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 It happens every year. Before we know it, summer
is gone, and the leaves have started turning.
September brings the back-to-school rush, and by
the time October arrives, things have begun to
wind down. We're in limbo - still tingling from
the beginning of autumn, but not yet in full
holiday swing. This is the time when the last of
the harvest is completed; the ancient Celts
celebrated their New Year on October 31st, All
Hallows' Eve, giving thanks to their ancestors for the bounty of the
harvest.
The Celtic holiday is called Samhain - "end of
summer", in Old Irish. Samhain marks the time
when the veil between the worlds of the living
and the dead is thinnest, and ancient peoples
would practice divination, and tell stories about
the heroic deeds of gods and ancestors. Children
would visit neighbor's houses and collect fruits,
nuts, and sweets, symbolic of the successful
harvest. They would dress up as spirits, ghosts,
witches, goblins, zombies, or other spooky
creatures, in order to blend in with the spirits
of the dead who they believed had crossed over,
and were revisiting the mortal world. Over the
years, the ancient stories and rituals gave birth
to the modern-day celebration of Halloween. We
have carried on the tradition of ghost stories,
and we continue to dress our children up in
costumes and take them around to our neighbors' houses, to collect
sweets.
You're probably aware of the Halloween activities
going on in your area; if you don't have plans
yet, look no further! We have no shortage of
spooky events - from fancy masquerade balls, to
children's events, to ghost tours, there is
something for everyone! So, whether you plan to
take your little ones trick-or-treating or attend
a costume party, you'll find some nice treats in
our Halloween events list. Some are kid-friendly,
some are for adults only, some are scary, some
are not. Whatever floats your apple! More events
are added every day, so if you don't find
anything appealing, you can always search the site for events in your
area.
Do you have wee ones? If you're in New
Orleans or Santa
Barbara, take them to Boo at the Zoo! There's
also the Toddler
Island - Halloween Party in Brooklyn, NY; the
Goody
Two Shoes Halloween Party in New York City;
Washington
Irving's Sleepy Hollow in Chelsea, MI; the Columbia
City Halloween Kids Fair in Seattle; and Grimms
Grim Fairy Tales in Austin, TX.
Maybe you fancy a party or masquerade ball?
There's The
Odd Ball in Santa Cruz, CA; Rogue
Artists Ensemble's First Annual Masquerade
Ball in Los Angeles; Demons'
Ball 2007 in Richmond, VA; The
First Halloween Carnival 2007 in Houston, TX;
Freaker's
Ball, Halloween Costume Party in Los Gatos,
CA; Halloween
Bash 2 in Washington, DC; Howl
in Portland, OR; an
AFTERLIFE... in Sebastopol, CA; ZOMBIE
PROM in New York City; Monster
Ball in Phoenix, AZ; and TEMPLE
OF DOOM in San Francisco.
If you're in Seattle, check these parties out: The
Fourth Annual Cabaret Macabre, Guilty
Pleasures 2007 Fetish Ball, Little
Red Studio Halloween Bash, Circus
Contraption's Haunted Housewarming, SunTzu
Sound + Backline Media present ORANGE, CoCA
Halloween Party, Seattle
ZOMBIE PROM presented By: Staxxtoberfest V,
Sinner
Saint Halloween Bash, Dawn
of the Dead 6, and Haunted
Harbor Halloween.
Ghost hunting, tours, seances, haunted houses,
and psychics.. oh my! Haunting
at Farrar Elementary School in Farrar, IA; The
Haunted Haight Walking Tour in San Francisco;
Matthew
J. Cassiere presents Epitaph: An Intimate Seance
Experience in Philadelphia; Paranormal
Pub Crawl in the Market and the Market
Ghost Tour 2007 in Seattle; HOWL-A-WEEN:
A Fundraiser in Vallejo, CA; The
ScareHouse 2007 in Etna, PA; Ghost
Trolley of Old Monterey in Monterey, CA; and
FLORIDA
GHOST TEAM AT THE HAUNTED PLAYHOUSE in Lake Worth, FL.
Scary theater! Vinsantos
presents Macabaret, Shocktoberfest!!
2007: Maker of Monsters, and Creepshow
Live! in San Francisco; WITCH'S
BREW in Clarence, NY; The
Birds and Horror
Academy in Chicago, IL; and Tights
N' Frights in Washington, DC.
Love shows? Get your live music on! The
Motet Halloween Show and Shakedown
Street Halloween Show in Fort Collins, CO;
the Project
LIVE UnPlugged Halloween Event in Los
Angeles; Matchbook
Media Presents in Seattle; and HALLOWEEN
SHOW! Despised Icon, Passing In Dreams, &
Guests in Portland, OR. For more traditional
musical performances, there's An
Evening of Spooky Modern Music in New York
City; OPERA
CAFE- Halloween/Dia de los Muertos and Celtic
Nights in Seattle; and Concert for All
Hallows - San Francisco Renaissance Voices with
Harp Trio Trillium in San
Francisco and Palo Alto, CA.
How about comedy? Draculas
Dentures or Zombie Gun Shop in 3D in
Minneapolis and Halloween
Big Bang in Times Square, NY will get you laughing!
You could have some Halloween gaming fun at Endurance
Weekend 1.0 in Tucson, AZ; for wrestling fans
in Catskill, NY, check out XWA
Presents Halloween Havok! There are films,
too: HALLOWEEN
AT THE HAUNTED PLAYHOUSE in Lake Worth, FL,
and 2
HORROR HAPPENINGS in Asbury Park, NJ.
If you're a fan of the Rocky Horror Picture Show,
check out the ROCKY
HORROR HALLOWEEN BASH in Seattle, or the Little
Crawl of Horrors in Forest Grove, OR.
And Halloween wouldn't be complete without roller
derby! There's Treasure
Valley Rollergirls - FRANKENSTOMP in Boise,
ID; FRANKENSKATE
in Hyde Park, NY; Morristown
Madams vs Lehigh Valley Hissyfits in
Morristown, NJ; Jet
City Bombers vs. Sacred City Derby Girls Plus Jet
City Mash-ups***Black vs. Blue! in Lynnwood,
WA; Norcalrollergirls
Rollerderby Bout, Rough Riders vs. Pirates
Booty in Chico, CA; and Armory
of Darkness in Coos Bay, OR.
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