Purposeful Umbrellas

I've been preparing for the Big 3-1 in baby steps; today's was the purchase of a black compact "ghost" umbrella. Dabblers, I'm crossing two fingers that fall's fickle weather holds out for you, wherever you call home. Nothing's scarier on Halloween than an isolated shower.

We'd be lucky to score one like that in Oregon. Seriously. Something's up in Springfield -- literally up. No moon has been seen for a week, and the sky above this town is cloudy and pregnant. This is the weather. An atmosphere of collective uneasiness is crawling down the streets and the weather's to blame.

There's been storming for days now, but not the Storm people were expecting. Down at Wal-Mart or while waiting in the AM-PM line for gas and cheap cigarettes -- everywhere I've gone, Springtuckians (the word for the permanent residents here) have Storm on their lips, or at least on their minds. Even an almost-outsider like me can tell.

Probably why it rattles me a bit, too. The sky's noticeably dark lately, mornings to bedtime. "Full of gravestone heavies", to use the vernacular. Clouds are stuffed to bursting, except they don't, or won't. They prefer to threaten, water drops like warnings. When the rain's heavy, as it's been once or twice, it pelts the roof with a brief staccato, like mockingbirds when they attack. The downpours are swift and fierce orgasms, cut short with none of the release or unwind.

And everyone can sense the air of displeasure. The clouds meant to be furious, quick visitors instead hover like seeking grey markers; isolated showers carrying umbrellas, below a heavy and stagnant sea.

Am I in a (creative) mood tonight or what?!?

Halloween '09 continues for its SECOND SCARY WEEK beginning Monday, October 19th -- right here on abbracadabbling, everyone's favorite comicsblog!