Lively weekend

Last Saturday, after long calling hours, Mr. Hall said, "How about a nice romantic supper, with candlelight and attentive service?" Splendid, Mrs. Hall had replied, and was just settling in nicely when the car turned into the Marcellus High School parking lot. "Here we are!" he said sprightly. Not quite what Mrs. H. had in mind, but she had to admit, was a change of pace. The seniors ushered them into the lunchroom, where the lights had been dimmed and candles placed on the plastic tables. Hopping up on a circular stool and draping a four inch square napkin over her lap, Mrs. Hall beamed at Mr. Hall. She was always happy to be supporting the local school system, just as long as it didn't involve sharing pasta à la that awkward scene from "Lady and the Tramp." As soon as they finished their slice of homemade white cake and set the plastic forks aside, the anxious student staff brought 'round the coffee pot again. Mr. and Mrs. H. had to agree it was a pleasant diversion from home- they had not seen too much of any young ones the past few days. But that was about to change...
On Wednesday, young Katie Hall drove up from Washington D.C. for a quick shot of Central New York hospitality and a chance to celebrate her birthday with Mr. and Mrs. Hall. While they longed to fete her properly, Mrs. H. had to take Ian to PT in Auburn. “Swaby’s will not be the same without us on Wednesday,” remarked Mrs. Hall, “but give my best to Katie, along with these presents.” So while Ian ran cadences in the rain, Katie and Mr. H. held court at the club. Happily, he was able to convince her to stay on til Saturday, so they could all meet up at Daniel’s for their usual Friday fun, before she had to run off again. The Halls wished her happy trails and a safe trip home; it's always a pleasure to see her.

They're not dead; they're living-impaired
The Halls first attempt at a Zombie Mob drew far fewer participants than expected, but yielded very entertaining results. Through a mistake borne of a general lack of planning, the little band had not anticipated the SU football schedule and the size of the pre-game crowd on the SU hill. Driving up, Colleen and Mrs. Hall suddenly realized that the quiet little route they had successfully run the week before, was now completely taken over with rabid sports fans, tailgaters and their barbecues, parking lot shills (hawking spots starting at $20!) and the occasional religious fanatic with a megaphone. But the zombie gods were smiling that day, and miraculously, almost directly across from their route, a parking spot opened up in front of them on the street, and scraping up sufficient change for an hour or so on the meters, they managed to slide the van in. Joining a small but dedicated group of companion zombies, they shuffled and lurched their way along the prearranged route. There were concerns that among a crowd of fans dressed in orange wigs, foam fingers, all manner and shape of cold weather gear and fan paraphernalia, whether or not zombies would actually be noticed; but the effect on the crowd was entirely satisfying. Colleen won a shouting/ groaning match with the fanatic, much to the happy cheers of the pub crowd across the street. Dozens of folks took pictures of them and several insisted on having their pictures taken with the zombies. Good natured appreciation greeted them all along the way.
Kudos to the members of Zombie Mob 2009- though hoarse from moaning and full of sugar and gummy brains, they returned to their homes happy and ready to terrorize another day!