All Dressed Up

When I was a kid, Halloween was one of my favorite holidays. It was right up there with Christmas and Easter. What’s not to love? Getting to dress up and getting free candy from strangers. Never underestimate the power of free candy.

There was always that one house. You know the one. They gave out full-size candy bars. My friends and I would hit that house early on and then make one more pass on the way home, just in case they had any candy left. They seldom did, but I remember hitting the jackpot once or twice.

Gerald and I are going to be that house. We couldn’t do it this year because I didn’t want to miss the looks on the kids’ faces as they beheld the glory that is a full-size candy bar. That, and money is tight and candy ain’t free.

You know, I wonder if kids are so jaded and have such an entitlement mentality that a full-size candy bar wouldn’t even faze them. Let’s hope not.

I’m really looking forward to next year when we can dress Maddie up in her first Halloween costume. She should be old enough to enjoy it. Or scream and cry like she’s being pinched. I’m looking forward to the photo opportunities either way.

What was your favorite Halloween costume when you were a kid? Do you remember the store bought plastic sheaths with the plastic mask? Those things were so safe, remember? The nostril holes in the masks sure provided lots of oxygen. I remember spending most of Halloween night with my mask on top of my head. As I got older, I graduated to homemade costumes. I was Madonna more than one year. Madonna had so many looks that you could be her every year and it would be a completely different costume each time. I think my favorite was the “Desperately Seeking Susan” look.

When did this treat-or-treating time frame start? It’s something like 5:00 - 7:00 here this year. Back in the day, we started at dark and went until 1. we got too tired to walk or 2. our parents got too tired to walk or 3. people ran out of candy. Those were the good old days, I tell ya.

I was thinking about my mom today. She would always examine my candy when I got home. Looking for razor blades and nails and opened packages like any diligent parent does. Oddly enough, every single year my Snickers bars were suspect. It took me all these years to realize mom just loved them and stole them from me. I sure wish she was still here. I’d buy her a full-size bar. Maybe even two.

Filed under: uncategorized on October 31st, 2006