Ape: the Halloween Retrospect

Yes, it really is Tom Savini with the "kill me now" look on his face as he holds up Ape. I thought I'd throw some whimsy into the October posts with my partner in crime, Christmas Ape.

The other pictures below, I suspect, Ape Photoshopped...

 "You're the caretaker, Mr. Ape. You've always been the caretaker..."

Best. Ape. Photo. EVAH, Bitches!

Don't you wish you were Ape?

Thanks to Tom Savini for being gracious enough to take a pic with Chris Aype. Tom, you rock!

Oh, and? Don't you wish you'd taken part in the Chris Aype Celebrity Photo Contest?

P.S. I have wanted this pic for years! I am so fabulously giddy!

Ape's Turn

Skull and Pumpkin blogger, Mike C. and Ape frolic in the Monsterpalooza
Museum.

Ape gets around, doesn't he?

First Contest Offerings

The first two entries for the Chris Ape Celebrity Photo Contest:

 I love these! (I'm not including the stories right now, but I will in the future!) Thanks, Lyndsay, for getting the ball rolling!

Chris Ape Celebrity Photo Contest

Christmas Ape, kicking it with pal Jack Nicholson at the Overlook Hotel.

And I really hope that a bunch of people enter into this with the spirit I intended! (That's a plea. Don't leave me hanging!)

It's been quiet here in Halloween land, with not many comments and not much going on, so I thought I'd insert some mid-Winter silliness into a dull season...

My readers know of my dear friend, Christmas Ape, a.k.a. Chris Aype or just Ape, who flies around the world with us and gets his picture taken in the coolest places. Great fun, right? There's only one problem:

Ape has no celebrity photos.

He almost did. Twice, in fact. Once, over Christmas, with Joe Mantegna, and once with Jon Favreau at Monsterpalooza a couple of years ago.

I chickened out, both times. I just couldn't walk up to either of them and explain the magic that is Ape, and ask for a photo for his Facebook page. And I really wanted to, because it would be awesome!

That's where this contest comes in. Chris has requested that I get him into some pics with celebrities, and I thought that given my lack of spine, Photoshop might be the answer. I figured that if this guy could Photoshop celebs into his party pics, someone could Photoshop Ape into a celebrity encounter of some kind.

So there's the contest. Grab a picture of your choice of Christmas Ape off his Facebook page (or you can search this blog) and give him his celebrity picture! He could be chatting with a supermodel, giving advice to President Obama, having drinks with Mila Kunis, skiing with Vince Vaughn, or whatever fun situation you can dream up for him. The celebrity can be living or dead. Use your imagination! You can create and enter as many pics as you like.

Mr. ShellHawk, Ape and I will narrow entries down to the top five, which I'll then post here for a reader vote. (Aren't I an optimist? I'm assuming I'll get more than five!) The deadline for entry will be February 18. The top five will be posted by February 22, when the voting will start. Send all entries to me at shell hawks nest at ya hoo dawt calm. I hope you can figure out the email address from that!

So here are the rules:
1) No naughty pics. Suggestive, o.k. Porn, not o.k.
2) By sending these pics to me, you agree that I can use them in whatever way I choose, including posting them on Facebook or making millions in a tell-all book. (Like that would ever happen...)
3) You must name the celebrity with whom he is pictured. (Because I just don't know them all!)

Extra credit for the story of how Ape and his celebrity ended up in the situation pictured. Keep it short and sweet. The cooler and more far-fetched, the better. 

What do you win? I'll tell you!

First Prize is one of my jack-o'-lanterns. My choice.
Second prize is a trick or treat bag with a softcover edition of  Halloween: The Best of Martha Stewart Living and a copy of  Make: Halloween Special Edition.
Third prize is one of my mini-boos.

Please spread the word! Tweet it, blog it, Facebook it. The more, the merrier, and I might start posting entries in the intervening time before the contest entry period is over.

Let's have some fun with this, gang!

Ape's Dolphin Adventure

"How do you feel about a Banana Daquiri later?"

Christmas Ape, a.k.a. "Chris Aype" on Facebook, practices cross-species diplomacy. 

He says he really likes dolphins, even though they made his butt a little wet, and the wet frizzes his fur...

Ape and the Time Line

Chris Aype has decided to revisit his "Antonio Bay" trip on my Facebook page.


Not a bad job for someone who was made without articulating fingers, actually...

A Little More WCHC

Sorry for the delay, kids, but this has been catch-up week for me around the homestead. Of course, when I catch up with house work, my back has a tendency to flare up on me, so I've been dealing with that, as well. :o/ 


*sigh* I hate getting older.


But... Here are a few more pics from West Coast Haunters. Ape had a fantastic time, and managed to "scare" a haunt actor. I think maybe she was being kind to him, so please, don't tell him he wasn't as fierce and scary as he thought!

The Bloodshed Brothers, kind enough to pose with an old lady like me!

Haunted Memories, with the best t-shirt of the show!

Hauntcast supporter, Skull Shoppe, posing with Chris Aype.

 

That smile is why I keep making those silly jack-o'-lanterns!

More soon! 

West Coast Haunters Teasers

More of this wonderful convention soon! I might even do another vlog!

Hallowe'ens Past

Someday, I really am going to have to Photoshop Ape into that photograph.


Of course, I'll have to learn Photoshop, first...

BlogTV Thanks

Well, I did my first BlogTV show last night, armed with my blue raspberry martini. Big thanks go out to Fright Guy, The Bloodshed Brothers, and Chris Baker for co-hosting and making the show almost halfway intelligent.
For those not able to make it, we had two home haunt celebs join us to chat: Mr. Chicken and Spider Rider, both of whom are gracious enough to be helping me with a new prop and revamping an old one. Chris Davis of Davis Graveyard checked in for some fun, too, and debated the value of blue drinks vs. wine. 


We had two new TV stars appear, as well: Christmas Ape and Samhain. Neither of them has much comment, although Ape thinks Jeromy looks pretty hot in his little blue dress. (Credit for the pic goes to Jody Bossert of Haunted Night.)
I'll get some new pics of Sam up shortly. I have to say, it was pretty wild being gone for a week and coming back to see how much he'd grown in just that short time! He didn't seem to mind being on TV, and didn't demand his own trailer and makeup people, unlike Ape, who can be a little full of himself sometimes. Ape, by the way, has new Facebook pics from the Shasta trip, if you want to check them out.


I took the opportunity to show off the latest creations out of the kiln, so if you missed that part, you'll just have to wait until I put pics up for the Etsy store! (Big thanks to DixieDawn for her mini-ghost purchases!)
O.k. kids, it's time for me to get back to making Hallowe'en!

Easter Flowers

Here in California, the flowers are showing the first blooms of Spring. Yes, it's been raining off and on this week, and the temperature varies from forty-five to sixty-eight degrees (so you're never really sure how to dress for the day) with sometimes gusty winds, but the flowers know what to do. Since we hosted Easter dinner, I decided to brave the rain and head out into the garden to get some color into the house.

This rose is a mutant hybrid tea-it's called "Black Magic." I bought it from Jackson and Perkins years ago, when they still had the patent. I saw this one has three buds within one bloom, and that is a first, even for my yard. I guess that was a great place to hide the bodies! 

Nearly all my orchids are in bloom, too.

Of course, the rest of the roses are starting to show their colors, too.

The iris bulbs I planted a few years ago are going gangbusters. I really should have separated them last Fall, but for some reason, I got a little bit busy!

Though he's a pretty tough guy most of the time, Ape does like to take the time to smell the roses.

Since I had done most of the prep for dinner on Saturday, I had some time to take some wanna-be artsy shots of the flowers and the rabbit skull sculpture I made. 

 We went through almost ten pounds of lamb and ten pounds of tri-tip roast (it's usually a California cut of meat, East Coasters, and it is fantastic!), a bottle of champagne, seven or eight bottles of very good white and red wines, a mess of salad, baby potatoes, and green beans. For dessert, there was home made creme brulee and fresh-baked cupcakes.

Needless to say, today I am back on my diet!

A Few From Monsterpalooza



Sculptress Stacy, Artist
Ron Whipple, Tombstone
Maker Robert Santos,
CalHaunter Heidi



Monsterpalooza came and went far too quickly! I was only able to attend for one afternoon, and there was so much there that I wanted to take more time to look at!

I think what stuck with me most is the mad sculpting skills that people demonstrated. There were several props that were so incredibly realistic, they gave me a serious case of the creeps!

Of course, meeting up with friends from near and far was one of the perks. I got to reconnect with some CalHaunts pals whom I haven't seen since Transworld, one of my best friends from junior high school, and of course, the Bloodshed Brothers.





Cool ghouls: The Bloodshed Brothers and Yours Truly.





Amazing tribute to Lon Chaney



 

Chris Ape narrowly averts being dinner



Because even now, only heterosexuals can marry dead people.



Ape, schmoozing the ladies to great effect

More pics tomorrow!

I Heart L.A.

My Southwest flight didn't crash and I made it to Burbank Airport without a hitch. My dad picked me up from the airport and we went straight over to my grandma's house to say hello. It was so great to see her little face light up when I walked in the door! She looks well enough that she just may make it to her 102nd birthday. I'll have to drive down to L.A. for that, for sure. Last night I got to meet up with a couple of girlfriends for leisurely drinks and chit-chat. Fun day!

Today, I get to head over to either the Getty Villa or the Getty Museum with my dad for a cultural experience. Tomorrow, it's Monsterpalooza with buddy Ron Whipple and a bunch of other folks I know from all over. I find it endlessly amusing that once I said I was going, several of my friends who are also going asked if Ape would be coming, too. Ape is such a party animal, he wouldn't miss it for the world!

I wonder if Bob Lizarraga or Eric Pigors would take a pic with Ape? He needs some celebrity pics for his Facebook page.

Monterey Birthday

My brother and sister-in-law, kicking it with Ape

I did promise a few more pics from our weekend in Monterey. Mr. ShellHawk, Ape and I met up with my brother and sister-in-law for some lunch and a visit to the Monterey Bay Aquarium.

The weather in California has been really bad, with some pretty epic rainstorms that are making those in Sacramento nervous about the safety of the levees. The bright side, of course, is that Tahoe has some fine snow for skiing, and the drought, I believe, is officially over for the year.

We drove through some pretty nasty weather conditions to meet them and dried off over Mexican food. Though my sister-in-law is an old friend of Ape's, this was his first meeting with my brother since he stepped into the Facebook spotlight. Thankfully, it went well. 

Chris Ape and his new penguin friend. He said they smell funny.



Ape and Mr. ShellHawk,
relaxing before dinner



We had a great time, watching the penguins get fed and being overwhelmed by the masses of people who were crowding the aquarium. We took a break before dinner to go back to our respective hotels and freshen up a bit.



Mr. ShellHawk is in Monterey at least once a year on business, so he knows all the best places to eat. He took us to Cafe Fina on the pier to celebrate their anniversary and my brother's birthday (both on the same day), and my birthday, which was Sunday. Mr. ShellHawk had won an amazing collection of wines from the Michael David Winery while at the local elementary school's annual crab feed, and he was smart enough to bring a bottle of the Petite-Petit to share over dinner. If you ever have an opportunity to purchase this wine, by the way, do it! It's both a drinker and a keeper, as you can drink it now or save it for a couple of more years. It really opened up after about twenty-five minutes or so, with some very rich flavors.

Dinner and service at Cafe Fina is always fantastic, so if you're celebrating a special occasion in Monterey, I can't recommend this restaurant highly enough. We were treated like visiting royalty, and the whole evening was a wonderful time. (We even called my dad while at the table to say hello, and passed the phone around to each of us. He was delighted!)



The next day, the first sun we had seen in a month finally made an appearance! Mr. ShellHawk and I completely broke our diets and had breakfast at The Paris Bakery Cafe. Can I just share how good a fresh croissant is with a latte in the morning? Yum-my!

After breakfast, we headed out to the commercial pier to do a little birding. While peering through the binoculars, I saw a bunch of fins in the distance, but since they were only drifting, I thought for a minute they might be some odd art installation. It wasn't. It was a group of Harbor Seals hanging out together in the water.

I left Mr. S to his birding and walked down to the end of the pier to get a better look. It turned out that there were a number of those groups of seals hanging out around the pier and the bay.


Click on the pic for video

 Afterwards, we started our three and a half hour journey home, stopping once for a potty break at Casa de Fruta. Ape ignored all warnings to stay off the antiques and had himself a romp. He is such a rebel!

Surveying new territory from his high vantage point



First carousel ride



I didn't have the heart to tell him the train wasn't going anywhere



Of course, the capper of the day was when we found this clearly labeled "Haunted Tunnel." 

When we got home, I discovered that Mr. ShellHawk had arranged for a few folks to come by to celebrate my birthday with us.



Friend and restauranteur Dominick brought me his first ever dessert
pizza. Nutella, pineapple and powdered sugar. Yum!



Dominick also brought a lovely bottle of champagne to celebrate. You can tell it's good, because I won't put the champagne glass down, even to blow out my birthday candles!

Thanks, Mr. ShellHawk, for a lovely birthday!

Chris Aype's pics of Monterey.