Well, have you been to a store recently? And, like Garfield (see below), I have observed it in the natural world. That is, the first leaves are starting to go for their autumnal ride.
That tends to be the problem, though. Fall is just a bit short! By the time one realizes how pretty the leaves are, how nice the weather is, etc., and tries to take pictures of this phenomenon….
And, as was previously stated, school is back in session, so “kids” (of all ages, but especially those in school), have to deal with things like TESTS that we, “mean,” teachers give them because WE are REQUIRED to EVALUATE those students and assign GRADES to them (which most teachers don’t really like much more than the students do). It IS the way of the educational world, however, and it CAN lead to all sorts of interesting notions, as this Heart of the City strip indicates…
In any case, at least in the U.S., Halloween is most commonly celebrated by folks (of all ages) dressing up in “spooky,” or “sexy,” or “silly” costumes and attending various sorts of parties, or going “Trick or Treating” (which seems most likely to be based on “Souling,” where folks would go door to door begging a “soul cake” in exchange for prayers for the dead on All Hallow’s Eve).
Somehow this idea seems to have gotten into many people’s minds as a Christmas tradition. This is probably because it rather resembles “Caroling,” which IS a Christmas tradition, but the sources I consulted suggest that “Souling” actually started as part of Autumnal/Harvest celebrations, which would fit it in with the “Day of the Dead” traditions of the Hispanic world.
In any case, “Trick or Treating” is most commonly rewarded with candy, or some other sort of treat, to bribe folks from playing “tricks” on you (like soaping windows, papering trees, putting your outhouse building on top of your barn roof, or simply tipping that building over, etc.). I agree that it’s easier (and more fun for us “adults”) to buy some candy and pay the “bribe,” but at least in most places the rather nasty “tricks” of older days are not much utilized, which IS a good thing. Besides, seeing the kids in their costumes can be a lot of fun!
On the other hand, there ARE drawbacks to even seeking to gain the “Treats” after a point…
I think that the only major drawback of Fall (which I hope it is clear that I like a lot) is that it always seems to be a bit too short. The brightly colored leaves become a drab brown much too quickly, and the days start to get cold beyond being just “a bit brisk.” And, there’s the ever-present sense that snow is on the way. Garfield indicated that during last winter, but, I think it applies even as Fall is just getting under way.
I hope that you are having a reasonably happy Autumnal season and that you will find this to be an enjoyable time of year. We are stuck with it, so we might just as well enjoy it, since we don’t have a lot of choice. Don’t spend too much time letting the plethora of campaign advertising get you down. (I find such ads to be quite annoying by now, too.) Do plan to vote, and give your selections some thought, though. Remember that ALL advertising is, properly, called “propaganda” (no matter how many people use that word to try to discredit their opponents’ ads). And, we really need to consider the sources of our information AND the actual FACTS of the situation. NO candidate should be just assumed to be the “best” choice, without considering the actual case for him/her. I think it’s important to listen to what they say and look at what they have, in fact, actually done, when making a decision. I’d suggest that this is a reasonable approach to the challenge of making good election choices.
I’ll be back in a couple of weeks to ramble on about something else. I hope you’ll be back to see what I come up with.
🖖🏼 LLAP,
Dr. B