Sunday, October 31, 2010

Halloween? Bah, humbug!

We don't go in for Halloween much where I come from.  We have no truck with all of this jack'o'lantern nonsense.  Well, we don't have the pumpkins!  And, as I observed to Ruby the other day, "Halloween costume parties are an affectation of The Great Satan, a cultural pollution to be resisted!"  Don't even get me started on trick-or-treating.

The trouble with having the 'holiday' fall on a Sunday this year is that we get three straight days of this nonsense, three straight days of the streets and the bars (and the taxis - no goddamn taxis to be had!!) being clogged with raucous young Americans in ghoulish garb - a plague of zombie frat boys.

I hate going out on the weekends at the best of times, but during the current party marathon I am especially inclined to hunker in my bunker.


I may venture out tonight for the Kolegas Halloween show - over the past two or three years, that has been one of the best gigs of the year.  And credit to them for holding it on the day, rather than shifting it to Saturday (they probably made that choice to avoid clashing with other big parties like the Yen event at 798, rather than as a matter of principle, but still...).  As it's a 'school night', there's a slight chance that the crowd won't be too excessive, and the frat boy quotient tolerable.


Enough with the curmudging.  For those of you who enjoy this All Hallows' Eve malarkey, here's a little bit of seasonal fun.  [Find it here, courtesy of art-widget king Ze Frank, via blogger extraordinaire JES.]


9 comments:

el said...

For the record, I was an American intern in Beijing. Not saying the other ones aren't obnoxious, but would like to make the case that we're all *all* bad. (To be fair, I wasn't a young American intern, which may be he differentiating factor there.)

Froog said...

Most of the ones who most bug the crap out of me are under 22, and "studying Mandarin". I think there's something like 50,000 of them now - certainly seems like it on weekends like this.

Skipped the Halloween gig altogether. I had been feeling too tired and ill (bit of gippy tum over the past few days) to go out at all, but I got lured out to catch up with a bunch of friends I hadn't seen for ages, and... well, one thing led to another: ended up being two distinct but back-to-back sessions spanning 10 or 11 hours, encompassing afternoon drinking, early evening tequila slammers on an empty stomach, watching the football in Paddy's, a much-needed chuanr break, and then a close-fought pool tournament against The Chairman.


I really don't think the gig can have been any better!

The British Cowboy said...

I like Halloween. Partly because (trick or treating kids aside) it is stupendously a drinking rather than family holiday. Much like the night before Thanksgiving, to be honest. But more because if a bar is going to be full of annoying people, and it often is, it is better the bar is full of annoying people including large numbers of attractive, though annoying young ladies in costumes ranging from slightly revealing to downright pornographic.

And for the first time in my life I won a Halloween costume party. $50 for most original. And it wasn't even at a bar I am a real regular at, so the person awarding it didn't actually know me.

Froog said...

Oh, Cowboy, I hardly like to ask. But I'm asking. Do tell!

The British Cowboy said...

I was a Uruguayan Rugby Player...

Froog said...

Well, you have the stockiness and belligerence. And I suppose Uruguay is a very ethnically diverse country.

But where the heck did you get a Uruguayan rugby shirt from? And how did this prevail over all the zombies and "pornographically" skimpy female costumes? Was it the costume or YOUR KNEES that the judges found truly horrific??

The British Cowboy said...

You are so missing the movie reference, Froog. I am very disappointed in you.

There were props. And it didn't need to be a Uruguayan national team shirt.

Froog said...

Oh, the Alive people? I had thought they were Argentinian.

Not sure how you costume up for that! Are there any pictures??

The British Cowboy said...

There are, on the Facebook. Rugby kit, rugby ball, severed leg which I spent half the night chewing on.