For those who were not aware, I am a summer person. I love the long days, I don’t mind the heat so long as I have AC to sleep in, it’s beach weather. What’s not to love? So you might be surprised to know that October is my second favorite month.
While Autumn for me is the reminder of the harder, colder months to come, October gives me one last hurrah before the days grow too short and the temperature falls to fast. You can still get by without a jacket while the sun is up. Pumpkin everything arrives. When I could have them, gingersnaps and cider were high points for the gustatory as well. Ah, for the sugar highs of youth.
What it really comes down to in October though can be summed up in a single word: Halloween.
Halloween is that it’s the one time each year that you can be as weird as you damn well please and nobody says a word. I can watch as many horror movies as I want, show up to work dressed in costume, see gravestones all over the place and still feel normal. It’s a month long crescendo into the macabre and the weird. Everyone can join in too, from the tiniest child to the kind of creepy old man on your block who loves to scare the shit out of candy collecting youth.
It’s also prime writing time. I feel the hoary old spirits from beyond call out and push me to type well into the night. Well, figuratively anyway. It’s also the month leading up to Nanowrimo, and I really start turning my gears to work on new projects. I take my vacation the week of Halloween and usually use it to stay home and watch scary movies and play survival horror games. I’ll carve a couple pumpkins and help my folks hand out candy to the few kids that still come around the neighborhood.
My dad also would stand out in front of the house on Mischief Night with a goddamned sword and tell young punks to keep walking. which is terrifying and awesome all at the same time.
Halloween is a great time of year. I’m hoping to scare up some more good stuff this month and look forward to sharing it with you here.
