Candy-Colored Carnival

As per local tradition, on the heels of the harvest moon comes the carnival. Aliens seemed to be a theme this year. You know times are tough when people are volunteering to be abducted.

 Glittering neon gears competed with the brilliant sky.

And while we weren't quite lost in the funhouse...

 ...we were quite lost in the mirror maze.

We had corn dogs and funnel cake, and bought a space hopper for the youngin. And then at last we walked back, through the dark streets, past the silent school and the glowing lamps and the dry leaves skidding along the pavement.

And with that we mark another ritual of the turning of the year.

Lessons learned: ghouls drink rum, bees are friendly, and if you star in a mega-blockbuster film, 30-some years later they will still be painting odd caricatures of you in your role. Seriously, I swear that's the same Odyssey 3000 funhouse I recall from third grade. In which case it would have held up preternaturally well, since I'm no spring chicken. :p