Now What?!

As I was in my yard today adding some details to my display -- I went to the local swamp (actually an overgrown, abandoned roadway) and pulled up some vines to wrap around my columns and fence -- a car pulled up in front of the house and the woman driving complimented me on the display.

I graciously accepted the compliments but she began to explain that she ran an entertainment company and they were putting on a haunted house in Hoboken. It was really a series of haunted tents, and what she does is drive around to try and steal ideas from home haunters. She said she really liked my display and wanted to know where I had gotten my various props. When I told her I built most of them, she was more than effusive in her praise.

Then she asked me if I could build her a groundbreaker! She would pay me for it! But it would need to be done before October 29 when the event was to take place. Oh, and how much would I charge?

I had no freakin' clue. I've only been doing this for a year and while I think my groundbreakers and corpses are fine for my little yard display, are they really "professional" haunt quality? I don't think so, but neither am I one to dismiss an opportunity either, particularly since I enjoy doing this stuff and I'm doing it every day anyway.

She said she was just starting out in the entertainment business and she had done this particular haunt last year and they liked it enough to ask her to come back. But she wanted to up the effort this time around to try and branch out and perhaps do it for more places. Of course I was thinking to myself, well, nothing like waiting till the last minute...but she said she would be willing to have me join her in her business. I'm guessing as Chief Prop Maker.

I figured I could make the props and even if she never came through I'd at least have another prop for my own display.

So, would anyone care to suggest what a groundbreaker would go for? Oh, and then after she left, she came back five minutes later asking if I could make a reaper too! Would it take long? Oh boy. Now what am I gonna do?

Blustery Days

Warm and sunny though the day is, the strong gusts of wind have me fearful for my Reaper. I finally completed him yesterday (got his lamp wired with a flicker bulb at last -- damn you procrastination!), but with today's gales I'm worried he'll blow over.

So far he just rocks to and fro (would probably make for a cool motorized movement to scare the ToTs), though everytime a neighbor's garbage can falls over I keep running to the window to check.

He also survived an overnight rainstorm. When I examined him this morning he had a bluish cast similar to the coloring when I first applied the sealant. However, after the sun came up and he dried off, his regular color returned. You can see him at right.

Rich

UPDATE: Disaster! The whirlwinds grabbed hold of everything in the yard and cast it about like it was made of styrofoam. Oh wait. Everything is made of styrofoam! But the Reaper was pushing up mums, my entrance columns were scattered, even the picket fence around the graveyard was uprooted and tossed around. My imprisoned skeleton escaped, the winged angel crawled out of its coffin, and the guillotine was positioned to cut grass instead of heads.

I decided to leave everything down till the windstorm passed to ensure that nothing would be broken. In the end, while everything was bowled over, nothing was broke or damaged so disaster was actually averted.