I don't care for Halloween....

It is now October 31 (Halloween), and I have put this off as long as possible. The truth is that I have never really cared for Halloween. As a child I guess it was ok, but ever since my mother decided that she didn't want me to have much candy and started making up lame excuses why she needed to throw it away right after Halloween, the fun has been gone! OK, I'm not scarred for life, but I do have a funny story about that. I was probably about 10 or 11 (which was near the end of my Trick-or-Treating days, because, as you all know, in my family nobody 12 or older was allowed to dress up or go out on Halloween...), and I had a large brown paper grocery bag about 9/10 full of candy by the time I got home on Halloween night - it was awesome, but heavy to lug around. The next afternoon after school I got the bag down off the shelf, intending to stuff my face, and our dog (a Black Lab named Buff, after a Collie named Buff in a book that my sister had just read when we got the dog - and, by the way, Collies are buff-colored, but Black Labs are not...) came over eagerly to see what was in the bag. Now this is where my mother's version of the story and mine seem to diverge. I saw Buff pass her head over the top of the bag once, without touching anything. My mother claimed that she put her head in the bag and drooled, so I had to throw it all away, even the wrapped stuff! (In those days we sometimes got unwrapped, homemade goodies from neighbors.) It was clearly a far-fetched excuse for getting rid of the candy she didn't want me to have in the first place, and I saw right through it, but I nevertheless had to comply. Bummer! Let me remind you that in those days I was not overweight or lazy at all - I was thin and very athletically active year-round, so I felt entitled to a little splurge and thought I was quite unjustly treated!

Years later when my own children started bringing home candy on Halloween night I began to understand my mother's point of view for the first time. That much sugar is sooooo bad in so many ways, so I resorted to stealing large amounts of the kids' candy so that they wouldn't have to eat it all and make themselves sick, or ruin their teeth. Haha, sure Mom, we really believe that one....

However, my real dislike of Halloween is probably based on the necessity of creating costumes year after year for all my children. I have never felt creative; I don't sew very well; and I hate wasting money on frivolous things. Ugh, it was always torture, especially when it sometimes felt like a competition or "keeping up with the neighbors" in costume creativity. I think all the kids were pretty young when I told them that from now on they were responsible for their own costumes.

One thing I do like, or did like, about Halloween is handing out candy to the adorable little kids who ring the doorbell. I'm not quite so keen on the teenagers who come later at night, however. On Wellesley Lane we had lots of younger children right on our street, and I enjoyed seeing them. Now that we are officially past middle age and are living in an empty-nester type neighborhood, the doorbell is quiet, although we did have one group tonight - luckily I brought some Tootsie Pops home from work. I will miss that part of Halloween, but in no way will I ever miss the costume preparation or the candy that hangs around the house for weeks afterwards!

You Stink!

When I was in Kindergarten I dressed up as a skunk for Halloween. It was a really cool black costume with white and black tissue paper running up the back of me. I was happy with the costume until I wore it to school for Halloween! I was attending Country Day Private School at the time, and I can remember swinging on the swings having another student tell me that I smelled. I was upset, but I got back at them by saying something smart about their costume. If I could only remember what I said! Needless to say, I was never a skunk again! I remember our school's Halloween costume parade in first grade. I can also remember being a baby for 4th grade wearing a big pink set of footie pjs! So fun! By far though I think my favorite Halloween costume would have to be when Kim Poyfair, Stacy Carleton, and I dressed up as the Dashwood sisters from Sense and Sensibility. I was Eleanore. We all wore fancy dresses, we did our hair in updos, and had a fabulous time at a barn dance! Here's to fun Halloween costumes.

Favorite Costumes

The picture of Erika as a die reminded me of one of my favorite costumes...my pirate costume! That and my cowgirl (although I pretended I was a cowBOY) were my favorites. I was never a big one for dressing up. I think that's why I was embarrassed to be a turtle. I was a cowboy for two years in a row though. I think 3rd and 4th grade. Those were the years that I was in LEAP so I had the same teachers for those two years (I hope they didn't notice). I probably would have done it again had I not grown out of my cowboy boots!

It's weird to think that now I love the whole idea of dressing up and I begin planning way ahead for ideas. This year Peter is probably going to be a black-eyed pea. I know, I've done that before, but he hasn't...and it's cheap! I'm thinking Benjamin might be a dragon. I'm a little nervous about giving him a black eye. For the dragon costume, I can just cut sponges diagonally and then attach them to his back! So this latter part didn't really turn out to be a memory, but I love you all!

I've Got Pictures!

Evidence of Erika's die:
Kristen and Erika in the laundry basket:
Unfortunately, I don't think I have any scanned of when DJ and I were turtles.

Die

I will always remember the year I was a die. I thought it was so creative of mom! And nobody else was that - ever. Now if I had been older, I may not have liked that the social interaction (i.e. flirting) wasn't so easy when you're stuck in a box! It also made holding a pillow case full of candy a bit challenging.

teenage mutant ninja turtle?

I don't remember how old I was (4, 5, 0r 6 is my guess) but one year for Halloween Mom dressed both DJ and me up as turtles. I was mighty embarrassed to be a turtle. So I told everyone at school that really I was a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle (Rafael to be exact) and that the rest of my costume was at home.

October's Topic

The topic for this month is HALLOWEEN!!!!!!! It's a pretty broad topic, so feel free to narrow it however you want and to post as many memories as you want! Love you all!

T$

Just a thought - puncutation free zone

I spend a lot of my time at a computer either researching or writing reports. The report writing is a very arduous task because it needs to as near to perfect as I can get them. I have been thinking that when Mom decides to stop working full-time I should hire her as a proof reader/editor.

The process is very time consuming, for me, and not my strength. The research, analysis, generating thought provoking ideas, organizing chaos and project fulfillment are my strengths and what I enjoy.

Therefore, I would propose that the Dorff Family Blog become a punctuation free zone. In the words of a fellow Harvard graduate e.e. cummings, "it just confuses them,?'

Thoughts,

Love,
Dad