Introducing Fatty Batty

I stopped really enjoying Halloween after graduating from college.  I remember having tons of fun dressing up in costumes and getting candy as a little kid - my favorite costume that I remember was being a Care Bear, the one with the rainbow on his belly.  And then in college, at the amazing University of Wisconsin - Madison, Halloween was a big ol' party, back before you had to pay to go down State Street and they had bands play in Library Mall for free and out-of-towners didn't ruin the drunken frivolity.  After that, there was many years of apathy and keeping the lights off so the little brats wouldn't come begging for free stuff....

Now, I am finding joy again in all things Halloween through The Boy.  This is the first year he's been really excited about dressing up, and checking out all the spooky things like witches and bats and zombies.  We got two pumpkins to carve into jack-o-lanterns, and we did the first one last night.  Ok, you got me - I did most of the work because he's too young to use one of those carving tools.  But he picked out the pattern for this first pumpkin.  The pattern is called Fatty Batty, and it wasn't too hard to do.

I'm a spooky bat - BOO!

I really hate to admit it, but I had a lot of fun scooping out the guts and carving out the shapes.  I even didn't mind smelling like pumpkin the rest of the night, because The Boy was so happy with the results.

One more pumpkin left to carve.  The Boy wants that one to be a Creeper, to match his Halloween costume.  I think I might try to convince him that we should do a cat.  :-)

Today's Run

I went back out to the Munger Trail to do a long run, since my weekend is going to be filled with all things Halloween and I won't have time to get a long run in then.  Same route, slightly better time.  Today I ran about 6.3 miles in 55:45, for an average pace of 8:50.  And I am very happy to say that I cut out the 10 seconds from last time on the way out - and up the hill.  Yay me!