the headline read in black and white, "An angel falls from grace"

Oh! Hi there! It seems to be September.

And (who's surprised, really?) I'm still counting, so--welcome to Day 378!

Caught on a random profile:

Single. Poly. Don't want a relationship but I do want a bunch of friends I'm in love with. We can all live on a commune, take care of each other, and watch horror movies every night.

That's so sweet.

(Also, OMG OMG Wally Darling has a Makeship plush out AAAAAAH--)

Excuse me. What I meant to say is...the not-me aspect of the mesh head business? Is even more not-me than usual, because I forgot this planned EvoX-based avatar had a different base shape (Why? No idea. No, I'm serious, I didn't leave me notes explaining things), so apologies for that.

However. I needed to post about some new/revised items from /Vae Victis\! And Sonder called, in the meantime, so to Sonder I went.



The "Sanguis" Hemophage collar you can see in the above picture, but not really sure how the rest of it is coming across...



...and the other tattoo work may interfere, as well. Argh.

[[Ahem. Insert from the Editrix before publishing, WHY IS IT FIVE DAYS LATER, but also, fairly sure I had another tattoo under the Cultist wristlets? Go me. I THINK it's also Vae Victis, from the Zealot set of things, but...coming back to this later, no idea.]]



...okay. So those are the tears from the "Veritas" Cultist set along with the crest (which, I, um, forgot to put on before starting to take pics). Let's see if I can get a good pic of the "Veritas" Cultist cuffs.



There we go. Everything's in Old Gold, by the way, if I forgot to mention that.

[[Insert from the Editrix, again--see what I mean? I'm fairly sure the eyes belong to the Cultist set, but the hatching, not as confident. Or maybe it's the other way around...]]



Okay, best picture I can get of everything. Let's run it down, there's a lot:

• the "Sanguis" Hemophage collar, BOM layer, in "Blood" on the LeLutka EvoX "Kaya" head
• the bonus 'shadow' cover for the lower body, on Maitreya
• the "Veritas" Cultist crest and tears, BOM layer, in "Blood" on the Lelutka EvoX "Kaya" head
• the "Veritas" Cultist cuffs, BOM layer, in "Blood" on Maitreya

...and I've just now remembered the wrist cuffs were a gift for the event which I think I missed by a handful of days...

[[Great, I mentioned it in the blog. So much argh. Malfunction am me.]]

Onward through the frogs, I guess.



And this is everything listed above, only in "Void".

There are fifteen colors total in the "Sanguis" Hemophage collar, which also comes with the bonus 'shadow' layer for the lower body; fifteen combination crest-and-tears for the "Veritas" Cultist set, with an additional fifteen layers for the crest alone, the tears alone, and another fifteen SLUV layers in all the shades; and fifteen shades, BOM, for the "Veritas" Cultist wrist cuffs.

That is...a lot. Incredible.



(And, since I've done all that, let's do the rest of the rundown. I'm wearing:

• the "Sanguis" Hemophage collar in "Rosedust"
• the "Veritas" Cultist Tears and Crest in "Rosedust"
• the "Veritas" Cultist Tears and Crest in "Rosedust"
• the Wicca's Wardrobe "Laerlorn" tiara in "Black/Gold" [it was a gift from something, but damned if I remember where]
• Olive's "High Priestess" hair, Split 4 RARE variation [from a gacha, so maybe still available on Marketplace?]
• !deviantMind's "Falena" set [just Bra/Skirt] in "Blood"
• IDEALIA's "RAINA" ankle wraps [linking the Marketplace because the in-world store appears absent]
• the Lelutka EvoX skin in "Porcelain" from Enfer Sombre [with additional BOM layering for the elf ears]
• the Lelutka EvoX "Kaya" head
• TREND's Witch Eyeshadow [BOM 10] and Witch Lip [the orange one] from the Halloween Collection 2020 [purchased both on their recent half-off-the-things sale, but honestly, I would have been comfortable paying full price. Lovely set of lip tints and 'witchy' shadows]

...and pretty sure the eyes come with the "Kaya" head.

[[Last insert, I promise--somehow it's EVEN LATER STILL, so going with the 15th as the publish date and AAAAAAAGH and WHY DOES MY BRAIN HATE ME???



[[Past five days. Gah, six days now. Whyyyyy.]]

(And you've seen the pic that this was directing you down here to explain, but nonetheless: the little insert was doing as much as I could to highlight the Rosedust tone. It's like frosted, melted, then refrozen rose gold. Very subtle. Perfect for the Biblically accurate angel in your life. So--hope that worked!)

don't come searching when I go missing

Am I bored tonight? Not really...more seeking distractions from the meatspace world. So, hie me off to Haunted Memories!



We apparently start off in...a...barn?? Maybe this is a dance space, and the haunt is the rest of the sim?



This guy does not look comfortable.



Touching the chest under the "Don't Touch" sign got me bats! Why would I mind that?!

(I did pull this one into edit--it's available on Marketplace for L$125. That's definitely something to acquire for later...)



Sim seems fairly accident-prone.



Wau. You are really tall.



Hello, game rip...



I take it back...you're really tall.

All in all, I'll knock them one skull for the game rips, but that still leaves them four out of five, because they've done a lot to make things generally creepy without being completely overdone. If nothing else, it's a quiet stroll with some haunted sounds, and that's not bad at all.

Even better, it's laid out with enough forest paths that you could easily attach a horse from inventory and ride around the sim. Which sounds like a very good thing to do in a few days, actually.

there ain't nothing in my hourglass, just sand from a dead sea

The veil between the worlds thins, fades in spots, allowing wandering souls on both sides to peer through--and perhaps cross. A night of wonders and terrors, masks and subterfuge, deception and revelation, becoming its own form of honest expression. And in the thick of it...a wandering soul searching for home in every place but.

Tonight, knowing my mood was not ideal, I tossed over various ways to end the season. Try to find a non-disappointing new ride? Visit the Belasco mansion again? Take the unbelievably gory Linden haunted house tour?



And...no. I needed something less complicated. Possibly even less haunted. So I ended up at All Hallows at Moochie's.



Back when Maia Gasparini owned an in-world store (I believe her nail designs are still sold on Marketplace), All Hallows would frequently feature a hunt. A fairly challenging one, even.



These days, though, it's just what you see here--a half-sim of autumn trees, warming fires, carved pumpkins, and hanging lights, with occasional places to sit and have a cup of cocoa or mulled cider.



I don't know how long it's going to be open past tonight, but I'm fairly sure it should last until November 1st, at the least. Unless Ms. Gasparini was on the sim tonight as I wandered, specifically to take things down. I don't know.



What I do know is it's still a quiet, lovely, perfect autumn sim. Sit and contemplate the flames, have a cup of something warm, listen to the quiet waves wash the rocky shores.



And it accomplished what I wanted, in the end, which was some mood elevation. Gain a bit of perspective, get my feet back on the path, breathe, and ground, and center. And while I left the sim still (relatively) stressed, by the end of the night I was smiling more, feeling better, and, due to some very dear friends, in much better spirits overall.

Which is not the worst way to approach the dark half of the year. Past tonight, the days grow shorter, the nights longer, and this half of the world, at least, slowly sinks into sleep, to wait for the thaw. It's a good thing to remember. The seasons cycle, and we cycle with them, ebb and flow, grow and fall. It's all part of the process.

So have a blessed Samhain if you celebrate such, a happy Hallows if that's more your speed, and a good candy day if nothing else. See you after the veil closes.

I gotta mind of my own, I'll be alright alone, don't need anybody else

How about Breath of Nature?



Have I been here too? Or do I just recognize that heart-shaped swing?



I think I have another version of this same piano, only summerized.

Or maybe not--mine has poses, this one doesn't seem to.



I am in love with the colors here, though.



And all those pretty colors with late-harvest sunflowers? Awesome.



For all that this isn't a huge, sprawling sim/sims, I could see myself visiting this one more than once. It's very calming, and gorgeous, well done, very natural feeling. And again, lots of places to cuddle, which is never bad.

and every day there's a little less difference between the two

Slightly grumpy that holiday sims are already up and running, I went on a search for ones still in autumn mode. I found one--Malal Autumn Fall.



Where it's also raining.



Was I here before? It looks very familar.



This doesn't, but that doesn't necessarily indicate I'm wrong about having traveled here in the past...



It's pretty, though. I give it full marks for pretty.

Maybe what I need is something less sprawling, more intimate, less...rainy. How about the Autumn Cafe?



Tiny little parcel. Little coffeeshop in a caravan, a cuddle pod, and a stand of encircling birch. Not terrible.



Small inside the cafe, by design, but still. Room enough for some (limited) seating, a small counter, some espresso machines and baked goods. All you'd need, really.



Still. Coffee inside, cuddles outside, crisp fall day...what more does anyone really need?

so, don't swear to God, he never asked you, it's not his heart you drove a knife through (part II)

(Continued from part one.)

So it was another chain ride--another dark ride--but it had a few odd differences...



It started off the same as most of them. This one was based around blasphemy, so the exterior was a black church with dark red and yellow stained glass gothic windows. Inside, all the walls were painted black, and it started right up with the inverted pentacles.



The first turn was a straight run towards a panel inset with a flickering photo of a long hallway.



The first serious turn brought me into a large room the car spirals through--and I do mean "spirals", it was REALLY hard to take pictures because the car kept corkscrewing along the track. I could swear the figure to the right is one of the elves from World of Warcraft, but to be fair, I don't really know that game as well as others.



I am fairly sure that the two sigils on either side of the eviscerated lass is a small homage to Silent Hill, however.



After a few more corkscrew turns, the car slides past the devil towards another inverted pentacle...



...the pentacle in question, of course, being on fire...and the snarling whatever-it-is underneath...



...and the ride finishes by running the car through a solid corridor of flames and capering imps. And then it ends, and I'm back at the front again.

Short? Absolutely. Fun? Not if you're taking pictures, but otherwise yes. There's lots to do here, between the park rides and the various 'photo ops', not to mention the maze--and, barring the 'graphic' (ha) nature of the dark ride, there's very little here I'd say is even R-rated, so it's fairly suitable for all ages.

All in all, not bad. Three out of five skulls.

so, don't swear to God, he never asked you, it's not his heart you drove a knife through (part I)

Creepfest Park told me,

"Join us Oct. 2 thru Nov. 1 @ CREEPFEST PARK Where you can create your own image of CREEPY and we won't distort your view. Halloween, Fair , Ferris Wheel, Roller coaster, Corn Maze. Rides, Haunted House, Interactive, Couples, Singles, Family.."

but now I'm wondering how they mean that. I can "create [my] own image of CREEPY" and they won't "distort" my view?

What view?



I was amused by this, I admit.



So, past the entrance, there was a proper amusement park of creepy rides. This was the front entrance to it.



This was a pirate ship, hydrolically rocked through an artificial storm. I'm intrigued enough I might go back and see how it is to actually ride.



Past the section with rides, there was a small area where small yellow "Photo opportunity!" signs started showing up. While this rest area had one near the front, where I stretched out by the crackling fire was fine for pictures.



Past the fire and the log and hay bale seating was the entrance to a maze...



...and, uh...whatever this was...



And past that I found...the Unholy Roller Horror Ride.

(Continued in part two.)

I've been climbing up the walls to escape the sinking feeling

I remember liking the haunt at LeLoo's World last year, so I decided to revisit it as the first haunt of this one. I think I was looking for something that was more atmosphere than jumpscares, because I'm still unsettled from yesterday.



This is a neat touch--you can click any of the little floating things, the wee ghost, the pumpkin, or the skull--and you'll be given a haunted shoulder companion. Neat!



Photo opportunities abound, which is exactly what I found last year for LeLoo's Hallows build. I did change the Windlight settings for brighter photographs, but if you're not interested in photos, just hanging out, or cuddles? The land Windlight works great for that.



I may not be in the best mood, but I can't deny it's pretty--fall leaves crunching underfoot, hooded figures to loom on you on the forest paths, the crack of thunder, the moaning of damned souls--it's peaceful.



There's a really lovely, and very traditional, nod to Dias de los Muertos that I found both charming and heartwarming, and nearly worth the visit all on its own.



There's a nifty little cave to meditate in...if you don't mind some floating skulls looking on.



The cemetary, of course, is traditional; filling the coffin is optional.

All in all, LeLoo's done another marvelous job gently haunting her land, and I will be back. It's so refreshing when we find people who understand it's not the clown with the chainsaw we really want, but the coming storm, the autumn chill, the touch of death on our hearts. And that can be achieved in a variety of ways, from soft to hard to disturbing--without excessive screaming.

In fact, excessive screaming and jumpscares? Generally drain our capacity to feel afraid at all, and what's the point of that?