I’d suggest doing what we do, and replace the regular bulb with an orange colored one, but it didn’t seem to do any good at our house this year, either. We only got one group of kids to the door all night. 
At least they were dressed adorably and were polite. But now I have way too much candy left over. Argh.
Did you pass out all that beer left over from the Dopefest? 
My boys were instructed to say Trick or Treat and Thank You, and they did. They like most any candy, so that was no problem, either. However, if a homeowner is dumb enough to let them pick from the tray, they will 1. Cherrypick and/or 2. Grab a handfull. Can’t win 'em all, I guess.
Most of my neighborhood kids were polite; some of the younger ones didn’t say Trick or Treat, but I just figured they were just shy.
My oldest has literally 10 lbs. of candy now! Even after I poach some of the Reese’s cups, he’ll still have like 9 lbs. left…
We had a fantastic time. WhyBaby, to my surprise, did more than three whole blocks of houses on foot before tiring out! She was the cutest damn pirate toddler EVEH!
The first few houses she was all WTF, but then she started to catch on. She even developed a “system”, the little sneak! She’d act all shy and cute, luring people in to crouch down to her level with their bowls full of candy. Then she’d smile and babble at them, while carefully taking one piece of candy and putting it in her bucket, then another piece of candy and putting it in her bucket and then another piece of candy - until I caught on to what she was doing and said, “No, honey, just one!” and the candy-giver-outer would smile and say, “Oh, you’re so cute! It’s OK, have one more!” 
The WhyBaby System in progress: Setting up your Dupe
The bigger kids did at least three times the houses she did, and her bucket was just as full as theirs!
She doesn’t talk yet, but I said “trick-or-treat” and “thank you” for her, and she gave smiles and blew kisses in return for candy.
**WhyBaby ** is absolutley adorable! (Am I allowed to say that in the Pit?) But I have to ask about the other costume… The blue sweatshirt covered with CDs? Whazzat?
DeVena (whose sugar buzz has worn off and is now terminally slow)
Oh, that was me. You can’t see in the picture, but each one had a movie title scrawled on it with a Sharpie marker, and on my head I wore a bag of microwave popcorn - the top shredded and curled atractively, with artfully arranged and glued popcorn “spilling” out of it.
She was a pirate.
I was pirated movies.
(No one got it on their own, but everyone laughed when I explained it.)
My son, Superfang (Me to Wife: :Whaddya mean he can’t go as Green Arrow?) would either tell people “Tick’ateet!” or “I’m Hooperman!” He had to be reminded to say thank you, though. He’s three, so I’m letting it slide.
His friend (Who went as Batman. We needed a Wonder Woman.) is very picky would either turn down something he didn’t like, or pick through until he found something he did like. His (very exasperated) father would have to tell him before each house to take what he was given and he would be able to trade with his older brother later.
At my parents place (on a crescent in what would be the suburbs, I suppose) there would be at least a dozen groups of kiddies calling.
This was my first Halloween at my new place, and I was surprised (and a bit disappointed) to get precisely zero visitors. I’d stocked up with a load of candy, lit a candle in an orange globe at the window, replaced the outdoor light with a coloured light and left the curtains open, but nothing.
I think it was about -10C with the windchill, with perhaps a 1/2’ of snow on the ground. I’d have given them a chocolate bar or two for trying that one. (a dozen or so if he was a she ;))
Wasn’t that what Hansel and Gretel heard?
I took my daughter (the witch) out and she actually remembered to say please and thank you. We brought our Bichon, dressed in a prisoner costume. I had brought a couple plastic bags along in case the dog decided he wanted to add to someone’s lawn decorations but fortunately he was very good. He also tolerated all of the toddlers yelling, “DOGGY!!!” and petting him. The dog even got a milk bone treat.
The ToTers we got were mostly polite with a few teenage grunts thrown in.
We did learn a valuable lesson about candy giving, though. My daughter’s friend is highly allergic to tree nuts (not peanuts though) and so Halloween can be dicey for her. She has to carry an epi (sp?) pen at all times. We only bought candy that we knew was not only nut free, but wasn’t made in a place where nuts are processed. Skittles, Pixie Stix, Starbursts and Laffy Taffy were the evening’s handouts. When she stopped by our house, we invited her and her parents in and went through her bag to pull out all of the bad and “questionable” candies and substituted with the “safe” candies from our bowl. Then we gave out the confiscated candies to the next ToTers.
My co-worker just told me that they had a couple of trick-or-treaters who were smoking when they rang the bell.
A trio of Captain Underpantses?
"Flash! Have you seen this man? His name is Anthill Harry, alias Baby-Faced Finster…"
Nice! (And it looks like that Wash costume turned out pretty well!)
:eek: WHAT THE FUCK?! Jeez, people. What do you SAY to that? How discouraging. And exactly why I turned off all the lights and the Mr. and me sat in the office and played WoW.
I got home after dark, and all I saw in my neighborhood were about 25-30 or so teenage kids all with pillowcases in hand and nary a costume to be found. No cute toddlers or smallish kids(which is what ToT is all about as far as I’m concerned). The teenage girl across the street got it in her head ages ago that she was too old to ToT, so she stays home with her dad and hands out candy. This group of teenage boys came to the door, again, sans costume, couldn’t be bothered to say, “ToT!” and when she opened the door, she took one look at them staring back at her and slammed the door in their faces! (I did a mini fist pump when I saw that.)
So the next group of slackers comes to the door, and the Dad answers. I didn’t hear what went on before this, but all of a sudden the un-costumed crusaders were protesting loudly, “No, man! We’re schoolboys! Yeah, that’s it! Schoolboys! Give us candy!”
Dey din’t get nuttin’.
I once had a group of 30+ teenagers come to my door all at once. They nearly covered the whole front lawn. Only a handful of them were dressed in costume. I told them, “Only those in costume get candy” and stuck to it. No costume, no candy. Guess I was lucky not to get egged or something.
Now we live nearly a mile from our nearest neighbors who’d give candy. Our driveway is over 1/4 mile long and the house is deep in the woods. Needless to say, we don’t get any ToTs.
You’re a little late with that story. Plus, my link contains pictures! 
Wait…I think you live near me. ElzaHub had to go through a town here after work that had TOT on Thursday night. It took him twenty minutes longer to get home (with a commute of an hour, that’s a lot).
He was pissed.
I understand Saturday night if you don’t want the kids out late, but WTF is up with the Thursday night thing?
I’ve watched my little neighborhood area deteriorate over the past several years. It used to be that me, Mrs. Jockey, and a few friends would sit out on hay bales, drink beer, listen to music, and hand out candy to the cute little goblins, ghouls, princesses and firemen who would politely sing-song their “trick or treat” and then the “thank you” in a little-voice chorus. Today we get pissy little candy whores and their moron parents. Ungrateful, unconstumed teenagers and their asshole buddies, and of course the entitled.
I had hopes for this year, so out I sat, on my own with a beer and a bowl of candy, and the sounds of the spookiest season playing over home speakers near the window.
An hour into it, I just took the candy in the house, and threw it away.
Ungrateful little bastards. Top it off, there was a bonfire at a local park, so I wandered down to see what I could see. Lo and behold, people were there enjoying themselves, having a good time, families, kids, etc. etc. What happens? A mob of these same shitheads whips up into a fight, and ruins the night for everybody.
What the fuck is it with people? I mean, I suppose know what it is, but I guess I just don’t like it.
I talked to my parents and they said they got well over a hundred “groups” (so who knows how many kids)-but their (newish) neighbourhood is well-known for being a “good candy” hub. Good candy hub generally meaning free feed, regular sized chocolate bars or “here, have a bunch!”
Apparently all the kids were very sweet and in costume. I miss Halloween in Taxachusetts . We even get that awesome creepy bogfog around where we live.
I had only one treat or treater last night. I answer the door to a 40-something y.o. limo driver in full monkey attire. He holds out a large leather satchel and asks sheepishly, in a cultured English accent, “may I partake of one of your treats for my charge, master William? He’s resting in the automobile and will be unable to appear before you this evening.” I replied, “sure, why not”, as I notice the rear window of the stretch limo parked before me roll down part way. I hear the cracking voice of an adolescent boy emanating from the mouth hole of a Donald Trump mask peeking above the window:
Trump: “Whatta they got?”
Driver: “Snickers, Butterfinger and Mars bars, master William”
Trump: “Take the Butterfingers. What size are they?”
Driver: “Fun size, I believe”
Trump: “Take a few of ‘em and hurry up, I don’t got all night”.
I got a little verkempt as I recalled my bygone days as a spoiled young lad. I often wonder what ever happened to my old limo driver after I had daddy discharge him.
