Wocka, Wok-Aaah, Wiccan. All Fall down.

In the fall I grow nostalgic for New England, and what aids this is that I actually lived there. (read: sarcasm, a musthave New England Accessory) The leaves turning, the summer people heading back to NJ and NYC-opening up our roads, sweaters, cider, the harvest season and even hayrides with the congregation. Wait a minute, I've confused memories again with primetime telelvision. The Waltons overrode my sensibilities with an equally warm memory, maybe with sentiment or maybe my synapses are still misfiring from the nineties. There is something reassurring about Autumn; the dying back of the summer's bounty reminds us of the oncoming cold of winter and the promise of spring's rebirth. The Circle of life. Autumn was a time of togetherness, huddled for warmth and cheap feels. Autumn meant sweaters hiding weightgain and cheap feels. Autumn meant new primetime television, and back in the day that meant something.

If not for sunday night television, it's very likely I would have become a serial killer or an accountant, or perhaps a clever blend of both. I was fortunate enough to have my imagination kickstarted by the likes of Walt Disney and the Muppets on Sunday evenings with "family hour" programming, kickstarted enough to quelch the voices in my head screaming for retribution and more steak. The formula was so simple and it's lessons invaluable; family would gather and be entertained together. Maybe the show would lead to discussions (shocking) or future entertainment assignations but either way we were together and not on the streets soliciting Chaos. I blame the Muppets for many of my overused jokes and my penchant to squat in my Happy Place. A lot of time when I'm tuning people out or work for that matter, when that almost audible Click happens (more on Clicking soon in future posts) and I retreat to my Happy Place, I can hear the theme music and even see Rolf's ears flapping at the piano. All this happens and again, I'm satisfied.

Thanksgiving satisfies me on many levels. I love the culmination of the Harvest Season. I love dining with other minorities. I enjoy naps and food and sometimes a clever blend of both. I clap my hands at the anticipation of being uncomfortable but with people I love. My friend Laurie's family has a tradition of not repeating the same thanksgiving day turkey recipee. Her mother is a forward thinking (read: certifiable) globe trotter who knows the value of Experience seasoning life and is apt for producing poultry paradigms. "Terriyaki Turkey?", Please. "Turkey San Gimmiano?", Please. "Cajun seasoned Turkey with Jack Daniels gravy?", Please let me taste the seasonings in the sauce for quality purposes. As long as the family is together, who cares? Mrs B stands by the theory of 'let's see what this new experience will bring us'. Actually Susan usually sits by it. Is there anything more satisfying than trying something new to discover that it's pleasing to the majority and yourself? I'm pretty sure that's where the expression "Cool Beans" came from. It was that instant where someone had pulled off a culinary coup contrary to public opinion and when serving lukewarm legumes someone uttered "Cool Beans" in amazement and it stuck (funny on three levels; the expression, the beans, and the story all stuck). But I digress. I know the original colonists/imperialists had no wok to stirfry the succotash for the Seneca, and stole the indians recipe for succotash and passed it off as their own natch. But a wok just brings a certain aesthetic to a meal. Almost always it involves a cleaver, saki-bombs, Ming Tsai fantasies and rapidfire meal preparations. I'm all about saving time. Whether it be from a wok, a deepfryer, a jackhammer or even poprocks Thanksgiving satisfies me to the Aaah level.

The Magic of the autumn is especially felt in New England, I'm almost positive there are still witch trials back in Wethersfield, CT. I know there are still in Salem, but they're only for tourist reasons and organized by real witches. The feeling of frost, starry nights, pumpkins everywhere and the rustle of fallen leaves under your feet make you feel the spooky. On the westcoast they celebrate it in grand style. People pass eachother and salute with a "Happy Halloween" as if it were a "Merry Christmas". People decorate on a large scale. One man had a downed 747 on his front lawn in Van Nuys this year. People drive, live and breathe in costumes for three to four days around Oct. 31. You would think it's a regional Mardis Gras. Maybe it's the proximity to Hollywood (or the fact that both words have the same number letters and are similar) Halloween is amped in Los Angeles. Halloween, Dia de los Muertes and the year ending remind us that life ends only to go on. We never really leave, we leave impressions. We mark people, we make legacys, we impact society. Our time here is short but our purpose irrefutable. We are here to touch others. And speaking of touching others, I forgot to mention my new favorite out-gay character in comicbookland in my Rabbit Rabbit post this month. His name's Wiccan and he's part of the Young Avengers book from Marvel Comics. His boyfriends name is Hulkling, how hot is that? PS the comicbook Young Avengers won a GLAAD Media Award last Spring. The awards recognize contributors who show "Fair, accurate and inclusive representations of LGBT community and the issues that reflect them". How hot is that?

Maybe a better title for this post would have been Muppets, Mrs B, Ming-Tsai and Marvel Manlove. Naaaah, I think it's perfect with its Fall-outs(funny on five levels. Go back and find them Kent, you know you want to) and Fall-ins. Peace.