2005-11-01

Halloween: the aftermath

Every Halloween I do this: right before I leave work, I'm seized with this sudden terror that we don't have enough candy. So I race over to CVS, where there's invariably a HUGE LINE of people who think the same way I do.

This year was no different. I grabbed a bag of "fun size" Milky Ways, and proceeded to wait in line.

Then I got home, changed into my "handing out candy" clothes (I pawed through my closet and found my old Goff duds, and told anyone who asked that I was dressed up as myself, circa 1989. I was HOTT!). And waited.

And waited.

We did eventually get a steady stream of kids around 7. We had a lot of princesses and vampires, plus a wee lion.

Now, maybe some of you budding cultural anthropologists can answer this, because in ALL the years we've lived in this neighborhood, NO ONE has ever been able to give me a satisfactory explanation. Our neighborhood is a mix of folks, and we have a fairly large Chinese population. EVERY year we get a handful of kids who DON'T DRESS UP. They're wearing their jeans and jackets, and have pillowcases full of loot just like all the wee lions and princesses. But no costumes.

I've asked my Chinese friends why this is, and they don't know. So I'm wondering if this has something to do with a particular province or region, or if it's a religious thing. Is it considered bad luck to don the garb of someone or something else?

My next-door neighbor, Sascha, is new to the building and the neighborhood. We sat on the stoop together and chatted, and around quarter after 7 a pair of small Chinese boys came up our walkway. Before I could nudge her and tip her off to this phenomenon, she began to jokingly scold the boys: "HEY! Where are your COSTUMES?! I don't know if I should be giving you any candy if you're not even gonna DRESS UP..."

The older of the two sheepishly said: "Our mother says no."

After they left, I tipped Sascha off: "I don't know WHY, but there are a few families here who don't let their kids dress up. Just so you know."

"Yikes. Now I feel kinda bad for giving those kids crap about it."

So, I am asking you chickens today. I am sincerely curious, so if anyone can enlighten me, so that I in turn can knowledgeably and respectfully enlighten my neighbors.

At any rate - we once again were stuck with a metric assload of candy at the end of the evening, most of which we brought into our respective offices. I don't know about the houseboy, but here at my workplace everyone else had the same idea. There's candy in the breakroom, at the front desk, spilling out of people's in-boxes. It's fuckin' RAINING candy in here.

Burp.

lisamcc at 1:33 p.m.

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