Ask Lemmy

Halloween never really was a thing in my country. At high times, there were three or four groups during the evening. This year only one.

UK - Only had one kid come and had lots of treats. My own kids went out and got quite a haul, but most people had left bowls out so they didn't knock on many doors (they know only to go to decorated houses).

For the last few years, there seem to be more people decorating and putting treats out than there are kids going out. Plus our weather has been shit.

It was bonkers this year!

In excess of 650 candy given out, though not my usual Famous Amos packs (wildly more expensive than last year). A solid wall of kids and families from 7-8:30 when we ran out.

I do go crazy for decorating and candy delivery mechanism.

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Our town had the usual in town loop (Downtown is a 4x4 block grid) all the buisnesses handing out candy a couple of the bars haning mini shots for the parents, etc, with main street closed off, a band playing, fire dept, police, and some of the bigger buisnesses without a storefront down town staging their Halloween stuff in there. There was also the usual lead in- to town (its fairly traditional for all the houses to have candy starting about 1 mile out of town on the main road in- often with the caretakers/ property manager cos doing candy on their properties on the behalf of the rich owners who only visit seasonally)

There were also 4 different neighborhoods sort of actively advertising they were 'open' for trick or treaters- wirh residents telling everyone to make sure to hit up their blocks. 2 of them were blocks with a sort of critical mass of young families, and 2 were somw of the larger, denser areas so better for foot traffic.

Our towns kind of difficult demographics wise though- in addition to the whole young families having trouble affording homes, and aging population problems felt everywhere, were a seasonal beach resort town, so probably 60% of the houses are closed for the season by Halloween.

We're in a downtown-adjacent neighborhood of our decently-sized city and we saw plenty of kids this year (6-8 in small groups and a herd of 15 or so). Other years when we lived a bit further out, we didn't get as many but still a few (usually 5-10).

I got 42 trick or treaters.

I went walking yesterday during trick or treating to a party at a bar 2 miles away. I saw a few groups of kids, I walked through a business street area and all the restaurants and bars and stores were giving out candy to kids with their parents. Every group had a parent but they were mostly 8-14. Definitely wasn't as busy as it was when I went as a kid 15 years ago, even though I lived in a small town. Also not a lot of houses were participating in giving out candy but I moved to a city so maybe that's it

ICE, the chances pedophiles, kidnappers have definitely suppressed halloween numbers. also because of covid too.

The volume of salt and sugar in my front room would tend to make me believe, trick or treating is alive and well.

Jokes aside. We live in rural Canada. It's so popular it was moved to Thursday night this year because of a massive rainstorm last night.

We still get some. Maybe 20 groups of between 2-7 kids, all were with parents, all seemed under 11 years old. No roving groups of older kids this year. We do have kids in our neighborhood, and a couple of apartment complexes nearby with more so there is no way most of them came out but it seemed more little kids this year than last. I don't live in the suburbs, but in a residential neighborhood in the city.

I was in costume because we had a party. Olivia Octavius. And had the pleasure of threatening a wee spiderman, which made his parents laugh but he didn't understand.

We had one group of three kids and their parents, that was it. I blame the rain storm. We got hit with an "atmospheric river" that started about 2 bours before it got dark. 😭

Kind of yes... When I was a kid (born in the 70s, grew up in the 80s) we went all around the neighborhood.

These days you can put your light on, it won't matter. People drive their kids to the rich neighborhoods and trick-or-treat there.

Why the HOAs put up with it is beyond me.

Fewer kids on the street, they've outgrown the trick-or-treating phase. And with how expensive it is to own a property now, I don't expect young couples to buy a house here anytime soon.

Hasn't died here.

No one this year because of a stupid baseball game and suddenly everyone cares about baseball because go local team. Canada is supposed to be "elbows out" but we throw money at US team sports that over schedule.

We had zero this year. We even put out decorations and every year we give out full size bars and pokemon packs. Live in the center of town in a dense neighborhood. I do think part of the reason is none of the street lights ever are on anymore

I mean compared to when I was young its come down massively. It got sorta wierd when you had parents driving down the street one house at a time and the kids get out and back in and then you had people coming from far places if your place was known for handing out good stuff. Im in a condo now so it just does not really happen as its just not as accessible as single family homes. My place is also on this busy triangle that is surrounded by busy streets with no side streets.

I stopped bothering like two or three years ago. Number of years in a row before that I had zero trick-or-treaters so just kind of felt like why bother anymore?

First year in my neighborhood 10 or so years ago they went pretty hard, but the streets were completely packed with cars that were obviously from outside the neighborhood and it seems like everyone stopped the following year

Had to leave my neighborhood to trick or treat with my kiddo. She made out like a bandit.

We had a wind/rain storm. Did our block and got home soaked. Not as bumping as last year. So I don't think it's dead, just a bad weather year.

Jays game.... Streets were empty after 8

apartment

I think my house is too far down a seemingly dead court for most kids to bother. We got less than 5 this past Halloween, but I've heard the houses at the start of the street get tons of kids.

Our small rural town still does it, police and fire shut down a few blocks so the families can wander around safely. We also do Trunk or Treat too mostly for younger kids. One thing that has died out is families going around to homes outside of town limits. Lots of folks in costume in town at least!

The past decade or so where I live, almost without fail, there's a huge rain or thunderstorm on Halloween that makes it absolutely miserable to trick-or-treat. You have to wear a jacket and if you wear face paint it just runs and you can't see. The very last time I went out about 8 years ago, the storm was so bad it nearly ripped a chainlink fence off its posts and the people giving out candy just dumped their whole bowl in my bag because they knew nobody else would come.

No, it was still going strong yesterday, despite construction project blocking sidewalks and concerns about ICE.

Had 1 visit, normally 5 or so.

But actually its pretty nice. I dont like these commercial days where its all about buying shit like costumes and candy.

Maybe we should donate that money to some organisation instead of getting fat and ugly eating candy.

Maybe it is the fear of being shot for stepping on someone else's property. Many people with kids also can't afford to live in a house, and apartment complexes don't do door to door trick or treating.

Unpopular opinion probably, I'm ready for the down votes: I live in Europe and I hate the fact that it has taken root here. We don't need any more American culture to take over. I didn't grow up with this and I don't need my kids growing up with it. We have no connection to Halloween celebrations like this. What's next to come, Thanksgiving?

End rant. 😅

This is the second year in a row that we had no trick or treaters again.

We have no kids really. We barely had any even before everything went down. I'm in a very rural town and there just isn't the population or interest here anymore.