Saturday Night of the Living Dead

Mark and I in front of the Hollywood Wax Museum.

Mark and I went to the Haunted Hollywood Scavenger Hunt by Watson Adventures on Saturday June 13, 2009. We bought discount tickets thru Goldstar.com. It was our first scavenger hunt with Watson Adventures but it looked like it would be lots of fun. And it was.

I am up for doing another one. Even at full price. They have some really interesting hunts coming up. If you are looking for a crazy thing to do some weekend, you may want to go too. Please let me know if you will be there!

If you would like to benefit from my experience, here are my handy tips:

1. Wear athletic shoes. There is a lot of fast walking on uneven surfaces. Ladies, you do not want to be tottering around in heels.
   
2. Wear something bright. You want your teammates to be able to pick you out from the crowd. And it was very crowded, especially in front of Grauman's Chinese. You need to stick together or you will be disqualified.
   
3. Bring a pen or pencil. You will each get pages of riddles. You may need to make notes. Or write down a math problem to make sure you get it right. (More on that later.) One of you will have to fill in the answer sheet. They do supply one pencil per team. Use pencil, not pen. You may learn something later in the hunt that might change the answer of an earlier question.
   
4. Eat, drink and go to the restroom before the hunt. You will not have time during it. We got back barely in time and we rushed. Some teams wound up running. You lose a point for every minute you are late!
   
5. This is more fun if you are mentally acute. You don't need to know any trivia, but you will need to solve riddles and search for clues. (Warning: one clue results in a very bad pun!) The hunt rewards excellent observational and problem solving skills. You can leave your blackberry or iphone at home, it won't help you. And neither will a glass of wine before the hunt. Reward yourself after.
   
6. Fill out the solution page and make sure you put down all the information. Incomplete answers only get 1/2 a point. And have someone check your math. We lost by 1/2 a point because I can't do math in my head, and nobody noticed I made a mistake. Ouch.
   
7. Don't get bogged down too long on one puzzle. If you are not getting it, move on. The solution may come to you a bit later and if you have time, you can backtrack.
   
8. Team up. You can compete as a couple, but having input from more team members is better. Just let the guy know what you want and he will match you up.
   
9.  If you want to be competitive, leave the little ones at home. Older kids might do okay as long as you keep them right with you all the time. The area is crowded and seedy, and though it has improved a lot, it is not Disneyland. I left my purse at home too.
   
10. Team names win by which one gets the loudest cheers. Be a cheerleader to get that extra point. You may need it. We got 18 out of 20 and lost. Winners get a pass to another hunt! 
    

Here is a list of upcoming events in the Los Angeles area:

The Murder at the Natural History Museum Scavenger Hunt
Saturday, June 27, 2 to 4:30 p.m.
Someone, or something, has been bumping off museum staffers involved in acquiring a sacred Aztec relic. Is it the dreaded god Itlkilyu? Or is a serial killer on the loose? Your team of sleuths will have to crack a hieroglyphic code and uncover the museum’s secrets to stop the killings. Price, which includes museum admission: $28 per person.

The Murder at the Getty Scavenger Hunt
Saturday, July 11, 4:30 to 7 p.m. 
A murdered curator has left behind a cryptic trail of clues connected with secrets in works at the Getty Center in Los Angeles. As your team gathers answers about the art, you begin to piece together a sordid tale about greed, lust, pride, revenge and treachery, all revolving around the museum’s planned multi-million-dollar purchase of a painting by Leonardo da Vinci. The murder victim knew too much—and now it’s your turn to learn what drove one of four suspects to commit murder. To find out, you’ll have to crack a secret code left in the victim’s appointment calendar. Can you figure out who dunnit? Be prepared for one of our most challenging hunts. Price: $20 per person (does not include the museum parking fee). 

The Haunted Hollywood Scavenger Hunt (this is the one I went on!)

Visit ghost-plagued buildings and haunted spots on Hollywood’s famous strip while learning stories about the restless souls you might disturb. Learn about the celebrity ghost who plays a bugle in room 928 at a hotel, check out a movie-themed bookshop whose owner stuck his head in an oven and see if you feel the spirit of a man with a cape and top hat at the famously haunted Hollywood Wax Museum. You’ll also discover the haunting secret of the Hollywood sign, why the pool at Hollywood High is a dangerous place, where a blonde bombshell’s ghost gets wet, and whose ghost likes to pace in front of the Chinese Theater. Price: $20 per person.
Saturday, July 18, 7 to 9:30 p.m. 

The Santa Monica Pier Pressure Scavenger Hunt
Saturday, August 1, 5 to 7:30 p.m.
You may think you know the Santa Monica Pier and the Third Street Promenade, but on this hunt you’ll uncover secrets and quirks you never suspected. Highlights include Palisades Park, a massive storm, the 1916 carousel featured in The Sting, a shoot-out in a not-OK corral, hungry Big Bertha, a 19th-century tavern and weapon of massive destruction, a little bit of Britain, a robot invasion, spectacular views, oddball art and a 500-pound giant shark. Price: $20 per person.

The N*ked at the Getty Scavenger Hunt
Recommended by LA Weekly, UrbanDaddy.com, The Rundown and Los Angeles Nomad 
Saturday, August 15, 4:30 to 7 p.m. 
Go on a humorous, mind-tingling search for n*dity at the amazing Getty Center. You don’t need to know anything about art or the museum—or n*dity—to solve our tricky questions. Highlights include a sultry dog whisperer, slapstick with a lemon, an ancient game of Wife Swap, Toulouse-Lautrec’s “moodel,” Mischief’s bear hide, a Cupid who pulls a Mike Tyson move, a god who enjoys children (preferably with a bit of mustard) and more. After the hunt, linger in the mountaintop gardens for a great view of the sunset. This hunt is rated PG-13. Price: $20 per person (does not include the museum parking fee).

Watsons Adventures originated in New York, so if you live near there or are visiting, you can do one in the Big Apple! They are also in Boston, Chicago, Philadelphia, San Francisco and Washington D.C. More at http://watsonadventures.com/

I wrote a review for our adventure in Hollywood at goldstar.com. Goldstar is a great way to get discounts for all kinds of events. Usually I get theatre tickets, but they have lots of stuff, and in lots of other areas too, including Vegas shows! If you sign up, please tell them I referred you and I will get a discount on my next purchase.

See my review at:

http://www.goldstar.com/events/hollywood-ca/watson-adventures-haunted-hollywood-scavenger-hunt.html#review_418647?page_by_id=418647

We called our team "The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse." They give an extra point for the most clever team name. We did not win. Considering we were on Hollywood Blvd., maybe we should have been "The Four Ho's of the Apocalypse." 

Wild Kingdom--in my own backyard

(Originally written in April, 2008)

Things have been kinda wild lately, in our own backyard. So I have been learning new things!

A month ago we had the trees trimmed. One of the trimmers came to me with a twig with a nest and a baby hummingbird still in it! He said they found it in the pile of cuttings, and wanted to know if I knew what to do. Carefully, we put it into a protected spot in the tree, and I secured the twig with some string.

Then I went and looked for advice on the internet. I got in contact with a specialist and we spoke on the phone. She told me that the mother would come back and find the baby. The baby would call every few minutes to let her know where it was. They instructed me to watch with binoculars for 40 minutes to see if the mother showed up. And because the visit may be only a few seconds, I had to not take my eyes off the nest until I saw the mother. She showed up after about 30 minutes.

This photo was taken about a week later. As you can see, the baby had almost outgrown the nest. Not long after she took her first flight. (Since she is not brightly colored, I think she is a girl.) Fledgling hummingbirds leave the nest, but cannot fly very far at first. The fledgling hides in bushes after short flights. The mother finds it to feed it, and then teaches it the lessons it needs to survive as it also improves its flying skills.

Sometimes I would be out back and hear her calls to her mom. I was picking some tangerines and she must have been in the tree. Suddenly she burst past me and flew over to another bush. I haven't heard the calls lately, but I think I spotted her today. Who knows. I hope she sticks around.

Then last Saturday, the dogs tangled with an opossum. After getting them out of the backyard, it was lying there as if it were dead. I didn't want to touch it. So I went inside, consulted the internet and read that it was probably faking. Sure enough, I went outside to check, and the possum was gone. But I heard some strange noises, like tiny sneezes.

I found a baby possum on the ground near the garage. It was partially hidden by a board, so I left it and consulted the internet again. I wanted to make sure it was a possum and not a rat. Apparently, that funny huffing noise which seemed like tiny sneezes is all the sounds they make. I called the humane society and found out that possums are not like hummingbirds. Mother opossums do not come back for babies that have dropped off them! I was going to have to bring it in for rescue.

But I remembered I had heard the funny huffing noise in another area of the yard. So I fixed up a shoebox and used an oven mitt to pick up the baby and put it in the box. But even though I looked all over, I couldn't find the other baby. It had stopped making the noise, and I wasn't exactly sure where it came from.

So, I let the dogs into the backyard, held the box with the baby possum down where they could see and sniff it. I told them there was another one and I needed them to find it for me. I expected my beagle, Sebastian to find it and bark at me to let me know where it was. I was following him when my other dog, Phoebe came to me with the baby possum in her mouth! I told her to put it down, and she did. It was unharmed! I picked it up and put it in the box with the other possum baby. Phoebe got lots of praise for being such a good and clever dog.

I took a few photos of the baby possums. They really are cute. Look at that face! They do not carry rabies and help gardens by eating snails. They also kill and eat vermin. Well, the adults do. They are marsupials; related to koala bears and kangaroos, not rats. I put the box on a heated pad and took them to the Humane Society in Pasadena. They have a whole possum rescue program where volunteers raise the babies. Later they go into a habitat to learn how to survive, and then they are released into the wild.

I got home and was cleaning up in the backyard when I heard that huffing noise again! Oh no. I asked at the humane society how many babies are in a litter, and I was told, as many as fifteen! Phoebe couldn't even find this one. I finally saw it, on the other side of the back fence in our neighbor's yard. So I fixed up another box and went around the block to get it.

They weren't home, so I knocked on the door of the people who lived next door. When I told the guy what I was there for he said "Oh, we have one, too." Then he took me into his backyard, and on the ground was another baby possum. He picked it up and put it into the box, then he hopped the fence, and found the one I had seen. I have attached a photo of the two of them cuddled together. I noticed that they seemed sickly when I first picked them up, but once they got warm, they were very lively (and hard to photograph.} I made another drive to Pasadena. They were going to keep all four siblings together. I hope they do well.

Every time I go into the back yard now I am so aware of the sounds of the birds and the other animals. Who knew we had so much wildlife in LA?

Well, hope you like the stories and enjoy the photos. And if you come across a baby hummingbird or possum, now you know what to do.

The name of my blog

(first things first)

The need for communication produced the pony express, cell phones and the internet. And the message in a bottle. Not everyone has been concerned about getting a message to a specific person. Was the first bottle dropped into the sea with a mixture of hope and desperation? Or curiousity? Maybe it is the need to reach out and make new connections. For centuries the simple act has been repeated. Write a note, seal it inside a bottle and toss it into the ocean. Some wash up in days. Some take years. Some have never been found.

This is my message in a bottle. I'm tossing into this great new ocean. Who knows what will happen next.