Halloween decorations up too early. I have a different problem. A neighbor a block over has extremely good Halloween decorations: blood and guts, real-looking flesh on bones, a speaker that plays screams when people walk by. It really is impressive. It also… terrifies my toddler. We can’t walk by it anymore and have to go around the block. I know he’s not the only kid who can’t deal with it.
a]:text-blue-mid [&>a]:no-underline [&>a]:hover:shadow-lightmode px-5 sm:px-4 font-medium”>Stephanie Farr, Features Columnist
a]:text-blue-mid [&>a]:no-underline [&>a]:hover:shadow-lightmode px-5 sm:px-4 font-medium”>Perhaps one way to handle it is to compliment your neighbor on their impressive display the next time you see them, and tell them that it terrifies your little one. If they smile, probably best to not take it further. If they’re apologetic they may be open to dialogue. What do you think, Jason?
a]:text-blue-mid [&>a]:no-underline [&>a]:hover:shadow-lightmode px-5 sm:px-4 font-medium”>I am going through this process as we speak with my five year old. Halloween has a pretty wide range of offerings, from gory to spooky, and my neighborhood has some wild ones, including a Dexter-themed house last year that had a lot of blood. Fake blood.
a]:text-blue-mid [&>a]:no-underline [&>a]:hover:shadow-lightmode px-5 sm:px-4 font-medium”>Stephanie Farr
a]:text-blue-mid [&>a]:no-underline [&>a]:hover:shadow-lightmode px-5 sm:px-4 font-medium”>Jason Nark
a]:text-blue-mid [&>a]:no-underline [&>a]:hover:shadow-lightmode px-5 sm:px-4 font-medium”>I’m more offended by a lawn full of inflatables. I like a little creativity, a little more spookiness than sheer gore. I made some amazing ghosts last year with bed sheets.
a]:text-blue-mid [&>a]:no-underline [&>a]:hover:shadow-lightmode px-5 sm:px-4 font-medium”>How very old-school of you! I bet they were boo-tiful.
a]:text-blue-mid [&>a]:no-underline [&>a]:hover:shadow-lightmode px-5 sm:px-4 font-medium”>A question like this makes me think of what scares me as an adult at this time of year — all the political signs coming out on people’s yards. And we’re stuck with those. Try saying something about a neighbor’s political signs and you’ll only see more of them go up. I worry that might happen if this person tries to confront their neighbor about the gore — they may just double down and get gorier.
a]:text-blue-mid [&>a]:no-underline [&>a]:hover:shadow-lightmode px-5 sm:px-4 font-medium”>Yeah, I agree. Hard to say what crosses the line these days in terms of decorations. I think it’s best to avoid the house until the child is desensitized, like the rest of us. Or, if you want to take a different approach, you could use these moments to talk about the fragility of life, how the eight-foot-tall skeleton is just a “memento mori,” reminding us all that we too are mortal.
a]:text-blue-mid [&>a]:no-underline [&>a]:hover:shadow-lightmode px-5 sm:px-4 font-medium”>My daughter finally watched The Nightmare Before Christmas this year, so don’t despair.
a]:text-blue-mid [&>a]:no-underline [&>a]:hover:shadow-lightmode px-5 sm:px-4 font-medium”>I find Jack Skellington insufferable, so I’m proud of your daughter for getting all the way through that movie (though I do find it a fun watch, overall). I’ll never forgive my parents for taking me to see Arachnophobia in the theater with them as a kid. I still hate spiders.
a]:text-blue-mid [&>a]:no-underline [&>a]:hover:shadow-lightmode px-5 sm:px-4 font-medium”>Jason Nark
a]:text-blue-mid [&>a]:no-underline [&>a]:hover:shadow-lightmode px-5 sm:px-4 font-medium”>Stephanie Farr
a]:text-blue-mid [&>a]:no-underline [&>a]:hover:shadow-lightmode px-5 sm:px-4 font-medium”>Jason Nark
a]:text-blue-mid [&>a]:no-underline [&>a]:hover:shadow-lightmode px-5 sm:px-4 font-medium”>Agreed. Just be prepared for your neighbor to take your criticism as a compliment.
a]:text-blue-mid [&>a]:no-underline [&>a]:hover:shadow-lightmode px-5 sm:px-4 font-medium”>Jason Nark
