Screamtown - Chaska, MN

Last weekend I went to Screamtown, located just west of Chaska, MN, with my wife and her sisters. While I did have a previous experience at the haunted attraction, it was during its first year when it was located next to Sever's Corn Maze in Shakopee. To say that it was lackluster in its first year would be far too kind.

Screamtown might now have surpassed its nearby competitor, Trail of Terror (located southwest of Shakopee, MN). Screamtown has that "new haunted attraction smell". While the $25 admission price had me doubting the drive west of Chaska, it did get us in to five different attractions -- each of which began from kind of a central courtyard where you could buy food and drinks from a couple of vendors and warm up in one of the tents.

With the rather heavy load of ads on local radio stations, I have to say that the owner of Screamtown is serious about making a top-notch Halloween-themed haunted attraction that draws from beyond just the southwest Minneapolis suburbs.

But with anything, there were pitfalls. As the clock rolled towards 10:30 a few of the attraction's workers seemed to, for lack of a better word, mail it in. I witnessed at least two costumed employees sitting down, doing nothing to even try to scare attendees as they walked by when we walked through the Circus Asylum. The  number of actors working in the corn maze was also a bit sparse (maybe a few actors had taken the evening off but it's better to have extras than not enough). With a bit more attention to weed out actors / employees who can't be bothered to scare people for even three hours and an attempt to knock down admission -- possibly to around $20 per person -- Shakopee's Trail of Terror will easily be exposed as the third-rate haunted attraction that it truly is.

While the lines were long, you definitely have to check out the Oak Blood Forest which is the largest haunted attraction at Chaska's Scream Town. At least there is a looping video depicting the lore and history of the haunted woods at Screamtown. I'd say if there was one haunted attraction you plan on checking out, Screamtown is a far better bet than either Trail of Terror or Frightmares at Buck Hill.

To find Screamtown, head west of Chaska, MN on U.S. Highway 212 a few miles after the four lane portion ends. Find out the specifics at Screamtown.com

It's Inventory Reduction Clearance time!!!

Like anyone else, the economy is taking its toll on me. We've seen stores going out of business across the country. I took advantage of the Steve & Barry's in Burnsville, Minnesota shutting its doors to get my hands on 80 or so wooden hangers for 20 cents each. Earlier in the month of December I scoped out the bankrupt Linens 'n Things but found only odds and ends that they were unable to bargain on. Everyone's doing it. The jewelry store in Burnsville Center where my wedding band came from recently went out of business after about 6 months of inventory reduction/store closing sales. So much for them standing behind that lifetime warranty.

Even blogs aren't safe. I have a glut of inventory and no takers (or time) to move it out the doors. So I'm announcing today my very own inventory reduction sale. Every topic must GO!!! I've got old topics, new topics, odd topics, stupid topics. Express your interest in the topic(s) of your choice and I'll hand it over - no questions asked!!!

Is this the end? Will A Day in the Life be shutting its doors? Will this sale save my business model and pull me out of the dire financial situation I find myself in?

Whatever the case, MinnPics is actually adding inventory each day. Quality, American-made photos that you can believe in because they are hand-picked and captured by the best of the best. Visit today!

Truly adding insult to injury

At least the crime doesn't happen in my neighborhood but I'd hate to be this guy who was featured in a TV news story washing blood off his front steps. It's weird because while I've never thought of Burnsville as a crime-ridden craphole of a suburb, there are a few areas I'd avoid but to be stabbed in a relatively normal residential neighborhood after a home invasion and then have your house set on fire, that's truly adding insult to injury.

I particularly love the description of the events...

Trousil opened the door to find her next-door neighbor, Paul Traub, leaning against her home, his face covered in blood as it dripped and splattered onto her porch in the 13600 block of Knox Drive.

Try selling your house after a news story like that aired. Any web-savvy house hunter should at least Google the residence they're looking at and that same web-savvy person would immediatelly put the pieces together to realize that, "Hey, this is the house where the stabbed dude dripped blood on the front steps."

Deal's off.

Thankfully, nobody has ever dripped their stab-induced blood on my front steps and I'm fairly sure that nobody has ever died in my house either. How about yours?