Are there many treaters?

[Stormin Mormon]

Last year I got about 50, and it was pretty even between boys and girls. By 7:15 tonight, 18 boys and 8 girls.

Maybe everyone's worried about the flu? Glad I didn't buy a lot of candy.

[Han]

"Stormin Mormon" wrote in news:hcigfg $5pf$ [e-mail]:

We had a lot, similar to or more than other years. Of course, it was a Saturday here, temps around 70F. So far less hoodlummy teens than in other years, but it's only 7:35. As usual, by this time we're out of candy, and the lights are off and the door closed.

Here is:

[JIMMIE]

g

Raining here, turn out is practically nil.

Jimmie

[Kurt Ullman]

Looks like a little lighter than last year but not by much. Just under 6 bags of candy with 10 minutes left. Then off to OUR party

[mm]

I'll bet the flu had a lot to do with it. I wonder how many people will catch the flu waiting in line for the vaccine.

I bought my candy on Thursday, and had eaten almost a third by 8PM last night. (out of 3 bags, two of mint 3 musketeers and one of of peanut butter with choclate and nuts something)

I never before forgot, but at 7:00, I remembered it was Halloween, and I plugged in my second floor doorbell**, and went downstairs to turn on the light. However the light wouldn't go on. Not even a little bit (it has a photocell that makes it hard to turn on, and if I don't keep the door open and stay in the hall, I don't even know if I've succeeded. But this time I know I didn't.)

I looked outside and there was no one. Of course it is raining, a lot of small drops, or heavy mist, something like that.

Of course I did everything right last year and I think I had no one. I've been meaning to ask my neighbor Debbie if she had anyone last year, and now I see a whole year has gone by.

I'm also tucked away one house down a dead-end sidewalk and hidden behind trees. A lot of people don't even know I'm here, but I woudl expect children to be more well-traveled and more observant.

**It's been unplugged for two weeks because it kept buzzing periodically even when no one was pushing the button downstairs.

[mm]

Here too!

Here too.

I won't even give out candy until it is dark.

[Big Bob]

Just turned 7:00 here, St. Louis area. Haven't had a single treater yet. Looks like a lot of candy will go to the freezer

[Stormin Mormon]

Final report 36 boys, 19 girls.

[HeyBub]

'Bout the same as last year. In 2008, we had zero trick-or-treaters.

So far this year, it's running at the same rate as last year. But I'm prepared.

I have candy left from - actually - three years ago when we did have a trickster.

Just checking, there's only enough for one kid, or possibly one group of kids. The five-pound bag of gumdrops has morphed into a five-pound gumdrop.

[Tony]

I got the same as the last 4 or 5 years, none. I'm out in a very rural area, most homes are on 3 to 7+ acres, sometimes also separated by cow pastures. My driveway is 1/10 mile long and one hell of a workout to walk up.

Now you made me hungry.

[hallerb]

normally 20 to 30........

tonight just 7. weather pretty nice, not cold rain had ended...........

perhaps people are running scared

[Marina]

"HeyBub" wrote in news:7t6dnd1IWP8VfXHXnZ2dnUVZ [e-mail]:

Didn't have any this year. Most of my neighbors keep their outside lights turned off. Besides there aren't any kids living around here. We only get the ones who parents drive them around in cars. what is that for?? This nonsense of going to strangers houses for candy should be banned. It's just not the same as when we were kids. They should go to friends houses. Or else some of the malls hold trick or treat for the youngsters.

[aemeijers]

When they are three feet tall, and wearing a costume with headgear (and around here, a winter jacket against the high-30s wind chill), and too shy to speak, how do you tell the gender? ) Other than assuming princesses are female, and action figures are male, of course.

I didn't keep count, but they left me maybe a dozen pieces from two of the big Sam's club bags of the name-brand chocolate 'fun size' assortments, and most of the kids only took one. If the outer labels on the bag were correct, and counting what I ate and have left, I had maybe

180 or so kids, unless some of their tiny hands were better at palming extra pieces than I thought. I'd growl when the ten year olds got grabby, but what are you going to say to a toddler?

Froze my ass off sitting out there for two hours, until I was almost out of candy. And to bring this on-topic for the group, I really gotta replace that fubar'd front porch with something little kids can actually climb up without hurting themselves, so I can pass out candy through front door like a civilized person. The steps face where the sidewalk used to be, to the old driveway leading to the now-buried original basement garage. When idiot previous owner (or the idiot before him, not sure) put the addition and new garage on, they cheaped out and didn't replace the front stoop to make the steps face the new walkway. So, you step on to the END of the lowest step, then have an extra-high step before you get to the porch. Then they added a cast step on top of that, since the front door sill was still too high, pouring it against the siding, without flashing, so it traps water behind it. The arc of the opening storm door leaves only a tiny triangle to stand, with nothing to hang on to except the door itself. Whole damn thing needs to be demo'd and redone properly, about 2 feet wider. Really needs an awning above it too, since there is almost no overhang on front of house, but there is almost no wall showing above the front door. Real good example of why inset front door became so popular in the 60s and early 70s- you NEED a small front porch for safety and weather protection.

-- aem sends...

[mm]

This would make a good Halloween movie, a bunch of 4 to 8 year old ghouls fighing over the five pound gumdrop, each eating from one side.

My mother and I too probably knew all the kids on our street, which was in practice two long blocks long. I wasn't home but my mother said kids came from other places, and she took to buying cheaper candy for kids she didn't know. This was when people didn't give away fun-size bars, but full size bars. (which were even more fun) One year my mother found Klein bars, which were like Hershey bars but cheaper I think. IIRC they were 3 cents when full-size Hershey bars were 5 cents. So that's a lot of money, and they were just as good. I was 7. I've never seen them befor or since.

Now it occurs to me they might have been from only one block north or south. By the time we were 8, we went a block north, even though we never went there the rest of the year. Except to go to Bush's, the corner market. They lived a half block down the street and gave the best stuff, we found out. One year they gave ice cream bars.

The market is gone now. It's a medical supply house for all the old people. 4 blocks southwest of it was the junior high school and caddy corner, the toy store. The toy store is gone now. It's a medical supply house, for all the old people.

Of course now the old people are going, and soon their houses will be sold to younger people, I guess. If they are young enough, there will be more children, they'll reopen the grammar school (which is now leased to a Christian community center, probably mostly for old people. I think it was closed when I was there, and I didn't go in.).

[mm]

My neighbor says it was the rain that kept them away. IIRC I trick or treated in the rain when necessarly.

[Jon Danniken]

I had a couple dozen come by. It wasn't as many as I had hoped, but I still found a couple to keep.

Jon

[Walter R.]

I realize, the so-called scare of trick-and-treaters is only make-belief. Although, sometimes kids will generate some damage if they are not pleased with the offerings.

I feel that we are setting a poor example for our children when we encourage them to scare people with the objective of obtaining goodies.

Maybe they become the adults who hold up banks with toy guns, and then progress to real guns.

The whole idea of scaring people in order to obtain candies is quite repulsive - even if it is only make-belief. Are these the principles we want to imbue in our children?

[Stepfann King]

"Jon Danniken" wrote in news: [e-mail]:

heh heh heh

[Erik]

I kept the house dark this year, and went out dog walking with a friend during peak T or T time...

Nice weather here tonight in W Los Angeles. I think there were more treaters out than I can ever remember, and I'm 55 and grew up in the area.

Erik

[Nate Nagel]

Hmm, had none the last couple years, finally got a couple this year, but seriously, 10 or fewer.

nate