By Shelley Bennett
I know it’s November, but I have to say… Halloween is my favorite! And Susanville put on a glorious show this year; from trick or treating in Historic Uptown Susanville to the hordes of kids I saw in the Cherry Terrance area Sunday night down to the scary and sometimes gory displays of spirit around town.
Not to mention the amazing costumes I’ve seen all over social media! I believe there are actually 101 Cruellas to every dalmation pup.
My favorite is from a former student who has almost year-old quadruplets. Her older son is Buzz Lightyear, while the four little ones are dressed as aliens in their very own “Claw” machine. Cue the “awwws”.
Trick or treating in small town Susanville is an annual “good stuff” activity. As a kid, my mom listened to the stories about razor-blade invested apples and insisted that we only go to houses of people we knew. We still got quite a haul.
A trip to my grandma and grandpa’s house would fill us up with sugar cookies, candy apples, and popcorn balls. My grandma would try to scare us with her story about the witch who was on top of the house and ask if she had thrown rotten apples at us as we walked to the door.
The answer was always no, but we would shiver with wide eyes and keep a look out on our way back to the car. The scariest thing we ever encountered was one year when my grandpa dressed up in Aunt Becky’s cheerleading uniform and grandma donned a football jersey complete with pads and short pants. The wore those weird transparent masks and it took me a minute to figure out who was who.
Speaking of masks, my mom never let us wear them. I always envied those kids who perused the shelf of costumes at Sprouse Reitz, where the mask and plastic costume was contained in one box, and made their choice of Casper, Raggedy Ann, or Barbie. Remember those tiny slits in the masks for the eyes, nose, and mouth? It seems very claustrophobic now, but then they were very intriguing.
My brother and I would visit grandma’s costume closet, where you could choose from witch, clown, bunny, gypsy, and a few other mix and match personalities. These were definitely the “better” costumes and the pictures we have of my brother and I have a vintage, old time-y feel, like looking in a history book of Halloween.
As we grew up, so did our costume expectations. I remember a spectacular satiny lavender dress with gossamer sleeves that my mom made. The scepter my dad crafted from a wooden dowel, Christmas ornament, and silver spray paint completed my princess look.
As a teenager, I would raid my aunt’s and Teri’s closets to pull together unforgettable costumes, such as French Maid, Saloon girl, and Greek Goddess (really just a toga with a fancy gold braided belt). I nearly froze to death on those occasions, because I refused to wear a jacket OR a turtleneck under said costumes, but it was worth it.
Some of the best memories I have as a mom are putting together the perfect costumes for my kids. One year it was Sofia as Jessie from Toy Story with the boys as Rex and a Little Green Man. I am a pro at creating something out of Goodwill finds and a glue gun. Jacob’s Indiana Jones costume and Landon’s variations on a vampire are proof of that.
I’m also blessed to have an artistic sister who has created Glinda’s wand out of Styrofoam and cardboard and weapons for both the Jack Nicholson Joker and Jared Leto Joker out of Dollar Tree toys and paint. Alison was even able to bring to life Landon’s vision of “Lemonade Man”, a costume of someone who sold lemonade at Spring Training.
This year, I asked Sofia what she would like to be. I was ready for a Goodwill challenge. She informed that she and her friends were going to be ghosts.
Honestly, I was bummed. Costumes are part of my event planning love language. I sent her pics of ghosts decked out in flowery sheets from the 70s. She said they would be wearing white sheets. With their swimsuits.
How ridiculous, I thought. Until I remembered that 15-year old girl who wore a toga over her swimsuit to trick or treat and survived. What goes around comes around.
Hope everyone had a Happy Halloween! Enjoy the rest of Autumn.
P.S. Sofia and her friends eventually decided on a costume of basketball jerseys worn sensibly over warm leggings and Under Armor. Smart girls.
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