Rock-Tober/ {Fall} In Love with Autumn
I love October! Well, I love autumn. It's my favorite time of year. (If you haven't figured it out yet, this is one of my more upbeat blogs.) I mean, what's not to like? First day of fall, cooler days, St. Francis Day, costumes, candy, pumpkins, changing colors, Halloween, hay rides, and Day of the Dead top off the month leading into November.
So in the spirit of the season, I've decided to share a couple of things I thoroughly enjoy at this time of year.
1.) Tim Burton's "The Nightmare Before Christmas"
How many of you are rolling your eyes right now? I know, I know: "Monica! Ugh! You're such the emo/goth/punk kid. All of those freaks like that movie!" Correction: Freaks still like this film, however, all the bros have picked up on it like some fad. I digress. This beautiful stop-motion animated film came out in 1993. When I saw it was released my Disney, my parents objected to me seeing the film. It looked too "Satanic." I didn't get to watch this until about five years later. Tim Burton was already one of my favorite directors, now I got to see what stories he could tell. It's a great animated film: it's musical, it's visually stunning, the characters are memorable, and because of it's Halloween/Christmas theme, you can watch it until the New Year.
2.) Black-and-White EVERYTHING
Jolly rogers. Ghosts. My new socks! Squeeeeee! Some of my readers know I was a Goth kid in high school, and eventually stuck with punk mentality. The skull-and-crossbones thing definitely stuck. Maybe it's the black-and-white that reminds me of everything so Tim Burton-esque. Well, for whatever the reason, my love of striped socks never left. Now it's the time of year that I can flaunt my zany socks and not get a double take. I recently bought some tights and socks (since I lost my last pair) in the lovely contrasted hues. Here's a sweater I bought in Brazil in 2005. This picture was taken two years later, which shows how much I love the combination...
3.) LEAVES!
I don't remember the leaves really changing color growing up in Texas. Maybe because all the places we lived in the trees were dead by then. Once I moved to Northern California, the plethora of trees changing multiple hues ranging from red-orange to cadmium yellow and maple brown to granny-smith green. As a visual artist, I love color. And seeing it happen in our backyard next to our bamboo shoots, it's amazing. Our family wasn't one for raking leaves, so as an adult, you bet that I jump in a pile of leaves when I can.
4.) PUMPKINS!
Orange has never been my favorite color...but something about a patch full of pumpkins waiting for a new home is something I look forward to every year. We try to go to Placerville every year to visit Apple Hill. I'm a fan of Pumpkin Patches. Especially when you get to do things like THIS:
This is Hilary, Jake and Jaron (back when Jaron and I were friends. No, seriously! Uggggh! You'll never believe me.... ;_:) in 2007. This Pumpkin Patch was Sleepy Hallow in Roseville. It closed down in 2009 due to theft of the metal equipment. Ugh! Theives are jerks! R.I.P. Sleepy Hallow!
5.) Rob Zombie
Music I enjoyed in high school, and I tend to listen to it a little bit more at Halloween. So, so FUN! Don't lie. You love it! This is the soundtrack to almost all Haunted Houses this year...EVERY year! Sigh...you'll never understand me...>_O
6.) The Simpsons' Treehouse of Horror
I've been watching The Simpsons (to my mother's dismay) since I was 8 or 9. Every year gets better and funnier. It's weird, it's creepy, it's funny, it's satire and spoof to anything and everything creepy. Which works for me because if I watch anything remotely scary, I can't sleep for days...
7.) St. Francis of Assisi
St. Francis of Assisi is the patron saint of animals and the environment, and he was a great example of how to live and take care of each other and our animals. Here's an educational, informative film. St. Francis Day is October 4th. Most people have blessings for their pets on this day. I'm hoping we can do it this year without all of our animals remembering what the food chain looks like...
8.) Dios de los Muertos/Day of the Dead
A holiday not celebrated in my family, but is a tradition of being celebrated in our culture. It's not worshipping the dead, it's an honoring of those who have gone before us. In Mexico, it's celebrated with costumes, treats, music, alter decorating and sugar skull making. It's so much more colorful compared to America's Halloween, but there's so much deeper meaning. Families come out and visit graveyards and tombs, decorate them with candles and flowers and remind themselves of lost loved ones. It's a celebration of life more than death.
In Sacramento, places like La Galeria Posada and Spanglish Arte is celebrating with Altermakings, Sugar Skull workshops and music. I'm hoping to go....I really want to make some sugar skulls so I can teach our children to do so one day.
9.) Reformation Day
Okay, I was raised Baptist, and currently go to a Lutheran church. So there's some conflicting theology and beliefs amongst some of my friends and family. But you gotta love this....
10.) All Saints Day
Ties into the above and below. (No pun intended.) Relevant magazine did a really great article on this. November 1st will be a day honoring of people who came before us and did amazing things on this earth. We're all saints, and we're all sinners. All Saints Day reminds us of people who create Heaven here on Earth. They pave the way for change, create new things and to celebrate the memories we have.
So whether you'll be making costumes, sugar skulls, memories of loved ones and sharing good times, I hope that you'll {Fall} in love with autumn, too...
So in the spirit of the season, I've decided to share a couple of things I thoroughly enjoy at this time of year.
1.) Tim Burton's "The Nightmare Before Christmas"
How many of you are rolling your eyes right now? I know, I know: "Monica! Ugh! You're such the emo/goth/punk kid. All of those freaks like that movie!" Correction: Freaks still like this film, however, all the bros have picked up on it like some fad. I digress. This beautiful stop-motion animated film came out in 1993. When I saw it was released my Disney, my parents objected to me seeing the film. It looked too "Satanic." I didn't get to watch this until about five years later. Tim Burton was already one of my favorite directors, now I got to see what stories he could tell. It's a great animated film: it's musical, it's visually stunning, the characters are memorable, and because of it's Halloween/Christmas theme, you can watch it until the New Year.
2.) Black-and-White EVERYTHING
Jolly rogers. Ghosts. My new socks! Squeeeeee! Some of my readers know I was a Goth kid in high school, and eventually stuck with punk mentality. The skull-and-crossbones thing definitely stuck. Maybe it's the black-and-white that reminds me of everything so Tim Burton-esque. Well, for whatever the reason, my love of striped socks never left. Now it's the time of year that I can flaunt my zany socks and not get a double take. I recently bought some tights and socks (since I lost my last pair) in the lovely contrasted hues. Here's a sweater I bought in Brazil in 2005. This picture was taken two years later, which shows how much I love the combination...
3.) LEAVES!
I don't remember the leaves really changing color growing up in Texas. Maybe because all the places we lived in the trees were dead by then. Once I moved to Northern California, the plethora of trees changing multiple hues ranging from red-orange to cadmium yellow and maple brown to granny-smith green. As a visual artist, I love color. And seeing it happen in our backyard next to our bamboo shoots, it's amazing. Our family wasn't one for raking leaves, so as an adult, you bet that I jump in a pile of leaves when I can.
4.) PUMPKINS!
Orange has never been my favorite color...but something about a patch full of pumpkins waiting for a new home is something I look forward to every year. We try to go to Placerville every year to visit Apple Hill. I'm a fan of Pumpkin Patches. Especially when you get to do things like THIS:
This is Hilary, Jake and Jaron (back when Jaron and I were friends. No, seriously! Uggggh! You'll never believe me.... ;_:) in 2007. This Pumpkin Patch was Sleepy Hallow in Roseville. It closed down in 2009 due to theft of the metal equipment. Ugh! Theives are jerks! R.I.P. Sleepy Hallow!
5.) Rob Zombie
Music I enjoyed in high school, and I tend to listen to it a little bit more at Halloween. So, so FUN! Don't lie. You love it! This is the soundtrack to almost all Haunted Houses this year...EVERY year! Sigh...you'll never understand me...>_O
6.) The Simpsons' Treehouse of Horror
I've been watching The Simpsons (to my mother's dismay) since I was 8 or 9. Every year gets better and funnier. It's weird, it's creepy, it's funny, it's satire and spoof to anything and everything creepy. Which works for me because if I watch anything remotely scary, I can't sleep for days...
7.) St. Francis of Assisi
St. Francis of Assisi is the patron saint of animals and the environment, and he was a great example of how to live and take care of each other and our animals. Here's an educational, informative film. St. Francis Day is October 4th. Most people have blessings for their pets on this day. I'm hoping we can do it this year without all of our animals remembering what the food chain looks like...
8.) Dios de los Muertos/Day of the Dead
A holiday not celebrated in my family, but is a tradition of being celebrated in our culture. It's not worshipping the dead, it's an honoring of those who have gone before us. In Mexico, it's celebrated with costumes, treats, music, alter decorating and sugar skull making. It's so much more colorful compared to America's Halloween, but there's so much deeper meaning. Families come out and visit graveyards and tombs, decorate them with candles and flowers and remind themselves of lost loved ones. It's a celebration of life more than death.
In Sacramento, places like La Galeria Posada and Spanglish Arte is celebrating with Altermakings, Sugar Skull workshops and music. I'm hoping to go....I really want to make some sugar skulls so I can teach our children to do so one day.
9.) Reformation Day
Okay, I was raised Baptist, and currently go to a Lutheran church. So there's some conflicting theology and beliefs amongst some of my friends and family. But you gotta love this....
10.) All Saints Day
Ties into the above and below. (No pun intended.) Relevant magazine did a really great article on this. November 1st will be a day honoring of people who came before us and did amazing things on this earth. We're all saints, and we're all sinners. All Saints Day reminds us of people who create Heaven here on Earth. They pave the way for change, create new things and to celebrate the memories we have.
So whether you'll be making costumes, sugar skulls, memories of loved ones and sharing good times, I hope that you'll {Fall} in love with autumn, too...
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