Rally Pumpkins

I love carving pumpkins but as a kid I was never really satisfied with spooky faces and frankly it wasn't until I was older that I finally began to realize that I didn't need to crave a classic eye, nose and mouth type jack-o-lantern. The inspiration for Rally Pumpkins came out of this realization and during my first endevor I challenged myself to carve a snowflake into a pumpkin with the intent of lighting it every night in order to bring snow to the mountains. I have no idea where I got the notion that a carved pumpkin is some sort of shrine that if lit will bring about good fortunes for the imagery/symbol that was carved into it. However, I like to personify things and I think it is fun to be superstitious towards the outcome of things that are primarily determined through natural reactions or cause and affect. Call me crazy.

The Snow pumpkin worked out well and the snow started to fly in the mountains earlier than usual that year, however as is the case with all carved pumpkins they rot quickly once carved. The next season I stepped my game up and ventured into the sports superstition realm with the rally pumpkin. 

Since, I have moved on from a successful Blazers pumpkin to carve a negative space San Francisco Giants pumpkin during the late 2010 season and post season which ultimately lead to... well... a world series championship. I'm not saying that the rally pumpkin caused this by any means, but it helped. And so did the sacrificial seed roasting that got the Giants into the playoffs as they won a long series against the Padres. The actual pumpkin lasted about a few weeks carrying into the Giants winning the NL west. After that the pumpkin only lived on in fame as a picture  on facebook and was figuratively lit when needed to proved rally momentum. (sometimes for the better, sometimes....it was not so effective).

Recently I purchased another cheep plastic pumpkin knife that had a skin shaver type gizmo built into the handle which allowed me to begin a different style of carving. This style basically shaves off the  outer layers of the pumpkin's skin allowing the light the penetrate through. This technique is especially affective when it comes to creating lines for items such as logos, so it has now become my default method and has resulted in my best pumpkin yet. The MLS Timbers rally pumpkin which has since rotted but will live on in spirit for the beginning of their inaugural 2011 season in March.