OK, Halloween came and went and we Corcorans had about 35-40 kids. By the end of the evening, my wife was doling out candy in handfuls to the lucky late-comers.
It’s been a bit of a sad trend in recent years, not even counting the pandemic years. We live in a great neighbourhood, one that has been around since the late 1960s.
And I guess that’s the problem.
Talking with a friend who lives in the Braemar area of Chatham, they were deluged by kids.
Heck, it turns out the area is so popular, his granddaughter went to park by his home to showcase her young daughter’s costume to the great-grandparents, but she had to park around the block.
Yeah, parents drove their kids into that neighbourhood and parked along the streets. Newer homes, larger homes. I guess the mindset was more or better candy.
This is unfortunately nothing new. I remember people talking about the Maples as the place to take kids years back. Then Prestancia.
Since when did new equal better in terms of candy handouts? And since when did people drive their children into specific neighbourhoods, committing candy targetting?
Back in my day, it was simple. Walk your neighbourhood and enjoy seeing your neighbours react to your costume. If you were recognizable – and a good kid – you often got more candy.
But driving to another neighbourhood? We never did that.
What we did do as parents when our daughter was quite young was take her to specific homes of friends and family for trick or treating – a way of showing off a cute costume to people who cared to see her.
We never dumped her into a distant neighbourhood and said, “Go grab that candy!”
I have to wonder…do the kids plan out where to go? I can’t see an eight year old looking on Google maps with their friend to plot their Halloween attack.
Nah, this is on their parents. I’d speculate the kids are just happy to get out and about in a cool or funny costume, asking for candy, enjoying the decorated homes, and hanging out with their friends as they do it. They don’t care in which neighbourhood they do it.
Parents, meanwhile, are into the bigger-is-better mindset, and take it upon themselves to drive to specific neighbourhoods to maximize that candy haul.
I don’t know why, really. Chances are come next Easter, those parents will find leftover Halloween candy in their child’s rooms regardless.
