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Category: Chamber Corner Chamber Corner
Published: 18 October 2017 18 October 2017

I have never claimed to be politically correct and this article will prove my point. I have always enjoyed Halloween. As a child, getting candy was nice, but the thing I enjoyed most was visiting the homes of people who really decorated for Halloween. I remember a house on Greenwood Drive in Ruston, Louisiana that had all types of things in their front yard. However, it was the giant talking pumpkin that always fascinated the kids in the neighborhood. The older I got, I began to figure out the tricks. And frankly, the older I got the more I enjoyed coming up with my own tricks.

I have boxes with different pieces of equipment I have used over the years to have fun scaring kids. Strobe lights, black lights, motion detector sensors, eyes that blink in the dark, eyes that glow in the dark, trip lines, black plastic sheeting, air compressor, even old barbeque grill rotisserie motors… these are the things I can use to make a 10-second walk up to my front door a memorable experience for the child, the parents, and especially myself. I can never forget the little 5 or maybe 6-year old kid in Searcy, Arkansas that hit my trip line as he walked up the steps to my house. He was staring at the rocking lawn chair that was rocking back and forth by itself on the porch. Just as he got to the top step, a white ghost came sliding down across the porch just over his head. And the race was on…. That little kid didn't even touch a step as he took off running. I was laughing, his Dad was laughing, his mother was chasing after him, and my wife was giving me grief about scaring the little boy so badly (or good depending on how you look at it). After they caught the kid and brought him back, I think I gave him about a pound of candy. Even as I am typing this story, I am sitting here with a big smile on my face because it is truly a fond memory for me. I mean think about it – back in the good old days you could scare kids and not have the police show up afterwards. I had fun.

When we lived in Bloomfield, New Mexico, people would actually call our house to make sure we had decorated for Halloween. They would bring cameras to take pictures of their kids being scared at the Terry House. Ah…. those were the days!

When I graduated to helping with "haunted houses", I learned all the neat things you can do with a spool of thread, a large shop fan, an old waterbed mattress, carpet remnants, hydraulic jacks, air horns, and chainless chain saws. I quickly learned it was just as easy to scare young adults as it was little kids… and I enjoyed it.

But those days have come and gone. Nowadays we are lucky to celebrate Halloween on Halloween. People do "Trunk or Treats" and fun Halloween Carnivals. Gosh, I haven't seen a trick or treater at my front door in about 10 years. But I still hope everyone has fun on October 31.

So here are some things that you can do over the next few days:Thursday – Oct. 19: Jayme Stone Folklife Project at WNMU Light Hall Theater at 7:00 p.m.

Need more information, call the Chamber of Commerce office at (575) 538-3785, or if there's something strange in the neighborhood… call Ghostbusters. So, who are you going to call?