I feel grinchy about Halloween. I'm no good at costumes and really never have been. There's a thing at work where a bunch of related teams are doing Earth/Air/Fire/Water themes; my team is fire. A co-worker dressed up as the "This Is Fine" dog, which is great, but I've got nothing.
At home my kid is going out in the same "costume" he's been using for a few years, which is a cloak and a walking stick with a skull on it (a real animal skull, courtesy of my dad's weird collection habits, with LEDs in the eye sockets). I'm proud of having put together the walking stick, so of course that's the part he's considering leaving behind because he wants his hands free to grab more candy. My only effort this year has been nagging him to actually *ask* the friends he went with last year if they are doing it again this year, instead of just assuming that it will be so.
I bought full-size candy bars to give out, because we typically get like four trick-or-treaters on our street.
a walking stick with a skull on it (a real animal skull, courtesy of my dad's weird collection habits, with LEDs in the eye sockets
Well I remember the field exercise, after a particularly cold winter, where the entire training area seemed to be strewn with the bones of sheep that hadn't made it to spring, which is how we ended up with most of a platoon going in on the final attack with sheep skulls bungeed to their helmets, including some who had used the stuff from cyalume sticks to make the eye sockets glow. Not an image I'll forget in a hurry.
I'll be giving out art supplies instead of candy. My theory is that if there are a bunch of leftover boxes of crayons or sidewalk chalk in the house, I won't eat them.
Halloween in the library, the whole photo shoot is hilarious. Im not on instagram and my mom who looks at our socials sent it to me. Our students are the best.
https://x.com/barryfreednyc/status/1851652257017655368?s=46&t=nbIfRG4OrIZbaPkDOwkgxQ
I feel like we've been more casual than usual about mixing the kid's candy loot from pre-Halloween events ("PumpkinPalooza" at a local park last week or "Boo at the Zoo" the week before, for example) with the candy we're planning on giving out. Realistically, the biggest problem this causes is my sugar intake. The kid is definitely getting enough candy either way.
Last year the kid trick-or-treated as Luna Lovegood. She thought about doing the same thing this year, but changed at the last minute to a vampire. That might be interesting. We're also worried it'll be a little sad. Two friends in the neighborhood she used to trick-or-treat with regularly have moved for various reasons. We have plans with school friends instead, but can't be sure it'll be the same.
You're the third family I've heard doing Pokemon. I'm Ash, I have two Snorlax and a pikachu.
I made a date to go doorknocking for a local candidate this afternoon, without realizing what day it is. Maybe I'll earn some candy?
I'm impressed - that Pokemon seems to have a lot of layers and frills!
We had an old red dragon mask and tail. We bought a Koreidon hoodie online.
- I made a crown of feathers, and two antennae that are pretty wobbly.
- I made a sparse feather-wreath for his tail feathers
- I took about 1/3 of a Lightning McQueen tire innertube, stuffed it with newspaper, and sewed it to the front of the hoodie.
The tire part is the only part that worked well, I'd say. The rest is sufficiently functional.
Maybe combine this with the election anxiety thread for Halloweed...
It's a strong year for Olympics costumes: Raygun the breakdancer; French pole vaulter; Pommel Horse Nerd; and Turkish Pistol Guy are all very workable. My boyfriend put together a very convincing TPG from a T-shirt doctored with a Sharpie, a water pistol, and a little flour in his hair after a useful resemblance was pointed out to him last night.
Korean Pistol Woman could work too, but for that you'd need to do a good job on the weirdo shooting glasses, which might be hard.
If I'd had a chance to dress up I would have gone as the democrat who controls hurricanes and the weather.
Blackface is usually inappropriate these days.