When I was a kid, my family didn’t believe in Halloween – no pumpkins, no costumes, no trick-or-treating, no candy, and basically no fun.

Then, I met Handsome, who treats pumpkin carving as if it were a competitive sport.

On our first Halloween together, he used a Dremel tool to create his jack-o’-lantern. A Dremel! Can you believe it? I sure couldn’t.

I sat next to him and stared for several seconds before stabbing and jiggling a knife through my chosen pumpkin, trying not to injure myself. He was carving away with precision, the drill humming steadily as it sliced into his pumpkin.

Perhaps he was trying to impress me that first year because he no longer pulled out the Dremel tool for our annual pumpkin carving competition.

Although he does continue to use professional carving tools to great effect. To his credit, each year, he has offered to let me use them, too. But I have never taken him up on the offer…until now!

I created a pumpkinstein! And, of course, I called him Frank. It took me an hour longer than Handsome to finish Frank, and I thought I’d won. Because there was no Dremel, no paints, nor other special tools on his side of the table. Then, he turned his pumpkin around…

While I didn’t learn the joys of Halloween at a young age, I did learn the value of good tools. I’ve had a well-stocked toolbox since I was 15 years old, and I was inspired to use it this year. I brought out paints, paintbrushes, an X-Acto knife with multiple blades, and even my electric stapler.

I stenciled in the face first, carving only after visualizing what I was doing. Then, I added black paint to make the eyes and mouth really creepy. Using the carving tools, I created two crooked cuts across the forehead and face. I added more black paint to the scars, making them look dark with decay. Then, I stapled them with heavy-duty silver staples like surgery gone wrong.

I created a pumpkinstein!

And, of course, I called him Frank.

It took me an hour longer than Handsome to finish Frank, and I thought I’d won because there was no Dremel, no paints, nor other special tools on his side of the table.

Then, he turned his pumpkin around so I could see the finished face—a pumpkin with crazy eyes and an evil grin with jagged shards for teeth.

Oh, yes. He won.

Frank looked downright disappointed and slightly scared with Handsome’s evil jack o’ lantern behind him.

Sigh. No winning this year.

But I will always be proud of you, Frank.