Halloween Nightmares

Halloween is just four days away. I could write about why we recognize this day the way that we do, but a quick Google search will tell you more than I possibly could here. Instead, I'll tell you some thoughts I've had lately about Halloween.

I have a two-year-old son, which means that this is probably the last year that putting him in a costume will be more for me and my wife than it will for my son. Next year, Halloween will be all for him. This year, it's for us.

My son's first Halloween, when he was only two months old, we put him in a ladybug costume (hey, if you've seen the movie Antz, you know that ladybugs come in both sexes). At the age of one, he was a purple dragon (not a purple dinosaur, like Barney). This year, he'll be dressed as a chicken.

He's been learning all about the sounds that animals make, and he now has the chicken down quite well. My wife found a chicken outfit at Old Navy, which made it a clear choice.

Halloween is NOT a particulatly safe time of year. A whole horror movie franchise in the 80's and 90's made that perfectly clear. Sick people put razor blades in apples and poison in candy and gleefully give it out to unsuspecting young ghosts, goblins, and super heroes. Even sicker people lure unsuspecting innocent children into dark places and do unmentionable things to them.

If you've been a long time reader of my blog, you know exactly how I feel about sexual predators. You also know that one lives within two blocks of my home.

We will not be taking our son door-to-door trick-or-treating this year, parading him past all the crazies with their sick fantasies. We'll take him for a quick trip to the park, then to a couple of friends' houses to trick-or-treat, then to his grandparents' home.

The world is not safe, and a "holiday" set aside for people to wear masks and costumes in public only makes it that much more dangerous.

Our son will be safe this year. I hope you keep your loved ones safe, as well.

Joe