Haunted town

It's starting to be all dark and spooky weather all the time around here, especially with the strong winds we've been having lately because of yet another fake-out-teaser of a hurricane/storm that is only coquettishly brushing our cheeks with the back of her hands. But at least the leaves are mostly still on the tress, because once they get over with that whole Gorgeously-Striking Colors and the Glory of Nature's Bounty in Autumn thing that they do, then they will just be bleak and skeletal. But hey, then I'll be able to see the river again.

In fact, I should really be taking a walk right now, and enjoying some of the aforementioned Nature's Beauty, but instead I am vaguely floating around the house, procrastinating from doing real work by inventing chores, like reconditioning a bunch of cast iron skillets my mom gave me last year. I've been waiting for it to get cool enough so that I wouldn't mind having the oven on for hours at a pop, and now it is. And I should really do the thing I'm paid for first, but reconditioning cast iron skillets sounds so crafty and money-saving and thrifty in a yard sale kind of way that I feel like it's sort of like making money. At least it's not spending money, except for all the gas I'm using in the oven, and the oil, and well forget it.

Procrastinating is one thing. Weakly attempting to justify it is another thing entirely.

The job will get done, though, because Matt and I are heading out to Syracuse this weekend for a family thing. Syracuse is really the home of spooky weather, and also has a fair bit of spooky architecture going for it, too. A perennial favorite is the Hall of Languages, which is kind of the emblematic gateway building of Syracuse University. Folks have told me that the Hall of Languages was partly the inspiration for the Addams' Family house, which I think is unfortunately untrue, but you can see why people might say that.

My personal favorite was always the NiMo (Niagara Mohawk) building, in all its art deco glory. I always expected to see Batman scaling this building in the middle of the night. Since the NiMo building is right in the middle of downtown, nestled among some of our favorite bars and clubs, I probably thought I did see Batman up there a couple of times.

More gothic creepiness is right down the street from the NiMo building, including the Syracuse Savings Bank, the White building, and most of Salina Street. Of course, the fact that the area is severely economically depressed lends just the right touch of authentic malaise to the whole place.

I hope I'm not giving the wrong impression -- I really dig Syracuse, the architecture, the history, the people. Maybe this trip I'll actually take pictures so I can share the spooky building love. Those readers whom I know from our sojourns in Syracuse may put in their requests now.

Sorry, no food orders.