By you people, I don't really mean YOU. I am referring to all the parents out there that are not taking their kids trick or treating. I thought it was just me, but it seems like a lot of us didn't get too many trick or treaters for Halloween. In fact, for the second year in a row, I didn't have a single child knock on my door begging for candy. What's going on? Do people not go trick or treating anymore? You can't blame the economy on this one, can you?
Growing up in a rural area, I never had the pleasure of passing out candy on Halloween. I lived in the same house my entire life and we never had a single trick or treater. When I moved to California, I thought all of that would change. I was thrilled at the opportunity to scare children when I answered the door and to check out the creative costumes. Nope. Dreams shattered. I have lived here for four and a half years now and I can probably count the trick or treaters on one hand.
Is trick or treating destined to become a dying tradition? Will dressing up in skanky costumes and drinking as much beer as humanly possible become the sole activities of Halloween? I also don't see nearly as many jack-o-lanterns, haunted houses/corn mazes, and decorations as I used to. The tradition is slowly falling apart. I even attended a Halloween party on the 30th where the costumed guests were less than 1/5 of the attendants, where there were zero decorations, and where absolutely none of the activities had to do with Halloween. It wasn't a Halloween party; it was an excuse to get drunk. Although this accounts for the festivities of the 20 and 30 somethings, what about the children? They don't have parties and alcohol to distract them from the holiday, but the general attitude of apathy appears to be spreading to all ages.
This was a just a random thought after reading some blog posts about the lack of trick or treaters out there. What do you guys think? How many trick or treaters did you get? Do you see the same changes I do?
Admittedly, I didn't take mine this year, either. With the media scares about swine flu, the economy like it is, and my health of late, none of us felt like it at all. My kids didn't even care. But, there is a movement going around right now where a lot of parents are skipping the "Pagan/Satantic" practices of Halloween. That, plus the fact safety is on the wane in recent years, makes trick or treating a casualty.
ReplyDeleteWe got NO trick or treaters either, and I live in the rural South. But, a lot of ours is because it's largely Baptist around here and they don't like Halloween.
Trick or treating has been on steady decline for the last 10 years, and, sad as it may sound, I do look to see that practice die out eventually in the US.
We didn't have many either - and now I have a ton of leftover candy.
ReplyDeleteI didn't even think of the Swine flu being an issue. But I guess that makes sense.
ReplyDeleteI don't get trick or treaters, Becky. I live in a building where you have to buzzed in and so I don't get many little guys coming around. Although there are LOTS of kids in the neighborhood. And I'm usually not home on Halloween, either, and this year was no exception.
ReplyDeleteWhen I lived downtown, however, I got LOTS of trick or treaters, although I speculated many of them were too old to be out trick or treating anyway.
As far as the excuse to get drunk thing, I consider Halloween night pretty much the same as New Year's Eve - a fucking amateur night. No one really gives a fuck about either night, they just pretend they do so they can get wasted. Dumb. I can get wasted just as heartily here at my house any night of the week, you dumbasses, and I do AND I never take the Halloween decorations down.
Let's live every day like it's Halloween, the month of October or not. I know I already do! And if I were to ever birth anything from my vagina, which I won't ever be doing, rest assured, I would dress it up and take it trick or treating. Maybe one day if I ever become a auntie.
We were at the World Series, but my neighbors told us they got no one except punk kids not dressed up asking for candy. Lucky I wasn't home because that's when you get the trick from me... freezing water from my water hose on the front lawn!
ReplyDeleteI never missed a Halloween until I was legally forced to legally seize trick-or-treating at the age of 16. A very sad day, indeed.
I got a total of zero trick or treaters, and I'm OK with that....
ReplyDeleteIt just means I get to eat the candy I'd bought for them.
I moved to Dallas from San Diego (where I would frequently have to close up shop, run to the store and buy more candy after I had already purchased about 10 lbs.). Out here its the crazy bible belt and local churches promoting 'harvest festivals' instead of halloween carnivals. I might get 2 kids total every year. I was so depressed the first year I came out here. That's why I bought a house in the first place! I love the spirit and fun that is halloween and have so many fond memories as a child. Now its an excuse to further over insulate our youth (i.e. can't let them outside because there are molesters everywhere!).
ReplyDeleteSadly, I think the holiday is dying off and being reserved as a night of excused debauchery among the douchebag populace. Sigh.
Jenn-That was quite the call to arms! And I love it. :D
ReplyDeletePlanet of Terror-Very well put towards the end there.
Your right! I think its cali tho.... I should ask my parents what they got for trickr treaters
ReplyDeleteIf I lived somewhere where it was just a bunch of random kids I didn't know, I might get into the spirit of the thing and hand out some candy.
ReplyDeleteBut as it is, the only kids around here are the grubby little mongoloid piss-pots who make too much noise and vandalize the outside of our townhouse complex and basically make horrible nuisances of themselves year 'round. So fuck them, I'll have the candy, thanks very much.
I just wanted to chime in and say that I'm pleased to read that others feel Halloween is being abused, transmuted, or forgotten.
ReplyDeleteIt's an issue I've been struggling with for the last few years and the comments here mirror my own. Especially those related to amateurish douchebaggery.
Cave men? Slutty (insert profession)? Where are the hoary goblins that patrol the streets and cart these folks off to the underworld? Where's Sam Hain when you need him?
It must be about location. I live in a suburban area right outside of Boise, Idaho. I took my daughter trick or treating and my wife stayed home and passed out candy. I saw a lot of kids out on the street--nothing like when I was a kid back in the 80's--not even close, but there were enough to make it fun. We also carved 5 pumpkins the weekend before--that we purchased from a pumpkin patch, with a hayride and all that jazz. Halloween is still well and alive here.
ReplyDeleteWe took my 2-year-old and his best friend, a 3-year-old, out trick-or-treating. All of us were dressed up, and everyone had a blast. My kid doesn't even eat candy but we wanted to carry the tradition on because that's what holidays are about, traditions.
ReplyDeleteWhat's funny, is we only hit a couple houses on our own street, then went up the block to the "well lit" street. And I was happy to see some of the houses really went all out! Plus, it was really cool to have some of the older kids passing out candy to the little guys instead of kocking on your door in half-assed costumes or hucking pumpkins at cars.
But for some reason I was disappointed to find out only 5 people knocked on our own door. The conclusion I came to was our street doesn't have enough street lights. Plus the ratio of grumpy old farts to families with kids is like 6-1.
We got loads of trick r' treaters...
ReplyDelete...and I hated every one of them. It's just so weird and awkward. Blech.
We didn't get any trick or treaters at our door this year, either! A few years ago, when I lived in San Diego, we had a few, but back in Atlanta we had like two or three last year and not a one this year!
ReplyDeleteIt was really pitiful, because my wife and I bought a crapload of candy and when no one showed up, we were forced to gorge on it ourselves. There's nothing sadder than a couple of lone adults on a sugar high on Halloween night.
Way to speak for all of us Becks, I was so disappointed when we took Autumn out for her first trick r treat. There couldnt have been more than 10 houses with lights on around the one block we took her, and theres no way there were more than 20 kids on the street at a time. Sad, really sad. We will bring her by the house next year to cheer you up!
ReplyDeleteHalloween is an abomination and it must be destroyed with malice-a-fore-thought and extreme prejudice. By the way, i`m a pious atheist and an anti-theist so i feel the same way about religion in all its forms.
ReplyDeleteGood for you...I'm sure you have a great time in your faithless, soulless, boring existence where all that matters is yourself.
ReplyDeleteYes perhaps i am a murderously bitter individual but at least i know that god and the devil are both a load of old ludicrous nonsense and that is all that matters the truth that we are all totally alone in a forboding and unforgiving universe, being in touch with that ultimate truth is better than living a lie.
ReplyDeleteI think it's rather presumptuous to assume you know how the world works with utter certainty and rather hypocritical to chastise others for holding convictions that happen to be different from yours.
ReplyDeleteYou are obviously quite confused because a "pious atheist" would never claim there is an ultimate truth. Indeed, if there is any ultimate truth, it would be making the case for the world religions. If you were to spend a little more time looking into people of faith and the philosophy of religion, you will discover that there is more to religion than ritual and belief in otherworldly beings. You are collapsing into the social realm and refusing to look at anything else.
Becky, its always been obvious to me that i am attending a completely unsupervised affair (along with six billion other poor bastards) anyone who beleives that there is a supernatural supervisor of some kind is obviously suffering from severe mental health problems. Now i suggest you go to Youtube and listen to everything that Richard Dawkins, Christopher Hitchens, Jonathan Miller, Sam Harris and Daniel Dennett have to say on the matter, they will educate you with regards to the mind-boggling absurdity and idiocy of all religious belief.
ReplyDeleteBecky - check your e-mail.
ReplyDeleteMy last response: If you want to spread your ideas like a crazed evangelical, then go ahead and do it somewhere else.
ReplyDeleteThank-you for responding Becky, i appreciate it.
ReplyDelete