The lovely Natalie J Damshroder is joining me today to share our memories - from opposite sides of the Atlantic - of Hallowe'en. But first a word about Natalie's releases, one coming out today and one tomorrow (you busy girl, Natalie!)
Behind the Scenes is a romantic adventure about a security expert who refuses to let her attraction to the movie star under her protection be a distraction…especially when it makes him a direct target. [Buy it here from today]
Under the Moon is a paranormal romance about a modern-day goddess who teams up with her protector—and forbidden soulmate—to track down the leech who’s been stealing power from other goddesses. [Buy it here from 1st November]
So. Memories of Hallowe'en?
Tumperkin: I grew up in Scotland in the late 70s/80s and Hallowe'en was hazardous, mainly due to the fact it was a pumpkin-free zone. We did Jack O'Lanterns in the Old Way - using turnips - very hard turnips. See picture above. They're both less impressive and oddly scarier.... It used to take my dad hours to hollow out one of those babies.
Trick or treating was also unknown. But we had our own (old old) version: 'Guising (short for disguising and pronounced accordingly). Guising wasn't done for treats but for money. Just pennies really. And the costumes in those days were always home-made. A bit rubbish-looking but loads of fun to make.
The best fun, though, was the Hallowe'en party at school: bobbing for apples and eating treacle-covered doughnuts hanging from the ceiling.
It's so different now! Kids' costumes tend to be bought, the supermarkets are filled with pumpkins and it's trick-or-treating all the way...
Natalie: My memories of Halloween are very different from today’s reality. I suppose that’s normal. I mean, things change from generation to generation. But I don’t have to like it.
Trick-or-treating when I was a kid seemed like an all-night affair. We didn’t leave until it was dark. I mean, what’s the point in going door to door in freaky costumes if the sun hasn’t even set? It was usually cold, which meant fights with our parents over wearing warm clothes or coats. We stayed out until we couldn’t take it anymore, or until our bags, pumpkin buckets, or pillowcases were too heavy to carry. Then we had hot cocoa and sorted through our loot.
Nowadays, there are RULES. It has to be between 6 and 8 p.m., which means it’s light when you start, and unless you’re really good, you never fill up completely. You can only go to homes with the porch/yard light on, which is fine, but eliminates any spookiness. No debates about whether or not to go up to someone’s door.
But you know what the worst part is? Here in central Pennsylvania, Halloween is almost never celebrated ON Halloween. Most towns do trick-or-treating on the Thursday before. They’ve even MOVED trick-or-treating to be a DIFFERENT day when Halloween fell on a Thursday! How messed up is that? The stores get rid of most of their candy before that, too. They’ve switched to Christmas a week before Halloween, so all that’s left is one tiny display of junk.
It kind of ruins the holiday for me. All my non-PA friends post about their Halloween plans, and I’m like, “Oh, yeah. That’s today.”
What’s your most enduring memory of Halloween? Do you love or hate the holiday?
Trick-or-treating when I was a kid seemed like an all-night affair. We didn’t leave until it was dark. I mean, what’s the point in going door to door in freaky costumes if the sun hasn’t even set? It was usually cold, which meant fights with our parents over wearing warm clothes or coats. We stayed out until we couldn’t take it anymore, or until our bags, pumpkin buckets, or pillowcases were too heavy to carry. Then we had hot cocoa and sorted through our loot.
Nowadays, there are RULES. It has to be between 6 and 8 p.m., which means it’s light when you start, and unless you’re really good, you never fill up completely. You can only go to homes with the porch/yard light on, which is fine, but eliminates any spookiness. No debates about whether or not to go up to someone’s door.
But you know what the worst part is? Here in central Pennsylvania, Halloween is almost never celebrated ON Halloween. Most towns do trick-or-treating on the Thursday before. They’ve even MOVED trick-or-treating to be a DIFFERENT day when Halloween fell on a Thursday! How messed up is that? The stores get rid of most of their candy before that, too. They’ve switched to Christmas a week before Halloween, so all that’s left is one tiny display of junk.
It kind of ruins the holiday for me. All my non-PA friends post about their Halloween plans, and I’m like, “Oh, yeah. That’s today.”
What’s your most enduring memory of Halloween? Do you love or hate the holiday?
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7 comments:
Loved reading your Halloween memories, ladies. Brought back some great ones of my own!
Halloween has become...I guess "civilized" is a good word. When I was young "trick or treat" meant exactly that. If no one came to the door to dispense the sugar, a trick was their due: tee-peeing their front yard; sticking a table knife under a clapboard, arcing it out and letting go, creating a remarkable noise inside the house; tipping over garbage cans; soaping windows. Once, we managed to get an outhouse onto a non-treater's front porch.
dick
I remember trick-or-treating in our neighborhood as a kid! Fond memories. We knew everyone, and everyone knew us. We got homemade popcorn balls, homemade cookies, huge candy bars, and caramel apples! Today's treats aren't even worth it.
I grew up in Wisconsin, and it was always cold on Halloween. My grandmother figured out the perfect costume--she made me a pointy hat and a huge black cape, which fit over my winter jacket. And it fit year after year!
Thanks, Angela, for stopping by and commenting! :)
Dick, YOUR'RE the reason for all the rules! LOL I was scolding my bosses the other day for the same thing. When I was a kid, we never DIDN'T get treats, so there was no reason to play tricks.
Barbara, the razor blades in apples when I was in elementary school put the kibosh on all that. It was my generation (well, mine doing the T&Ting, my parents who did the taking) who started taking candy to be x-rayed to be sure it was safe. I always preferred the candy to the pumpkin balls and bakes goods myself, anyway. :)
Kay, your grandmother was a clever woman! :)
Lived wayyyy out in the country during elementary school so we didn't do much trick or treating on the actual date but we had parties and costumes at school. When my kids were little we always made their birthday parties costume balls as everyone wanted an excuse to wear their costumes again! Fun post, enjoyed reading it!
Veronica, I love the reuse of costumes! And it made birthday party planning easier, too, I bet. ;)
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