A Hellish Haunting

The haunted houses in Kansas City’s at these!” I jump and turn around to West Bottoms District are now open for their 41st season and are as scary as ever. see a girl’s dark, mysterious face glaring back at me. She holds up what appears to be spiders just below my nose and I scramble to get away. My heart is already beating out of my chest and I have yet BY LANEY ULOWETZ to ascend up the long flight of stairs into PHOTO EDITOR the gloomy twilight that is The Edge of I feel my stomach drop to the gravel as I slide out of the car. The door slams shut behind me and I look up, surrounded by rundown buildings and darkness. An eerie howling tumbles towards me, carried by the wind. I listen carefully and slowly wander past a corner when suddenly, I sense something. I feel someone, or something, following me. I quicken my pace and hear a pit-pat pit-pat speed up in rhythm behind me. My stomach turns to knots and a panic arises inside of me when I hear a muffled snarl that can only be found in my worst nightmares. The Beast is following me. And I would do anything to get to Hell already. Entering into their 41st season, the haunted houses located in Kansas City’s West Bottoms District are infamous for providing nights filled with exhilarating terror. Open Thursday through Saturday from 7:30 p.m. until Hell freezes over (11:30 p.m.), as well as the Sundays of Nov. 1, 6 and 7, these annual attractions draw in crowds ready for a fright. There is a peculiar man staring me down when I reach the steps of The Edge of Hell. I take a closer look and notice a rat squirming in his clenched mouth. Disgusted, I hurry through the doorway and immediately gravitate towards the only noticeable source of light in the room - the ticket booth. While I nervously stand waiting for my turn, I hear a high, shrill whisper in my ear “LOOK! Look Hell. Finally, I reach the lady at the ticket booth and breathe a sigh of relief because she in fact looks like a human. The woman informs me that a single ticket for The Edge of Hell is priced at $27 or a discount is available with haunt combination tickets. We do our exchange and she cackles as I cautiously turn around to make sure I am not being followed. I glance at the pack of middle schoolers waiting to enter next to me and am oddly comforted by their childish and awkward aura. I laugh at myself for being so easily jolted. If they can do it, so can I. I stand at the foot of the sinister stairs and peer upwards into the unknown. I swallow hard and think this will be fun. This will be fun. This will be FUN with every step. I reach the top and turn towards the darkness. Loud noises of crashing and screams fill my ears. No going back now. I could tell you about the adventure that awaits at the top of those stairs, but you’ll have to go find out for yourself. Enter into the blackness that is The Edge of Hell if you dare. And let the fun begin. (Photo by Aubrey Makar) THRILLING //

Fall Finds Fun Johnson Farms Louisburg Cider Mill

Louisburg is home to one of the top 10 Cider Mills in America that has everything from farm animals to a corn maze and pumpkin patch. Open 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday -Saturday and 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Sundays.

This pumpkin farm is filled with pig races, pumpkin cannon launches, a pumpkin chomping dinosaur, delicious fall treats and more. Open noon to 6 p.m. Monday -

Friday and 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday - Sunday.

Dunn’s Cider Mill

Well-known in the Belton community for its locally made apple cider and donuts, Dunn’s has a lot to offer including apple butter and mulling spices.

Open 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Wednesday - Sunday.

Caramel Apples Are A Tasty Fall Treat A treat so good, it’s scary. These caramel apples are easy to make and even easier to gobble up.

Ingredients: 5 Honeycrisp Apples 1 bag of Kraft caramels 5 popsicle sticks White chocolate Sprinkles. Instructions: 1. Remove the stem from each apple and put a popsicle stick in the middle. 2. Place caramels in microwave safe bowl and microwave for 2 minutes. 3. Roll each apple into the caramels and allow to set on a pan lined with wax paper or parchment paper. 4. Melt white chocolate by microwaving for 2 minutes. 5. Decorate the apples with the white chocolate and the sprinkles. (Photo by Sophie Nedelco)

Starbucks Unveils New Fall Drink

BY TAYLOR SPIES REPORTER

Starbucks recently released a brand new flavor of frappuccino - toasted graham.

This refreshing coffee blend was inspired by s’mores made at bonfires on chilly autumn nights. Complimenting the ever popular pumpkin spice latte, the toasted graham cracker flavor is a mix of steamed milk, cream and coffee, topped with copious amounts of whipped cream and a sprinkling of graham cracker crumbs.

The drink is extremely sweet, great for those who only like a hint of coffee flavor. It is a lot like the s’mores flavored coffee, popular during the summer months.

A grande sized toasted graham frappuccino is a hefty 400 calories, although not much more than the 310 pumpkin spice frappaccino. (Photo by Taylor Spies)

Favorite FALL LIBATIONS Le Journal polled over 150 students to find their top Starbucks go-to fall flavor 1. Hot Chocolate 2. White Chocolate Mocha 3. Pumpkin Spice Latte 4. Salted Caramel Mocha 5. Caramel Macchiato 6. Salted Caramel Frappaccino Throwback HALLOWEEN MOVIES Le Journal Surveyed the Student Body to find what girls wanted to watch this weekend.

1Halloween Town (1998)

After learning she is a witch, a girl helps save a town full of other supernatural creatures.

2Twitches (2005)

Two teen witches who were separated at birth must use their powers to save the world in which they were born, where their birth mother still lives.

3It’s the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown (1966)

The Peanuts gang celebrates Halloween while Linus waits for the Great Pumpkin.

4Hocus Pocus (1993)

Three witch sisters are resurrected in Salem Massachusetts on Halloween night and two teenagers must end their reign.

5The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993)

Jack Skellington, king of Halloween Town, discovers Christmas Town, but doesn’t quite understand the concept.

Food For Thought Skits

Sion students gathered to kick off the annual Food for Thought drive with the skits performed by Student Council. The nonperishable food drive ends on Nov. 6 and benefits Redemportist Social Services.

1.

1. Senior Kate O’Keefe was the Shark in the senior skit. “I didn’t know I was the shark until that day, but I wanted to watch the skit, so I sat in the stands in my shark costume. When I ran out into the skit I just improvised,” Okeefe said. 2.Senior Daria Kinchelow played the part of theology teacher Paul Kramshuster. “I love Kram and he’s my idol. I think he’s the funniest teacher. He said I was the best Kram anyone’s ever played,” Kinchelow said. 3. Juniors Claire Raulston and Elsa Brundige dance to “Low.” “The skits are always something we look forward to. It’s so much fun to brainstorm ideas and see what the other grades come up with,” Raulston said. 4. Sophomores Maddie Young and Mandy Mayer laugh at the end of their pageant skit. “I think the skits really get everyone pumped for Food for Thought and are the perfect way to kickoff this event,” Young said. 5. Freshman Gabrielle Grimaldi and Ava Rawson pose as Channing Tatum and Barbie. “I thought that the skits were a really fun way to get the school aware of Food for Thought, and I thought it was a lot of fun,” Grimaldi said. (Photos by Laney Ulowetz)

2.

4. 3.

5.