Chapter 188: The meaning of Halloween (2010)

The number one best thing about Halloween: dressing up as something you're not. Or simply dressing in a costume that a normal, socially acceptable person wouldn't wear on an average day to school or work.

Halloween equals creativity and planning a special outfit. Perhaps sewing something or creating something from scratch. It means applying make up and doing hair differently than usual.

Some people equate Halloween with words like "fright" and "scary." That concept of Halloween has never been in my schema or Book of Audrey.

And as I have been known to say, "I don't believe in looking ugly on purpose." Which, I think, is a good mantra and should be applied to all people in all situations.

Boy Meets World defines Halloween as "the one holiday that brings loved ones together." And, when my concept of Halloween is considered, the BMW definition is entirely logical. Families can dress up together, go to parties, creatively carve pumpkins, bake treats for their neighbors and leave a little ghosty in the window, and trick-or-treat to get lots and lots of yummy candy that brings happiness and joy for weeks to come! Halloween is a joyous occassion of yummy treats, pretty costumes, and being with people you love.

Halloween was originally a Celtic holiday, or so Wikipedia suggests. It was the day of the year that the "veil" was the thinnest, and families could invite the spirits of their deceased relatives home for dinner, but with that they had to ward off the bad spirits. It was a celebration, but also a slightly fearful one. They used Halloween to honor and remember the dead.

Now, because of Memorial day, we no longer have the need to honor the dead on Halloween. So now it is just a fun day. And a significant one in the world of Harry Potter. (aka the day that You Know Who killed the Potters but failed to kill Harry, the day of Nearly Headless Nick's deathday party (when Harry first heard the basilisk in the wall, etc.). That is all. Not scary.

(I might add that this explanation was necessary because this year I happened to encounter several people who hate Halloween because it's "scary." They refuse to dress up and go to parties or whatever because they don't like Halloween. My argument is that a refusal to acknowledge Halloween because it is "scary" is illogical and kind of a fallacy. It doesn't have to be scary. Only fun.

This Halloween my roommates and I took the call to have fun on Halloween very seriously. It occurred in two stages:

1. Stake Halloween party on 10.29. Friday. It was also the day of a BYU basketball season preview. I missed it. For the party. We dressed up and went to dance and hang out with fun ward people. The dance was full of costumed Mormon kids who strictly followed the "no cross-dressing or masks" policy, and still obeyed the honor code dress and grooming standards. It was a wholesome, blast-and-a-half activity. I was a peacock (a really lame but cute one), Lene was Bones from the TV show, Sarie a cowboy midget (I promise it was more politically correct than it sounds), and Dani was Sally from Nightmare Before Christmas. Dani and Lene, I think I should say, actually love dressing up scary for Halloween. Dani obsesses over it a little bit. (refer to this post from last year) But I like them anyway. :)

Roommates. My makeup looks funny.

the wardies. I'm peeking out from behind Belle. Notice the very tall Hagrid in the background. He's funny.

2. SHAKE YAH MONSTER MASH PARTY at our house on 10.30. Saturday night. It rocked the socks off any other Halloween party, ever. At least I had a blast. It was probably partly because throwing a party is like gathering all of the people who you like the most at your house in one night. You get to talk to all of your favorite people (excluding the ones who live far away and couldn't come), get all dressed up, dance to fun music, and have people exclaim to you about how fun your party is. Really, ya'll should try it sometime.

To assemble the party, Dani and I first planned out the decoration, food, and scheduling details. Then, Lene, Sarie, and I had a late-night planning session at which assignments were distributed, and each party-planner was given a list of things to do.

To get the word out, we announced the party together at ward prayer and gave everyone candy. Then, we sent out Facebook invitations.

Dani wrote the Facebook description of the event (which may or may not have been my favorite thing about the whole party):

"Due to my strong personal convictions, I wish to stress that this [party] in no way endorses a belief in the occult."
-Michael Jackson

for optimal facebook taggage, come between 8:30-9:30 for the PHOTOBOOTH and the consumption of delicious foodstuffs.

at 9:30 will commence Project: Shake What Yo Mamma Gave Yah.
to paint a mental picture:
-black lights (yes, we really REALLY love these things)
-taio cruz
-glow sticks
-wicked halloween decor
-special guest appearance by justin bieber. for realz this time.

costumes: mandatory :)

see all of you party animals there!

Then, on Saturday, the day of the party, we decorated and prepared for the party, which included:
-covering our entire living room with black trash bags to make it look like a giant black, never ending cave. The corners of the blackness were covered in giant spider webs (compliments of Dallin Henrie, the best spiderweb constructor on the planet)
-Adhering a 12-foot long piece of white butcher paper to the wall in the kitchen for signing with highlighters during the black-light portion of the evening (this was my other favorite part about the whole thing)
-Setting up the photobooth, complete with gray backdrop covered in a giant black spider web, nice camera (thanks Rachelle!!) on tri-pod, and spotlights for good lighting.
-Making the food: brownies, apple cider in giant cauldron with dry ice, bloody (white chocolate died red) popcorn, slimy (green jello) popcorn, edible teeth (apple slices with small marshmallows held between them with peanut butter) and loads of tootsie rolls. (Thanks to the ovens in both Banbridge 5 and 9).
-Borrowing and assembling speakers with the help of Jonathan Meacham (who reads my blog) and Brett Gladsen, ex-wardies but still friends extraordinaire.
-Removing ALL of the living room furniture and hiding it in the corners of our apartment, the one across the hall, and in the stairwells (this might have been the trickiest part of the whole thing) (Dani's Michael aided in the removal and BB9 very kindly allowed us to hide our couch in their apartment)
-Assembling a playlist (thanks Dani) complete with requested Jackson 5 songs.

-Setting up our entertainment center and TV outside of the door to play the "Thriller" music video on a loop throughout the whole party (my other favorite thing). (Made possible by the contribution of Lynne's extension cord).
-Preparing for the blacklights. We had to remove the tube lights from the hallway (which we aren't technically allowed to mess with), switch out the kitchen lights, borrow standing lamps from BB9, and switch all the light bulbs.
-getting ourselves costumed and ready. Stephanie had to come do my makeup at 5:00pm, in between getting herself and other friends ready.

And then the party started at 8:30, and TONS of people came. I always get really nervous about throwing parties. I mean, you really go out on a limb. You prepare all of this stuff, but then what if it's lame and no one comes? You put yourself in a vulnerable position when you plan things, but really, the stress is worth the reward.

Some of my favorite photos from the evening: (you can pick out the photobooth ones)

Ryan. Joey. Steve. Me. Lynne. My favorite part is that Joey is Peter Pan.

Dani and Michael looking purposefully awkward but so so so adorable as Jack and Sally

Washington Seminar alumni.

Rachelle and Brad looking hot as Mr. and Mrs. Smith

love love love this one.

ELISE!

you can get an idea of the crowd. and the black walls.

The Jackson 5 minus 1. Love these boys.

 For more photobooth pictures, see THIS blog. 

And I'm so thankful for all the random (but not so random) help we got. So many people contributed little things. It just made me realize how much I care about my Provo friends, and how much they care about me and my roommates. And when people came to the party who I invited but didn't really expect, I was so surprised and so happy! It makes you feel so good when people accept your invitation. I just really appreciated all the people who took the time to come to our party and make all the work worth it.

You see? Halloween really does bring loved ones together.