Views of the Neighborhood – A Taste of Halloween

~ John W. Howell

Hello. Today we are going to go out and find a taste of Halloween. Some may say it’s too early, but I can tell you, Lakeway goes all out for Halloween, and to see it all, we will have to make a few trips.

We are being catered by Cafe No Se in Austin. Yes, they have catered to us before, but we all liked their simple menu and terrific food. We also have invited Fleetwood Mac to play.

Menu

  • avocado toast, soft boiled egg, crème fraîche, arugula, Aleppo carrots
  • smoked salmon bagel, salmon, hard-boiled egg, pickled onion, tomato, caper scallion cream cheese, everything bagel
  • lemon-ricotta hotcakes, apple-thyme chutney, pecan butter, maple syrup
  • café scramble, roasted wild mushrooms, Fresno pepper, spinach, fresh ricotta, sourdough toast
  • sweet potato hash, two sunny eggs, crispy pork belly, kimchi, mustard greens, jalapeño, kale
  • cowboy breakfast, two sunny eggs, bacon, confit pork, borracho beans, tomato, roasted jalapeño, cilantro butter

Picture of an old time school bus

Let’s get going.

Let’s start with our old pals, the flamingos. There are orange and black versions.

A cute ceramic pumpkin on the mailbox.

A real pumpkin on the mailbox. Here in Texas, you don’t carve pumpkins until the last minute. The heat causes them to rot quickly.

A Talavera pumpkin is on the mailbox.

You may recognize the hand in this display of gourds.

The mushroom with seasonal enhancements.

Another Talavera ceramic with pumpkin.

A quick nod to the fall.

This ceramic bird looks a little upset. It might be the laughable cape or the construction noise next door. In any case, I took the photo quickly and ran.

A spider octopus or an octopus spider.

An armadillo skeleton who is obviously carrying a grudge. He shoulda have kept off the road.

Ah, a real hairy scary spider. I’ll bet the mailperson loves this.

So there is a taste of Halloween. There is more to come. So for today, sit back and enjoy the food and music. I hope you all have a great week.

103 thoughts on “Views of the Neighborhood – A Taste of Halloween”

  2. A great start to the Halloween season. a fantastic menu and great musical accompaniment. I can’t help but wonder if your coach will be pulled by skeleton horses looking to collect the spirits of the dead.
    Hugs

    Liked by 1 person

  3. Dear John,
    in our area Halloween is not such a big thing. We drove around to visit a library and a bookfair yesterday but we didn’t see any Halloween decorations – it’s a pity. Especially Siri 🙂 and 🙂 Selma love a little shudder. But they sell pumpkins everywhere here now – but the traditional soup.
    All the best
    The Fab Four of Cley
    🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂

    Liked by 1 person

  6. I got up late, so I won’t be having breakfast, but I enjoyed our first Halloween tour. Those spiders are certainly Daddy Looong Legs for sure!!
    Thanks, John. 🎃

    Liked by 1 person

  8. The way time passes so quickly, I guess it’s never too early. Last week, while driving to work I noticed a house with Christmas lights! I like the big spider and the web. Great song choice! Enjoy your Sunday, John.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Thank you, Darlene. I always liked this Fleetwood Mac song. I remember in the early 70s while working in Chicago I used to pass the Fleetwood Mac airplane sitting at a private hanger at O’Hair airport. I always wondered what it would be like to ride with those guys.

      Like

  10. Your neighborhood knows how to have fun! Thanks for the tour, John, and the delightful close with Fleetwood Mac. In my part of the world, just about everyone has a dog, so I don’t know if there will be many Halloween visitors. Other than one artificial pumpkin, I’ve not seen any decorations. 🎃

    Liked by 1 person

  14. Gonna have that cafe scramble today, John. I love the armadillo! I used to have a baby armadillo – pickled of course – in my lab. I understand they are born in sets of nine?

    Liked by 1 person

  16. I like the spiders, John. As I haven’t been around the neighbourhood in the last few days, I don’t know which – if any – Halloween decorations are out.
    Have a great Sunday,
    Pit

    Liked by 1 person

      1. No, we’ve never been to Sandfest yet. But we have it on our bucket list. For now, we’d like to return later in the year to hopefully watch some Whooping Cranes.

        Liked by 1 person

  17. I love seeing Halloween decorations 🙂 what a fun tour and with amazing and entertainment ! I’m inspired to go explore our areas decorations.

    Liked by 1 person

  18. As always, I’m impressed with the way your neighborhood gets into the spirit of whatever is going on. And I love the brick mailboxes that give everyone such a perfect place to display a seasonal greeting. Super fun, John! Oh, and maybe the red cape is a Halloween costume & that big bird is cleverly disguised as Superman! 😄

    Liked by 1 person

  19. I like the mushroom, but the “quick nod to the fall” made me giggle. Could they spare it, huh?!? Thanks for letting us tag along on your outing — I always enjoy seeing your neck of the woods.

    Liked by 1 person

  21. Oh, John, you’ve made my mouth water with that menu:). Hotcakes, pls. After all, it’s Sunday and damn the no-carb rule. Your neighbors are putting me to shame. I’ve yet to find Halloween decorations as my old ones gave out and supply chain issues seem to be making the local store shelves a bit empty. Love to see the holiday spirit in your neighborhood . . .

    Liked by 1 person

  22. I say bring it on! We don’t decorate outside but I did put up a Talavera pumpkin inside. Our new next door neighbors have had decorations up for over a week. I love the armadillo skeleton! The cowboy breakfast was great.

    Liked by 1 person

  25. Your neighborhood is so fun and festive, John. Love the photos and those lemon-ricotta hotcakes sound sinfully delicious. This morning my husband and I went out for coffee and drove by a house with HUGE spiders all over it. We’ve never seen anything like it, so I took some photos trying to be inconspicuous. I wish I could insert them here for you to see. 🙂 Enjoy the rest of your day.

    Liked by 1 person

  27. Once the calendar hits October 1 I am all about Halloween decorations. Really loved the spiders in this round and that amazing armadillo skeleton.

    We don’t have armadillos in PA, but they fascinate me to no end. This is a new spin on them, LOL. Thanks for the tour, John!

    Liked by 1 person

  28. My favorite holiday—I love all the creativity. I do miss getting dressed up with my students. Dressing up at home just doesn’t do it for me.

    Liked by 1 person

  29. The decorations are starting here, too. Seems every day there is another new one put up. I rather like the effort others make 🙂

    Hope you had a lovely Sunday!

    Liked by 1 person

  38. Pingback: Smorgasbord Blogger Daily – #Offer Marcia Meara, #Teaching Pete Springer, #Writers D.G. Kaye, #RoundUp Carol Taylor, #Halloween John Howell. | Smorgasbord Blog Magazine

  42. I have never lived anywhere where Halloween is truly celebrated…I love seeing all the lovely and creepy Halloween images from blog land…The large spider one is cool and that menu sounds delicious…the crispy pork especially and the ???? I would be there every day if they were near me…lovey post and images, John 🙂

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  44. Great food, great music, and some great doses of the Halloween season. It being my favorite time of the year, I especially enjoyed your post, John. Thanks for taking us on the journey with you!

    Liked by 1 person

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