Well, another Halloween has come to pass. Each year it becomes a bigger and bigger production with the pre-teen waiting until the very last hour to finalize costume ideas and this year the toddler did his very first round. Of course, he didn’t remember to say “Trick or Treat” but it only took him one house to figure out that when he holds out his Elmo bucket, people put candy in it. Smart cookie.

The Saturday before Halloween was the Annual Adults-Only Halloween Costume Party. I’m a huge fan of dressing in costume so I was looking forward to it again this year. Now please understand, we like to drink here in Stepford. We don’t actually need a reason. We have Happy Hour on Friday nights at the Merc and it’s a thing of beauty, really. Where else can you go to get a little dinner, have the kids run around like idiots and the parents drink ‘til they’re lit? It’s normal. My friend, RT & I try to have our Wednesday 5:00 pm glass (or two) of wine while we watch the kids play before the husbands come home and we have to do something again. It’s our ritual. Drinking is a hobby.

So when a real reason to drink comes along, we play hard. The Halloween Party seems to be when residents really play hard. We hosted a pre-function party this year. See, I graduated from the University of Idaho and we always pre-functioned before the function. I’m sure it was some adolescent need to get a jump on that wonderful buzz we needed to have a great time. Why break from tradition?

You know, I remember the party. I was there. There are pictures to prove it. One of my friends had to vomit prior to dancing because the shots we did at the pre-function party didn’t sit well. Another friend can stay comfortably-numb all evening and be fine. I, however, spent the night dancing, having a great time and have only mental snapshots to remember. No filmstrip at all. For the last four days, people have asked me this question or made that comment and I am able to put more and more snapshots together in my head. Some I wish I didn’t remember. Unfortunately, when the partying folk of Stepford party, they party a little harder each year and a few of them showed more of their personality than most neighbors wanted to see.

Now, I’m not one to pass judgment with my outside voice. However, this year makes me wonder if another venture to the Annual Halloween Party next year should be avoided. With each passing year, things get a little more crazy and after a few more years, I won’t be looking at any of my neighbors the same way again. Sometimes ignorance really is bliss.