Opinions, Column

Cheers To Halloween Creativity

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Halloween Weekend: Next in the holiday batting order is Halloween. Give it up for the one holiday during which it is not only okay but expected that we don absurd outfits and ask strangers for candy. (This does not end when you go to college. It’s just a different kind of sweets then. Hey, oh!) In all seriousness (well, as much seriousness as a TU/TD column can muster—don’t expect too much of us), this is a great holiday. There are two days (three, if you’re ambitious) coming up into which we can channel 12 months of pent-up costume creativity. We have been working on our costume line-up for months—Jay Gatsby, James Bond, the Godfather, Jordan Belfort, Don Draper, Gordon Gecko. There’s just not enough time to fit it all in. Maybe if we do multiple costumes per night….

Dorm Room Decorations: We haven’t had the time to decorate our room, but we really respect all of you out there who do so. We remember growing up and all the decorations our mothers would spread about the house. They had decorations for every major holiday and some minor ones. Decorations really bring an otherwise sterile space to life, and, while we aren’t making so bold a claim as to say that our dorm rooms are hygienic, they certainly are barren.

Human Creativity: It turns out that mankind has a remarkable ability to sexualize literally anything for the sake of Halloween. Although often this comes out tacky and/or ridiculous, we applaud the effort. Not everyone puts that forth. We’ve seen sexy hamburgers, sharks, and traffic cones. Yes, traffic cones.

Human Creativity, Pt. II: There is another creativity that is often at play on Halloween, and that is the clever/pun approach to costumes. Although not gifted in the difficult art of devising these ideas, we tip our top hats and extend the utmost respect to those of you who do have this gift. We loved 50 shades of grey—paint samples taped on a grey shirt—last year. We’ve seen cereal killers (think those mini cereal boxes with plastic knives through them … and lots of ketchup) and Facebook (think writing the word ‘book’ on your face). The best might have been a one-night stand. It is a lot of effort to lug around a nightstand all evening, and we respect

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Sexy Ebola Nurse Costumes: Apparently, this is a thing. I guess we shouldn’t have been surprised—the costume industry has an insatiable appetite for turning anything into a sexy Halloween costume (We actually mean anything. See above), and this is the topical disease of the year. So, yeah, this is a thing. We just want to know what makes this any different from a regular sexy nurse.

Mice, Cats, and Bunnies: Show some creativity. These are so overplayed. (Although we will say, we were very impressed freshman year with someone’s homemade helmet for a No. 5 deceased mouse costume, but that is the exception, not the rule.)

Haunted Houses: We aren’t sorry for this. We think they are not scary and just a waste of time.

Featured Image courtesy of David Tanecek / AP Photo

October 29, 2014