Twenty-two? Seriously?

   So the Clue Hunt on the Bayou got to a late start this year.  Between illness, injuries, termites and a mass amount of cleaning the property, things got hectic.  However!  Son and I were determined to bring the hunt to a reality again (after a 5 year hiatus).  We pushed through the setbacks, cut back on a few of the major props and dug deeper into ingenuity but we did it!  The hunt is in mid-run now and will continue for another week.  Even with our problems, each group attending gave rave reviews and voiced their desire to come back next year.  Success!  At least, success in my point of view.

  Each hunt is an immersive event where even the decorations fit the theme.  This year, our whole place was set in a Victorian town so everything had to have the appearance of being of that era.  One shop was a tailor shop.  Hmmm...well, intentions were good to actually sew a bunch of Victorian style clothing pieces for display.  That did not happen.  I was on the verge of despair when I recalled a trunk full of old clothing from...get this...the turn of the century...yep...that turn of the century!  I had clothes from around the correct time period just stashed in a trunk.  Mom had kept them...and whoever before her....kept them...I kept them.  Now, those dresses were to finally be stars of the show again! 

  As I carefully unpacked dress after dress, something dawned on me.  My goodness!  The waist measurments were absurdly tiny!  I mean TINY!  Keep in mind these dresses were worn by ladies not children.  Out of curiousity, I measured.  Yep...tiny!  Most were around 20 to 22 inches but some were 18 to 19 inches.  Were these gowns worn with corsets or were the ladies just slender?  Either way...I would never be able to wear one of these elaborate gowns unless the outfit did include a corset that was laced "unbreathably" tight!  (Unbreathably is not actually a word but it describes my feeling about tight-laced corsets.)  Still, the dresses were truly amazing as they were all handmade with most being hand-stitched.  

  Now, I wish I had the talent to sew beautiful gowns even though I do not wear them except for the clue hunts.  I may give it a try by following some of these gowns.  Perhaps a paper pattern could be fashioned?  Who knows...but...I do know that not many will have such tiny waistlines!  Mine will need at least an 8 inch increase before I would be able to breathe.  

Welcome Back, Mr. Poe!

   Starting at the beginning of hurricane season and riding all through the winter months, I leave the outdoor "hurricane covers" on the windows of our living room.  It is a large room that has, not only a pair of french doors, but also eight large windows.  Just about half the room is made up of the windows so drafty air from the Bay can create a chill.  The covers along with heavy winter curtains make the room a lot more snug.  It also makes the room a lot more dark.  I miss the sunshine.  

  Way back in 2014 with the Second Annual Clue Hunt on the Bayou, Darling Daughter did a wonderful sketch of Edgar Allan Poe.  We needed him to set the theme for "Steampunk Poe" (odd combination but it worked).  Mr. Poe did his job well and then was shoved to the back wall until I found a place to hang him.  That took a couple of months.  Poe sat in the corner until spring of 2015.  At one point before he found his permanent spot, a beam of light came through a partially opened door to illuminate the picture making it almost creepy.  That had a big bearing on where Mr. Poe is currently hanging.  I figured that hanging lower on the wall in the midst of a wall of clocks (actually almost behind a grandfather clock), nary a bit of sunlight would be cast upon our friend.  There would be no more creepiness.  Ever since he has been hung in this position, there has been no odd illumination....until this morning.  

  The day started out with white-out fog.  Then, heavy clouds blocked out any ideas of a sunshiny day.  However....however....as I was straightening the pillows on the sofa, I turned to find Old Edgar staring at me from the shadows!  One beam of sunlight broke through the clouds, crept in from a tiny tear in the hurricane covers, slipped through a gap between the curtains just at the right position to strike the portrait.  That one ray illuminated the portrait so brightly that only half of the face could be seen and that one ray lasted only long enough for me to take one photograph.  As soon as the camera clicked, the beam immediately hushed and darkness once again fell upon the room.  I love this portrait!  It has a way of surprising me when I least expect it!  Poe had struck again!  He sat dark for six long years...until this morning.  Welcome back, Mr. Poe.

Transformation Time!

  It is hard to trash a place!  Literally, it is hard to wreck a perfectly nice place.  I know.  That was my job today.  Why?  The answer is simple...the clue hunt, of course!  The greenhouse always seems to be involved in the clue hunt.  It is one of the easiest places to use as an outbuilding without a lot of  "moving out" of stuff.  During the summer months, the greenhouse is basically empty other than a few empty flower pots, some potting soil and maybe a few tools.  Plus, it can be transformed into just about anything that is needed.  So far, it has been a blacksmith's home, a conservatory, a boathouse and...get this...a greenhouse!  This year, it is to be a swamp witch shack.   With the clue hunt just a couple of weeks away, the decorating has begun.  To become the shack, the idea was to cram as much stuff into the the place as a swamp witch may need.  She definitely needs things like herbs, gourds, traps, pots, pans, a wood-burning stove, utensils, a few skulls, maybe some lichens and mosses and ferns, and, of course, a bunch of oddities that make folks scratch their heads in thought.  I have those...all of those.  Getting all of that stuff crammed into the little greenhouse is a trick, in itself!  I have resorted to hanging stuff from the ceiling!

  The chore is almost done and I cannot share the "big reveal" but, for now, a quick snapshot before a thunderstorm trapped me in the greenhouse for the entire afternoon was all I could get!  So...here is to trashing the greenhouse in preparation for the clue hunt and all its fun!

Yo, ho, ho

  Yo, ho, ho, A pirating we shall go!  Yep, it almost that time of year!  The Annual Clue Hunt on the Bayou is just around the corner and barring any interruption by a certain hurricane that is out there brewing, things are coming along right on schedule!  There is a 26 foot mast (and crow's nest) lodged haphazardly in a tree in the front yard, there is a piece of a ship's wreckage creating a tunnel near the Swamp Witch's hut and, best of all, there is a full sized cannon waiting to be aimed out over the bay!  We shall be pirates!

  Some think this is all a bit much for a single month of fun but we find it a lot of fun and what else could we be doing that would be more worth the trouble?  Our teams are already booking dates and are expressing excitement as they await their turn to solve our mystery!  Me?  I am slowly preparing myself to fulfill my role in this whole fantasy saga.  Its a pirate's life for me!  Ok..so maybe an old lady pirate is not that intimidating but I can dream, right?  This transformation is coming along nicely but not without a bit of a struggle.  I needed a costume and, well, I do not sew.  Or, at least, I did not sew!  I am learning and, with the encouragement of a very sweet and talented friend (albeit long distance friend), I have turned out part of my costume.  This is a very exciting thing for me!  At my age, I never thought I would have the opportunity nor the gumption to tackle such a feat but here I am costuming!