Disembodied Halloween

So you’re an antisocial type who would rather confer with the disembodied for Halloween – the NY Times has some cool links:

For the members of www.masquerade.org, for example, every day is Halloween. In this so-called MUSH – “multi-user shared hallucination” – those who log on portray various types of characters: vampires, werewolves, ordinary humans.

“It’s a gothic punk horror milieu,” said one of the self-described “wizards” behind the site, who would identify herself only as Riddle.

….Whether a vampire is a person to begin with is another question – one that might answered by the Federal Vampire and Zombie Administration, which provides a timeline of “significant events in vampire history.” Who needs all that teeth-rotting Halloween candy when you can stay home and learn about the New York vampire riots of 1882, or the ban on vampire blood research purportedly imposed by the United Nations in 1967

….The New Mexico Ghost Towns pages can provide a virtual whirl through the uninhabited places that dot the Land of Enchantment.

….The Adopt a Baby Ghost Web site actually allows you to become the parent of one. Just fill in a form and hit “send” to embark on your responsibilities. Perhaps you’ve had a close encounter with ghosts and do not see them as adoptable creatures? Then you may prefer Shadowlands Ghosts and Hauntings , a repository of over 6,600 “true ghost stories.”

….Any good story might be enhanced by a soundtrack, and Midis from the Crypt offers tunes for download at no cost.

….The carving at www.thepumpkinfarm.com/jack/jackboard.html is a little like shading in circles on a standardized test, enabling you to choose the eyes, nose and mouth you want your Jack to have; at www.worldsoffun.com/public/inside_park/hallow /boo/ns_virt_pumpkin.htm, you drag and drop the features.

….Help! for the Costume Impaired should be your last stop. The site has a last-minute “instant costume” section, suggestions for couples, families and pregnant women, and a list of criteria that the authors believe make a good costume.