Posh Strudel

I took this picture during last year's holiday in Vienna. You can recognise a strudel, one of their national desserts, which we developed a taste for during our stay. A very fancy, very posh, very indulgent (and a tad overpriced) apple strudel. We had it one evening in lieu of supper, one each. I regret nothing, even though it was pricey. Like I said, we had a few strudels in Austria, this one was by far the very best.

Passagère clandestine

Avant-hier, lorsque nous avons reconduit petit loup à l'école, nous avons remarqué qu'il y avait une bête sur la porte de la voiture: cette araignée. Ma femme a une peur phobique des araignées, alors elle m'a demandé de l'enlever prestement, ce que j'ai fait, en utilisant une feuille. J'ai quand même pris le temps de la prendre en photo. Quand même, je suis heureux d'une chose, il semble que Wolfie ne soit plus tant arachnophobe qu'il l'était il y a quelques années. Il était plus curieux qu'effrayé de  cette araignée, qui est quand même plus petite, plus jolie et donc moins effrayante que les grosse bête velues que l'on retrouve parfois (trop souvent au goût de ma femme) dans la maison. Mais enfin bref, nous avons donc eu une passagère clandestine pour la durée du trajet de quelques minutes pour aller à l'école.

Les vêtements Ciné-Cadeau

Je suis peut-être un peu tôt pour parler de Noël, enfin selon mes propres standards, mais je voulais parler de cette nouvelle. Donc, j'ai appris via la page Facebook Souvenirs de Ciné-Cadeau que la compagnie de vêtements Ouate de Phoque vend maintenant une collection Ciné-Cadeau. En attendant l'horaire de la cuvée 2026 (pas encore sortie au moment où j'écris ces lignes), vous pouvez vous procurer les vêtements de la collection ici.

THE Jack O'Lantern

I didn't want Halloween to go without sharing the last Jack O'Lantern we carved, Wolfie and I. A very traditional design, with a grinning mouth which teeth look like flames. I love it. Happy Halloween again. I hope you are having a spooky one.

Happy Halloween 2026!

This is the witching hour, so happy Halloween 2026 everyone! I took this picture on Halloween 2024, when evening was falling, so these are not the Jack O'Lanterns for this year. I will try to blog more today, but I might be too busy preparing the big night and trick or treat. So let me say a few things now. To my fellow Cryptkeepers, I will try to visit your blog and webpages today and comment. To all, I hope you enjoy this Halloween. It comes way too quickly, but there is still one day, and one night, to go. Wolfie is very excited about it and we had lots of fun designing the Jack O'Lanterns and carving them. It has been for me one of the most exciting, horror and macabre filled, atmospheric countdown to Halloween I have lived. And I am so blessed to I have a son who fully embraced the spooky holiday.

Goofy Jack

Wolfie and I have started carving the Jack O'Lanterns. He chooses most of the designs and he insisted that we made this one. To be honest, I prefer creepier pumpkins, proper ones with a spectral face and sinister smile. But Wolfie is the leading designer now, or rather the manager of the pumpkin carving business. And he is taking more and more initiatives: not only does he chooses the designs, but he does more and more carving, and actually insists on doing it. Anyway, so we have this Jack O'Lantern. What do you think?

"J'ai pris une citrouille..."

J'ai pris une citrouille,

J'en ai fait un lampion

Lampion couleur de rouille,

Le nez en tire-bouchon 

C'est le début d'un poème datant de ma troisième année, appris durant le temps de l'Halloween. Le reste, je ne m'en rappelle plus, sauf pour les derniers vers: "De gros yeux immobiles/et le sourire fade." J'ai quand même une bonne mémoire. Enfin bref, petit loup et moi avons commencé à creuser les citrouilles hier soir. Trois de terminées, il va nous en rester trois pour aujourd'hui, peut-être quatre. La quatrième est une citrouille si petite que l'on va peut-être seulement lui dessiner un visage. Enfin bref, on se débrouille pas mal.

Sinister Servant

I took this picture in a small village pub, where they hold the Scarecrow Festival. It's a really bland looking place inside, but apparently they make a great Sunday roast and they are known to make great parties for Halloween and other holidays. I never managed to convince my wife and child to stop there for a drink. Last time, we bought snacks and went our merry way (on the Scarecrow Trail, but I digress). Well, I took a picture of this sinister man, who looks like he got right off a Gothic novel or a Hammer film. I was blogging recently about human servants of supernatural forces in horror stories, although in this case I don't think he is quite human. He could be a ghoul or a ghost. I saw him, or maybe one of his relatives, in a garden centre back in 2018. Both figures bear an uncanny resemblance. I strongly suspect he/it is a ghoul. When Wolfie was a toddler, he was terrified of this servant. I think he is still scared of him, hence his refusal to stay in the pub any longer than necessary, even though it's children friendly. I want to write a story about this sinister figure one day.

Outardes sur La Baie

Ce n'est pas seulement mon père qui a pris des photos à La Baie récemment. Amy, ma cousine artiste-photographe aussi et a réussi, encore une fois, à prendre des outardes en vol. Les oies sont des oiseaux que j'associe beaucoup à l'automne, c'est encore plus le cas ici, avec les collines en arrière-plan.

Gâteau chocolat et menthe

 Inspiré par notre initiative le jour de son anniversaire, mon frère PJ a fait son propre gâteau au chocolat avec glaçage à la menthe. Il a ajouté des pépites de chocolat, pour faire plus décadent.

Trick or Treat Preparartion

I took this picture last year, after we had put out the Jack O'Lanterns late in the afternoon, for trick or treat. I love this time of the day on the 31st, when there are still daylights and everything is all about anticipation. I had "only" six pumpkins, not counting the electric lanterns in the window. You can see salt around them: I poured it to protect them from slugs and snails. I bought some more this year. I hope I will have more pumpkins this year, I really love carving them. But we have a bot of a logistics challenge: one parent must stay here for the children who will come, and the other must go with Wolfie. This year, we might switch: WOlfie will go with his mum for the nearby houses, then we will do another round with me. Halloween is on a Saturday this year, so we should have more time. I want to make the most of it: one day my son will have outgrown trick or treat.

Un gâteau et une tradition

C'était la fête de mon frère PJ il y a une semaine et son neveu et moi même avons décidé de faire un gâteau en son honneur. Un gâteau au chocolat avec un glaçage à la menthe. Il y a une raison sur ce choix: enfants, mes frères et moi avions décidé d'avoir des gâteaux plus originaux, uniques pour nos fêtes, avec des glaçages de couleurs différentes à chaque fois. C'est donc une tradition familiale que Wolfie et moi avons repris.

Vol d'outardes

Ma cousine Amy l'artiste-photographe a pris cette photo, d'un vol d'outardes. Je ne sais pas comment elle a fait pour capturer un moment de manière aussi parfaite, mais il me fallait la partager (avec sa permission bien entendu). Les oies sont des oiseaux automnaux, surtout lorsqu'elles migrent vers le sud.

Soon the Scarecrow Festival

For today's countdown to Halloween post, a bit of news: as you may know, a nearby village hosts every year a Scarecrow Festival. Well, I have seen the banners on display advertising the upcoming event. So it will happen again. Scarecrows are a staple of Halloween and autumn to me: they represent harvest, of course, but they also have that unsettling appearance, not quite human, especially when their head is a Jack O'Lantern, like for their mascot. The festival is just as much about Halloween as it is about scarecrows. Watching them always fire up my imagination.

New Old Witch

A few days ago, Wolfie and I went down town in one of the local artisan markets they have every other Saturday. Someone was selling home made decorations, many of them autumnal or Halloween themed. I am always on the lookout for new Halloween decorations to spook out the place. My son and I agreed on a witch, because we always need more witches. We bought this one. We haven't decided of a name yet. She doesn't look like the nasty, malevolent crones we have as witches usually. More like a kindly if eccentric grandmother. Anyway, Wolfie and I will decide of a name at some point, any suggestions in the comments welcome.

Une Hobgoblin pour PJ

C'est aujourd'hui la fête de mon frère PJ. Comme c'est la tradition sur ce blogue, je partage une photo de la a  Hobgoblin de  Wychwood Brewery. Une vieille bouteille, qui date de 2018, dans le temps qu'ils avaient des étiquettes spéciales pour l'Halloween, dont ils se déclaraient la bière officieuse. Et ils ne faisaient pas dans les demi-mesures, comme vous pouvez le constater sur cette photo. PJ a bu de la Hobgoblin lors de son dernier voyage ici en 2017, c'est une des raisons pour laquelle je souligne son anniversaire avec cette photo. Mais c'est aussi que, la fête de mon frère étant en octobre, je l'ai toujours associée avec l'Halloween.

Aquila on Haunted Houses

For today's countdown to Halloween post, I'm promoting the October issue of Aquila Magazine. My son has a subscription and he always gets excited when he receives it, especially the October issue, as it's always about something spooky. "Big ideas for inquisitive kids", says their motto. Wolfie gets the best mail, as I love to say. So yes, this year it's all about haunted houses, haunting and ghosts in general. I reckon it will be a great source of inspiration for ghost stories, as well as help my son to develop his critical thinking. In any case, Aquila is a great educational read for children and the October issue is a must for families who love Halloween.

Le jeu des écureuils

 Il y a maintenant plusieurs semaines, nous avons visité une amie de ma femme et sa famille. Une grosse famille de quatre enfants. Petit loup a joué avec une de ses filles à ce jeu-là. Il faut que les écureuils rentrent leurs provisions dans les trous, selon ce que j'ai compris. Et je ne sais pas, mais j'associe les écureuils à l'automne, surtout lorsqu'ils vont faire des provisions pour l'hiver. C'est donc un jeu automnal, le genre que j'aurais aimé avoir quand j'étais jeune. Et ça s'appelle Squirrels Go Nuts! (Oui, avec le point d'exclamation, pour faire plus dramatique). Comme petit loup a beaucoup aimé, je compte le lui acheter un jour.

The Big One-O

As you know if you read yesterday's post, it was our son's birthday recently. I wanted to get back to it, as Wolfie has reached the age of ten this year, which is, well, a new decade. It means we have been parents for ten years, of course, it also means our son is growing way too fast for my taste. A decade is always an important benchmark, at any age, but for a child, ten years old is maybe the stepping stone, the one that officially makes you a big kid instead of a little one. That's what I got from Wolfie anyway. For a parent, it might be an even bigger step, because it makes you realise that your child will not be a child forever and that he will eventually become an adult. It made me miss for a moment the first few months of being a parent, when everything was so hard, yet so simple. It also makes me feel melancholic. In any case, Wolfie is now ten years old.

Three Layers Birthday Cake

So it was Wolfie's birthday recently and he had a very special request for me: a three layers cake. But that wa snot all: he asked for blueberry flavoured icing between layers and a chocolate ganache on top, covered with Smarties and Maltesers (milk and white chocolate). As I never back from a cake baking challenge and I never refuse my son's birthday cake requests, well, I did it. Thankfully, it wasn't too wobbly. Very rich, gigantic, indulgent, but presentable and it stood up. All the same, my wife was somewhat horrified. "A heart attack on a plate," she said about it. Which deserves to be a great unknown line. I shall blog more about my son's birthday soon, but I thought I would show you his birthday cake.