Only in Columbus, Ohio

Given that it is October 29,I thought I would take a moment to explain to everyone why Trick or Treat is celebrated tonight in Columbus Ohio, rather than on Saturday, as in the rest of the world.

Actually, in Columbus, we don't really celebrate Halloween, we celebrate something called "beggars night", or Trick or Treat, which in Columbus was always declared to be on October 30. Perhaps this is so the small children trick or treating don't come to any harm by being out after dark on the "real" Halloween? Though, given that Trick or Treat starts at 5 in some communities, and it doesn't get dark until about 630 or so, now that the start of daylight savings time is delayed, most trick-or-treaters will be cold and tired and home sipping hot chocolate by 6:30. Perhaps it is so we never really celebrate that dark and sinister holiday of Halloween at all? Possibly.

But to get back to the point , if Trick or treat, or beggars night, aka October 30 ,occurs on a Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday, that is when most communities in celebrate Trick or Treat in the central Ohio area. Of course, there are a few "beggars night" purist communities that celebrate on October 30, and a few Halloween purist communities that celebrate on October 31. So depending on what community you live in, you could have trick-or-treaters tonight, or tomorrow night, or Saturday night.

This is further complicated by which school district you reside in. If you live in one city but are in the school district of another city, as I do, it is totally possible that the schools will decide to celebrate Trick or Treat with the school district city, rather than the actual city of residence. Whether this is so children can trick or treat together or what, I have no idea ( and believe it or not, I really understand this better than most.) So once again, if you are like me, and you live in one city, but reside in another city's school district, but have no children in school, you have to guess, or read the local communiity newspaper to determine which night is Trick or Treat. Of course this is even further complicated by the fact that the local newspapers come out on Thursday, and as of last weeks local paper, there was no mention of when Trick or Treat was occurring. Fortunately, a local school teacher lives on my street, and was able to clear up my confusion. It really is essential to know your neighbors when you live in Columbus, but that is fodder for another days blog.

Anyway, the enquiring mind that has followed this complicated story so far might wonder, why we don't celebrate Trick or Treat on Friday or Saturday. The story I got from my parents, who were born and raised in Columbus (as I was, thence my deep understanding of when Trick or Treat usually occurs) is that Trick or Treat is not celebrated on Friday or Saturday to prevent excessive vandalism celebrating the "Trick" portion of the holiday, as older juveniles might possibly be inclined to such tricks.

And let us not forget Sunday. We NEVER celebrate Trick or Treat on Sunday, apparently due to the significant influence of churches in Columbus, possibly the most northern city of the Bible Belt. Church attendance might be in a decline world-wide, but I am personally convinced that if polls that enumerate church attendance included Columbus, they would find a true and significant counter-trend. Many churches, in fact, have youth group parties on Halloween to prevent the celebration of the Halloween holiday by budding young Christians. It seems to me that these "non-Halloween" parties are really Halloween parties masquerading as "non-Halloween" parties, adding yet another level of misdirection and masquerade to an already complex holiday.

So - the summary for those of you who are STILL wondering when trick or treaters will show up each year:

If October 30 occurs on a Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday, that will be trick or treat night.

If October 30 occurs on the Friday, Saturday or Sunday, trick or treat night will be on the Thursday before.

Exceptions include various "purist" communities, and homes residing in one city but belonging to a different school district.

Any questions? Ask a neighbor who is a teacher, or call the local elementary school!

And don't forget to have a few cans of food available for anyone trick or treating for the local food back!

Now that i have the story clear in my mind, I need to explain this all to my out-of-state boss, who might wonder why I need to leave at 4:30 pm tonight!