I peruse the HalloweenForum quite often and someone recently made a thread about what would your dream Halloween be? I was only #11 posting so I'm sure there will be more interesting answers afterward. This was my answer....
I'd like the Halloween like you see in (non-horror 😄) movies - groups of happy, costumed kids roaming, colorful fallen / falling leaves, every house with the porch light on and glowing JOLs. That smell of crisp, cool fall air, hay bales and clear skies.
I live in Michigan so if it's not raining/snowing, we're already lucky enough to have perfect temperature weather. But all the senses get involved.
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Seeing the lights in the cemetery. The leaves on the ground and still in the trees.
Hearing the crunch of the leaves and wind thru the trees.
Smelling the crisp air and toasting pumpkin lids of the JOLs
Feeling the cool air.
Tasting the drink of choice, usually it's Zombie Killer cherry cider on H'ween night. And of the occasional piece of candy stolen out of the bucket...
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I always enjoy sitting out in the driveway after the tornado sirens go off, signalling the end of ToT and just finishing up my adult beverage and taking in the moment, sadly knowing that 24 hours from then, the whole display would be gone.
I remember one year when ~ I ~ was little, dressed as a ladybug. Black turtleneck sweater and black pants with a painted cardboard set of wings (this was the late 70s so homemade was common) and besides hating the black makeup Mom put on my nose, it was pouring rain so my wings were ruined. Another memory is when the Spawn was little (and dressed as a cow!) it was actually super warm that year and she was miserable in her little fake fur, pull over costume so we had to take it off. But on the other hand, there have been years when most kids come by trick or treating with winter coats on over their costumes.
Some favorite costumes that I've seen... A girl came up my driveway wearing box with her head sticking out of the top - she was a whack-a-mole game! She also commented that she didn't plan her costume well as she stuck her ToT bag out of her headhole. Another time, maybe the same girl, on one of those cold H'ween nights - came up wearing a puffy white jacket and a pool ring, carrying a Dunkin Donuts Muchkin box - she was a donut! Then a young couple came up, both wearing black suits and sunglasses. One of them was carrying their baby in a carrier on their chest - wrapped in a box with a Presidential Seal - they were Secret Service agents! Last year, a Dad wearing khakis and a jungle boonie hat came up with a wagon of 3 toddlers and one older child, all dressed like dinosaurs - the sign on the back of the wagon had the Jurassic Park logo!
This tangent could go on for a while so I better stop!
