Come closer, little children, and let me reward your bravery
THE SETUP: black garbage bags everywhere in my area, up the walls and on the floors and across the door. Lights off in that part of the house. Candles. The Toothy Tongue V2, with googly eyes. Me: All black, dark hair over my face. It's dusk/night.
PICTURES: Later.
THE REACTIONS----
Girls: [stopping right at the edge of my den of EEEEVIL] O_O Are you real?
Me, slyly: Come a little closer.
Girls: [edge forward] Trick or treat!
Boy: There's something up there! IT MOVED!
Me: ...
Boy uncertainly walking by the house: HEY, WHO ARE YOU?
Me tilting my head to the side: ...
Boy walking away: OKAY, I'M SCARED NOW.
Me: Don't you want some candy?
Boy: YEAH!!
[a few run up]
Boy seriously freaked out: Hey, can you take of your mask?
Me: This is my real face.
Boy: OH. It's dark and I can't see. I thought you were a ghost or a grim reaper!
Boy as he's leaving: THAT FREAKED ME OUT.
Girl: WHOA.
[Carefully, she pokes me in the arm with her devil's trident.]
Me: STOP.
Girl: [puts it down immediately] Okay.
Also stopped a boy from just grabbing candy from the bowl. He giggled nervously the whole time.
Boy as he finally gets a good look at his surroundings: Trick or tre--Whoa. O_O
Some high school age boys appear (the oldest of the night). Two start walking up the driveway, a third seems frozen on the sidewalk. He had to be coaxed by his friends. They will probably rib him for the next year about it.
Dad: I'll carry you after the next house, okay? Ooo, it's spooky! Look at the goofy pumpkin with the tongue!
4-5 year old in Buzz costume: O______O
Dad: Go on, pal!
Boy: [FROZEN. ON. DOORSTEP.] [WIBBLES IN FEAR - No, I am serious he was making sounds like 'wibble' and 'bibby' and otherwise]
Dad, very amused: [puts him on the porch] Say trick or treat!
Boy: O____O [in a tiny voice, probably on reflex] trick or treat
BEST REACTION GOES TO
Girl: Go in!
Boy: [FROZEN. ON. DOORSTEP.] I can't!
Girl: [coming up the driveway] Why not?
Boy: There's a DEAD MAN in here!!
Girl: [gets a good look at me] PFFFTAHAHAHAHAHA
Me: [same reaction as her]
Boy: Oh.
Later I heard him run by on his way back home. How did I know?
Boy: There's a DEAD MAN in that house, but it's actually a REAL PERSON!!
Passing mom after her kid gets back: Too cool!
Girls: [SILENT]
Me: Do you want a trick or a treat?
Girls: Trick or treat...
Mom: No one's there, the light's off.
Dad, grinning because he can see me quite well: No, there's someone here.
Girl: I like your house O_O
Boy: Why did you decorate your house like this?
Little boy about 2-3 years old: O_______O [bypasses my house completely]
COMPLETELY UNRELATED
Girl as she's coming up the drive: He said 'Your butt's got a crack in it, you need a new one.'
SAME KIDS BUT RELATED
Girl, looking at my tongue pumpkin: Who actually makes pumpkins with lights and... [sudden silence as she reaches the porch so I have no idea where she was going with that.]
Girl: O_O Are you gonna scare us?
Me: No.
Girl: Whew! I thought you were fake.
Boy: Is this house the Asian people?
Other Boy: Yep.
Both, as they get to the porch: O_____O
Me: . . .
There was also a nice young lady so delighted with the set up that she paused on the porch and informed me about the next group coming. I, of course, thanked her politely. You could tell she thought I was damn awesome.
Several kids had to be encouraged by friends to come up. For some, I stayed as still as possible until they said 'Trick or treat!', but as you can see above, one set I had to prompt.
Quite a few halted right on the step below the porch, staring with growing trepidation. Obviously some of the smaller kids had to be pushed forward to get their candy.
There were some that didn't go up at all. I said to one girl of a set of three "To the brave soul who managed to make it up here" but she ran off almost immediately.
There are a few high school kids coming by every, oh, thirty minutes now. Not worth staying out there in the cold (and by cold I mean two feet of snow).
PICTURES: Later.
THE REACTIONS----
Girls: [stopping right at the edge of my den of EEEEVIL] O_O Are you real?
Me, slyly: Come a little closer.
Girls: [edge forward] Trick or treat!
Boy: There's something up there! IT MOVED!
Me: ...
Boy uncertainly walking by the house: HEY, WHO ARE YOU?
Me tilting my head to the side: ...
Boy walking away: OKAY, I'M SCARED NOW.
Me: Don't you want some candy?
Boy: YEAH!!
[a few run up]
Boy seriously freaked out: Hey, can you take of your mask?
Me: This is my real face.
Boy: OH. It's dark and I can't see. I thought you were a ghost or a grim reaper!
Boy as he's leaving: THAT FREAKED ME OUT.
Girl: WHOA.
[Carefully, she pokes me in the arm with her devil's trident.]
Me: STOP.
Girl: [puts it down immediately] Okay.
Also stopped a boy from just grabbing candy from the bowl. He giggled nervously the whole time.
Boy as he finally gets a good look at his surroundings: Trick or tre--Whoa. O_O
Some high school age boys appear (the oldest of the night). Two start walking up the driveway, a third seems frozen on the sidewalk. He had to be coaxed by his friends. They will probably rib him for the next year about it.
Dad: I'll carry you after the next house, okay? Ooo, it's spooky! Look at the goofy pumpkin with the tongue!
4-5 year old in Buzz costume: O______O
Dad: Go on, pal!
Boy: [FROZEN. ON. DOORSTEP.] [WIBBLES IN FEAR - No, I am serious he was making sounds like 'wibble' and 'bibby' and otherwise]
Dad, very amused: [puts him on the porch] Say trick or treat!
Boy: O____O [in a tiny voice, probably on reflex] trick or treat
BEST REACTION GOES TO
Girl: Go in!
Boy: [FROZEN. ON. DOORSTEP.] I can't!
Girl: [coming up the driveway] Why not?
Boy: There's a DEAD MAN in here!!
Girl: [gets a good look at me] PFFFTAHAHAHAHAHA
Me: [same reaction as her]
Boy: Oh.
Later I heard him run by on his way back home. How did I know?
Boy: There's a DEAD MAN in that house, but it's actually a REAL PERSON!!
Passing mom after her kid gets back: Too cool!
Girls: [SILENT]
Me: Do you want a trick or a treat?
Girls: Trick or treat...
Mom: No one's there, the light's off.
Dad, grinning because he can see me quite well: No, there's someone here.
Girl: I like your house O_O
Boy: Why did you decorate your house like this?
Little boy about 2-3 years old: O_______O [bypasses my house completely]
COMPLETELY UNRELATED
Girl as she's coming up the drive: He said 'Your butt's got a crack in it, you need a new one.'
SAME KIDS BUT RELATED
Girl, looking at my tongue pumpkin: Who actually makes pumpkins with lights and... [sudden silence as she reaches the porch so I have no idea where she was going with that.]
Girl: O_O Are you gonna scare us?
Me: No.
Girl: Whew! I thought you were fake.
Boy: Is this house the Asian people?
Other Boy: Yep.
Both, as they get to the porch: O_____O
Me: . . .
There was also a nice young lady so delighted with the set up that she paused on the porch and informed me about the next group coming. I, of course, thanked her politely. You could tell she thought I was damn awesome.
Several kids had to be encouraged by friends to come up. For some, I stayed as still as possible until they said 'Trick or treat!', but as you can see above, one set I had to prompt.
Quite a few halted right on the step below the porch, staring with growing trepidation. Obviously some of the smaller kids had to be pushed forward to get their candy.
There were some that didn't go up at all. I said to one girl of a set of three "To the brave soul who managed to make it up here" but she ran off almost immediately.
There are a few high school kids coming by every, oh, thirty minutes now. Not worth staying out there in the cold (and by cold I mean two feet of snow).