I will take a number one please with a coke.

Well, this last week is proving to be more eventful than I had imagined. I have not had time to sleep, eat[and when I do, it seems to be a big mac, which to my amazement, has made me lose even more weight- Oh wait, maybe that's just STRESS!] do my hair or make up, tie my shoes, walk my dog, or as my friend Jolie has said, "I haven't even had the time to fart." ;p Jeff and I have been burning the midnight oil as they say as far as getting last minute stuff together for the wedding which is in 4 days.... 4 DAYS!
In between all this wedding related chaos I have had the chance to enjoy some Halloween festivities as well as have my bridal shower which was really nice!!! Megan put together a very creative "wedding basket" for me which was super awesome and Kara gave me a very thoughtful gift as well, a collection of some of her recipes... which is a pretty big deal, because Kara makes some of the best damn food I have ever had!!! :)

There is still plenty to do in the next few days.... ugh... but it will be worth it, and tomorrow and Friday I intend on getting A LOT of this shit done so that this Friday and Saturday I can just enjoy and rest up for Sunday!

Here are some random photos from this last week:

Video of the theater

It was brought to my attention by my mom that you can find footage of the theater on Youtube, so I looked into it and sure enough, I found a couple videos of it!

Check out its spooktacular atmosphere and envision it lit up in the soft glow of candle light and carved pumpkins... also picture a foggy atmosphere and haunting music... You wont want to miss this! >:)

From the balcony: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yv3IAhbmAuY&feature=related

The main floor: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Tn6Fle8BFU&feature=related

Updates from a sick bride to be

With only 8 days left before the wedding it is a very good thing that this cold/flu hit me now instead a week later! I wish however that it had passed me over completely so that I could stay on track with wedding projects and other things, but I am not entirely surprised that the stress over the course of this month beat my immune system down enough to infect me with it. Besides, I work with the public 40 hours a week, not catching this popular virus would have been a miracle! So I look for the silver lining here from my bed, where I have stayed for almost 48 hours, and decided it is not being sick on my wedding day at least! My only hope now is that it overlooks Jeffery! I have taken the liberty to buy vitamin C and Zinc for him to take in order to help boost up his immune system and I have even disinfected the apartment. So hopefully that will have helped a great deal. I have to say, that in the midst of my illness, Jeffery has been taking on a lot to make sure that things get done in time for the wedding which has helped ease my stress, and I can not thank him enough for his HARD WORK on everything! I hope that this extra day of rest will help heal me up in time for this weekend so that I can forge on ahead with wedding projects still needing to be completed and lessen the load for him. I am so grateful and so lucky to have such a devoted friend and love that will soon be my husband!

So what is left to complete before the big day? Well, a couple more videos which are almost completed. The "Play Bills" which will be the programs for guests of the ceremony have been pretty much completed last night by Jeffery. We figured that since this is taking place inside a theater it would be a nice touch to create a "Play Bill" to add to the atmosphere instead of just a program. Jeffery also finished all the seating cards the other night and posters that we plan to hang on the windows, also in homage to the theater atmosphere. I need to add the ribbons to the masks still and print photos for the picture frames as well as get supplies for the trick or treat table. There are small personal projects I need to complete as well, such as finding a veil fastener, painting fake nails I plan to wear that day, buying make up for the occasion, and other little things that a girl does for her wedding! ;p

So yes, 8 days and still a bit more work left to do, but thankfully plenty has been done thanks to Jeffery and also I am glad to say that all that needed to be ordered is FINISHED and on it's way! The guest book should arrive next Thursday and our My Jones Soda will arrive today which I am very excited to see! :D

After some confusion that had me just about slip into a bridezilla moment, I got my dress and Jeffery helped fit me into it which was really sweet of him to do. Thankfully it fits GREAT and I can not wait to wear it!!!

Yesterday we went to apply for our marriage license which was interesting since I was feeling at my very WORST yesterday and could hardly stand. I think we were there for maybe a little under and hour and in that time I think I was out of the bathroom just long enough to sing the paperwork for it. It was a pretty miserable experience unfortunately thanks to this flu.

All in all... 8 more days and we will be married and I am very excited about it! I know that this wedding is going to be spooktacular and absolutely one of kind! All this hard work will pay off in the end! And afterward, the reward will be spending time with the love of my life relaxing on a beach for 7 days in Maui. No wedding planning, no illness, no stress, no drama! :D
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Some random shots of things we have been getting done and got; Seating cards, My corset & shoes! The awesome "Congratulations Newlydeads" candle holder gift from my friend Alex, Cameras that we purchased for guest's to use in our spooky photo booth area, our check list for this month and some materials for the Trick Or Treat table! :) There are plenty more things I want to photograph and share with you, but it will need to wait till I am feeling a little more better! Stay tuned fellow spooks! ;)

For Always

Jeffery and I invite you to preview our book, "For Always", which is a collection of photos that we have taken over the course of our 11yr relationship. The book is also available to purchase. We look forward to sharing this with you at the wedding as our "guest book", please write in the white spaces of the book! :D

13 days!!!

Book link: http://www.blurb.com/bookstore/detail/1659288

Invites

The invites have been finished and sent out! We're excited to see you all in 29 days!

Vampires In Love... Coming October 31st!

A brief back story to this silly little film we put together-

Before the time of Ipod and Zune, Walkman and Discman was what you had to listen to your favorite music and when Jeffery & I met in high school “mixed tapes” were still a popular thing to make someone you were interested in or dating. So one afternoon [while I was “grounded” I am sure, since 90% of my adolescent years was spent being “grounded.”] I made him a mixed tape which consisted of a bunch of songs that made me think of him. It started with some NIN- Were In This Together Now, Garbage- #1 Crush and Marvelous 3’s, Vampires In Love.

Another thing that was popular between friends and lovers in high school, before everyone had a cell phone and could text message one another was Notebooks you would use to write notes in and then exchange to one another in between classes. Jeffery and I started a notebook and I added a bunch of sentimental quotes and photos [mostly clipped from Rolling Stone, oh yes… Rolling Stone was still relevant back then! ;p ] of things we liked and reminded each other of us in some way. One of the photos I glued in that notebook was the old Ray Ban advertisement of the Vampires wearing sunglasses and laughing in the sunlight. I thought of us and the “Vampires In Love” song when I saw it!

Now some of you might be to young still to remember this commercial that the advertisement was based on so here is a link to it:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ASrnHSNwqMw

Fast forward 10 years to this summer. Jeffery and I were getting ready to go on yet again, another trip out to Vegas, and I had decided it was time for me to get some new shades for the trip! I have always wanted a sweet pair of Ray Ban Sunglasses so I decided this year I was going to get them! When we went, Jeff tried on a pair and liked them as well, so we BOTH got a pair. I right away laughed out loud when I thought about that old notebook we had in high school and the photo I clipped out to glue inside it.

Then I had a silly thought… “Why don’t we do a parody of that Ray Ban Vampire commercial since we both own a pair of Ray Ban’s now and we can have Marvelous 3’s, Vampires In Love, apart of it??!”

Jeff, who tolerates most of my silly ideas, agreed that it would be a fun little project to do, and with the wedding coming up and the “Vampire Ball” theme we are hosting for the reception, we thought we could also use the film to utilize the theater. So we chose to film it in the cemetery that we have been going to for YEARS and where Jeff proposed to me.

So with that and the other films we have planned for before the ceremony, we hope to have a entertaining experience for everyone to enjoy. All the short films are sentimental and full of meaning. We are putting together the videos with a 1920’s era feel to them since the Kenosha Theatre was built in that time. “Vampires In Love” is a preview for the Reception which we have also titled after the song.

"Vampires In Love" Link: http://www.youtube.com/user/TheSpookshowBabe?feature=mhum

Enjoy! :)

The Historical Kenosha Theatre

It would be September 1st 1927 that The Kenosha Theatre would open its doors to guests for its first vaudeville performance and a silent motion picture set to music by the Mighty Wurlitzer organ. The theatre was built by Universal Studios Chicago for Universal Studios and was commissioned by Carl Laemmle who had a reputation in the 1930’s to have produced some of the most iconic monsters and horror classics of all time with his son Carl Laemmle Jr. Horror films such as Dracula staring Bela Lugosi, Frankenstein staring Boris Karloff, The Mummy, The Invisible Man and Bride of Frankenstein.

The theatre had some memorable headliners such as Frank Sinatra, Bing Crosby, Nat King Cole, and Harry James to name a few. It served its community for 36 years before closing in 1963. Since then the theatre has stood a vacant and silent reminder of days gone by. The owner however will tell you about the lingering feeling and some strange occurrences that have happened inside the theatre which lead me to believe that though the theatre has been abandoned for 47 years, past guests have come to revisit a place they once shared a timeless memory at.

After sitting down with Jeff Baas one afternoon to discuss the history of the theatre we had also talked about it possibly being haunted by previous movie goers. He said that though for the most part he has only experienced a few minor things here and there he has been told stories by other people who have worked inside the theatre of possible unexplained phenomenon. He told me about how someone had said that they felt a sudden strong chill once inside the theatre. Another person claimed to have felt a breath on the back of there neck. Some have said they have heard strange noises that they could not clearly describe, and that did not sound like the building structure.


I have gone to the theatre a handful of times myself and I can say that being inside the building alone can feel a bit spooky. Though the fine craftsmanship that went into building this theatre has allowed it to remain in great structural condition after all these years of neglect, a broken roof and leaks have caused a lot of deterioration on the inside. The walls are cracked and the paint is chipping and has faded over the years. An old screen that once showed films, still hangs tattered and spoiled over the years of leaking rain just above the stage. The original chandlers once a beautiful plated gold has completely rusted and hangs from a broken ceiling. The bathrooms still have toilets and sinks, but are defunct. The building overall almost feels as though you have entered the Titanic. A once beautiful and living structure that held many wonderful memories of couples first dates, and anniversaries. Birthdays and Holidays and rumors of possible gangsters of that time catching a flick while passing through the city. Now it stands quiet, cold, forgotten, and left to waste and yet you can feel a definite energy within the theatre.

The first time I went I had experienced a couple strange noises in the upstairs area and a sudden feeling came over me at one point when I started to make my way up to the projector room that I should not. It was not an evil or very aggressive feeling, just a feeling of like I do not belong there or should not be there, like if you walked into the back room of a retail store where you do not belong. The second time I had gone I felt a sense of joy, but mixed with a feeling of being watched which is always a little unnerving. Again, it was not a negative feeling, just the awareness of me being there.

The theatre will be where Jeffery and I get married this year on Halloween and host a reception/costume party with a vampire ball theme. We are very excited to be able to use this historical and haunted building for such a memorable day. We hope that it will breath life back into the theatre once again and keep with it an energy of love and joy like its past patrons.

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Here are some of the photo's I took inside the theatre. I have set these photos up so that you can compare the photos I have taken to the ones taken by Life Magazine in 1938 when it was still a functioning theatre. [The Kenosha Theatre was the second theatre in the United States to play it's first audio film and Life Magazine was there to document the occasion.]























More of Life Magazine's images of The Kenosha Theatre can be found at this link:
http://images.google.com/images?um=1&hl=en&safe=off&client=firefox-a&rls=org.mozilla%3Aen-US%3Aofficial&tbs=isch%3A1&sa=1&q=Kenosha+theatre+source%3Alife&btnG=Search&aq=f&aqi=&aql=&oq=&gs_rfai=&start=0&biw=1280&bih=588

The Kenosha Theatre official website: http://www.kenoshatheatre.org/

~Crystal