Halloween - To answer or not to answer?

[Fleetwood]

Just curious to see who answers their doors to trick or treaters and who doesn't. I personally don't, and won't ever, and wish common sense would apply to some people (if I've not answered it means I haven't got any treats so see no point in opening the door to give false hope to your children, so there's also no need to shout abuse or calling me a "spoilt sport ") or at least adopt a "No decorations/no lights = no knock" rule but I'm just an anti-social 20 year old grump bag.

 

What have you all been doing?

Edited October 31, 2013 by Fleetwood

[teejay]

They know not to visit our house.....

[featured_spectre]

We apply the no light/no decorations = no knock.

 

We will answer until we run out of sweets, and then I have a sign that says I've run out. Surprisingly few knocks this year.

[Arthur]

I don't answer the door either after having some kids throw things at our house a few years ago as a "trick". Luckily no windows were broken.

[tech_guy]

That reminds me - time to wire the doorbell up to the mains again....

[localzuk]

Never been an issue for me... That never come knocking at my place. They're all too scared of me!

[rad]

We have a pumpkin outside, treats available yet not many did last year (2 or 3 knocks) This year, one so far

[DMcGuigan]

We answered last year, but hardly anyone knocked, so we've adopted the "no lights, go away" approach this year.

 

No knocks as of yet, one group trying to get into the garden while I was opening the door to get in, though their parents / carers / zookeepers ( one was in an elephant mask, it counts ) quickly shoo'd them up the road.

[X-13]

Brb... finding out where you all live to get free sweets.

 

We don't open the door here. They don't want sweets, they want money... and if you don't give it to them you're likely to get punched.

Edited October 31, 2013 by X-13

[Rawns]

I live in a flat so no one bothers. In the rare chance another neighbor lets one in ,they 'knock' but we just blank them.

[plexer]

We put a pumpkin out and the kids like to give out the sweets but once they've run out we put the pumpkins away and don't answer the door anymore, had quite a few this year, Missus, eldest and youngest are out at a party so just me and middle child here as she was too naughty to go to the party.

 

Ben

[Gatt]

I FELT I SHOULD MAKE A SPECIAL APPEARANCE THIS HALLOWE'EN

 

[sparkeh]

No one has ever knocked here in 8 years. I see them walking down our street but never knock... Don't know why?... Strange.

[MatthewL]

The house goes into darkness and to be honest as a rule of thumb never answer the door unless I am expecting visitors, bit like answering a caller who withholds their telephone number.

 

Will be in my own place next year with a camera on the door, already got the blackout blinds on order to make it look like I am not in.

[PeggleStar]

We had a total of about 30 kids come to the door tonight and most had a parent with them, we only give sweets to them no money and once the sweets ran out we put a sign up saying no sweets left.

[elsiegee40]

My sister's village organises through the parish: Display the pumpkin poster that's circulated with the parish newsletter and they'll call... no pumpkin poster, no bother.

 

For us a simple note in the window 'no trick or treat please' does the job. Not that we are home tonight anyway; it's up to our offspring who are big and ugly enough to look after themselves!

[SYNACK]

Used to have to do a sign, basically no Halloween but the new place is at the end of a long road up a long driveway with lots of trees, so it is actually scary all by itself so no trick or treaters this year even without a sign on the gate

[Iain.Faulkner]

Our estate tends to be pretty good, there is a very definite no pumpkin no knock policy.

 

We decorated our house this year though, and had quite a few knocks....certainly enough to get through a large tub of hero's anyway! Most were youngish kids with an adult, one group of two lads who weren't actually wearing any sort of costume....came in jeans and hoodies....scared the cr*p out of a group of our year 7 girls when I opened the door wearing a witches hat. Definitely got a couple of screams when they saw who it was :-)

[Roberto]

Just curious to see who answers their doors to trick or treaters and who doesn't. I personally don't, and won't ever, and wish common sense would apply to some people (if I've not answered it means I haven't got any treats so see no point in opening the door to give false hope to your children, so there's also no need to shout abuse or calling me a "spoilt sport ") or at least adopt a "No decorations/no lights = no knock" rule but I'm just an anti-social 20 year old grump bag.

 

What have you all been doing?

 

Nothing. I used to like halloween but now its just the anniversary of my mother's death, so I don't see much to enjoy from it now. To be fair, the kids round my way are pretty good at the whole 'no porch light on = don't bother calling' thing.

[synaesthesia]

We don't, we don't particularly like the idea of it. I don't like it anyway as I think it's a fairly daft American tradition (as I'm half American some find this odd!). When the kids are a little older they will have free choice anyway, if they want to go out and Trick or Treat they're welcome.

I personally find it a bit of a shame that it has long overshadowed a good old British tradition (Penny for the Guy) at around the same time. People made a lot of effort into their Guys back in the day! Granted a lot of kids & families put good effort into costumes which is always good to see, but each to their own!

 

(Maybe I'm just a grumpy old git who looks horrible and ugly enough without a costume! )

[witch]

Yes, I do. I put out a carved pumpkin and give out sweets. Every single group had a parent with them and the oldest was about 11 although loads were younger. Some of the costumes were quite elaborate!

I know it is an imported tradition but frankly life needs more fun - just a shame it is so close to bonfire night

[X-13]

just a shame it is so close to bonfire night

 

Shame? It just means you have to keep the party going for 6 days!

[Dos_Box]

We had a full window display with 2 amazing pumpkins Mrs Dos_Box did (photos to come). One was the obligatory cannibal pumpkin and the other an Angry Birds pig pumpkin. Pretty nice they were too!

We also went though an entire tin of roses, some Haribo, sherbet dips and other assorted sweets. The evening was cut short for most trick-or-treaters though as we had torrential rain from 6:30

Thankfully almost all of the younger children in the neighborhood had already been around.

[mats]

I *always* go out on 31st Oct. No idea if they knock or not. They probably get the message after over a decade.

[unixman_again]

I was laid up in bed yesterday and through the night so I don't know if they came or not. A few years ago I kept a supersoaker behind the door and when they came knocking, I said "trick" and give them a squirt! As far as I'm concerned trick or treat works both ways. After they got the squirt, they still got sweets but funnily enough, no one came at all in the following years.