Halloween

Seems like no one really posts in Off Topic these days, huh? Well, I'm gonna go against the grain here. In fact, I'm gonna double down. Yep, it's an Off Topic thread about a holiday that's become a shadow of its former self. And not a spooky shadow—just kinda sad. Like when you're feeling down on a sunny day and go for a walk. All slumped shoulders and whatnot.

Anyway. Halloween is an odd one. Its roots are fairly rich and it's existed in a bunch of different forms for centuries, pretty much all over the world. My focus here is on the modern, Western approach to Halloween. You know: costumes, trick-or-treating, pumpkin carving, all that good stuff. Generally speaking, it seems like it's seeing fewer and fewer people getting into it year after year. Part of me thinks, "Huzzah for reduced commercialization of holidays!" Then another part of me remembers that Xmas makes up for it tenfold. I'm not big on it myself, though I like the general vibe of it and do associate pretty positive nostalgia with it, overall. As a queer person, it's also taken on, to an extent, new life for me. Generally speaking, Halloween is pretty popular with the LGBTQ community. LGBT Halloween parties always crop up each year / gay bars tend to get into it. For some, it becomes an extension of drag performance. You'll find a showing of The Rocky Horror Picture Show, whether on the big or small screen, without fail every year. For the decidedly more introverted, such as myself, it can be to take part in small gatherings and watch Halloween/fantasy movies; eat sweets/baked goods; costuming, if one wishes; maybe do some arts and crafts / pumpkin carving; all that kinda stuff. I figure the sort of setting I'm describing is comparable to, say, fantasy film marathons that encourage cosplay/bringing food—just in a specifically queer social setting. I also visit family prior to Halloween; in fact, I'm typing this at my mom's place. She still digs on Halloween juuust enough that it helps get me in the mood for Halloween movies. And yes—candy/chocolate will never go out of vogue. 😋

I'm not tryna make any big statement about tradition or change or anything, really. Just felt like posting and sharing some thoughts, see if I can get a response or two. LIVE, OFF-TOPIC FORUM! LIVE! *lightning cracks*

Do you folks do anything fun for Halloween, or has your interest in it gone the way of the dodo? Perhaps for some of the parents on here, it's taken on new life.

Also:

If you happen to be on the market for a big Halloween playlist and/or some unfamiliar Halloween-appropriate tunes, feel free to check out this Spotify playlist I've made. With a great deal of help from my apparent Halloween muse, Hazel, of course!

Spotify link:

All Hazel's Eve

If anyone else would like to share a Halloween playlist here, go for it.

Last edited by Pilgrim Paige (Sat-27-Oct-2018 00:55:20)