November 01, 2009
Halloween 2009

Halloween was yesterday. We gave out full size candy again this year much to the delight of all the trick or treaters. This is the fifth year we have given away full size candy. I still enjoy the look on the kids faces when they realize this. Also, I overhear kids saying things like, "I remember this house, it's the best!" That makes me happy.

I was wearing my Star Trek outfit to hand out candy. After a bit of help in the beginning from the kids and my mother-in-law, the family headed out into the night. Piper, our dog, kept me company and was interested in everyone that stopped by. In between visitors I watch the end of Beverly Hills Chihuahua and then Bruce Lee in Enter the Dragon. Enter the Dragon was better.

Once again, I set up my timelapse photography gear and made video of the door from 6:35PM to 9:07PM as I sat there handing out candy.

Halloween 2009 Timelapse from Michael Pusateri on Vimeo.

I made a second version of the timelapse that is a full five minutes long. If you want even more of me sitting, handing out candy, go watch it.

As I have in 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, I asked every person what they were dressed as and wrote down the answers. I am careful to ask what they are, accepting their answers rather than interpreting what I see. I now have five years of data to compare.

Here are the top ten costumes for the last five years compared.

This year, 'witch' rose to the top as the top costume, retaking the crown it had not held since 2006. People not wearing a costume, noted as "nothing", spike this year. Cruft Manor is seriously considering a "No costume, no candy." policy in 2010. Seemed to be less commercial costumes this year and more homemade ones. Overall, it was a busy night.

A few costumes stood out that I liked such as Darth Vader Vampire and Hunter from Left 4 Dead. The Left 4 Dead kid was ecstatic when I knew what his costume was from. He pumped his fist and said "Awesome!"

Here is this year's costume list, with a total of 213 people.

14 Witch
8 "nothing"
7 Fairy
6 Pirate
5 Princess
5 Scream
5 Skeleton
4 Dorothy from Wizard of Oz
4 Spiderman
3 Butterfly
3 Darth Vader
3 Grim Reaper
3 Ladybug
3 Ninja
3 Snow White
3 Vampire
3 Wizard
3 Wrestler
2 "myself"
2 Army Man
2 Bad Sandy from Grease
2 Banana
2 Barbie
2 Boy
2 Bumblebee
2 Bumblebee from Transformers
2 Cat
2 Doctor
2 Dracula
2 Football Player
2 Gangster
2 Gorilla
2 Karate Man
2 Little Red Riding Hood
2 Power Ranger - Red
2 Supergirl
2 Tinkerbell
2 Wolfman
1 Alien in disguise
1 Amy Winehouse
1 Anakin Skywalker
1 Army Girl
1 Ballerina
1 Baseball Player
1 Bee
1 Ben 10
1 Boxer
1 Chicken
1 Chinese Soldier
1 Chuckie (doll)
1 Clone Trooper
1 Cook
1 Cowboy
1 Crossing Guard
1 Darth Vader Vampire
1 Devil
1 Devil Girl
1 Donald Duck
1 Dragon
1 Duke from G.I. Joe
1 Emperor of Evil
1 Erkel
1 Evil Joker
1 Fire Fighter
1 Flower Girl
1 Freddie Krueger
1 Ghoul
1 Glowing Rave Person
1 Go Go Girl
1 Goth Bat
1 Grandpa Mexican
1 Harajuku Girl
1 Harry Potter
1 High School Graduate
1 Hippy
1 Home Depot Guy
1 Homeless Guy
1 Hunter from Left 4 Dead
1 Incredible Hulk
1 Indian Princess
1 Jedi
1 Jigsaw from Saw
1 Joker
1 Ladybug
1 Laker Fan
1 Leopard
1 Mad Cow Disease
1 Mardi Gras Man
1 Mask
1 Max from Wild Things
1 Mermaid
1 Michael Jordan
1 Michael Meyers
1 Minnie Mouse
1 Model
1 Mr. & Mrs. Noodle & Elmo
1 Mrs. Claus
1 Native American
1 Nerd with Mustache
1 Peter Pan
1 Pooka
1 Pumpkin
1 Pumpkin w/ Balloons
1 Race Car Driver
1 Robber with night vision goggles
1 Sailor
1 Scary Clown
1 Sexy Model
1 Skater
1 Skater Nerd
1 Soccer Player
1 Softball Player
1 Spiderella
1 Superman
1 Tara from Teen Titans
1 Tie Dye Person
1 Toxic Avenger
1 Victorian Queen
1 Violin Player
1 Warrior (70s movie)
1 Wig Lady
1 Wolverine
1 Wonder Woman
1 Yellow T-shirt guy
1 Zombie
1 Zombie Punk


Posted by michael at November 01, 2009 08:10 AM



Comments

I think a "No costume, no candy" rule is a good rule to have ~ maybe post a sign in the yard or right at the porch just to give extra warning too. When I go to my friends house to pitch in, we have this policy when it comes to handing out treats.
Where's the spirit of Halloween?

Posted by: Rachael [http://www.glassofwin.com] on November 1, 2009 9:00 AM

Excellent work as always, Mr. Pusateri. Makes me miss the olden days.

Posted by: Jennifer Diggs [http://www.mountainoflaundry.com] on November 1, 2009 9:07 AM

No costume, no candy enforced across SoCal for 2010!

Posted by: Tryphoon [http://www.tryphoon.com] on November 1, 2009 9:18 AM

Roughly categorized for your amusement.

3 Butterfly Animal
3 Ladybug Animal
2 Bumblebee Animal
2 Cat Animal
2 Gorilla Animal
1 Bee Animal
1 Chicken Animal
1 Dragon Animal
1 Goth Bat Animal
1 Ladybug Animal
1 Leopard Animal
1 Mermaid Animal
4 Dorothy from Wizard of Oz Character
3 Darth Vader Character
3 Snow White Character
2 Bad Sandy from Grease Character
2 Barbie Character
2 Bumblebee from Transformers Character
2 Karate Man Character
2 Little Red Riding Hood Character
2 Power Ranger - Red Character
2 Tinkerbell Character
1 Anakin Skywalker Character
1 Ben 10 Character
1 Chuckie (doll) Character
1 Clone Trooper Character
1 Darth Vader Vampire Character
1 Donald Duck Character
1 Duke from G.I. Joe Character
1 Erkel Character
1 Evil Joker Character
1 Freddie Krueger Character
1 Harry Potter Character
1 Hunter from Left 4 Dead Character
1 Jedi Character
1 Jigsaw from Saw Character
1 Joker Character
1 Max from Wild Things Character
1 Michael Jordan Character
1 Michael Meyers Character
1 Minnie Mouse Character
1 Mrs. Claus Character
1 Peter Pan Character
1 Tara from Teen Titans Character
1 Toxic Avenger Character
1 Warrior (70s movie) Character
4 Spiderman Character/Comics
2 Supergirl Character/Comics
1 Incredible Hulk Character/Comics
1 Superman Character/Comics
1 Wolverine Character/Comics
1 Wonder Woman Character/Comics
6 Pirate Criminal
5 Scream Criminal
3 Ninja Criminal
2 Gangster Criminal
1 Robber with night vision goggles Criminal
8 "nothing" Loser
2 "myself" Loser
2 Boy Loser
1 Amy Winehouse Loser
1 High School Graduate Loser
1 Yellow T-shirt guy Loser
14 Witch Magic
7 Fairy Magic
3 Wizard Magic
1 Pooka Magic
5 Skeleton Monster
3 Grim Reaper Monster
3 Vampire Monster
2 Dracula Monster
2 Wolfman Monster
1 Alien in disguise Monster
1 Devil Monster
1 Devil Girl Monster
1 Ghoul Monster
1 Zombie Monster
1 Zombie Punk Monster
2 Banana Object
1 Pumpkin Object
1 Pumpkin w/ Balloons Object
3 Wrestler Profession
2 Army Man Profession
2 Doctor Profession
1 Army Girl Profession
1 Ballerina Profession
1 Boxer Profession
1 Chinese Soldier Profession
1 Cook Profession
1 Cowboy Profession
1 Crossing Guard Profession
1 Emperor of Evil Profession
1 Fire Fighter Profession
1 Go Go Girl Profession
1 Home Depot Guy Profession
1 Sailor Profession
1 Scary Clown Profession
1 Sexy Model Profession
1 Violin Player Profession
2 Football Player Profession/Sports
1 Baseball Player Profession/Sports
1 Race Car Driver Profession/Sports
1 Soccer Player Profession/Sports
1 Softball Player Profession/Sports
5 Princess Royalty
1 Indian Princess Royalty
1 Victorian Queen Royalty
1 Spiderella Theme
1 Flower Girl Theme
1 Glowing Rave Person Theme
1 Grandpa Mexican Theme
1 Harajuku Girl Theme
1 Hippy Theme
1 Homeless Guy Theme
1 Mad Cow Disease Theme
1 Mardi Gras Man Theme
1 Mask Theme
1 Model Theme
1 Mr. & Mrs. Noodle & Elmo Theme
1 Native American Theme
1 Nerd with Mustache Theme
1 Tie Dye Person Theme
1 Wig Lady Theme
1 Laker Fan Theme/Sports
1 Skater Theme/Sports
1 Skater Nerd Theme/Sports

Posted by: paul [] on November 1, 2009 9:42 AM

I strongly support the no-costume/no-candy rule.

I also support loud ridicule in these cases.

Posted by: BillB [http://http:/squidly.com] on November 1, 2009 4:51 PM

Next year I want to come over and just very very slowly wave to the camera...

Posted by: justJENN [http://www.justjennrecipes.com] on November 1, 2009 10:22 PM

No costume, no candy = egged house. Just sayin.

Posted by: Bribo [http://www.flickr.com/photos/bribo] on November 2, 2009 6:24 AM

Turning eight people away with no candy hardly seems worth the mental grief. Would it be better to have a little box of domino masks to give to the uncostumed? Awesome list!

Posted by: Dave [http://www.przy.biz] on November 2, 2009 7:33 AM

Raisin boxes for the uncostumed. It's nature's costume, so it gets nature's candy.

Posted by: Ryan Cousineau [http://wiredcola.com] on November 2, 2009 10:12 AM

AH, I like the domino mask idea! Give them a costume. Cool.

The policy I inherited from my mother is that if you're wearing a costume, age is irrelevant. Show the Halloween spirit and get some loot!

Posted by: Blaze Morgan [] on November 2, 2009 10:18 AM

I LOVE the idea of handing them a mask if they have no costume. It's on for next year!

Posted by: Michael [http://cruftbox.com] on November 2, 2009 1:26 PM

Отличный сайт и материалы очень познавательные

Posted by: warsewriplien [http://bankblogger.ru] on November 8, 2009 5:50 PM

What was the soundtrack for that video? Was it from some Tim Burton movie, Mr. Pusateri?

I'm all for the giving out masks to those without a costume....

Posted by: Vincent [] on November 18, 2009 12:08 AM

What was the soundtrack for that video? Was it from some Tim Burton movie, Mr. Pusateri?

I'm all for the giving out masks to those without a costume....

Posted by: Vincent [] on November 18, 2009 12:08 AM

What was the soundtrack for that video? Was it from some Tim Burton movie, Mr. Pusateri?

I'm all for the giving out masks to those without a costume....

Posted by: Vincent [] on November 18, 2009 12:09 AM

Dear Author cruftbox.com !
Warm to you thanks for your help.

Posted by: Powerhead13 [http://www.step-two.ru/] on December 3, 2009 11:04 PM
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