Halloween isn’t as big a thing over here as it seems to be in the US. Last year Greg had over 290 kids turn up at his house demanding confectionery; we had just under 2. This year we haven’t even had that. It’s 8pm now so it looks like I’m free to guzzle the sweets we had bought just in case.
The festivities haven’t completely passed us by however. Amy’s nursery had a Halloween party, and so Amy was able to wear the rather nifty witch’s costume that her Grandma had very generously bought her. Unfortunately I wasn’t able to prize the dummy out of her mouth before I took a photo so the effect is slightly spoiled, but at least it was colour co-ordinated. She looked extremely cute in her getup and we got a number of oohs and ahhs from random passer-bys while bringing her home this evening.
During my childhood Halloween was always a poor relation to Bonfire night, just as New years comes a distant second to Christmas. You can tell firework season is upon us as the dog is spending roughly 80% of her evenings cowering underneath the computer desk. From now until the beginning of January we will be treated to random explosions shattering the night and sending Holly into apoplexies of terror. It’s not as bad here as it was in Batley; at times it felt like we were living just south of Beirut.
I have always been a little wary of the whole fifth of November thing. I think this originates from the terrifying public safety adverts that were regularly broadcast during my formative years. I am a person who is easily scared, and the depictions of small children loosing fingers and eyes because they didn’t follow the firework code have probably scarred me for life. I still refuse to hold a sparkler in case I accidentally grab it by the wrong end, and you would never catch me returning to a firework within a month of the blue touch paper being lit.
I have a suspicion that Amy will share my distrust of Bonfire night. She gets very upset by loud noises, and for this reason we haven’t tried going to an event as yet. Perhaps this year we’ll give it a try; but I’m fairly convinced it will end in lots of fear fuelled tears. And I don’t think Amy will like it much either
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While looking for the Don’t fool around with fireworks advert I came across this little gem which Kerry tells me had such an effect on her as a child that she still hurries past electricity substations as quickly as she can.
That’s what you get for playing on tesla coils…
I think I can place the beginnings of my love of the macabre back to these films, especially the one with Donald Pleasance voicing the spirit of death which lurks round stretches of water. I was terrified but at the same time strangely drawn. I also seem to remember a scarey one about not putting yourself in an abandoned fridge.
sweet jesus! makes me wonder what they showed you to keep you from having premarital sex!
specially the one with Donald Pleasance voicing the spirit of death which lurks round stretches of water
Ask and ye shall receive:
Oh. My. God.
These are so scary! And these are supposed to be public service announcements?
I wouldn’t leave the house. Or is there one on the perils of bathtubs too?
Thank you – I just love the way his voice is so indescribably creepy and eerie….’I am the spirit of dark and lonely water’…….
If I remember rightly the films were on during children’s TV. They have traumatized an entire generation of Britons
My commute into work from our old house took me past a substation everyday and I would always think of that stupid advert. Even though Dan has found it, I can’t bring my self to watch it again and I’m 31.
I’d forgotten the fridge one until you mentioned it Siobhan, I remember it being a story line in an episode of Casualty too. Needless to say, abandoned fridges give me the creeps, although I think they take the doors off at the tip these days.
There is a bit in the book IT by Stephen King when a child gets trapped in a fridge. Gives me the creeps even now to think about it.