Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

Skeletons are big this year as décor. Towering big. My husband has acquired his first two bendy ones that have been a source of entertainment. A small one is on the door and the big guy is arranged on the couch, holding the stuffed possum from the Museum of the Gulf Coast gift shop. Skeletons don’t scare me much as I appreciate the one that lets me walk around.

Eat chocolate responsibly this season, and think about dearly departed as we observe All Saints Day and All Souls Day. Here are some tidbits to consider, as the spirit moves you.

Hot, Hot, Hot – A friend accepted an invitation and asked if there would be an array of hot sauces available. Challenge on. I arranged a turntable of red sauces, green ones, powdered and flaked peppers. I’ve been two occasions recently where jarred, pickled jalapenos have knocked people out. I have to keep in check lest I eat half the jar’s contents.

I just ordered a meal in another state labled as “Hot, Hot, Hot” and the server made sure to mention it had “long” peppers. Long peppers come out between pepperoncini and poblano on the Scoville Scale of heat, I learned later. So the delicious dish fell on my own “mild to sweet” rating that I would share with a toddler. Regional difference. –

Also, don’t ask me if a dish is “hot.” I hit heat different.

Bruises easily – Subarashii Kudamono Gourmet Asian Pears rock their own myth/legend. Rounded and not what we call “pear shaped,” they are crisp and soft, sweet and solid all at once and are known as a symbol of beauty and longevity. A well-packed box of the fruits arrived intact and tempting. With varieties named EliSan, New Pear, SuSan and the like, pears come with textures from juicy and firm and tastes such as mild, richly sweet, complex and clear. Oh wait, try the “lush.” We should all take time to slow down and enjoy such as culinary experience. www.wonderfulfruit.com will let you in on this.

Darragh Doiron is a Port Arthur area foodie. Share your ideas at darraghcastillo@icloud.com