I grew up in a small town in Southwestern Ontario, Canada. Halloween was always a great time for us. We loved the fact that we could go and beg for candy and dress up in a costume. Back then we were allowed to dress up in costumes on Halloween for school. There would be parties and costume contests at school. According to my sister, kids still are allowed to wear Halloween costumes to school on Halloween.

When I was in high school we would dress up so we would be unrecognizable. Then we would sit in different places than we usually would in class, and fool people. It was really funny to walk up to someone you know, knowing they had no idea who you were. Some of my buds would get really freaked out.

October in Ontario is usually cold and even snows. To go trick or treating you had to have a costume that would fit over a snowsuit or winter jacket. That movie "A Christmas story" comes to mind; the little kid so bundled up that he could barely walk. That was really what it was like.

I have only fond memories of Halloween in that small town. Seemed to me that most of the folks in town got into the spirit. Every door you went to had offerings. I never remember going to a house to trick or treat and no one answering the door. No one got offended at "trick or treat smell my feet, give me something good to eat".

I only remember getting sick from all that candy once. My mom was really mad. Apparently I had chewed up a bunch of gum and swallowed it. Whoops; glad I didn't have to clean that up. I got my payback though;  my daughter ate a whole bunch of candy last year and threw up all over. On the bright side of that; she didn't touch the rest of the candy that she got.

Halloween is very much celebrated here in Mississippi. The kids get dressed up and go trick or treating. There are some new and different twists to celebrating the day. In the town that I live in they throw a thing called "Trunk or Treat". People gather in the park with their cars and the kids trick or treat from people out of their cars. I have never been, but it usually has a good turn out.

One thing I find very interesting is that a lot of church groups have halloween parties. I don't recall my church back in Canada doing this. It seems quite queer to me that a church would celebrate behind it's walls a traditionally pagan holiday. That's just my opinion. But I suppose some people would prefer to be in the sanctity of the church than on the street.

There are pick your own pumpkin patches. My daughter went last week with her Kindergarten class. They had "pumpkin juice"; she thought that was really cool (really just orange koolaid). She was attempting to make it when I came home from work that night. The thing that she was particularly fond of was her pumpkin that she picked all by herself. She actually named it (Pumpkin Sweetie) and insisted that it stayed on her bed with her that night. The mind of a 5 year old; I wish I could tap into that imagination sometime.  The schools don't allow kids to dress up for halloween here, at least not in my school district.

Tonight we are going to get dressed up and go to a friend's house for a get together. My friend was nice enough to let us intrude on their family get together. Again the hospitality here is second to none. We are going to eat and take the kids trick or treating. My daughter is so excited she has talked my ear off all day long. My daughter is going to be a princess and I am going to be a wicked witch. I haven't gotten dressed up for Halloween in years. I am really looking forward to it.

Happy Halloween!