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October Can be Frightfully Great!

October 31st, 2022 by Kenneth Abrahams

October in New England is an interesting month, as you never really know what to expect weather-wise. Some days we wake up to close to freezing temperatures, scraping the ice off the windshield, then by mid-afternoon the temps are into the high 70’s and everyone is pealing off the layers they wore that morning, only to put them back on for the drive home where the forecast can call for light snow.

 At the beginning of the month, the leaves are still green, and you can get days where the temperatures are reminiscent of summer. As the month progresses, the leaves begin to change, the days get noticeably shorter, and the temperature can get downright cold. By the end of the month, the trees are almost barren, and the crunch of dead leaves can be heard as you walk along the sidewalks. For years, I didn’t really understand the whole leaf peeping phenomenon. Perhaps it’s because I have lived here for more than 40 years, and because of my job, I spend a lot of the fall months driving all over New England. So, I didn’t really get it when people from other parts of the country would hop in their cars, jump on planes, charter buses, or embark on cruises just to get a gander at the colorful trees. Maybe it is my age catching up with me, or the fact that COVID has made me more appreciative of what I have, but these last 2 years I have paid significantly more attention to the beauty of fall in New England. At times, I am awestruck by not only the vibrancy of the colors but also the myriad of hues and shades. The drive to jobs during the fall are much more pleasant with Mother Natures canvas on both sides of the vehicle.

It is also the month for Halloween. A time when ghosts and goblins roam our neighborhoods. What used to be one night has turned into a month long celebration. When our kids were growing up, a few houses in the neighborhood went all out with decorations, but most houses carved a pumpkin or 2 and called it a day. There was one house that was owned by a DJ who would put up a movie screen and play Michael Jackson’s Thriller video for several hours on Halloween. Now, almost every street in the area has at least a few homes with elaborate displays of inflatables, huge statues of skeletons, other creatures, and spooky graveyards. Trick or treating or Trunk or Treat “events” take place the week and weekend leading up to Halloween, especially if October 31st is a weekday. Ads for costume sales run for weeks and pop up Halloween stores open in empty retail spaces in early September. Halloween is clearly more than just a one-day thing.

For people that love the holiday there are many facets of it to keep them busy. On the many cable channels and streaming services, is a buffet of movies offered from classics like Night of the Living Dead, to the Halloween franchise, to Childs Play with everyone’s favorite psychotic doll Chucky, to a wide selection of Stephen King’s psychological thrillers like the Shining or Pet Semetary.  You can also traverse the globe, with a bevy of ghost hunters, in search of haunted hotels, castles, homes, and businesses without ever leaving your couch. Psychic readings appear to be everywhere and psychic fairs happen on college campuses and other venues from coast to coast. Salem Massachusetts, the Witch City, is overflowing with tourists for the month. This year they were so overrun, they recommended not even trying to drive into the city especially on the weekends. There is no question that we have become fascinated with Halloween.

This week I have decided to take a bit of a different track and share some pictures of fall and Halloween instead of providing a longer narrative. Enjoy!

  

  

About the author

Ken Abrahams loves classic horror movies and taking photos, two things that combined made this week’s blog easy. For more of his blogs or thoughts go to https://funent.com/blog  or he can be reached at [email protected].

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