“Remembering the Best Celebrated Halloween Nights Out”

Oct 28th “Remembering the Best Celebrated Halloween Nights Out”

Halloween Time

During the early 40’s, while we were doing our best — working together to support our men and women in an effort to win WWII, Halloween took a back seat – and I, a little kid, just did as I was told!

With a small “Victory Garden” and a few chickens, we learned to do without, and be happy and feel blessed with what we had.

When you are attending school, your teacher informs you of the upcoming “Holidays” – what you need to do to celebrate, and just so your parents know how much you know – you bring home evidence!

I could draw a big circle and color it orange and cut it out, call it a pumpkin, and it was our prize “Pumpkin” for the 31st of October, so then… we could celebrate, “Halloween.”

To this day, I’m surprised to be alive? I was fully “armed” to go out to do “Halloween” with my “Peashooter” and “Soap Bar” and a bag of “Peas” … the required ammunition!

For me , to put a “Pea” in my mouth, line up , in the “Peashooter” … and blow as hard as a “Tornado” or “Hurricane” with a dead aim at the neighbor’s windows – what a joke on me?

I hardly had enough “wind” in me to get my self home!

What ever happened to all the peas… did I swallow half of them? The “Pea Shooter” was only an ice cream soda straw!

I do not believe even one pea hit a window? Till this day – I still don’t know what … I was suppose to be doing!

Halloween Time pg.2

When, I was a little kid, doing “Halloween,”… all I knew was that couple of minutes, that… I saw in the “Halloween” scene… in that movie – “Meet Me in St.Louis” and little “Margaret O’Brien,” throwing that handful of flour at an old…“Grump of a Man” and then… running … just as fast as she could!

Well, I was too scared to ring someone’s doorbell, and throw anything!

My other heavy-duty equipment – a bar of “Soap” – forget me writing on windows – doors were out, too – someone could possibly open the door – grab me – and run me home in a case of fright, and… after a hard hand swat to my rear-end!

Corporal Punishment for me – since I was the oldest and should know better – received my fair share as I received the blame, when my younger brothers did something they should not have.

I had to learn early – do not get in trouble, keep my brothers safe and out of harm’s way or I pay the hard way– where it hurts!

So, as followers of the other neighborhood kids, we were too short to use a bar of soap to write on the automobile windows, we mostly – would just watch the bigger kids – doing dumb stuff – and they were thinking that they were having a whole lot of fun!

The “night” was not over – we went home and turned in our “weapons” and then… we were told …. that we could do something… bigger and better… as my MOM would always have other things to do together!

Halloween Time pg.3

Halloween isn’t over – until you receive “Goodies!” So, when Mom said that we would be getting something “Bigger and Better” – she knew just what we would like!

We headed out to the shopping area along Florissant Avenue, a couple of streets with a variety of merchants – beauty parlour to a dry clothes type store and everything in between.

We stop at the stores that indicated “Ghosts and Goblins” invited. Even though, we were welcome to come in and act silly, I was scared stiff and we were the guys that were supposed to be scary!

Would have been nice if we had pictures taken of “Halloween” but those were the days and times to save more and spend less, because of he “War” going on.

We received money in our bags as we were going to some of the “Merchants” and “MONEY” is what was in my bag and so my Mom would save it… so I would not lose it.

As we started on the way toward our house, my Mom said we could stop at the Drug Store and spend the money on Ice Cream, if we wanted?

That was the best of ideas… on how to end such a fun evening.

We had the “Best tasting Ice Cream” ever… and it was “Free” – my first and best ever remembered Halloween!