Gashlycrumb
Standing before you is the tall wiry figure of Gashlycrumb. First catching your attention is his hat - tall, black and thin, almost a reflection of his torso. Wrapped around the base of the hat, just above the brim, is a silken gray scarf that is streaming in the wind, down to his waist. He has no face, only a chalky skull that very slowly turns from the left to look at you. He wears a pitch-black gown with long sleeves that cling tightly to his arms. Bright white cuffs emerge at ends of his sleeves. His long thin fingers, covered by black gloves, spread like the legs of a daddy-long-leg spider. In one hand he holds a fragile black umbrella above his head. The umbrella has obvious gaping holes; some of the cloth blows in the wind like a severed spider web. Just as his large empty eye-holes meet your eyes, he smiles smugly, and your neck muscles suddenly become tense.
(with all due respect to Edward Gorey)
