Post by The Curmudgeon on Oct 31, 2007 20:53:53 GMT 2
(Note: This is an old thread from the old site that I didn't port across (it seemed rather pointless in January). So I've blown the dust from it and given it a new lease of life. The original replies cannot be reproduced, sadly, so to see the original thread the link is ..
likeasquashedoctopus.blogspot.com/2006/10/just-in-time-for-halloween.html
Otherwise, leave new comments here.. and Happy Halloween!
Have kids got it too easy for Halloween now?
Now then, this post will depend on a few things, I would imagine. Such as:
1. Your age.
2. Your location.
3. Your childhood.
So, for those of who DID go out trick-or-treating (and not "still do", although I don't think there's anyone THAT young in here.. but you never know, do you?) I need to clear a few things up before I go on this rant. You see, different people I've talked to about this have different traditions and ideas to what the whole shebang is about. So I'll fill you in on what The Curmudgeon's Halloween used to entail..
You make your own costume, whether it's from things lying around the house (sneaking into your parents drawers and using their stuff if necessary), getting together with an equally excited gang of friends, going round doors and then telling a joke or singing a song to get your reward. That's what trick-or-treating has ALWAYS been to me.
Nowadays, though, (he says with a gruff sigh and a shake of the head), it's TOTALLY different. For one, the costumes kids have nowadays are rubbish. There is zero effort put into it now, and as a result the "costumes" now consist of a cheap plastic mask - and that's IT. The amount of times I opened the door last year to the same boring, unimaginative skeleton mask just defied belief.
And the kids don't DO anything anymore! No jokes, no songs (thankfully, I admit – listening to a bunch of tone-deaf idiots would be torture) and yet we're supposed to throw out sweets for that? A cheap, crap mask and an open hand? I don't think so.
I'll tell you a little anecdote about one of my first Halloween's (that I can remember, anyway). I must have been about seven and I had this sidesplitting, have-them-rolling-in-the-aisles joke to tell all of my punters..
Q: What goes tick tick woof?
A: A watch dog.
Big laughs all round, right? Except the first house I went into I got so shy and embarrassed I fluffed my line. This family had a cat, which may explain why I said..
"What goes tick tick... meow? A meow clock."
The “………….. riiiiiiiight..” look on their faces still haunts me today. I think they thought I was one of the special needs kids out on day release.
Anyway, back to my point. Kids have it FAR too easy for Halloween nowadays, and it's a fairly depressing show of today's society when 90% of the kids have to have their parents with them. Just another nail in the coffin for the glorious tradition of trick-or-treat.
So what was Halloween like for YOU? Did you tell jokes or anything like that? Did you make your own costumes? Or am I giving out telltale signs of my tragic upbringing?
likeasquashedoctopus.blogspot.com/2006/10/just-in-time-for-halloween.html
Otherwise, leave new comments here.. and Happy Halloween!
Have kids got it too easy for Halloween now?
Now then, this post will depend on a few things, I would imagine. Such as:
1. Your age.
2. Your location.
3. Your childhood.
So, for those of who DID go out trick-or-treating (and not "still do", although I don't think there's anyone THAT young in here.. but you never know, do you?) I need to clear a few things up before I go on this rant. You see, different people I've talked to about this have different traditions and ideas to what the whole shebang is about. So I'll fill you in on what The Curmudgeon's Halloween used to entail..
You make your own costume, whether it's from things lying around the house (sneaking into your parents drawers and using their stuff if necessary), getting together with an equally excited gang of friends, going round doors and then telling a joke or singing a song to get your reward. That's what trick-or-treating has ALWAYS been to me.
Nowadays, though, (he says with a gruff sigh and a shake of the head), it's TOTALLY different. For one, the costumes kids have nowadays are rubbish. There is zero effort put into it now, and as a result the "costumes" now consist of a cheap plastic mask - and that's IT. The amount of times I opened the door last year to the same boring, unimaginative skeleton mask just defied belief.
And the kids don't DO anything anymore! No jokes, no songs (thankfully, I admit – listening to a bunch of tone-deaf idiots would be torture) and yet we're supposed to throw out sweets for that? A cheap, crap mask and an open hand? I don't think so.
I'll tell you a little anecdote about one of my first Halloween's (that I can remember, anyway). I must have been about seven and I had this sidesplitting, have-them-rolling-in-the-aisles joke to tell all of my punters..
Q: What goes tick tick woof?
A: A watch dog.
Big laughs all round, right? Except the first house I went into I got so shy and embarrassed I fluffed my line. This family had a cat, which may explain why I said..
"What goes tick tick... meow? A meow clock."
The “………….. riiiiiiiight..” look on their faces still haunts me today. I think they thought I was one of the special needs kids out on day release.
Anyway, back to my point. Kids have it FAR too easy for Halloween nowadays, and it's a fairly depressing show of today's society when 90% of the kids have to have their parents with them. Just another nail in the coffin for the glorious tradition of trick-or-treat.
So what was Halloween like for YOU? Did you tell jokes or anything like that? Did you make your own costumes? Or am I giving out telltale signs of my tragic upbringing?
