Boo! From Beau. My friend Florence carved this likeness of her dog.
Watching the TV series, Mad Men, can send me sauntering down memory lane. Sometimes, it’s downright spooky. Last Sunday’s final scene of the Draper family trick-or-treating brought to mind my days of power trick-or-treating. I remember the excitement building as we waited for my Dad to get home from work so he could take us out. Pumpkins glowed on all the porches, little witches, Supermen, hobos, princesses and gypsies flooded the streets and neighbors solicited for the March of Dimes. All of us little boomers were oblivious to the outside world as we traipsed around brand new suburban blocks of brick ranch houses filling our pillowcases with goodies. The news of homes that were giving out homemade popcorn balls, cookies or caramel apples spread like wildfire.
My Mom stayed home and handed out candy while Dad took us on the trek that often lasted several hours as we ran from house to house, block after block after block. When we returned home, we spread newspapers on the living room floor and emptied our half-full pillowcases, eating and sorting and trading our goodies. The loot went into individual bowls that we were able to nibble from over the following days— a snack for lunch bags, after school and after dinner–until the only candy remaining in the bottom of our bowls was lollipops sans the tootsie roll centers.
Because we lived in a small town, my children experienced a similar Halloween experience to the one I had. My Dad and Mom came by to enjoy the fun. Dad got a kick out of taking the kids out, and my Mom and I oohed and ahhed over the costumes and dropped candy into outstretched bags. I didn’t fret about glass in the kids’ candy or razor blades in apples like parents in the city did.
Today in most places I think trick or treating is a very controlled event. Parents are worried and rightfully so unfortunately.
At work today, there was a Halloween party for the children of employees. The office was creatively decorated, and little ones paraded by desks collecting candy as their proud parents enjoyed showing them off. One little boy, maybe about 2 years old, wore a little business suit and tie and his hair was slicked back, he was dressed as Mad Men’s Don Draper!
Without little ones around, Handsome Hunk and I have gotten sloppy about some of our holidays and Halloween is one of them. We bought a turban squash that is standing in for a pumpkin this year. Lame, I know.
But, my daughter’s due date is mid-November, maybe the little one will surprise us all by making a Halloween appearance!
What’s your favorite Halloween memory? What are you doing to celebrate this year?
My memories of Halloween go back a very long time…..but, I do have fond memories of that night – it really is for kids…they love it!!. I remember at least one house where we were invited in (before candy was offered), and we had to ‘perform’. Also, as I was probably 7 in 1932 toward the end of the depression, instead of calling out ‘trick or treat’, we called ‘help the poor’. We live now in a neighborhood where there are no small children. We will miss the fun.
My memories are similar but we were taken around the neighborhood by the older girls next door and we lived in a mixed neighborhood of old and new homes so of course, we thought the older homes were creepy and scared ourselves to death walking up creaky porch steps…same memories with the pillowcase and all the loot!
It turns out that Halloween may be more alive and well than I thought. Lots of reports from friends in the city that there are enclaves of city neighborhoods that were lively and fun with kids and parents out and about and neighbors sitting on porch stoops to enjoy the fun. Great news!