Celebrating Halloween, Happy Valley Style

The Webster’s dictionary offers a nice and compact definition of Halloween: Evening of Oct. 31, vigil of All Saint’s Day, now popularly observed especially by children by masquerading and playful solicitation for sweets…

Of course, it’s also observed by businesses: A National Retail Federation survey found that $475 billion (that’s a “b” as in boo!) was spent on costumes last year in the U.S. alone.

Nielsen reported $1.9 billion in U.S. candy sales last year, which equates to 598 million pounds of candy! (Dentists must love this time of year.)

And as far as the entertainment field goes, vampire movies alone have grossed almost $800 million within the last three years.

Now, to me, Halloween means something entirely different. Last weekend got me especially excited for the holiday. Live at the Jordan Center, the Eagles—in my opinion, the best rock-and-roll band of all time—sang ‘Witchy Woman.’ It was fantastic.

When I was growing up, Halloween was my favorite event next to Christmas. My older sisters and I would always get dressed up—usually in homemade costumes—hours before trick-or-treating began. I know it was a different time back then, but our parents never escorted us through the neighborhood. As we went around we would say, ‘Tricks or treat?!’ For those homeowners who weren’t home or chose not to answer their doors, we would carry out the “tricks” promised, throwing corn on their front porches.

When the evening came to an end, we would always be so thrilled to see all of the candy we collected. Back home, our mom and dad would go through our bounty and monitor how much we would eat…for the rest of the year! They would allow us to each pick out one or two pieces to consume every night after dinner. At that rate, our one night of trick-or-treating produced enough candy to last through December.

With my own family, we used to put our kids in the car Halloween weekend and drive downtown to catch a glimpse of the college kids going out for an evening of frightening fun. We have always enjoyed this night, minus the scary stuff. My wife’s brother threw a crazy Halloween party every year, culminating with his own wedding on Halloween night!

Not only did our kids love to come up with creative costumes (Statue of Liberty, Miss America, Hershey Kiss—a mailwoman) they also enjoyed decorating the house and front yard and carving pumpkins. (Katie, my wife, makes the best roasted pumpkin seeds.)

This night became somewhat of a sport, with my kids’ friends mapping out the most efficient route in our neighborhood and starring the “jackpots” of candy givers.

More and more I’ve noticed that Halloween is less about dressing up as witches, ghosts, and goblins, and more about reflecting pop culture and political views. If I had to bet on the most popular costumes for this year, Lady Gaga and the cast of ‘Jersey Shore’ would be at the top of my list.

I’m still deciding on my own costume, so suggestions are welcome. Please stop in and let me know! If you are on your way over, don’t hesitate to scare up some cookies for me.

As for Halloween night, whether you participate or not, keep an eye out: You never know if my sisters and I will be ringing your doorbell with cornhusks in hand.

I happen to know all the neighborhoods here in Happy Valley.