Column: Halloween Creep

column-halloween-creep

Dear readers,

Have you noticed the Halloween decorations on the lawn of the house on the northeast corner of Broadway and Miller Streets? More and more monsters, skeletons, giant spiders, and creepy things seem to appear daily.

I stopped by recently to thank the owners for putting up their wonderful scary Halloween decorations in mid-September. I knocked on the door, but no one answered. 

Maybe no one was at home. Maybe they thought I was an early trick-or-treater. Dressed in my customary suit and bow tie, they might have thought I was in a Pee-wee Herman costume. 

Since Pee-wee Herman just died recently, they might have thought it too soon. With Halloween still a month and a half away, I have plenty of time to catch them at home to thank them.

The family living at the corner of Miller and Broadway aren’t the only people getting in the Halloween spirit. My niece, Vanessa, has a pumpkin patch at Meltzer Farm. Vanessa told me that people are already picking pumpkins.

Some of you readers probably think September is too early to begin celebrating Halloween. It’s not too early for me. My birthday is on Halloween. As a boy, I always knew that my birthday was fast approaching when the paraffin lips, fangs, moustaches, and harmonicas appeared in the candy case at Kirk’s Five Points. 

The reason that Halloween starts earlier and earlier every year is because of Christmas Creep. I think it is probably already Christmas at Hobby Lobby.

Christmas Creep began years ago. Retailers have always enjoyed financial success at Christmas time, so every year they put Christmas items on the shelf a few days earlier. Over the years those extra Christmas shopping days have turned into months.

Halloween has now been pushed back to September, not by choice, but by necessity. It had to be done to make room on the calendar for Thanksgiving.

As Paul Harvey would say, “Now you know the rest of the story.”

Last week’s road trip to Buc-ee’s generated comments from many of you. I have tabulated the votes. Most of you believe Buc-ee’s has already become a part of Americana. Families on vacation now look for Buc-ee’s billboards just as past generations looked for the “Chew Mail Pouch Tobacco” barns or Burma Shave road signs.

Several women including Shelby County Post travel columnist Carol McDaniel wrote to tell me that I failed to mention the clean restrooms.  In fact, the restrooms at Buc-ee’s are far more than clean. The individual stalls have full doors to ensure privacy and are so numerous there isn’t a wait. I guess that’s a good thing since the billboard requests that travelers “hold it” for a hundred miles.

The common complaint about Buc-ee’s is that there are no seats for customers. I guess if a traveler really needs to sit down to enjoy a Buc-ee’s brisket sandwich, they can do it sitting on the Buc-ee’s throne.

Last but not least this week, a special shout out to Coulston first grade teacher Dawn Matheny. My granddaughter Pearl introduced me to Mrs. Matheny on grandparent’s night last week. I learned that she is a long-time reader of my column. Thanks to Mrs. Matheny not only for reading my column but for teaching the next generation to read. I need all the readers I can get. 

See you all next week, same Schwinn time, same Schwinn channel.

Get the most recent Shelby County Post headlines delivered to your email. Go to shelbycountypost.com and click on the free daily email signup link at the top of the page.