# Ever had your house TPed? Or TP a house yourself? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [June 29, 2025, 12:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ever-had-your-house-tped-or-tp-a-house-yourself/1020248 "2025-06-29T12:35:19Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 16\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![TokyoBayer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tokyobayer/32/13989_2.png) [@TokyoBayer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TokyoBayer)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2025, 2:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ever-had-your-house-tped-or-tp-a-house-yourself/1020248/41 "2025-07-02T14:25:47Z")
Well, and it’s not like my friends and I were particularly inventive. It was a thing. Kids in our high school were doing that to each for for years before I ever set foot there. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2025, 2:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ever-had-your-house-tped-or-tp-a-house-yourself/1020248/42 "2025-07-02T14:33:21Z")
Agreed. It was hardly original with my/our generation. @Der_Trihs is IIRC, a bunch younger than most of us. I’m wondering if TPing has become obsolete in the last 30 years along with so much of the feral free-play childhoods my generation enjoyed. ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2025, 2:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ever-had-your-house-tped-or-tp-a-house-yourself/1020248/43 "2025-07-02T14:33:35Z")
> [@TokyoBayer](#): > > Congratulations. I’m sure you were a great teenager. Well, I may not agree with D-T’s posts, but that’s a silly comment. I never TPd anyone, and I wouldn’t prank anyone I liked like that. That’s dumb. And yes I was a great teenager. [Yoda] Pranks not make one great. ---
**Author:** ![TokyoBayer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tokyobayer/32/13989_2.png) [@TokyoBayer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TokyoBayer)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2025, 2:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ever-had-your-house-tped-or-tp-a-house-yourself/1020248/44 "2025-07-02T14:39:42Z")
> [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](#): > > That’s dumb. Of course it’s dumb. We were 17-year-old boys. We did stupid shit, most of which was fairly harmless. But I’m happy for anyone who never did anything stupid when they were young. > [@LSLGuy](#): > > I’m wondering if TPing has become obsolete in the last 30 years along with so much of the feral free-play childhoods my generation enjoyed. Yeah, kids were free range back then. It was a different era. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2025, 2:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ever-had-your-house-tped-or-tp-a-house-yourself/1020248/45 "2025-07-02T14:45:54Z")
> [@TokyoBayer](#): > > Of course it’s dumb. We were 17-year-old boys. We did stupid shit, most of which was fairly harmless. That’s the Prime Directive of my youth. From about age 10 to 22. It truly was a Golden Age. ---
**Author:** ![TokyoBayer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tokyobayer/32/13989_2.png) [@TokyoBayer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TokyoBayer)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2025, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ever-had-your-house-tped-or-tp-a-house-yourself/1020248/46 "2025-07-02T14:53:00Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > That’s the Prime Directive of my youth. From about age 10 to 22. It truly was a Golden Age. Yup. I can laugh at my youth for the stupid shit I did back then. It was the stupid shit I did after I became an adult (of a different catagory) that keeps me up at night. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2025, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ever-had-your-house-tped-or-tp-a-house-yourself/1020248/47 "2025-07-02T14:55:45Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > I’m wondering if TPing has become obsolete in the last 30 years along with so much of the feral free-play childhoods my generation enjoyed. That has been my perception. It’s largely a thing of the past. > [@solost](#): > > That’s interesting-- here in the greater Detroit area we called the night before Halloween ‘Devil’s Night’. Anybody else have their own regional nicknames for the mischievous doings on the night before Halloween? There are many regional names for it. I think New Jersey there are several different names depending on what part of the state you are from. Most of the state calls it Mischief Night. In certain parts it’s called Cabbage Night or Goosey Night. ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2025, 3:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ever-had-your-house-tped-or-tp-a-house-yourself/1020248/48 "2025-07-02T15:00:02Z")
> [@Der\_Trihs](#): > > I’ve never seen it actually happen, and I certainly wouldn’t _do_ it. Likewise, although I know of one house that did get rolled. First house my sister and BIL bought – Northern Illinois, early '80s. They were a mixed-race couple. I don’t know what happened to the culprits but targeting them was probably a big mistake, BIL was in law enforcement. ---
**Author:** ![solost](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/solost/32/11776_2.png) [@solost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solost)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2025, 3:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ever-had-your-house-tped-or-tp-a-house-yourself/1020248/49 "2025-07-02T15:11:36Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > > [@LSLGuy](#): > > > > I’m wondering if TPing has become obsolete in the last 30 years along with so much of the feral free-play childhoods my generation enjoyed. > > That has been my perception. It’s largely a thing of the past. I wonder if TP prices post-pandemic might also have something to do with it. I’m not really one to notice and compare prices on consumables-- whenever I wanted eggs I’d just buy eggs, and take no notice of their price, even at the highest price spikes. But my wife and I were shopping in a big box store recently, and she pointed out a sale on mega-packs of TP: “that’s a good price”. I looked at it and said “_ **that’s** _ a good price for TP?!?” > [@Loach](#): > > There are many regional names for it. I think New Jersey there are several different names depending on what part of the state you are from. Most of the state calls it Mischief Night. In certain parts it’s called Cabbage Night or Goosey Night. Interesting. Would make for a good thread, maybe: “USAians-- what did you call the night before Halloween growing up, and what part of the country are you from?”. Maybe I’ll write it when it’s closer to the season. ---
**Author:** ![FlikTheBlue](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fliktheblue/32/10972_2.png) [@FlikTheBlue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FlikTheBlue)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2025, 3:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ever-had-your-house-tped-or-tp-a-house-yourself/1020248/50 "2025-07-02T15:11:37Z")
I participated in TPing a few times my junior and senior years in high school. Certainly it had a history of being done before that in our small town, but my particular group of friends got the idea from _Beavis and Butthead_ (the TPing in question took place back in 1994 when that show was especially popular) if I recall correctly. Either way, the houses we TPed were the houses of other friends who knew it was coming, and it was all in good fun. ---
**Author:** ![TokyoBayer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tokyobayer/32/13989_2.png) [@TokyoBayer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TokyoBayer)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2025, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ever-had-your-house-tped-or-tp-a-house-yourself/1020248/51 "2025-07-02T15:21:29Z")
> [@FlikTheBlue](#): > > And it was all in good fun. Oh no, it’s the first step to anarchy. Fortunately, most of us were to lazy to take the next steps. ---
**Author:** ![Dinsdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/97f17d/32.png) [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2025, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ever-had-your-house-tped-or-tp-a-house-yourself/1020248/52 "2025-07-02T16:33:12Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > What band does do is create a big group of more-or-less friends used to doing group activities. Got it. I was a tad concerned that my kids were not inclined towards any sports. But I recall taking my oldest to flute lessons at a local HS and seeing their jazz band practicing. Opened my eyes to the fact that they were just as much of a “team” as the athletics - at least to the extent of the kids belonging to a group and pursuing a joint activity. But, in our HS at least, band kids were not considered anywhere near as “cool” as jocks, and the schools did not support their activities anywhere near the support they gave sports. ---
**Author:** ![HMS\_Irruncible](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hms_irruncible/32/7394_2.png) [@HMS\_Irruncible](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HMS_Irruncible)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2025, 4:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ever-had-your-house-tped-or-tp-a-house-yourself/1020248/53 "2025-07-02T16:56:38Z")
I don’t see the point of anonymous vandalism. If I have beef with someone and I want to affront them, the whole point is that they know I did it, so they won’t mess with me again. If they don’t know it was me, then it doesn’t work. I’ve done many things in my life that I’m not proud of, but I’m glad to say that anonymous vandalism was never one of them. ---
**Author:** ![Dinsdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/97f17d/32.png) [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2025, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ever-had-your-house-tped-or-tp-a-house-yourself/1020248/54 "2025-07-02T17:04:16Z")
> [@HMS\_Irruncible](#): > > I’ve done many things in my life that I’m not proud of, but I’m glad to say that anonymous vandalism was never one of them. I can still remember one time in 8th grade, when I carved something in a forest preserve picnic table. (Yes, I ALWAYS carried a pocket knife then!) I felt bad about it immediately after, and still do 50 years later. Now I am sure I stupidly and irresponsibly did many a thing that annoyed or inconvenienced other people over the years. Especially during my heavy drinking years. But I cannot recall another instance that I INTENTIONALLY caused expense or unnecessary effort on anyone else. Just not a part of my nature. (Maybe my sole good quality! ;)) ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2025, 5:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ever-had-your-house-tped-or-tp-a-house-yourself/1020248/55 "2025-07-02T17:48:43Z")
> [@solost](#): > > “USAians-- what did you call the night before Halloween growing up, and what part of the country are you from?” Wisconsin, nothing. Well, “the 30th”. Didn’t know it was a thing. First time I saw _The Crow_, I was like “what _are_ they talking about? Why is it a thing to start fires before Halloween?” ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2025, 6:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ever-had-your-house-tped-or-tp-a-house-yourself/1020248/56 "2025-07-02T18:11:51Z")
I agree about anonymous vandalism. But TPing _isn’t_ that; it’s a lot closer to a practical joke than to vandalism. I’m no great fan of practical jokes either. But TPing falls in the sweet spot of non-destructive, utterly silly, instantly recognizable, and most importnantly, not hurting the pride of the victim. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ever-had-your-house-tped-or-tp-a-house-yourself/1020248.md?page=2)