All Hallows Eve

This is one of my favorite holidays and carving pumpkins, my favorite part. - Fern

Boo

In 2008 and 2009 I posted seasonally appropriate photos for Halloweeen on October 31. This year there were a couple of photos of a fogbank. This is the first year I can remember forgetting that it was Halloween. Later in the day and in the evening of the 31st October, of course I realized it was Halloween, but through most of the day I just thought it was a normal Sunday. While this might be creeping senility, I tend to think it has more to do with the changing nature of the holiday. There used to be more of a sense of catharsis associated with this particular holiday that is now lacking. Every year it becomes more toothless and safe. The fearmongers are winning.

Come in, come in...we've been waiting for you....

Heh, heh, heh....

Trick or Treat!

Halloween is interesting in that it is uniquely North American in many respects, though the festival has roots that go back to the Celtic Samhain and earlier. It's a holiday that is not liked much by church or state yet it persists. I like it because it is not quite politically correct. It's always a little bit wrong and though the PC police keep trying to clean it up and make it safer, they don't realize that its power and popularity stem from its breaking of the rules, its transgressions against the norms and its danger. Halloween is when we let our fears out.

Though we've grown pretty used to it, it is nevertheless very strange that on this one night we encourage our children to dress as demons or zombies or witches and roam the neighborhood to collect candy. And, whether we make these pumpkins into pie or not, if we're a North American householder, we'll probably have one on our porch, suitably carved with an evil grin and, when you think about it, that's pretty strange too.