Is it me, or do fewer and fewer
kids come out every year for Halloween?
I remember when I was young,
sporting my Darth Vader costume
and walking around my neighborhood
I would encounter other
groups of kids, packs of fifteen,
twenty kids roaming about, running
from house to house trying to
acquire as much candy as a little kid
could hold.
Not anymore, a total of ten kids
came to my house, none of them
were in groups, just little kids with
their parents and they were all
under five-years-old. Not a single
kid from age six to 16 came to my
house, the hours of time spent into
decorations of my front door went
largely in vein.
There’s a reason why there’s a
lack of kids in my quiet Levittown
neighborhood, and it’s not because
they’re lazy, think they’ve out
grown it or don’t like candy.
It’s because they’re greedy.
If you’re really curious about
where they are, go drive by one of
those rich areas, like Yardley or
Newtown and you’ll see throngs of
kids walking about.
It’s rumored that such neighborhoods
give out bigger candy.
I remember going to Yardley
when I was 12, one of the houses
was actually giving out money, and
kids were allowed to pull a single
bill out of deep orange bowl. These
weren’t dollars either; there were
$5, $10 and $20 bills.
I only got a $5; but still, who gives
out money on Halloween? Explain
to me how someone with a variety
bag of bite size candy is supposed to
compete with that.
When I was a little kid I absolutely
loved going to the rich areas. I’m
sure a lot of people can argue that
Yardley, Newtown and Richboro
aren’t rich, but those that live there
are better off than me which classifies
you as rich in my eyes; and people
in those areas give out better
candy.
When I was younger I didn’t realize
how much time and effort people
take when putting up their decorations.
The elderly fellow up the
street from me sets up a haunted
house in his backyard every year, he
spends days setting it up and after
touring once or twice I figure it
probably costs him about $200 to
set it up.
Best case scenario, he had two
dozen kids show up, is it even worth
it?
If you find your kids or younger
siblings wanting to go to a better-off
area, don’t take them. Instead, tell
them you’re going to walk around
your own areas, and if they whine,
tell them, “too bad.”
People spend a lot of time and
money in the middle-class areas on
Halloween, and every year fewer
and fewer kids show up at their
doors, eventually they’re going to
stop putting up decorations, eventually
they’ll stop giving out candy
and eventually Halloween is going
to disappear. Think about that next
Halloween when the children start
begging you to go on a car ride to the
rich sections: remind them that
there are lucky to be able to knock
on a stranger’s door and get free
candy.