Readers Ellie Vasquez, Elyse Gordon and her partner, Sunni; Natalie Griffin, Michael Falcon, and Nicole Belanger are a mix of self-described scaredy cats and thrill-seekers. And, despite some nervousness, all said they were up for our haunted house challenge…

So… were you scared? Give us your overall spook rating from 1 to 5 👻:

• Natalie: 👻👻 — “[It’s] less frightening than other haunted attractions in the area … [but] the special effects were really well done.”
• Nicole: 👻👻👻 — “The sets + costumes + sound + props were terrifyingly real.”
• Sunni: 👻👻👻👻 — “The haunted house was one of the best that I’ve seen!”
• Ellie: 👻👻👻👻 — “I almost barfed.”
• Elyse:👻👻👻👻👻 — “That haunted house was extremely well-done, and terrifying!”
• Michael: 👻👻👻👻👻 — “Holy HELL-oween! I thought we were in there for half an hour — it was 11 minutes.”

What was the scariest moment?

• Natalie: “The chainsaw at the end gets me every time.”
• Nicole: “The character towards the beginning of the morgue sitting in a wheelchair with an oxygen mask scared the sh*t out of me. I totally thought it was a dummy and then he opened his eyes and I instantly regretted doing this alone.”
• Sunni: “The ending was the hardest part for me, not being able to see where you’re headed and having to just feel your way through.”
• Ellie: “When I couldn’t see the lower half of my body anymore due to the lights and smoke. I wasn’t necessarily scared of getting spooked by the actors at this point, because they had already scared the *bleep* out of me, so I was already expecting them. I commenced to slightly hop, and screamed like a mad-woman per hop.”
• Elyse: “The scariest part of this one was when people FOLLOW YOU AND CHASE YOU AND YELL AT YOU. I mean, that combines basically all my fears.”
• Michael: ”The evil possessed nun following me.”

What’s your best tip for facing your fears?

• Natalie: “At haunted houses, it’s helpful to actually look at the stuff that is jumping out to scare you — once you get a closer look, you can keep a better perspective on whether it’s real or not.”
• Nicole: “My tip would normally be to grab onto your partner in crime who joined you…safety in numbers. am I right?”
• Ellie: “I, without shame, brought a handy-dandy sage smudge-stick. It was conveniently placed in my left jacket pocket for easy access. … Ain’t nobody got time for poltergeists, amirite?”
• Elyse: “I just tried to run away, and I also shouted at them, unsuccessfully, ‘LEAVE ME ALONE!’
• Michael: “Don’t bother, you’re not fooling anyone.”

Thanks to Ellie, Elyse, Sunni, Natalie, Nicole, and Michael for fighting their fears and taking on Georgetown Morgue for us! Want see how freaky it is for yourself? The haunted house is open until November 3. If you’re looking for another spooky spot, check out these haunted house roundups from The Stranger and ParentMap. Note: Most of their recs close tonight.

This week in money. Seattle’s gotten extra pricey in the last few years, and what is and isn’t in reach for us locals is always a hot topic…

• More like a normal housing market? For the first time in four years, the average home in our area is selling for below list price. This wouldn’t be a surprise in most places. But Seattle had the fastest-rising housing prices for two straight years. So the cool-down is raising eyebrows. (The Seattle Times)
• Our middle class took a hit. Back in 2015, locals making $40,000 were about as middle as middle class gets. This year, earning 40k puts you in the second-lowest fifth of earners in Seattle. One reason that’s bad? Our local tax system is super regressive, which means it’s harshest on people who make less. The 40k crowd pays 12.5 percent of their income in state and local taxes, while the top 1 percent of earners pay just 3 percent. (KUOW)
• When it really sucked to be poor in Seattle. In the late 1800s and for decades after, if a Seattle police officer asked you where you were going to spend the night, and you didn’t have money to buy a room someplace, the cop could put you on a chain gang. For, like, 60 days. (Crosscut)
• Generosity just because. Seattle landlords Kory Slaatthaug and Mickey Bambrick are Pentecostal Christians who dig Bible stories about the year of jubilee — one year in every 50 when debts are forgiven. So they saved for about a year and gave all their tenants a rent-free November. 💕(The Seattle Times)

‘Let there be acceptance and love.’ The brutal murder of 11 Jewish people in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania over the weekend is being called the largest massacre of Jews in American history. And the 3,500 neighbors who gathered at Temple De Hirsch Sinai on Capitol Hill Monday night weren’t going to let the hate go unanswered. Our own Ana Sofia Knauf was there, and captured key moments on our Instagram story. (The Stranger, KUOW, Instagram)

Underwater pumpkin carving. You think you’ve seen it all, and then the Pierce County Sheriff’s Department shares this video of members of its dive team competing to see who can carve the best pumpkin down in the depths. “This is a lot more difficult than I anticipated,” Deputy Thompson says at one point. We’re not buying it, sir. Those pumpkin guts just floated right out. 🎃 (Twitter)

ONCE MORE, WITH FEELING

Yesterday we told you that a popular podcast had deemed Seattle “America’s worst city to find love,” asked the singles among you if you agreed, aaaand sent you all a broken survey. 😣

So let’s try this again: Do YOU believe Seattle is the worst U.S. city for love? Cast your vote and stay tuned tomorrow for the very unscientific results…

» *|SURVEY: Oh yeah. Have you tried online dating here?|* ← Click to vote
» *|SURVEY: Nah, people are just playing the blame game.|* ← Click to vote

And hey. No matter how rough dating here can be, at least we’ll always have pies — like this spooky, punny creation from pie queen Lauren Ko, a.k.a. @lokokitchen on Instagram.

Have a boo-tiful day, all. — The Evergrey