Do the Monster Mash

Halloween was an experience! I didn't want to go out and buy anything, because a) everything here is overpriced and b) by the time I thought about a costume, there were lines outside of all the costume shops. Oy. Anyway, I ended up just using what I had here (which isn't a whole lot) and went as a gothic zombie thing. Basically, I wore my black "leather" boots, black tights, a dark dress, and contoured my face to hollow it out (yay theatre makeup experience!). I set out to the Greenwich Village Halloween Parade by myself and was immediately overwhelmed by the sea of funky people when I got out of the subway. It wasn't until that moment, that I realized how many people lived in New York City, because half of them were right there. Consequently, it was hard to see the parade because of all the people! I saw a few cool things like giant skeleton marionettes with the wearers manipulating the arms and heads. My favorite was a group of 5 or 6 people who made 15 foot wings made of different shiny materials. They were doing a synchronized dance while they went down the street which was awesome! You can kinda see it in this picture:


I quickly got tired of wading through the crowds and met up with Artie and Navine at a club by Union Square. A handful of other people from the group met up with us a little later and we had a nice time dancing and having a few drinks. By midnight, I was dead tired and completely done with large groups of people. Artie and I went back to Brooklyn and that was my Halloween!

Artie and I making our "I'm a monster!" face:


Today was perfect. I woke up late and went to brunch at Clark's cafe across the street with my roommate Lauren, Erica, Janelle, and Roberta. We all got huge breakfasts of waffles, bacon, ham, and eggs and it was delicious! Afterward, I set off on my own to go to the Trader Joe's. We have a brand new one a 10 minute walk away and it's the coolest place! The ceilings must be 30 feet tall with huge windows and a chandelier (it looks kinda like a small Grand Central station actually). Anyway, a lot of the foods are organic (which I don't care that much about). However, all of it is tasted by the company first, and they only sell the products they actually like. Consequently, everything I've bought there is delicious! For instance, today I got dark chocolate almonds. The chocolate is some of the best I've had and the almonds are ginormous! Afterward, I just walked around the area for an hours or so and took a few pictures. There is mostly pedestrian traffic in the historic downtown area, and the streets had that quiet clearness caused by the fall weather. I got back, put away my groceries, turned the AC on high, and curled up beneath my fleece blanket for a nap :) Tomorrow I must do homework, but today was well worth it!
The Brooklyn Courthouse:


View all the way to one of the bridges:


Starting to get some lovely fall foliage:


Here's what I'm really looking forward to:
Thanksgiving with Nate, Lauren, Noah, Mama, Papa, and maybe Andrew(?)
Christmas Eve: Putting together puzzles, playing Carcassan or Settlers of Catan, watching A Christmas Story and White Christmas, stuffing stockings, and most importantly seeing all my siblings at once :)