Don’t look now, but here come the holidays. The Triple Crown of celebrations is coming our way — Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas.
It’s the trifecta of eating and it starts with the Halloween candy. We buy it for the office pumpkin. We buy it for trick or treaters. And we sneak it for ourselves because, after all, a mini-Snickers is just a little treat. Then it’s on to the turkey and tons of trimmings. Trimmings don’t have calories either (the root word is “trim”), so we load up. And right through December, we nibble and feast until New Year’s Day, when we resolve to lose weight. The time has come. Let the eating begin.

JUST SAY BOO: Among the many haunted homes popping up Monday night will be Pete’s place on upper Colton. It took two weeks to get this house ready, with coffins and cauldrons and cobwebs and ketchup (blood). Kids will be scared out of their wits, which is just what kids like. But for the adults, perhaps Pete will serve an appropriate beverage. May I suggest Pete’s Wicked Ale?

Then there’s the haunted house that the Troys used to host in the hills. It was so scary that it was used for a science fiction film called “Plan 10 From Outer Oakland.”
“It would take all month to prepare,” says George. “We’d remove all the furniture, pictures, rugs and put up false walls.” There was the Dracula room, the mummy’s room and Frankenstein’s lab.
Over the years, the props got quite elaborate and George still owns his own coffin, mummy case, fog machine and mad scientist’s equipment.

HAUNTING MELODIES: Local singer TC (Therese Brewitz) is performing at Oakland’s Nomad Café Saturday night. It’s one of the few places that serves organic beer and wine. Therese has a new album out called “Scent of You,” which was “wisely” chosen for a review on the Web site theowlmag.com.

E-MAIL BAG: Reader’s are still hot about my piece on recycling thieves.
Kathie Fagan said she does everything she can to discourage them on her street.
“I yell at ’em, take license numbers, take photos, call Bay Alarm Security Service, the police, Waste Management, our homeowners association — to no avail,” Fagan said.
Meanwhile, she says, three of the “regular” Dumpster divers on her block have upgraded their vehicles in the last year.

GLOWING REPORT: With all the bad publicity about schools these days, here’s a refreshing review. Reader Alena Soldatova says Growing Light Montessori School in the Greek Church on Lincoln Avenue is incredible.
“The school is exceptionally nurturing, loving, high on academics (but in an incredibly creative way), has good facilities, great child care and intuitive teachers that are committed to working with each child.” If you’d like to check it out, Growing Light has a Nov. 10 open house for its preschool and elementary school.

CHICKEN LITTLE: And finally, you may want to think twice about looking up. Though the sky isn’t falling, it seems giant thorny pine cones are. Last week, I wrote about a rock-hard cone that catapulted from a tree on Grizzly Peak and smashed my windshield. Now I’m hearing other disturbing tales. Dr. Peter Lowenberg says he was walking in his Montclair parking lot when a falling cone grazed into his face. It just fell from the sky without warning. I’m telling you — it’s a dangerous world out there.