Sunday, October 31, 2010

Happy Helloween.

I still feel bitchy.

So....


You know what? I don't really care for Halloween. The best part about it is seeing my kids in cute costumes but they do that everyday. If we want candy, I buy it at the store, so really? Halloween doesn't do much for me.

The kids, like all kids, think it's full of the awesome. Never mind that half their candy gets thrown out because they don't like that kind or the ends of their favorite costume gets frayed from dragging it down the asphalt street, but since everyone else loves it and is doing it, they must too.

Nine years ago when child one was a wee tot, I dressed him up and handed out candy to our old neighbors and was surprised to find so many "babies" trick-or-treating. I mean, my kid was eating solids at that time but there was no way I could make the argument that he was gumming caramel chews for dessert, yet there were newly birthed, still wrinkly red babies whose daddies were holding out their bag "for them". Really? I don't remember anyone doing that when we were kids. If you could walk, hold your own bag, and chomp the goodies, then you trick-or-treated. That was that.

As the years have gone by, I've noticed the adults are just scrapping the babies all together. Shoot, they don't even wear costumes. They hold out a used grocery bag and shoot me a scowl that says to me, "drop the Snickers or your dog gets it later", which from a thirty year old is kinda like extortion and isn't that a crime? I mean, shoot, we even taught our dog it wasn't nice to beg.

We now, and have for the past three Halloweens, lived in a gated community. The premise of which means you need to live here or know someone here to cruise our streets but, oh, to all the candy beggars it means we must have better candy than their place because each year someone actually jimmies the gate open and the whole town comes barreling through....MOST of them without actual children. On November 1, our homeowners association will have to pay part of our dues to have it fixed. Again.

Last year I bought ten bags of good chocolate candy. It was gone in fifteen minutes. I probably handed out one bag to our neighbors. Maybe four bags to kids.

I just don't understand why a grown adult would think it's okay to hijack a child's holiday just to save a few bucks at the supermarket. Or why they or their kids need so much of it. Wonder why America has an obesity problem? Maybe it started with Halloween.

This year my oldest has had his trick-or-treating privileges revoked so he will stay home with me and our bucket of candy. The good stuff. My neighbor's children will be treated nicely. I have another bowl filled with the apples and oranges that were on sale this week. I am just looking out for the gate-crasher's health.

Looking forward to November ya'll.

3 comments:

Fran said...

Apples and oranges!! That is AWESOME!! We are lucky and live in a small neighborhood in a small town so I only bought 2 bags of candy. This year they asked us to go out on Saturday and some of us did. I am sure there will be a lot out tonight (and many who decide to do both cause why not?). Kind of makes me want to hide. I too don't get the babies and non-costumed-extortionists. But the kids are happy and it's infectious.

Star said...

When we lived in town, we had a similar system... the kids who were the right age got the good chocolate, the parent's holding their too little guys & the too old teens got the .10 cent suckers.

Now we live in the sticks, and no one trick or treats here. I take my kids to town, but rather than choosing the 'good' street, we at least choose a place that has some significance, or reason for us being there. We've gone back to our old neighbourhood in the past, and we've gone to the bbsitters neighbourhood.

I do feel guilty though about taking the kids to get candy, while not giving it out. I tend to make a donation somewhere to ease the guilt right after halloween.

Mommy Daisy said...

Ugh...taking babies trick-or-treating is a huge pet peeve. Adults collecting candy for said babies is even worse.

I just wrote about that at my blog too. Would you believe that my friend who inspired that post took her 10 month old baby trick-or-treating for a 3rd time after I wrote that post!! 3 times! Really? And he's their only child.

I'm with you. My kid doesn't need that much candy, and I'm an adult who is perfectly capable of buying candy when I want it. I do not need to con my neighbors out of Snickers bars.