[Stingy Jack]

Talking about Christmas in the Salem thread made me think about Halloween ... and how I was always disappointed in it as a kid.

Unlike Christmas, Halloween never seemed to live up to itself. You spend the whole month watching scary movies, seeing people put frightening things out on their doorsteps, all leading up to the magical night that is Halloween ...

and then, you get some candy and go home. And it's over.

When I was a kid, I used to watch the moon on Halloween night, hoping to catch a glimpse of a witch on her broom. I expected SOMETHING truly scary to happen ... maybe see a ghost or a skeleton out and about in a graveyard, or see something ghastly in the window of that abandoned house on the corner ... but I never did. I was let down, year after year.

Even on Christmas, the parents put out the presents to at least provide SOME evidence that Santa Claus is real and there truly is something magical about Christmas. But they do nothing for the kids like this on Halloween.

Which is why I have decided that on Halloween night, every year until the year I die, I'm going to make it my duty to scare the explosive shits out of some kid.