Season of the Witch

Just a couple weeks until Halloween, my favorite holiday. Jenny and I started building a big prop for this year's show. I'll talk more about our porch theme in coming posts. But for now, just imagine what we can do with three large pieces of sheet metal and a couple metal vents. Rolling our gear out of Home Depot this past Saturday, we were stopped by a woman who asked whether our metal was corrugated. I had no clue. She then asked what were building. We told her in a matter-of-fact way, but she didn't believe us. We have 13 days to create a multimedia show that involves music, video, photos, live theater, and lots of blood (both red and green). Yep, it's time to break out the PG-13 signs (PG for "Pretty Gory").

The rainy season has begun, earlier than normal this year. And the drizzle has cast a pallor over our little corner of California. I gave a speech yesterday at San Jose's First Congregational Church and experienced one of the more intellectually stimulating chats I've had all year, even with my somewhat pessimistic thesis. We talked about the impact of world's fairs on city planning, exploring the dark side of all that idealism, all that hubris. It's my second presentation for these folks, and they asked if I'd return next year. One called me "Mr. October." We had a lovely time together, especially when a fellow shared a notion - the design replaces the divine - that may show up in my next book. It's a shame that this sort of visceral exchange can't be found in what passes for political debates these days. The midterm elections promise to be a bloodbath, not just for Democrats but also for decorum.

Creepy behavior abounds, especially among the bright lights of the Tea Party. Republican senatorial Rand Paul refused to shake hands with his opponent after a debate that featured accusations that Rand once tied up a woman and forced her to worship "Aqua Buddha."

At an Alaska town hall meeting, private security goons working for GOP senate candidate Joe Miller responded to a pesky news-website editor by roughing him up and placing him in handcuffs. The rent-a-cops justified their shenanigans by explaining that the forum, which was held in a public middle school, was "private property."

Then there's New York's race for governor, where Carl Paladino has forced Democratic rival Andrew Cuomo to debate the Anti-Prohibition Party candidate, who also happens to be the former madam on Eliot Spitzer's speed dial. Paladino: this is the guy who explained his choice to email sex-videos involving horses thusly: "If the worst I ever did was send out some non-politically correct e-mails, my God."

Oh, and loony senator wannabe Christine O'Donnell is airing commercials assuring the voters of Delaware that she's not a witch.

Trick or Treat!