Dia Dhuit!  I hope I find all of ye' brutes out there doing well tonight, on this All Hallows Eve.  Being of a lot of Celtic heritage and me last name being straight from the Emerald Isle where many of Halloween's customs started, I thought I'd break me self-imposed ban of blogging and see how everyone is doing on this spookiest of nights.

I've some annual tricks I give myself every October 31st, some of which have been around for a long time.  Ever since I was a junior in high school, I've listened to Helloween's (awesome German speed metal band) song "Helloween" sometime around dusk.  I also try to watch "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown," which is currently warming up in the VCR right now (I haven't splurged on the DVD version yet).  I also read a Halloween themed book, and make sure I finish on this scariest of nights, usually which is Ray Bradbury's "Halloween Tree," which is what I am ten pages from finishing tonight, but Neil Gaiman's "The Graveyard Book" is equally great.

Since getting into craft beer, I also try to find something a bit spooky oriented.  This is year number two for having a Deathly Pale Ale by Reaper Ales out from Californing.  We can get them up in Pittsburgh (the Market District has them as did D's Hot Dogs).  It's a wonderful American Pale Ale with a great Halloween theme.

To help me finish Ray and Charles, I've also a wee bottle of wheat wine to open in a bit called Harvest Dance which pictures Death himself dancing with a wheat stalk.  I'm really looking forward to it, although I seriously doubt I'll finish that bad bomber boy up tonight on my own!

So I wish you all a fantasticly creepy night.  Now if you'll excuse me, the Jack O'Lanterns and I would like to finish this night out on a spooky beer and story night.

Fare thee well, my brutes!