Threadjacking!

[von Boom]

[TordelBack]

Unable to acquire pumpkins this year (thanks, Obama), I had the opportunity to return to my roots and carve turnips instead. It's roughly 3 times the work for 1/5 the size, but drokk me if they aren't 15 times scarier!

Proustian moment when the candle started heating up the turnipy insides. I was instantly 6 again, sitting at the blue melamine of my mam's kitchen table in a cardboard-and-tinfoil knight's helmet and breastplate.

Went for a wet and windy walk earlier in the hills behind our house, and after a few hours, at the exact limit of our 5km radius, on top of Black Hill, we encountered the first other humans: it was my wife's cousin and her husband, who were at the exact limit of their 5km, but from the other side.

If that wasn't spoooooky enough, my dog emerged from the woods and deposited a severed deer leg at our feet.

[JayzusB.Christ]

Unable to acquire pumpkins this year (thanks, Obama), I had the opportunity to return to my roots

Nice.

I carved a turnip last year too, which took me back - I honestly don't remember there being any pumpkins around back when I was a little lad.  It definitely took me back to the days of trick-or-treating wearing a bin bag, and the feeling of sticking your tongue through the mouth-hole of your plastic mask.

If that wasn't spoooooky enough, my dog emerged from the woods and deposited a severed deer leg at our feet.

Feck. That's Antichrist shit right there.

[Funt Solo]

the feeling of sticking your tongue through the mouth-hole of your plastic mask.

Oh yeah!

I got a taste for raw turnip through all that. We got our turnips from the edge of the field, and our festive trees from the woods.

[TordelBack]

  It definitely took me back to the days of trick-or-treating wearing a bin bag, and the feeling of sticking your tongue through the mouth-hole of your plastic mask..

I hadn't thought of that sensation in decades! I had a knock-off Darth Vader mask from Hector Gray's that I wore for several years running, and it developed a savage tear on one side of the mouth-slit that would catch and pinch my tongue. Wonderful memory to recover thanks Jayzus!

[M.I.K.]

My turnipy effort from last year...



..and it was "guising" in my day.

[The Legendary Shark]

Did your dog find the severed leg or sever the limb itself?

Either way - uh-oh...

[TordelBack]

Did your dog find the severed leg or sever the limb itself?

Heh, the former, he was only gone a minute. Not wanting to spoil the vibe, but it's deer-culling season in the Dublin Mtns and some of those lads are far from tidy. A few years ago rhe same dog emerged from some bracken (on a different hill) with a whole (deer) head.

Great turnip, MIK! Here's a shitty pic of my subpar effort:

[The Doctor Alt 8]

I prefer something more tasty and traditional....

https://youtu.be/tpWdzXJObZ0

[JayzusB.Christ]

Excellent turnipwork, lads!

'Guising' is a new one on me. We always said the standard 'trick or treat', but when I moved to Dublin, I was told that was an American thing, and 'real' Irish kids said 'help the Halloween party'.  Which sounds kind of shite, and was probably only a Dublin thing that has since died out.

[Link Prime]

We always said the standard 'trick or treat', but when I moved to Dublin, I was told that was an American thing, and 'real' Irish kids said 'help the Halloween party'.  Which sounds kind of shite, and was probably only a Dublin thing that has since died out.

Can confirm.

The Dubs switched to 'Trick or Treat' sooner than you could say "90210" in the early 90's (noticed the change when bringing my little sister around at the time).

[JayzusB.Christ]

Thanks for confirming!

'Trick or treat' may well be an American import, but we never heard 'help the Halloween party' in my little midlands town in the early 80s.

I also notice that nobody ever puts the apostrophe into Halloween any more - I remember an 80s British comic (no idea which one) spelled it 'Hall'owe'en', and even then I thought 'that can't be right'. 

Also, in other horror-related 80s news, the stories inside the Trebor Mummies wrappers used to scare the bejesus out of me.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/jasonliebigstuff/6035566856/

[JOE SOAP]

'Guising' is a new one on me. We always said the standard 'trick or treat', but when I moved to Dublin, I was told that was an American thing, and 'real' Irish kids said 'help the Halloween party'.  Which sounds kind of shite, and was probably only a Dublin thing that has since died out.

Never heard of 'Help the Halloween party', it was usually 'Any apples or nuts?' in Dubland.

[Link Prime]

'Any apples or nuts?' in Dubland.

Heard my Da mention that years ago, but he was originally a resident of the sovereign nation of Walkinstown, so nothing that came out of his mouth surprised me (when I could understand it).

[TordelBack]

Never heard of 'Help the Halloween party', it was usually 'Any apples or nuts?' in Dubland.

Definitely the former in my leafy Ballyroan suburb, but then we were infested with the children of first-generation immigrants, who brought their strange country customs with them. My so-afflicted best mate's house specialised in a savage variant of bobbing for apples where they held your head under until you succeeded, or went limp. I can still feel the metal rim of the tub pressed into my chest.

As I've probably reminisced here before, we were blessed with a (irredeemably culchie)  Garda inspector living on our street, who would bring a giant haul of confiscated fireworks home at Hallowe'en and let them all off at our bonfire. Quite how he had that night off was always a mystery.  Corruption is no biggie when you're a beneficiary.