The Halloween Honey, Small-Town Author

Qjj?  What the hell?  I just logged onto Blogger today to well, blog, and I see that apparently a blog was posted at 5am that read "Qjj."  So, that's weird.  I did not post that, and I'm not really sure how it got there but I am going to blame myself anyways for letting my 20-month-old daughter play with my iPhone much too much. 

Speaking of my darling offspring, her and I had a wonderful day out today where I forced her to go to her first antique shop ever with the help of my mom!  We went to Antiques On Main in downtown Anoka.  We went there because I have embarked on a quest to collect all the Anoka Halloween buttons I can get my hands on (like Pokemon!  Gotta Catch 'Em All!)

Antiques on Main was a bit of a jackpot for me when I saw this glorious display:

All!  All!  I want it all!  Turns out, none of it was for sale.  Whaaa??  Why would you do such a thing to a person?!  Apparently this collection belongs to Antiques on Main's owner, whose mother used to be a "dealer," was all the information I could get out of the cranky old lady working behind the counter.  A "dealer" of what, I can only assume is Anoka Halloween merchandise, but I'm going to let my imagination run and just say she was a arms dealer who loved Halloween. 

Look at this glorious piece of Anoka Halloween merchandise:

That pennant would look lovely in my home.  Alas, it's not meant to be.

There were a few of the Anoka Halloween buttons for sale that I did buy.  A 2001 and 2002 for fifty cents!  And a 1980 for five dollars.  There was some from the seventies, but I experienced some sticker shock when I saw that they were 25 dollars a pop.  Yikes.  So, I am going to continue my search on The World's Garage Sale, the internet!  And see what I can find, possibly for cheaper.

Here are the ones I purchased today:

You know what really frosts my cookies?  Here is a picture of me from 2006, wearing the Anoka Halloween 2006 button.  Do you think I know where it is?  Of course not:

I got to thinking today though.  I wonder if there is a definitive book on Halloween in Anoka? I doubt there is, because I would have probably known about it and checked it out from the library on several occasions like I did on the bi-centennial edition of the History of Anoka County I have checked out from the library about three times now (I am a super nerd.)  And if such a book doesn't exists, should I write one?  I think I should....

This would be a huge undertaking, which is fine because it is a topic am dorkily crazily interested in (and I secretly think there is more to the story....limestone underneath the streets, surrounded by two rivers and all that...) but it is the nichiest of niche topics.  Who would read it outside of the fine people of Anoka, MN?  Would you read it if you lived outside the state of Minnesota?  Probably not.  Plus, I don't know if what I write would be condoned by the official Halloween Committee since I have heard less-than-favorable things about certain committee members and practices just from around town (small-town bullshit politics are one of my most favorite things EVAH!)

I wonder how much cooperation I would get from the committee and the city if I asked?  I can't possibly be the first person who thought to do this?  Could I be snarky?  Would I want to be snarky?  My love for this topic is pure and untainted, so I think it's safe to say snarkiness would not be required.  Hmmm...I feel this is an idea worth pursuing.  Mayhap I will contact the city.

"The worse they can say is 'no.'"  As my Grandma Betty would say.  But she says this phrase in regards to meeting famous people.  Oh my, I got to hear all about how she met Paul Williams the last time I saw her, o which I said, "Who is Paul Williams?"