# No Halloween this year :(



## TearyThunder (Jul 1, 2006)

After going to my in-laws (where Kouma and I set up the haunt,) we realized there will not be a haunt this year. Over half of the props have been damaged by my brother in law. He stored them at his place and didn't give a damn about how he did it. There's at least weeks (maybe a couple/few months)of time and hundreds of dollars in damage. 

Needless to so there's no way we can make the needed repairs in time to even put on a decent haunt this year. We are bringing all the stuff home and working on repairs so that next year will hopefully be able to happen.


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## turtle2778 (Jul 9, 2006)

Oh see now THAT would be a license to kill in my house. What a jerk. Why would he do that? Im really sorry TT. Im sure with all the extra time those props will be even better and next years Halloween will blow us all away.


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## GothicCandle (Mar 26, 2007)

i agree, license to kill. how mean of your brother in law.


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## michael myers (Sep 3, 2007)

I say string him up and make him the prop for this year!!! Imagine the realism that you could get...


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## NickG (Sep 12, 2006)

that's a major bummer. I'm sure you can whip up something for the tots.


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## TearyThunder (Jul 1, 2006)

Thanks guys, I hope that next year will be a big hit. It wouldn't be so bad if he at least apologized but we haven't heard a peep from him since we saw him leaving my in-laws this afternoon and blew the car horn. When we got there and saw the damage we knew why he didn't turn around or anything else.


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## Troy (Oct 14, 2006)

When it comes to my props I use the "DTA" approach (Don't Trust Anybody). I consider storage a huge part of this Hobby, don't get me wrong I fully understand many peeps have storage issues. That's really sad that happened to you, that being said if it was my BIL he'd be in for a VERY long dirt Nap!!!!!!!


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## dynoflyer (Oct 8, 2006)

You left it up to someone else to put everything away? or did bro-in-law rearrange/move everything AFTER you stored it? Hmmm.


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## Systematic Chaos (Sep 7, 2008)

Sorry to hear this happend to your props. I can imagine the frustration. Maybe you could focus on one really great prop or theme and go with that this year. I know time is running out ( I'm on that same time crunch with limited funds ) I'm picking one thing and trying to focus on that. The stirring cauldron witch. It may or may not actually end up stirring lol We'll see. The thing is at least I'm enjoying getting it together and being a part of Halloween. I'll spend the rest of this year getting ready for next. 

I think what's the worst is how you can build up what you want to do so great in your head that you can never live up to what you have in your head. The awesome lighting, really cool sound effects with speakers that make it surround sound. That creepy prop that makes em look twice. Just remember to have fun with it. 

As for that brother in law. Any way of getting him involved other then storing the stuff? Might be a reason as to why he has no respect for your hard work and great ideas. Do your best to get him involved in the fun part and maybe he'll be more inclined to take care of it after knowing what all is involved in it.


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## HalloweenZombie (Jul 22, 2007)

You should get your brother-in-law a steaming pile of dung for Christmas...and then tie him to a chair and feed it to him.

I'm really sorry to hear about your Halloween this year.


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## Don of the Dead (Aug 17, 2005)

I'd gouge out his eyes, stick some candles in the empty sockets and prop him up in the front yard.


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## Bushenstine (Sep 25, 2008)

Man! Thats sucks. Send him a You Have been Bood bag. He will open it excited to eat candy. And then he finds out it is full of dog crap. :jol:


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## Vlad (Aug 2, 2005)

Hey TT, sorry to hear of yours and Kouma's losses. Remember, where there's a few haunters and a few masks, theres a haunt.


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## TearyThunder (Jul 1, 2006)

Dyno, Troy, we weren't given the time to pack everything up. We moved everything to the garage at my in laws so that the following weekend we could get it all pack away and stored safely. Next thing we knew it was all taken to my BIL's place and shoved in a corner in his garage. 

Chaos, attempting to get this guy involved would be a waste of time. He would become a prop before he helped with one. Especially after this.


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## Revenant (Mar 17, 2007)

Christmas, definitely; HZ has the right idea. Of course you may not get away with feeding him dog****, but definitely get him a present... something broken and ruined.

And don't say "no Halloween". A couple of bare-bones down & dirty props can be made on the dirt cheap, and quickly. A couple of JOL's and some creepy cloth in the windows does wonders. And a wicked cool gauze ghost is as close as your nearest fabric store... cheesecloth and a balloon goes a long way, especially if you have a packet of RIT whitener and a blacklight. A hank or two of cheap thin cotton clothesline and there's your giant spiderweb. Then put your speakers outside and crank up the Nox/Syndicate/Virgil/whatever. Don't let one @$$hole take away your holiday.

_*Improvise. Adapt. Overcome.*_


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## Bone Dancer (Oct 7, 2005)

Two questions: 1) how far are you from the ocean 2) can your BIL swim

If he can swim just take him out farther and don't forget the blood in the water too.


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## Evil Eyes (Aug 23, 2007)

TT, so sorry to hear about your loss. I went through the same thing this year with a charity organization that stored my elaborate Kentucky Derby decor. They said they store event items all the time and would be very careful. Well, everything is destroyed by some careless people at the hospital storage facility. It made me sick to think of the years of hard work and sleepless nights to get everything made. Needless to say, I told them I would not be doing the event anymore and will not support their charity in the future. At least I don't have to see these people anymore. This guy is your brother-in-law. Yikes!


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## TearyThunder (Jul 1, 2006)

Thanks everyone for the support. We decided to go get the stuff we could save before it was moved and damaged again. After going through everything and properly storing it we realized a giant web, half a blucky, fog timer, and the fogger is not anywhere to be found.


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## debbie5 (Mar 2, 2007)

What a PITA. I just spent an entire day gluing bluckies, and was amazed it took so long to fix them.I can only imagine having broken stuff AND a mess, too. And missing stuff...Add to that the stress of having family involved- it's just not a good thing. 

I agree that you should rally...even a few skellies put up can soothe your soul. And now you know all you need to know about your BIL....lesson learned. 

fiver


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## Otaku (Dec 3, 2004)

TT, Kouma, I'm so sorry to hear of this. Hang in and do your best to get something out for the TOTs, even if it's just spooky lighting and some nice eerie sounds.


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## HauntedHacienda (Sep 16, 2008)

I second All that has been said here by everyone else.
What a Jerk! Use HIM as a Prop! 
I know Anyone touched MY Decorations Wrong, I would be FIT to be TIED!
We store ours with Extreme Care and Don't allow Anyone else except those that we know we can Trust (my 2 Cousins), who share our Passion.
This year, we have had to downsize a bit, but so be it, due to weather concerns.


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## ScreamingScarecrow (Oct 1, 2008)

Sorry to hear about your prop abuse  
We'll light an extra jack for yous this season. 
The BIL will get his... Karma baby!!


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## TearyThunder (Jul 1, 2006)

Well I decided today that the haunt we did will never happen at the location it was at regardless. We told Kouma's dad that we wasn't going to do the haunt this year because of the damage. They did offer to jump in and help so that the haunt would go on. However the damage just won't be able to get repaired in time. Not to mention the BIL would be a dead man this soon. I can't be around him at all. 

Kouma did suggest that they make the repairs to what they can and put on a haunt without us (remember, they have never done anything like this before.) This way they would know how hard it was for us to make the haunt happen last year (we built from scratch in a few weeks.) Needless to say they didn't want to do that. The excuse was they aren't as creative as we are. I guess our hard work and dedication isn't worth their time. They want the end result but don't want to do anything to get there.


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## AzKittie74 (Aug 10, 2007)

That really sucks TT I'm sorry to hear that your BIL is such a jerk, There is always next year! SO what will you two be doing this Halloween?


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## Koumajutsu (Aug 9, 2006)

As sad as it is, this is probably the best course of action for our situation. Even though we live on a small lot, we can always use the lawn we installed at our own place next year. That and we get the peace of mind that we know who's taking care of our props in the off season, and we're there to protect them when they're up.

And them not being creative is a total cop-out. There's plenty of ideas right here, with detailed how-to's to complete -ANYTHING-


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## Dark Angel 27 (Sep 11, 2008)

TT... don't let your BIL ruin everything! if you can't haunt....dress up and go scare people! that can be alot of fun to! don't give up hope just yet!


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## biggnboog (Oct 11, 2008)

sorry to hear this. we went to get some of our stuff only to find it had been sold..lol.. not a good day. 

but we took the oppurtunity to start making bigger better stronger props

so. MM has a good idea.. string him up


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## Toktorill (Sep 15, 2007)

I'm so sorry to hear about the crap your BIL put you through, TT. I can only hope he didn't realize the damage he did, and is feeling really, REALLY horrible about it. Enough to buy you some really awesome props or materials next year.

That, or he's a total jerk and you find your missing fog machine at his place a few years from now, then use it to break his... spirit.


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## kevin242 (Sep 30, 2005)

If your props are anything like mine, (glued, screwed and chewed with nothing but the paint holding them together...) I know what can happen to them in the off season, they get kicked around, eaten by mice, paints peel and glue cracks. But things don't generally get "worked over" unless someone is being really irresponsible around them. I personally think BIL owes you an apology. 
Unless you have a secure storage unit, be prepared to have workmen moving/breaking stuff, kids and animals digging around, mother in law cleaning it, etc. Sometimes fixing props makes them better! 
Hope this all works out for you, TT...


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## Death's Door (Mar 22, 2006)

Sorry TT and Kouma. Being a home haunter is the thing that sets us aside from other people. When I read this just know, I had a sinking feeling in my heart to you guys. I don't know what I would have done. One thing for sure, the BIL or anyone for that manner would definitely know my feelings about this. 

I know this is the time of the year that we live for. Please do what you can do this Halloween. Celebrate it any way that you can. 

By the way, if you do kill the BIL, I will gladly be a witness in your defense.


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## Revenant (Mar 17, 2007)

If cobbling together a "This'll do" haunt is too painful for you guys, I can certainly understand. I say get away from it and celebrate Halloween the Haunter Errant way. Dress up and go help someone else's haunt this year. That's what I'm doing... putting together a costume and bringing my RC prop with me and having fun. You'll have a clear head and not be surrounded by reminders of all the stuff you couldn't display. Just focus on creeping around and scaring, without the worries. The haunt owner will love you for it. And when the Big Night is over, you can start thinking about what to build all year to make your first haunt in your new place the best ever. 

If you let one asshole completely ruin your favorite holiday, you have conceded victory to the forces of assholery. Never, ever let them win.


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## Dr Morbius (Sep 21, 2004)

Where in Calif. are you? Maybe I can help, if you live near the central coast.


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## Beth (Sep 27, 2005)

I am afraid that I would HAVE to let him know just how MUCH I appreciate his thoughtful actions in not such a nice way!!  That is a shame to say the least. Good luck in whatever you guys decide to do!! If nothing else, next year will ROCK!!


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## Koumajutsu (Aug 9, 2006)

Dr M. We're in SoCal. the Riverside area. a bit too souf for you uppity northern types 
Thanks for the offer though, we're simply going to call it quits at that location. Trying to gear up for next year in the same place will just breed drama anyways, so it's probably best we try to come up with something to do at our own place for next year. Maybe Teary and I can make a So-Cal tour this year or something


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## Lauriebeast (Feb 27, 2007)

Awwww, Im so sorry that this happened. Sounds like your BIL has some issues...jealousy, resentment, and bitterness for starters. I'm only about 45 min from you guys, and you're more than welcome to come over to my place to play. I'd love to see you two. Just send me a pm if you're interested.


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## trexmgd (Sep 16, 2007)

WOW,

Sorry to hear that happened to you two... You guys shouldn't let it kill Halloween though. Fall back to some of the classics like just dressing up, jumping out of a dark corner, or my all time fav: sitting perfectly still like a stuffed dummy (no comments from the peanut gallery) and jumping up for a big scare. I even put fake legs (jeans stuffed with newspaper and purposefully bent in a rag-doll fashion) in front of myself to sell it. Sometimes the simple things work the best.

Happy Halloween no matter what!


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## Spanky (Oct 8, 2007)

This year to your TOTS hand out eggs, shaving cream, toilet paper... and your brother- in-laws address.


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## davy2 (Sep 10, 2008)

Oh, man TT, that's really terrible...I put myself in your shoes, and for me, an apology would certainly go a long way! 
Too bad he's not even decent enough to explain or apologize...


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## skeletonowl (Aug 8, 2006)

sorry to hear! I hope your Halloween is still great for you!


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## beelce (Jul 21, 2007)

Sorry TT...BIL seems totally clueless...hope you can make the best of it this year


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## TearyThunder (Jul 1, 2006)

After sitting down with Kouma, we decided to hit all the clearance sales instead of buying up more stuff between now and halloween for a haunt that we will kill ourselves to put together this year (unless it's already marked down or we -really- want it.) We have one more project to finish on the house too (a new heater) so we now have time to get it done before it gets too cold too.


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## Lilly (Jun 13, 2006)

TT and Kouma
Sorry to hear of this ..That's a shame. 
Too bad I don't live closer, I would let you use some of my stuff. I have plenty I don't put out every yr.


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