Halloween

It’s finally October, which always gets me to start thinking of the holidays.  And then I remember that before I can get to stuffing myself to death on turkey, we have to get through the worst holiday of the year.  Halloween.   

According to wikipedia (which we all know is the most credible source of information available today), Halloween did not come to the U.S. until the 19^th century.  Too soon if you ask me.  I believe my hatred of this day can be traced back to my elementary school years of trick-or-treating.  I was never the victim of an ‘egging’ or anything, but my dad thought of trick-or-treating as the legal acceptance of soliciting his children to beg for free stuff.  We were pushed from house to house until way past our bedtime in the attempt to get as much candy as possible…for my dad.  I don’t particularly care for most varieties of candy, so I saw no reward in this awful act of dressing up like an idiot, walking around at night and getting cold.  My dad encouraged my brother and I to move as fast as possible (RUN!) and to take the shortest route from house to house (Don’t go down the driveway, cut across the lawn!).  This is probably why I buy 4 times too much Halloween candy so I can give each kid that comes to my house two handfuls. 

As someone without children, I thought I’d be safe but, I still get constant reminders of this awful day.  The terrible decorations that people put up in front of their house; invitations to adult Halloween parties; and three days ago I heard my grandmother telling someone that I was born in Salem, Mass., the Halloween capital of the U.S. (my parents moved from there 1 week before I was born, thank god!). 

As a result of all of this trauma, I also have very strong negative feelings toward the color orange.  Which of course, I see each day here at agency.  So if you see me and I seem a bit testy, I’ve probably just been reading something on our letterheadJ.

-agotham