Zombie Hand

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Like many Home Haunters, I am constantly searching the net for inspiration and information. I googled Zombies one day and came across this wicked little beauty. Someone had posted it on his blog (orimath.blogspot.com) asking for identification help. There were all sorts of answers and even a rude remark from someone poking fun at the poster's grammar. Rudeness is a whole other sore spot for me. I just want to throw this in here even if it is off subject. PEOPLE, "if you can't say something nice don't say anything at all". As I was saying, this odd thing of nature really made me curious so I joined the identification search. After looking at page after page of, shall we say "pornographic mushroom " pics I found our mushroom formerly called "Zombie Hand" on MushroomExpert.com. Ronald Meyers had posted a photo that I am convinced is our mystery zombie hand. Another photo and all the stinky little details was found at WalterReeves.com. I now know that the zombie hand found growing in the garden of a man in Indonesia is a type of stinkhorn mushroom called a "stinky squid" (pseudocolus fusiformis). Apparently the mushrooms in this group get stinky and slimy so even though it's not called a zombie hand, it smells like one.

Best Laid Plans

Sometimes no matter how good your intentions are things just do not work out as planned. An example is our "Buzz Bench" prop we made for our haunt a couple of years ago. We had seen a short video clip on Monster Maze Haunt site where they had visitors to their haunt sit on a bench to watch an electric chair execution, and at the moment the fake criminal was juiced, the unsuspecting viewers on the bench got, what they thought, was a little buzz on their bottoms. Of course they weren't really shocked. The buzz was created by using metal for the seat and hooking a small motor to cause vibration on the bench.
We had been trying to come up with a startle prop that we could use as a photo op prop and decided that this buzz thing would be perfect. I was so excited to think that we might actually get a few photos of folks with frightened looks on their faces. This was going to be our leap from cutesy funny haunt to something scary. 
Keith constructed a rustic looking bench just like I requested, and was ready to rig up the metal section that would provide the buzzed feeling. I am famous for over thinking things and this bench was no exception ,so I had the brilliant idea to use something else in place of the metal flashing for the seat. I was worried that some poor little toddler would sit down with his parents to have his photo taken and Mom would be sooo startled by the buzz that she would drop the kid as she ran from the scene. 
I had sat on the bench to test drive it and I felt it would still make for some cool candid photos. Halloween night arrived and we were ready to start snapping pics. I was busy passing out candy and sending folks through the haunt when I started hearing loud laughter coming from the area Keith had set up for taking pics. The "Buzz Bench" was a hit but not because it was scaring people, it was popular because when the motor was activated under the bench it gave a pleasant vibration to those adults that could appreciate it and it made everyone of all ages laugh because the vibration up against the material I insisted on changing to, made a loud noise like someone passing gas. Needless to say we didn't get those "it was soo scary" photos I had hoped for, but It did bring a few smiles to the faces of kids who insisted their parents sit together for a photo. 

Best laid plans right?

Bed Rest

Is this what it means when a doctor recommends "bed rest"?