Oh the memories...

So yesterday was the fifth anniversary of my dad's funeral.
hard to believe that it's already been 5 years

It was also hallowe'en.
Came to the realisation that i'm growing old, because i was more excited about going to play hockey last night than lighting off firecrackers in my front yard.

While walking out the front door at around 730, i noticed that our pumpkin had been jacked, "probably blown up in the alley by now" i thought, and then a bottle-rocket whizzed across my yard. A couple of policemen on bike-patrol rolled on up to my driveway because they heard the noise and i pointed them in the opposite direction from where the rocket came from. sure i was aiding a crime, but the kids deserve to have a little fun now and then.

While driving down to kevin's house to pick him up for hockey, you could see the fireworks going off on all the side-streets. And i discovered just how easy it was to distinguish the races based on their firework/cracker activities.

Those with beautifully lit fireworks just going off one at a time with the sound of ooohs and aaahs in the background had to be whitefolk.

The nonstop hammering of firecrackers had to be asian.

The one with dozens of cars out front with many costumed people and the sound of karaoke in the backyard was definately filipino.

and the brown... oh the brown. just look for the street covered in smoke, smell the peanuts, and watch as the bastards light all their stock at once and run for cover. ripping the sticks off the bottle rockets, igniting them and tossing them in the air like a game of russian roulette... brought a smile to my face. and then i reached an epiphany... someone could really get hurt!

i had never thought about it before when i used to do it, but now i was worried about the safety of the kids...

damn

i'm old.

fortunately i was able to prevent myself from lecturing them.

came back home after hockey, took a shower and went into the kitchen to see what candy, if any, was left.

shocked to find that there was quite a bit remaining. fewer kids this year than last. is this whole candy-giving craze dying out, is this date turning into a celebration for arsonists instead?

or is the nation truly getting fatter and the kids are becoming too tired to walk for free candy. i remember when i was a wee lad and could go non-stop from house to house getting as much candy as possible. and i was fat. it was the adrenaline rush that kept me going and you could see all the kids out there as well with their parents hauling the larger bags that the kids would dump their candy into.

and then the true answer hit me.

all night, i barely saw many adults with the kids. definately not as many as the years before. they didn't seem excited either. they were more interested about doing things like "going to play hockey" than participating in hallowe'en. if the adults don't participate in it like they used to, this day will die out. the kids need motivation to hype them up and get them going.

but there was no one there to "do it for the kids."

and the kids are always watching