SHEsaysWITHaSMILE.blogspot.com

Gotta get to San Jose for Halloween -mrs sandra mickanen sharing

 

one of many fun & treasured halloween memories

****

my waking imaginings this very morning:  i have a youtube channel; it is primarily about San Jose, and my experiences living here  -9 years now, i believe

and there are more serious posts; that cover more serious, consequential ground, like how it is a GIANT MISTAKE to close Great America and a GIANT MISTAKE to close/relocate the San Jose Flea Market..

but the post; the one i would create this week if i already had my youtube channel up and running;

the goal of it:   getting WAY MORE PEOPLE in San Jose/Santa Clara County involved in celebrating Halloween..

like, you will be the exception, in 2027, 2028 and moving forward if you don't decorate/participate in Halloween vs. what we see here write now in 2026; 

where your house is the great exception, if you do decorate & participate.

i would bring my cameraman   -cameraperson, up and down blocks and blocks of my neighborhood; we are not far from Piedmont High School..

try and find a house with Halloween decorations..             -you can't.

it is heartbreaking.   what the heck has happen to the Halloween Spirit in San Jose?!?   

Let me please remind:   Halloween is FUN!    it is FUN for kids,  -and anything fun for kids, is fun for the parents..  potentially fun for everyone;  we all need more FUN; more play; more creativity

k, 

what i've learned since living here, is that it has more to do with the demographics,  -the variety of cultures, than it does, an entire population just abandoning a Halloween Spirit that once was..

a large percentage of the people living in San Jose today -October 2026

they come from far away lands, where they never celebrated or recognized Halloween in the first place.  They've had no exposure; no trick or treating in their youth..

it stands out to me now, how..  enlightening, educational it was for me, only a couple halloween's ago, to learn our neighbor friend, had no idea who this was:

what i'd like to do here is just educate & encourage everyone in San Jose,  in Santa Clara County, to participate in this super fun, costume & candy, trick or treat holiday

it is a great way, to experience, by way of actual participation, in one of the USA's admittedly over-commercialized, under appreciated opportunities for JOY   -playful, light-hearted, creative, silly, scary..

Halloween,  -and I am a native Californian, born & raised:   Halloween is one of the great, fun, memories from our childhood:  my older brother, me, my younger sister..

It culminates Oct 31st with kids getting dressed in cute or scary or just creative costumes, and going door to door, (usually after dinner);  knock, knock..     a cool parent, or older teen, answers the door  -often also dressed in some type of costume, kids say, "trick or treat"    -k, there is also a version

trick or treat, smell my feet, give me something good to eat...

-optional

but then, whoever answered the door,  -oohs and ahhs a little over the cute/scary kid costumes..   because it really is great fun to see what the kids come up with

often, dressing up like the popular characters/celebrities of that year

and then..     kids open up their   -when we were young, we used pillow cases to hold all the candy..

our own kids used actual halloween candy bags, with handles and everything..

and then the adult of the house, grabs some candy and puts it in your bag!

house after house,    trick or treat...     and  "candy!"

then..   after a few blocks of that..       you return home, you dump out ALL your candy, and spread it on the floor..   your parents go through it..    they pretend to be checking only for safety reasons..

making sure none of the packaging is torn or compromised in any way..     tossing out anything suspicious..

and slyly taking a few pieces of whatever their favorite candy is..

and then, depending on the parents, and the  -rules..    and all the vastly exaggerated sugar concerns  'cavity preventing - balanced diet' codes that are enforced..

then you get to enjoy your candy  -pick out your own favorites!   trade with siblings or friends, 

two m&m's packs for your snickers..

or, i'll tell you a funny true story:  my younger sister and i..      we loved candy more than our older brother..

over several days, we would have eaten all our halloween candy;   it would seem as if, 

as if, 

we'd need to wait all the way until the next year's halloween before we could get a new supply.

not so.

because our older brother..     he saved his candy.    

he saved his candy, knowing we'd soon be out of ours.. and then, 

like the savvy young entrepreneur he was..    

he would charge us a quarter per candy..

sure laugh it about now..    

it was great fun!     kids need fun!   all kids, from everywhere around the world  -they need fun!

and Halloween Fun, and Halloween spirit..  it starts way before Halloween night itself..

there is the deciding what or who you want to be..   which costume?    sometimes you can buy an expensive mask,  -sometimes DIY  -do it yourself costumes,   -sometimes very involved; theatrical..

lots of the younger kids, like to wear their costumes in advance  -just for fun,   -dress up, imagination..

when my kids were young, their elementary school, had the most wonderful, entertaining, charming Halloween parades..     by grade, i believe it was..     all the kids would kind of walk, march, around the perimeter of the recess playground, with all the parents/teachers watching, cheering them on, ooohing and ahhing and taking lots of pictures..

i could go on and on, 

my goal..    don't let the Halloween Spirit slip away...

we believe it has slipped away not because people don't appreciate it; but rather because people have not had exposure to it; they don't understand it really..

add on,  -a year doesn't go by that there isn't some news story about dangerous criminals ruining or threatening to ruin Halloween for kids, parents, families  

the reality is, you do have to exercise basic safety practices

kids going door to door,  -with a parent(s); or older sibling..   with adults; not solo.

kids wearing some type of  -visible-  something, as a part of, or in addition to their costume,  -because you trick or treat in the evening, after dinner, it's october and gets dark early.  you want people to be able to see you, especially when crossing streets..

and, no one ever eats any candy without it first being thoroughly inspected and approved by parents/adults.

the rewards and fun and joy,   -the memories; make it very much worth the efforts.

so, 

when my husband and i drove around san jose just this past week, running errands, and we looked, 

block after block

looking on the left side of the street, and the write side of the street..

and we went BLOCKS without seeing even ONE HOUSE with a hint of Halloween Decoration.

it broke our hearts.

we know the joy!   we know the joy from being kids ourselves and getting to trick or treat; we know the joy from watching our own (now grown kids) get to trick or treat when they were young;

and we know the joy from watching our grandkids..

 

[ here is where i insert a picture of one of the neighborhoods we saw recently.. with ZERO halloween decorations ]

and here is where i insert a picture of what we expect to see next year..

house after house with   -something..   

some kind, simple or elaborate, halloween theme decor..      let the joy of the kids inspire you!

and then, 

a picture of a boring, uninvolved, indifferent..   same ole, same ole house..

contrasted with a picture of a house with a lot of halloween spirit!

and then pictures of halloween night, where you see,  lots of kids in costume..   with trick or treat bags..

and the decorated houses welcome these costumed cutie pies..

and new generations get to accumulate these wonderful memories too..

****

and instead of writing/blogging/posting..   i share this on a youtube channel,  -talk.

and of course, 

it is translated into chinese, vietnamese, spanish, tagalog

****

hallelujah, happy halloween & amen

posted by SANDRA MICKANEN @ 8:05 AM