small spatula or a table knife, gently swirl the two batters to create a marbled effect. (I forgot to do this) Sprinkle with nuts.
Bake until set, 40 to 45 minutes. Let cool in pan on a wire rack. Cut into 16 squares.

Actual results:
No disrespect to Martha, but if I had it to do over again, I would leave out the cayenne (which I had grave doubts about in the first place; my feelings are that heat has no place in dessert) and add the whole bag of chocolate chips. As is, the recipe is quite spicy, but not quite chocolatey enough for me. Otherwise nice, though - good texture and pumpkin flavor.

Nathan

Frazeysburg Cemetery
Frazeysburg, Ohio

They're coming to get you, Barbara

John Fogerty - Eye Of The Zombie

The Lack of a Nose Really Does Something Creepy Here

Brown Park
Bellefontaine, Ohio

Bela Lugosi, talking about the children of the night

Jonathan Coulton - Skullcrusher Mountain

The list of bloggers participating in the Halloween Countdown has grown immensely from just last year! They are in the blogroll near the bottom of the page, and I must thank Todd of Neato Coolville, John Rozum and Erick of Wonderful Wonderblog for compiling the list. What is that, 50 this year?