"I was working in the lab, late one night..."
It's Halloween. Or Hallowe'en. Or whatever you want to call it. All Hallow's Eve, I don't care. The holiday has lost its flavor. It's become, to me, as commercialized and pointless as Valentines day, without the possibility of obligatory holiday nooky at the end of the evening. This isn't a particularly surprising revelation; the holiday has never really had a point other than to boost candy sales and to give children the opportunity to dress like the little freaks they really are. Still, it makes me kind of sad to realize that something which once held so much magic and wonder now just mildly irritates me.
When I was little, I looked forward to Halloween. There were costume contests at school, the costumes themselves were SO much fun, and the candy, OH the candy, was enough to make me wear whatever the hell the adults wanted me to wear. This resulted, sadly, in my dressing as a cow for about five years in a row. Stupid cow costume. Nothing like showing up at school in what was essentially a black and white onesie with a big fake udder on the belly to really win the respect of the bigger kids. Anyway, once I finally got to start dressing as the Rocketeer things began to look up. Until the cheap polyester pants ripped and my Fruit of the Looms showed through, but I'm getting off topic.
I know why Halloween hypnotizes children. Candy and costumes come together to create a trap for children from which they cannot escape. And I guess I can see why adults still find it fun. It's got a sort of mysterious, romantic air to it; dress up as someone or something else and meet a masked stranger and then have sex in the office supply closet. OK, sure. But it's just no longer appealing to me. I don't want to put forth the effort to put together a costume that I'll wear for one night, which no one will find interesting or original, and which will then be forgotten completely because it's totally unimportant. And the holiday doesn't require getting together with family. Hell, it doesn't even require getting together with friends. You can spend a Halloween dressed like an idiot at your office, then come home and watch TV by yourself. It's just the end of October. I can eat Peanut Butter Cups any day of the year. True, they're not always sold at such amazingly slashed prices, but let's face it they're not that expensive to begin with.
I'm obviously being far too cynical here. Even a holiday for no real reason is still a holiday, and why sneer at it? But I can't help but be depressed by this one, for some reason. It just feels so thoroughly meaningless. I used to get SO excited about it. Now I just want everyone to shut up.
When I was little, I looked forward to Halloween. There were costume contests at school, the costumes themselves were SO much fun, and the candy, OH the candy, was enough to make me wear whatever the hell the adults wanted me to wear. This resulted, sadly, in my dressing as a cow for about five years in a row. Stupid cow costume. Nothing like showing up at school in what was essentially a black and white onesie with a big fake udder on the belly to really win the respect of the bigger kids. Anyway, once I finally got to start dressing as the Rocketeer things began to look up. Until the cheap polyester pants ripped and my Fruit of the Looms showed through, but I'm getting off topic.
I know why Halloween hypnotizes children. Candy and costumes come together to create a trap for children from which they cannot escape. And I guess I can see why adults still find it fun. It's got a sort of mysterious, romantic air to it; dress up as someone or something else and meet a masked stranger and then have sex in the office supply closet. OK, sure. But it's just no longer appealing to me. I don't want to put forth the effort to put together a costume that I'll wear for one night, which no one will find interesting or original, and which will then be forgotten completely because it's totally unimportant. And the holiday doesn't require getting together with family. Hell, it doesn't even require getting together with friends. You can spend a Halloween dressed like an idiot at your office, then come home and watch TV by yourself. It's just the end of October. I can eat Peanut Butter Cups any day of the year. True, they're not always sold at such amazingly slashed prices, but let's face it they're not that expensive to begin with.
I'm obviously being far too cynical here. Even a holiday for no real reason is still a holiday, and why sneer at it? But I can't help but be depressed by this one, for some reason. It just feels so thoroughly meaningless. I used to get SO excited about it. Now I just want everyone to shut up.