beboots

Come autumn, Fort Edmonton Park does this awesome two-night Hallowe'en event called Spooktacular. Last year I volunteered for logistics - I walked around with a few others in shiny reflective vests with radios, shining a flashlight into the eyes of anybody suspected of smoking pot/drinking/doing something else they shouldn't have. We're there to give out information and act as security. Somebody three years ago apparently broke an ankle trying to sneak into the park along the service road by climbing over the chain-link fence, and it was someone in my position that found him. It was fun. 

But THIS year, I'm volunteering to be one of the actors on the scary street: 1885 street is PG-13. Apparently they used to do the Fort of Fear, which was TERRIFYING (I mean, you hardly have to dress it up in the dark; it's pretty scary as-is). For various safety and legal reasons, we can't do it anymore, but that means that 1885 street, with it's reproduction jail, really old houses, skeletal trees, and empty wagons gets to be the setting for our nights of mayhem.

This year, the theme is zombies. I'm a rover; this means that I'm one of the zombie hoard not assigned to scenarios within the buildings themselves, mostly for atmosphere and to terrify people wandering around/waiting in lines. 

We had our dress rehearsal yesterday, which went pretty well overall! Volunteers from the other streets came by to test us out, which was fun... and good practice. It took me like fifteen minutes to learn to keep a straight face properly when someone else is staring at you or laughing or whatever. I've learned to give out a moan whenever I feel the urge to laugh. 

Essentially, my "at rest" pose involves me with my upper torso leaning backwards almost enough to make it uncomfortable, with my head to the side, eyes wide and staring. I can do a good wide-eyed face. One of the two lovely volunteer girls who do the makeup gave me a giant slice wound across my face, between my eyes going onto my left cheek. We were thinking: ax to the face. But not enough so that I stayed down! ;) Anyway, if you catch my attention I don't follow you with my eyes or face, but with my torso, moving unnaturally. I will lurch towards you, stop and stare, lurch some more if you catch my attention... I sometimes sneak up on people watching other programs, stand behind them, stare for five or ten seconds, then groan. 

We have to be careful to shuffle slowly, so people can get away; we can't technically touch visitors, and it's kind of awkward if you catch them because you can't disembowel and eat them. Seriously, super awkward. ;) One of the guys gets around it by sniffing anyone he's caught, making a disgusted face, and shuffling off. 

I need to learn to blink more than I do (wide, glassy-eyed staring freaks people out a LOT) because I actually lost a contact when my eyes dried out too much and I blinked. I had to grab it off of the dirty ground, shuffle off behind a building, and dash to the washroom to clean it off and put it back in. I kind of needed my peripheral vision to drive home. >_> 

But still! It's been super fun! I will have more details (and possibly photographs) of the two actual nights, Friday and Saturday. If anybody's in the Edmonton area and wants to attend (and you totally should!) you can get tickets through Ticketmaster... although they're selling out fast! :D

Now, if only the thin layer of snow on the ground would melt in time... I've compensated by literally wearing five layers of turtlenecks and sweaters under my dress shirt and four skirts plus yoga pants (which doubles up as extra padding against zombie hunters), but it won't be a comfortable night if it's like -10C... :P

... were seized and feasted on at once.
-Pride and Prejudice and Zombies

As some of you may have noticed, I have been participating in NaNoWriMo the last few days! Things have been hectic, as I have been trying to get ahead in my wordcount so that I can slack of (out of necessity) later on, so I can write some of my scholarly papers... Here is a wordcount widget indicating my progress!




At the time of writing, my wordcount is 25,563 words. Yes, I have just hit the midway point, 25k. On the fifth day. Yes, I have surprised even myself. And it's actually good-quality stuff! .... well, in my subjective opinion, I have improved my writing style over the last two Novembers. :)

( Come in to my lair... let me tell you of my novel... )

A painting of Archangel Raphael by an artist who did a series of abstract painings of archangels.

(and oh god I have seen so much religious art in the last week during the course of my research on the characters of Michael and Raphael... Some of it good, a lot of it bad. But I really love the subtety of the above painting - because angels aren't just men with wings - they are impressions, actions, and light.)

were seized and feasted upon at once.
-Pride and Prejudice and Zombies

Okay, so I just had the most awesome training session ever, you guys.

 

( Cut for awesome zombie action )
Man, I love Fort Edmonton. I'm so happy to be working there this summer.