After yet another little vacation (up to Boston to see The Mountain Goats, then NH to see the premiere of my new play, "To the Moon"), we're back and ready for some Halloween fun. We're a week out from that favorite holiday of hooligans and candy companies, so I thought it would be appropriate to spend a few days of reporting covering the topics near and dear to the holiday. And what's that in the banner? Could it be? The Great Pumpkin, rising out of the Pumpkin Patch?! Stay tuned as we creep closer to Halloween and see what happens!
Before we get into costumes and candy and spooky stories, it's important we know what exactly it is we're dealing with here. What is Halloween? Where did it come from? Lucky for us, the History Channel has put together a nice, dry history of the day (the videos are a bit more fun), tracing it back to the Celtic festival of Samhain. If your mental cogs are working like mine this morning, you'll put the pieces together and know it's no coincidence that this holiday so associated with the color orange started off in Ireland... Gingers. No wonder it's so scary.
But if the history of how Samhain became All Hallow's Eve became Trick or Treat is a bit too boring for you, check out this infographic. Where do you fit in to these stats? I know I'm not producing any pumpkins this year. (Though I did know pumpkins are gourds. But more on gourds later...) I have contributed to the 35 million pounds of candy corn sold, and I used to be in the 30% of candy organizers back when I was among the 35 million in that prime Trick or Treating age. I plan on being one of the 120 million dressing up, though I won't be doing it on the day itself (does that still count) and I will definitely be part of the 72% giving out candy. As for the 24 pounds of candy I'm supposed to have eaten in the past year as an average American... No comment.
Now, what about these 11.5% of Americans who dress their pets for Halloween? Of all the statistics presented in that graphic, that's the one I want evidence on. Luckily, the Internet provides. I'm assuming dogs are the most commonly dressed animal, and certainly the most frequently seen in costume. Some place called Tompkins Square even has a parade for costumed pups. I love the dog lobster, and I bet that dog, along with all the others whose costumes involved being carried or carted about, enjoyed himself the most. Hipster dog and banana dog look like they have a tough time seeing, while Woof With the Wind and Evita (in the comments) probably qualify as mild animal abuse. Favorite, though? The moose dog. Obviously. But dogs aren't the only ones having fun. Rats, cats, hedgehogs, and even a camel get in on the action. (Sorry to report there is a lack of costumed fish.) The cat in number 9 suggests why cats don't get dressed up much, while dogs continue to dominate the costume competition. Though horse dog is terrifying, the dog dressed as Fluffy is one of the best costumes I've ever seen on human or animal.
And speaking of human costumes... We'll cover that in tomorrow's report.
But first a costume idea from this day in history: Just wear a barrel and say you're going as Annie Edson Taylor. She hopped in a barrel 111 years ago today and became the first to survive the trip over Niagara Falls in one.
Seven days until the Great Pumpkin!
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