Hello and welcome back to the wonderful world of the Dogpound. As of this writing we just finished Halloween. The town where I live (Sullivan, Ind.) actually had its trick or treat night on Wednesday, not Thursday, in part due to the bad weather that was forecast. Temperatures were dropping, winds were picking up, and among the rain drops there were a few wannabe snowflakes. Prior to this day, I went in the plant over the weekend and did some Halloween decorating. We have a small hallway that separates the main manufacturing plant from the main offices, and there are several offices located there including mine. So over the past few years, I have taken it upon myself to decorate the hallway for Halloween and Christmas. I use a lot of cobwebs and spiders and other critters. To set the mood, I purchased some red gauze and put it over the lights which added a bit of a red haze to the lighting. I also decorated my office with some stuff, plus I dressed up for our “Spirit Day.” This year I went above and beyond and bought one of those nice costumes: a vampire costume. It had a nice long-sleeve fluffy shirt with a vest that had chain buttons, a red ascot and a long cape. To add to the effect, I bought some chain jewelry, a nice top hat, and some fake blood to smear on the edges of my mouth. I also bagged some candy and passed it around in the office while wearing my costume. I have to tell you it is hard to sit with a cape, and my long sleeves kept knocking papers off the desk or getting into my coffee cup. Not sure how Dracula managed! LOL! I must admit the other offices did not escape my decorating frenzy. They got webs and a scattering of spiders hidden in their desk, and for good measure I made some eyeballs surrounded by cotton balls soaked in fake blood. I know, I know. I must have too much time on my hands. Then to add icing on the cake, Human Resources Department employees came around to pass out candy and take pictures of those of us who were brave enough to show up at work in their alter egos. One of the ladies in tow actually asked me what I was supposed to be. Really?! I told her I was dressed as the “handsome vampire.” Her reply was “Oh” … and she walked out of office. Not easily impressed, I guess.
THOUGHT FOR THE WEEK
“A smile is an inexpensive way to change your looks.” – Charles Gordy
SMILES
Old Sam was a witness in a burglary trial. The defense lawyer asked Sam, “Did you see my client commit this burglary?”
“Yes,” said Sam. “I plainly saw him take the goods.”
The lawyer asked again, “Sam, this happened at night. Are you sure you saw my client commit this crime?”
“Yes,” said Sam. “I saw him do it.”
Then the lawyer asked, “Sam, listen. You are 80 years old and your eyesight is probably bad. Just how far can you see at night?”
Sam replied, “I can see the moon — how far is that?”
After years of battling the bulge, my sister finally lost weight. In fact, she shed so many pounds that her suits began to sag, leading one coworker to suggest she alter her clothes to fit her new figure. “Not yet,” she said. “Let me enjoy the sag a little while first.”
That is all I have for you today. As always, be good, do good, play safe and remember: even adults need to act like kids every once in a while.
–JR
