Come to the Nightmare

Only 5 Nights Left

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 ~ The Puget Sound's premier haunted attraction, The Nightmare at Beaver Lake runs through Halloween night. Bring your fiends.

It's less scary than the elections, but much more fun.

More. Yet more.

"So, What Are You Doing?"

"(These Days?)"

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~ I get asked this a lot. So, just as I did a year ago on my last lap around the sun, I'll write a quick update.

I'm still doing consulting and contract work, as well as working on some startups (of my own as well as others.) The best description that more or less braids all the strands? Entrepreneur-at-large, pitching in wherever there is opportunity to create or grow an interesting business from idea to revenue.

Some of my current projects are the same as a year ago. A couple didn't work out and had to be put down. There's also a few new ones:

Nightmare at Beaver Lake

Something Wicked This Way Creeps...

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 ~ The Pacific Northwest's premier haunted attraction looms! It may be summer now (well, sort of) but October is just around the corner, and that means night frights in woods of Sammamish. This year will feature all new sets and scares, as always!



(Your humble blogger and amateur ham appears at about 3:25)

The Nightmare at Beaver Lake. Good grisly fun for the whole family brought to you by Scare Productions and the Rotary Club of Sammamish.

Last Chance

For The Nightmare

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 ~ Tomorrow is your last chance this year to experience the best haunt in Greater Seattle, the Nightmare at Beaver Lake. See what 11,000 people have raved about—our best show yet.

Whatever you do tomorrow night, be careful out there; not all the zombies have been fed.

Nightmare at Beaver Lake

The Premier Haunt in Greater Seattle

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 ~ It's that time of year again—the scary, the creepy, the repulsively loathsome, the downright terrifying.

But enough talk of political campaigns! Instead, why not enjoy the horror?

Yep, it's time for The Nightmare at Beaver Lake, the premier Western Washington outdoor haunted attraction.

Schedule and ticket prices here. Come for a nice 45 minute walk in the woods, and see who (or what) else enjoys the sights and sounds of seasonal death and decay...

And this year is extra special! CJ Graham, who played Jason Voorhees in the Friday the 13th movies will be there on Friday the 28th and Saturday the 29th. Get a photo or an autograph. Before he gets you.

"So, What are You Doing?"

"(These Days?)"

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~ I've been asked this, or questions like it, quite a bit lately. Perhaps, thanks to this lovely turnover economy, it's because many of us are changing positions, jobs or careers at a frenetic pace. Perhaps, unfortunately, it's because my LinkedIn page doesn't provide the simplest summary. Or perhaps it's because today's my birthday, and birthdays are a great time to ping friends and colleagues with such whazzup questions.

It's hard even for my close friends to figure it out; the line-up changes all the time. And indeed, I need several prosthetic memory devices (laptop, Droid, calendar, and many, many lists) to stay on top of it myself.

While I do consulting and contract work, what I really do is serve as a kind of entrepreneur-at-large, pursuing several opportunities where I can help turn the chaos of a general idea into a growing, successful business.

The current line-up? My favorites (that I can talk about):

Rotary First Harvest

Working in the Community
Working for the Community

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Yesterday I spent the morning volunteering at Northwest Harvest. I was one of more than a hundred volunteers who showed up to help process the enormous amount of donated food.

For three hours several large rooms of the warehouse in Kent were a hive of activity as volunteers repackaged frozen peas, oranges, grapefruits and lemons into small boxes for distribution to local food banks, who in turn pass the boxes on individual families.

Food banks and nutrition programs provided by Northwest Harvest play a vital role in the social fabric of our communities.

In 2010, one in seven households in Washington struggled to provide enough food for their family. This year, the state’s budget crisis will result in the elimination or significant reductions of critical services that help struggling families meet their basic needs, like keeping food on the table.

One in seven. Chances are you know someone being helped by one of the programs of Northwest Harvest. Perhaps it's your neighbor. Or the single mom at the coffee kiosk. Or the fellow who's been looking for work since 2008. Perhaps it's you.

Things I Learned from my Mum

Mary Ellen Leyerle
at her cottage in PEI

My Mum taught me many things, including the importance of community. She was born and raised in upstate New York, but moved to Toronto, Canada in 1959. Downtown Toronto was her home thereafter, and she eventually became a Canadian citizen. My Mum was passionately committed to many causes—women's equality, the politically disenfranchised, the environment, social justice. She marched, she wrote letters, she contributed money, she volunteered.

My Mum taught me to get involved, and to take action where it mattered and where I could make a difference. It was her example that inspired me to join the group that Incorporated the City of Sammamish, to serve on non-profit boards, to volunteer on city commissions, and to be a charter member of a new Rotary Club. To this day I continue to donate my time and effort; I couldn't and wouldn't do otherwise.

Thank you Mum.

Mary Ellen Leyerle, 1/8/29 - 6/8/09, RIP

Happy Halloween

Last Night for Fright

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Last night to see Western Washington's premier indoor/outdoor haunt, the Nightmare at Beaver Lake.

Bring a can of food for $1 off your ticket.

Happy Halloween everyone; stay safe until you can get to the haunt. After that...




...I will be looking for you...

The Nightmare

Something Disturbing in the Woods

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It is the season of spooky and scary. Fear stalks the land. Frights assault us everywhere we look.

But political ads are also disgusting, obfuscating, tediously repetitive and deeply insulting to the intelligence. So, take a break from the political asshattery and tomfoolery!

Instead, choose frights that are creative, surprising and fun at The Nightmare at Beaver Lake, the premier Western Washington outdoor haunted attraction.