Corpse Cycle

When in Bath, Somerset recently, this caught my eye.

It's actually promoting a walk they run in Bath each night called the Bizarre Walk.  Comedy horror anyone?

[Link to the Bizarre Bath Walk website]

 

Call for Submissions!

Hello SSWC fans! Did you attend an awesome Hallowe'en event in Toronto this year that you'd like to share with your fellow readers? We'd like to hear your recommendations! Please drop us a line at: screamingskullsweirdclub@gmail.com, or leave a comment on this post. Looking forward to receiving your input! :-)

Kutná Hora: The Bone Church

While studying to become an ESL Instructor, I met a fantastic woman who told me about a secret treasure she discovered in the heart of the Czech Republic. A day's trip away from Prague, Kutná Hora is a small city that houses a 13th century gothic ossuary ("kostnice" in Czech) surrounded by myth and superstition. 

Learn more about it at the Kutná Hora Information Website: http://www.kutnahora.cz/index.php?sec=3&cid=84

Pumpkin Carving 2013: Marianas Trench Ever After Toy Bear

Behold! The Vampire's Marianas Trench themed pumpkin carving for 2013. misspulga calls it the Bear-'o'-Lantern. It is modelled after the broken toy bear from Ever After's Toyland, who with the other toys felt the "apathy of heartlessness".

Happy Hallowe'en 2013!!!

HAPPY HALLOWE'EN to all our readers and faithful SSWC followers!!! 

After a long hiatus, we are happy to announce our return to the interwebz! Look for new posts from your favorite contributors, club founders, and members: 

• el Presidente
• misspulga
• The Vampire 
• Lone Werewolf 

We are also accepting submissions, and looking for new contributors. If you would like to be featured on our blog, please e-mail us at: 

screamingskullsweirdclub@gmail.com

- In loving memory of RicVictorian -

In Memoriam - Our Dear Friend, Ricvictorian

I am very saddened to announce that our dear friend and fellow Screaming Skulls alumni, Ricvictorian, has passed away.  This announcement has been delayed due to my own medical concerns of which I will write about in a separate entry. 

 

Rick was born on Nov. 23, 1957 and passed away on or about Dec. 16, 2013 at the age of 56.  He loved life, his friends, his cat Tony and the Buffalo Bills.  He was a bachelor all his life, but always on the lookout for that one certain femme fatale that would change his world.  Alas, he did not live long enough to find her.

 

Rick was the consummate collector of all artifacts Victorian.  He was fascinated by memento mori in particular and had an extensive collection of hair wreaths and jewellery.  His poison bottle collection was superlative.  Hearse postcards and funeral paraphernalia decked his apartment walls.  Strange taxidermied animals lurked in dark corners.  Religious artifacts and uranium glass intermingled on shelves.  Rare books and opium pipes lay waiting for a visitor to discover them.  His abode was a museum and an art collection and he loved to talk about all of it to anyone who showed an interest in it. 

 

I met Ricky about fifteen years ago where we both worked.  We found we liked a lot of the same things and we had a lot of fun sharing stories and trips to various museums and places of historical interest.  There isn't a day that goes by that I don't think of him... and sometimes when I see someone walking along a street that reminds me of him, I get goose bumps up and down my arms.  Wherever you are, my friend, I wish you well.

 

el Presidente

misspulga's Poetry Corner

The crisp and cold November dries
My lips.
The leaves fall off the trees -
Eclipse 
Of day, the nights grow long
As darkness slowly sings its song.

This night the Heavens dance for me,
While stars
Shine bright for all to see
And snow-
Flakes spark upon the ground
(Their silence in itself, a sound).

My heart, embraced, sets free my mind.
My soul,
It soars through space and time...
While cheeks
Are numbed by glacial air
And icy winds wisp through my hair.

I wait: The Earth, so peaceful, stirs...
The sky -
Dark palette; color smears
And warmth
Upon horizon seeps
To meet the frozen diamond peaks.

My circumstance becomes more clear
Through eyes 
Still fogged by winter tears...
I catch
Myself adrift below;
A vessel on the melting snow.

Toronto Zombie Walk, 2012

"Zombiachis", a.k.a. Mariachi Zombies

The Vampire and I attended the Toronto Zombie Walk on October 20th. This year was the walk's 10th anniversary, and was organized in support of the Heart & Stroke Foundation. To promote this partnership, the Heart & Stroke Foundation released an extremely clever public service announcement: "The Undeading"... The tagline of their campaign is "CPR Makes You Undead". Check out this awesome video below!

Despite the weather being crappy, the rain held off and the walk was a success (more about that to come later in this post). The Vamp and I needed sustenance in order to fulfill our zombiefied journey, so we started the day off at Fancy Franks - a gourmet hot dog restaurant a few blocks west of Spadina on College. The restaurant has a funky atmosphere and their food is out-of-this-world delicious!!! We highly recommend this restaurant - 5 skulls out of 5! :-D

Exterior of Fancy Franks Gourmet Hot Dogs (photo taken from The Grid TO website)

misspulga's meal: "Frank's Got Seoul", with hand-cut fries

Frank's Got Seoul (rib meat, kimchi, green onions and sesame seeds)

The Vampire's meal: Frank's Fancy-aano (prosciutto wrapped dog, arugula, 
parmigiano reggiano and balsamic dijon mustard)

Once fully nourished, the Vamp and I headed southeast to Nathan Phillips Square for the main event. There were lots of fantastically imaginative costumes, as well as an ample amount of the requisite moaning and lurching that one would expect. Overall, we enjoyed ourselves immensely... By far, however, the highlights of this year's Zombie Walk were the following:

• The Heart & Stroke Foundation gave away free tickets to their Guinness World Records CPR event and Hallowe'en Haunt, which took place at Canada's Wonderland on October 25th. Not only was this extremely generous of them, but they also did a great service to Toronto by instructing CPR to so many people... It was especially great to hear that so many young people participated! ***Everyone should be trained in CPR.***      (Update: The Heart & Stroke Foundation smashed the previously held USA record and ended up training 5,020 people in CPR during this event! Amazing!)

• Grand Marshals John Russo and Russ Streiner (Writer and Producer of 'Night of the Living Dead') made a guest appearance, and helped judge the costume contest!!! Who better to officiate this event? Not only are these gentlemen legends in the film industry, but they also happen to be really cool guys with a great sense of humour.

• A bloody casket was made available for gruesome photo-ops. Whoever came up with this idea is a genius. :-D

• The vendors were cool... I especially enjoyed the booth with all the juicy brain jewelry! As soon as I find out the name of the artist, I will post it here so you procure some of her ghoulish creations for yourself!

• Everyone who came out to support the event... You're all awesome! I was so impressed by the time, energy and creativity that people put into their costumes (we love you, Zombiachis!)... It was definitely for a worthy cause! :-D 

Please enjoy our photos from the event (below)...

Awesome skull attire!!!

"Come closer, I just want to give you a hug!" >:-)

Bloody Casket: Greatest photo-op idea ever!!!

"I'm-a Mario! I'm-a gonna eat 'cha!!!"

Resident Evil Umbrella Corporation Employee

Looks like the mascot got picked clean!!! :-O

Take-Out Brains for All

Epic Zombie Jewelry - artist name coming soon!!!

Well aren't you precious?

Toronto Zombie Walk Grand Marshals:
 John Russo & Russ Streiner (Writer & Producer: Night of the Living Dead)!!!

The Main Stage

"Look 'Ma! No Legs!!!" - Winner of Toronto Zombie Walk (2012) Costume Competition

More fabulous costume entries! Little Red Zombie Hood and Frida Zombie looking hot! :-)

Franken-dog!!! :-D

Just going for a stroll...

"Bella, you are more beautiful now than the day we met!!!"

Celebrating Our Fans!!!

Wow... What a crazy month!!! Thanks to all our blog fans and readers from around the globe for making October 2012 SSWC's most epic, record-breaking month yet.... The stats are in, and we've amassed 5,005 page views for October alone!!! :-D

Let's hear it for the Top 10 countries who brought the highest volume of traffic to our site... Without you, we wouldn't have been able to set this new record!!!

1. United States
2. United Kingdom
3. Canada
4. Germany
5. Italy
6. Russia
7. Netherlands
8. Spain
9. Greece
10. Belgium

The British Invasion is here!!! The U.K. has overtaken Canada, bumping us into 3rd place... Jolly good!!! Looks like we've got our work cut out over here across the pond in order to reclaim our previously held position in the rankings. ;-)

A warm welcome to newcomers Russia, Greece, and Belgium... We're happy you're now part of the Planet Obscura and SSWC family!!! :-)

510 million square kilometres. One global community.
There's a little deviant in all of us.

Josh Ramsay Pumpkin Carving - "Josh-o'-Lantern"

Josh Ramsay - a work in progress

The finished "Josh-o'-Lantern"

Josh-o'-Lantern, brighter, showcasing blue hair

For my pumpkin carving design this year, I chose Josh Ramsay of Marianas Trench.  It wasn't easy, but it was *SO* worth it!!  Special thanks to Josh for the perfect model-looking head-shot, to misspulga for providing the carving environment and supporting me during the carving process, and to Gwartzmans Art Supplies for the blue acetate!

Carved Tibetan Skulls

Check out this amazing carved Tibetan skull, found on my new favourite website: Skull Appreciation Society. 

Does anyone out there know the history behind Tibetan skull carving? If so, please leave a comment on this post, or drop us a line at screamingskullsweirdclub.blogspot.ca.

misspulga's Reina de los Muertos Hallowe'en Makeup

Last Hallowe'en, misspulga was inspired by sugar skulls to create this one-of-a-kind "Reina de los Muertos" costume. All makeup was original, and hand-painted by misspulga herself. She submitted her photo to the epic Skull-A-Day blog, and had the privilege of being featured on their site [link to blog post].

After a ghoulishly festive All Hallow's Eve with the Vampire and the Werewolf at the Vampire's lair, misspulga returned home and started morphing back into her daytime persona (as can be seen in the photograph below). ;-)

Most Ridiculous Shoes Ever Made? - MSN Lifestyle Video

These shoes definitely fit the "weird" criteria of SSWC.  I think the artist's commentary on fashion/beauty is successful, because it showcases the crazy lengths people go to so that they may be viewed as popular or beautiful in today's society.  Watch the video (originally posted on MSN.ca's Lifestyle page) below and leave a comment - let us know what you think!

Flying Spaghetti Monster Guerrilla Art at Glendon College, Toronto

This guerrilla art was created for SSWC by misspulga after a particularly difficult exam in Advanced Statistics at Glendon College, York University in 2011. In this moment of clarity and enlightenment, she was most definitely touched by His noodly appendage. 

R'Amen.

Trip to the Junction Fall Flea

Poster for the Junction Fall Flea

This past weekend, my friend The Collector and I went to the Junction Fall Flea... a hip, "curated" outdoor market near Dundas & Keele in Toronto, presented by Smash and Russet & Empire Interiors. This is the first time we've attended the Flea, but it usually runs the second Sunday of every month - all summer long. 

The atmosphere was fantastic: Hustling and bustling just like a good flea market ought to be. There was delicious food being served from vintage trailers... Manual Labour Coffee, pulled pork sandwiches, seafood noodles, dumplings, and mini-doughnuts fried in coconut oil. 

The vendors were amazing... You can find anything there, from vinyl records and vintage clothing to retro housewares... And everything in between. I scored a very neat looking lock for $3 that I'm planning to turn into a pendant, and an original Game Boy Tetris cartridge for $4. 

The thing I liked most about the Flea was the people... Genuine, down-to-earth folks who truly enjoyed being there as much as the patrons, and were happy to strike up a conversation with you. This event has been such a success that the organizers are looking into holding it indoors throughout the winter. I really hope they do!!! 

Please enjoy the photos I took during our trip including some pics of the *delicious* lunch and beer we had at the Indie Ale House Brewing Co., which is just down the street from the Flea. Also check out the list of vendor links I've provided at the bottom of this post. :-)  

Vintage anatomical heart model!

Vintage John Fluevog boots at Scandimania booth

Fantastic retro telephone seat!

Spoon & Fork Rings!

Well hello there!

Eat Your Heart Out plates!

Communist (?) banner!

Vintage spheres à la Marianas Trench!

Random items for sale!

Vintage Toronto "fine hard candy" tin!

Tattered & Torn - Good Junque display

Emily the Strange candle displayed in Rue Morgue window

Delicious meal at Indie Ale House Brewing Co., including 
Instigator Pale Ale (left) and Broken Hipster (right)

Indie Ale House Brewing Co. logo

[Old Weston on Etsy]
[Ghostface Knitta website]
[The Vintage Cabin website]
[Fair Judy's Facebook page]
[Rebel & Fuss - Pretty Badass Jewelry website]
[Food Sluts website]
[Scandimania on Etsy]
[Tattered & Torn - Good Junque website]
[Covet Garden website]