When Did Halloween
It's based on All Saints day eve/"All Hallows eve", the Catholic feast day of all the Saints of Nov. 1st. Since the eve is the evening before, it's night time before, and the belief is that demons try to spook all the good souls paying homage then.
It is childish and silly, and is another hijacked Catholic holiday, along with St. Valentine's day.
Commercial interests try to use it as a "partying money maker."
Quote: PaigowdanIt was a big deal when I was a kid. I hated it.
It's based on All Saints day eve/"All Hallows eve", the Catholic feast day of all the Saints of Nov. 1st. Since the eve is the evening before, it's night time before, and the belief is that demons try to spook all the good souls paying homage then.
It is childish and silly, and is another hijacked Catholic holiday, along with St. Valentine's day.
Commercial interests try to use it as a "partying money maker."
I just missed the end of 'trick' part of Trick or Treat. All thru the 40's and 50's there was lots of violence on Haloween in big and small cities. Where I grew up, a small village was the center of it and the police would be called dozens of times. Lots of property damage and arrests. It died down and saw a resurgence as 'Devil's Night' in Detroit (and other cities) on the night before Halloween in the 70' thru the 90's..
Quote: WizardI milked Halloween for all it was worth when I was a kid. I was always the first kid to start, and the last to call it a night, and I kept doing it until I was about 16. Pound for pound, I'll compare the amount of candy I've raked in against anybody. So I can't complain about Halloween. Now is the time I give back, and I do.
right on Wizard! some of my best memories with my kids was taking them out on halloween. i remember when my oldest came home wearing her first halloween costume to show me. even though she was wearing a mask i could still see the big smile on her face. at the first house we went to, when they put the candy in her bag, she took it out and gave it back. all priceless moments i will never forget.
it's still an 'interesting night', and i would assume even more so in vegas. maybe i'll try to go there for halloween one time.
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Quote: NicksGamingStuffIf Halloween isn't your thing, then just keep your lights off so the trick or treaters don't bug you.
You're funny. My wife spends a week decorating the porch and wears a witches costume when she hands out treats. Guess who gets to help.
When I was a kid in the 50's and early 60's, if their were 30 houses on a block, 25 had their porch lights on. Today you're lucky if 10 out of 30 participate. Cheap bastards.
I actually get a kick out of seeing all the neighborhood kids dressed up in their costumes. With the parties and the trick-or-treaters, it feels like a community event--kids usually trick-or-treat in their immediate neighborhood. Kind of takes me back. I also enjoy giving out the candy. It's still pretty much carte blanche for the kids to absolutely pig out on candy for the next couple of days--and going back to the fun the adults are having, they all get to dress up and act silly! I think it's a real slice of Americana, and the timing is right, around here, since it's just about the first couple of weeks in November when the weather goes to hell. From a folkloric standpoint, it's basically a harvest festival, and the giving out of candy is predated by the giving out of apples, fruit, etc. I think it's one of the coolest traditions we have. Boo!
Quote: mkl654321The biggest difference between now and a few decades ago seems to be that more adults participate in Halloween, with parties and other events on or near Oct. 31.
I actually get a kick out of seeing all the neighborhood kids dressed up in their costumes. With the parties and the trick-or-treaters, it feels like a community event--kids usually trick-or-treat in their immediate neighborhood. Kind of takes me back. I also enjoy giving out the candy. It's still pretty much carte blanche for the kids to absolutely pig out on candy for the next couple of days--and going back to the fun the adults are having, they all get to dress up and act silly! I think it's a real slice of Americana, and the timing is right, around here, since it's just about the first couple of weeks in November when the weather goes to hell. From a folkloric standpoint, it's basically a harvest festival, and the giving out of candy is predated by the giving out of apples, fruit, etc. I think it's one of the coolest traditions we have. Boo!
I have no problem with kids, I was a kid once. Its all the hoopla in the weeks leading up to it by adults. I don't get it. Its a kids day, not an adult extravaganza.
Quote: EvenBobIts a kids day, not an adult extravaganza.
I agree. Around here the change is in all the adults taking part. Generally it seems the young adults are really into it. Not my cup of tea, but my age cohort isnt involved anyway.
Quote: WizardI milked Halloween for all it was worth when I was a kid. I was always the first kid to start, and the last to call it a night, and I kept doing it until I was about 16. Pound for pound, I'll compare the amount of candy I've raked in against anybody. So I can't complain about Halloween. Now is the time I give back, and I do.
Lines taken right out of my book. What I like most about it now is what I hand out compared to most others. No way I can give the cute little kids a couple of down-sized milky ways and chocolate bars. That's mean. I give 'em the big stuff and plenty of them, even if I have to buy them off the racks at the grocery checkout counters. When I look back at some of the old ladys in my neighborhood putting handfuls of popcorn into my bag of goodies, it only makes me want to put more and more good stuff into trick or treat bags these days.
Me too.Quote: WizardI milked Halloween for all it was worth when I was a kid. I was always the first kid to start, and the last to call it a night.
In fact, just about every day in October, I'd draw maps of the neighborhood trying to figure out my best plan of attack. Of course, I did this in school. I wasn't a good student....
Really? That works? It would not have stopped me, nor whould it stop the kids in my town today.Quote: NicksGamingStuffIf Halloween isn't your thing, then just keep your lights off so the trick or treaters don't bug you.
Quote: JerryLoganWhen I look back at some of the old ladys in my neighborhood putting handfuls of popcorn into my bag of goodies, it only makes me want to put more and more good stuff into trick or treat bags these days.
I don't recall getting much popcorn. What annoyed me was the pixie sticks (paper straws filled with powdered sugar). They always broke in your bag under the weight of the real candy. The miniature bags of candy were disgusting. Nothing good in them. My wife once bought them to pass out, and I refused to. I still get regular candy, but good stuff like candy bars, and am generous with them. Kids with creative costumes get extra. Last year we ran out of candy so I passed out decks of cards, and the older kids loved them.
I've noticed a trend towards getting away from the door-to-door routine and instead schools and churches have what they call "trunk or treat", where the parents congregate in the parking lot and the children go car-to-car collecting candy. Our local mall even has a couple of hours set aside for kids to go store-to-store as an alternative to walking the streets at night. I suppose the spirit of the day is met, in that the children still get to dress up and amass many pounds of processed sugar, but somehow it doesn't seem quite the same.
I did the trick-or-treat thing until I was twelve. On that last Halloween I dressed up in my usual vampire outfit and black yarn wig and my friend wore her brother's football uniform. At one house the lady grudgingly gave us some candy, saying, "Aren't you boys a little old for this kind of thing?" and I guess that put the quietus on it for me for the rest of my life.
There's a big guy in my neighborhood who looks for people that turn off their lights on Haloween just so they don't have to answer the door and/or give children any candy. He knocks on their doors until they finally open up, and when they do he yells at the top of his lungs at them so everyone who's within 2 blocks can hear his lashing. If they are really not home he let's them off the hook.
How do they feel about the commercialization of Christmas?Quote: tsmithHere in the Bible Belt there are quite a few churches that frown on Halloween, calling it pagan or heathen or some other such silly sacreligious thing...
Really? When I was a kid, if it was Saturday or Sunday, I started at 9AM. Last year it was on Saturday, and I think it started around noon.Quote: tsmith...but I'm not expecting a lot of doorbell-ringing this year since Halloween is on a Sunday.
Yeah, that has kinda ruined it. It's all part of the general 'fear thy neighbor' attitude that has been growing for about 15 years. But it has also added to the commercialization of both Halloween and Christmas, as the stores give candy to the kids, they give coupons and other incentives to the parents.Quote: tsmithOur local mall even has a couple of hours set aside for kids to go store-to-store as an alternative to walking the streets at night. I suppose the spirit of the day is met, in that the children still get to dress up and amass many pounds of processed sugar, but somehow it doesn't seem quite the same.
Quote: JerryLoganI always liked the people who put some money into the bag.
There's a big guy in my neighborhood who looks for people that turn off their lights on Haloween just so they don't have to answer the door and/or give children any candy. He knocks on their doors until they finally open up, and when they do he yells at the top of his lungs at them so everyone who's within 2 blocks can hear his lashing. If they are really not home he let's them off the hook.
As I recall from your previous posts, you're a pretty big guy. This wouldn't happen to be you, would it?:-)
Of course The Wizard would be spotting +E.V. opportunities at an early age ... :)Quote: WizardI milked Halloween for all it was worth when I was a kid. I was always the first kid to start, and the last to call it a night, and I kept doing it until I was about 16. Pound for pound, I'll compare the amount of candy I've raked in against anybody. So I can't complain about Halloween. Now is the time I give back, and I do.
Quote: tsmithI did the trick-or-treat thing until I was twelve. On that last Halloween I dressed up in my usual vampire outfit and black yarn wig and my friend wore her brother's football uniform. At one house the lady grudgingly gave us some candy, saying, "Aren't you boys a little old for this kind of thing?" and I guess that put the quietus on it for me for the rest of my life.
LOL at both of yall'z.Quote: NicksGamingStuffOne other reason why I like Halloween is that it is the only day of the year when one can get away with bad drag, I want to be Elphaba from Wicked this year and have my spouse be Glinda.
Quote: tsmithHere in the Bible Belt...
Sorry to go off topic, for a second, but I've wondered for decades what states count as being in the "bible belt." I've heard both Missouri and Alabama referred to as being the heart of the bible belt.
Even as adults, my wife and I still go all out with the decorations, party, etc. We even enjoy going to the haunted houses with the kids.
-Keyser
Quote: WizardSorry to go off topic, for a second, but I've wondered for decades what states count as being in the "bible belt." I've heard both Missouri and Alabama referred to as being the heart of the bible belt.
I've understood it to be: the Plains states, the Midwest, and the South. So the Dakotas, Minnesota, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Texas, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, Florida, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Kentucky, and maybe New Mexico. The middle third of the country plus the Confederacy.
Quote: mkl654321I've understood it to be: the Plains states, the Midwest, and the South. So the Dakotas, Minnesota, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Texas, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, Florida, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Kentucky, and maybe New Mexico. The middle third of the country plus the Confederacy.
Or in other terms, the Big 12 and the SEC.
Quote: rdw4potusAs I recall from your previous posts, you're a pretty big guy. This wouldn't happen to be you, would it?:-)
No. But if it were I wouldn't just be yelling at the cheapskates.
Quote: WizardI don't recall getting much popcorn. What annoyed me was the pixie sticks (paper straws filled with powdered sugar). They always broke in your bag under the weight of the real candy. The miniature bags of candy were disgusting. Nothing good in them. My wife once bought them to pass out, and I refused to. I still get regular candy, but good stuff like candy bars, and am generous with them. Kids with creative costumes get extra. Last year we ran out of candy so I passed out decks of cards, and the older kids loved them.
The only good thing about awful candy, was the process of sorting it out from the stuff you like.
The worst thing I ever heard of being given out on Halloween (besides the razor blade in apple story) was a dentist giving out toothbrushes.
If I stopped home during the day, and do a sort, my parents would trade me the crappy stuff I got for good stuff they had to give out, and start giving out the crappy stuff!Quote: rxwineThe only good thing about awful candy, was the process of sorting it out from the stuff you like.
That beats my bad house story.Quote: rxwineThe worst thing I ever heard of being given out on Halloween (besides the razor blade in apple story) was a dentist giving out toothbrushes.
One house used to cut silhouettes of owls from black construction paper, about 5" tall, glue it to a popsicle stick, and glue two pennies on for eyes.
But the Bible belt is also a "state of mind" as well as a "network" of the like-minded.
In Tennessee and other such states, they got radical atheist and lefty groups such as the ACLU, GLAD, and (horrors!) the AARP!
Quote: PaigowdanIt was a big deal when I was a kid. I hated it.
It's based on All Saints day eve/"All Hallows eve", the Catholic feast day of all the Saints of Nov. 1st. Since the eve is the evening before, it's night time before, and the belief is that demons try to spook all the good souls paying homage then.
It is childish and silly, and is another hijacked Catholic holiday, along with St. Valentine's day.
Commercial interests try to use it as a "partying money maker."
I thought I was the only one who hated it. In fact, I have a LinkedIn question asking if anyone else hates it active right now. As a kid I went from could have cared less to outright not wanting to go out. My standard was eighth grade and you should be done. I skipped the year I was in seventh and was going to skip eighth but my mother talked me into making a simple costume about an hour before it started--she wanted someone to sort of be with my brother and sister. But that was the total end of it. I think I dressed up at work once, under peer pressure. 2-3 parties since, again peer pressure to dress up. Once I said "no costume" and was practically physically forced to wear one the people who invited me had on hand.
I did once consider going as "Duffman" from "The Simpsons" which would have guaranteed a win of any contest at any company I'd work at, so depending on the prize I'd consider that more an investment than dressing up for fun.
But all-in-all I never liked it and my dislike only grows. I think Haunted Houses are stupid. I volunteer to work (if needed) on Haloween Night so those with kids may take them out. Not bitter about it, like an athiest who wants Christmas banned. But if the whole thing vanished I would be the last person on earth to complain.
Quote: WizardSorry to go off topic, for a second, but I've wondered for decades what states count as being in the "bible belt." I've heard both Missouri and Alabama referred to as being the heart of the bible belt.
I don't count it as states but area. I consider it most of the states of the Confederecy less southern Florida, then add in southern WV, IN, and IL--plus MO. I don't have a map in front of me so I might have missed some.
Or another way, if it is very religious but there aren't 100+ places you can get a good fish sandwich on Friday's in Lent, you are probably in the Bible Belt.
Quote: AZDuffman
I did once consider going as "Duffman" from "The Simpsons" which would have guaranteed a win of any contest at any company I'd work at, so depending on the prize I'd consider that more an investment than dressing up for fun.
Last year at work there was a dressing up competition. I rigged up a Freddy Krueger outfit to go on my back (so it didnt interefere with my ability to work) in about an hour. Turns out when I got there I was the only one that turned up in a costume. The prize was anything I wanted from our current promotional giveaway items. I chose a nice remote controlled car, which made a nice christmas present for someone.
Halloween here used to be more geared towards the childrens end, but over the last 10 years or so the adult spectrum of Halloween activites has been getting bigger.
Personally I dont mind it, as Its all in good fun.
but I started seeing H-Ween stuff in Target
on Sept 15th. And it's NOT NOT NOT a
holiday!
Holiday: a day of festivity or recreation when no work is done;
a day fixed by law or custom on which ordinary business is suspended
in commemoration of some event or in honor of some person.
Nobody gets H-ween off, ordinary business is
not suspended. So STOP calling it a holiday.
Quote: EvenBobI tried to keep my mouth shut this year,
but I started seeing H-Ween stuff in Target
on Sept 15th. And it's NOT NOT NOT a
holiday!
I saw the first Spirit Store on Labor Day weekend. I cannot stand Halloween, it is a completely stupid holiday.
Quote: AZDuffmanI saw the first Spirit Store on Labor Day weekend. I cannot stand Halloween, it is a completely stupid holiday.
It's a day of celebration, rooted in Christianity.
Not even my wife gives out candy anymore,
and that just stopped two years ago. With
all these morbidly obese whale kids wandering
around, why be an enabler to their disease..
Quote: EvenBobQuote: AZDuffmanI saw the first Spirit Store on Labor Day weekend. I cannot stand Halloween, it is a completely stupid holiday.
It's a day of celebration, rooted in Christianity.
Not even my wife gives out candy anymore,
and that just stopped two years ago. With
all these morbidly obese whale kids wandering
around, why be an enabler to their disease..
Come on Bob, if you were back in the Bar business like me, you would love the day. Any reason to get extra people in the door is good enough for me. Hell we celebrate everything at my place from Arbor Day to Talk like a Pirate Day.
Quote: GWAEgod forbid people enjoy life and look forward to things. How dare them have their own opinions and enjoyments.
Hell no. You either agree with Bob or you're wrong! :-)
Quote: GWAEHow dare them have their own opinions
Exactly, I have an opinion just like everybody
else. How dare I, that I have one..
Quote: rdw4potusHell no. You either agree with Bob or you're wrong! :-)
What do I care if you agree or not,
what does that have to do with what
I think.
Quote: BozQuote: EvenBobQuote: AZDuffmanI saw the first Spirit Store on Labor Day weekend. I cannot stand Halloween, it is a completely stupid holiday.
It's a day of celebration, rooted in Christianity.
Not even my wife gives out candy anymore,
and that just stopped two years ago. With
all these morbidly obese whale kids wandering
around, why be an enabler to their disease..
Come on Bob, if you were back in the Bar business like me, you would love the day. Any reason to get extra people in the door is good enough for me. Hell we celebrate everything at my place from Arbor Day to Talk like a Pirate Day.
Arbor Day, that's when all the ships sail into the arbor.
As to Halloween, I duck any part of it that I can. I didn't care for it as a kid and I more refuse as an adult, even when I was if i dressed as Duffman from The Simpsons that there would be no way I could not win the company-wide dress-up contest.
Quote: ontariodealerthey should sell an even bob mask
Would look like a recent photo of Phil Spector?
I have a neapolitan mastiff ( all 150 pounds of him ).
Quote: EvenBobYou're funny. My wife spends a week decorating the porch and wears a witches costume when she hands out treats. Guess who gets to help.
When I was a kid in the 50's and early 60's, if their were 30 houses on a block, 25 had their porch lights on. Today you're lucky if 10 out of 30 participate. Cheap bastards.
How do you equate not celebrating a holiday with being "cheap bastards" ?
Perhaps they have religious reasons for not celebrating. Perhaps they have a psychological reason. Perhaps one of them is listed on the sexual offender registry and cannot participate (which is creepy but could happen).
Quote: rxwineThe worst thing I ever heard of being given out on Halloween (besides the razor blade in apple story) was a dentist giving out toothbrushes.
And I thought my idea was original...
Actually, I give candy to the kids, and toothbrushes to the parents standing behind them. One year, I put up a sign warning people about an alien invasion, and how you could spot the aliens by their "radioactive power rods" (which look suspiciously like light sticks). These might work better if people actually show up at my door; I think I have gotten two people in the 10 years since I moved to my current location, which is at the far end of a row of townhouses on a hill.
I also remember reading about a stunt where the person in the house had a bowl of apples, and if a parent complained, the person would show they were safe by biting into one...and then apparently bleeding from the mouth (actually a combination of corn syrup and red food coloring).
As for Halloween being a "big deal", Halloween parties for adults (usually with slutty costumes) have become a "thing" over the past couple of decades, especially in San Francisco with its "Exotic Erotic Halloween Ball" (which itself was more a less a continuation of a similar event colloquially called the "Hookers' Ball"). If there has been a recent surge, it may be because of the dropoff of house-to-house Trick-Or-Treaters caused by a number of towns having "community" events in the early evening for safety reasons.
Quote: aceofspadesHow do you equate not celebrating a holiday with being "cheap bastards" ?
Perhaps they have religious reasons for not celebrating. Perhaps they have a psychological reason. Perhaps one of them is listed on the sexual offender registry and cannot participate (which is creepy but could happen).
Or perhaps some of us always hated it and always will.
Quote: AZDuffmanOr perhaps some of us always hated it and always will.
Exactly - I do not see how cheapness comes into it other than being one of the myriad of reasons people choose to not celebrate...
Quote: aceofspadesHow do you equate not celebrating a holiday with being "cheap bastards" ?
Perhaps they have religious reasons for not celebrating. Perhaps they have a psychological reason.
Perhaps they're just cheap. Occam's Razor,
the most logical reason is usually the right
one. Candy in the 50's and 60's was cheap,
today it's expensive. I would say 75% of the
time it's because they don't want to spend
the money.
