Zombies in the Stacks: A Pathfinder

All of Zomtober leads up to the last day of the month - Zomtoberfest!  This Zomtoberfeat weekend, I participated in my local Zombie Awareness Walk as a Zombrarian, then went to see Shaun of the Dead with my fellow zombrarians and our significant others.  A fun, and educational, time was had by all.

I also sat down and watched one of my traditional Zomtoberfest television specials - The History Channel's The Real Story of Halloween.  First of all, you can never really go wrong with a short documentary on a holiday, and The History Channel is light and fluffy enough to not dissapoint.  But this year, they also aired Zombies: A Living History which I freaking adored.  They rounded up authors like Max Brooks, Jonathan Maberry, Dr. Steven Schlozman, Daniel Drezner, and others along with anthropologists and zombie enthusiasts to talk about the history of zombies in a variety of cultures as well as the threat of disease/disaster/pandemonium and our ability to cope and survive.  It was amazing.  So amazing that if you're reading this right now, you'd better already have it set to record on your DVR or else be moving to pick up your remote, or else I might just have to give you librarian eyes.  Don't make me say it twice.

On a lighter note, I owe you all your last three Zomtober presents! First we go to Thinkgeek and their Zombie Attack Hoodie. Looks fun, doesnt' it?  Great for reenactments and training sessions on a budget.  Plus I bet it's snuggly.

Next we have a zombie-themed headband from Etsy seller JanineBasil.  Delightful, isn't it? For those formal Zomtober occasions when you want to celebrate the spirit of the holiday without getting fake blood on your evening gown. Ingenious!

Last but not least, it's no secret that I'm a knitter.  I'm also super sad that these unique stitch markers have already sold.  Still, we can enjoy tdozieart's sculpting skills and stalk her Etsy shop until she makes more, right?

I hope you have had an enjoyable and educational Zomtober, and that your Zomtoberfest is the perfect culmination.  Be safe out there!

So back in the beginning of Zomtober, I made lots of girlish noise about a Brain Cupcake Mix.  Today was our staff dress up for Halloween, so I made some goodies to share with my coworkers.  I had planned to make graveyard cupcakes and the brain cupcakes.

I only brought the graveyards.

For something that comes in a box, you'd think it would be dummy proof.  So I'm going to give the cupcake mix the blame.  If I can make Duncan Hines or Betty Crocker without problems, there's no reason why a mix/icing mix like this should taste as bad as it did.  The cupcake tops fell off when I took them out of the pan, and my husband had nothing but foul descriptions for the icing's consistency.

So steer clear, or else you may contract a flesh eating virus that makes you want to eat human flesh rather than cupcakes.

I will post pictures of my graveyard cupcakes (devil's food with raspberry Milano gravestones, oreo dirt, and green icing grass) later, but for now, enjoy this cool neckwear!

Searching "blood choker" gives you lots of different options for this bloody style of accouterment in Etsy.  Wear it this Zomtober to remind your loved ones of the proper procedure for Zombie disposal. 

Literally!

This is what the most stylish of survivalists wear when fending off zombies on their morning trip to get the mail and newspaper.

Part of me really wants to see someone kick a foot munching zombie in the head while wearing these.

Do they come in a steel-toed version?

(From Entertainment Earth)

Tonight my husband and I went to the Halloween store that's been set up in our local shopping mall.  I love Halloween stores.  They're so amazingly, over-the-top grotesque.  But my favorite things in the store were these.

Next to the costume party award ribbons was this delightfully lime-green adornment that declared the wearer "Zombie Approved."  Grade A Brain Meats, yesiree.

After the Halloween store, we hit up some local discount department stores looking for deals on shoes for my Halloween costume, which is where I found this:

Why yes, those are the last two Brains! Cupcake Kits that were on the shelf at my local Gordman's.  They are now on my kitchen counter.  I can't decide what I like more - the step-by-step instructions on how to pipe brains onto the cupcake, or the skull and spiders cupcake wrappers.

At any rate, I sure hope they're tasty.  At the High Plains Zombie Regional Fair, I bet they won the green ribbon.