The glories of not having to dress up
By Matthew Fraser, Editor in Chief
No themed costume parties, no awkward pictures where you’re the only uncostumed person. Just brews and good vibes.
I remember being young and being so excited to dress up for Halloween. When Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace came out I was ecstatic to dress up as Darth Maul. As a young child, costumes and Halloween were still new to me and that excitement could not be contained. I’m sure I imagined tramping through my neighbourhood, nearly delirious with excitement and craving the free sugar loot I would be bringing home.
But, by the time high school rolled around, Halloween was just an excuse to get my underage drink on. It became far more interesting to me to make inebriated mischief while in a shoddy but passable disguise than the actual disguise itself. I didn’t care too much about the costume but I certainly cared about spending time with my friends. Now, at the ripe old age of [undisclosed], dressing up is a no-no and Halloween is less and less exciting to my friend group.
Depending on your perspective, I am either incredibly lucky to be part of a friend group that has almost entirely abandoned costume-wearing, or I am missing out on a key holiday joy. Clearly, I believe the former and I doubt my friends feel that we are missing anything by not dressing up. It’s not that we are better than that—though we would certainly accept that hypothesis—it’s just that it’s a lot of work for just one day. Not to mention, paying for your own costume makes it less fun by a mile.
I mean, think about it, you have to go buy parts here and there, maybe do some makeup, all for like four to ten hours of wear—depending on whether or not you are working. Sure, you could buy a pre-packaged costume but that’s kind of a waste and uncreative. Dressing up as something recently trendy like an Among Us Crewmate or someone from Squid Game might guarantee you nods and high fives, but it is not that great overall. So if you haven’t the time, money or energy to invest in a creative costume half the fun has disappeared already. It’s even less enticing when your peer group is completely unconcerned.
The greatness of the situation is that there is no peer pressure and no one to impress. No themed costume parties, no awkward pictures where you’re the only uncostumed person. Just brews and good vibes. The ultimate benefit is that Halloween becomes another day to hang out with friends and that candy is somewhat cheaper—or at least more acceptable to eat copious amounts of. Being past costumes is a wonderful gift of adulthood.
So I’m looking forwards to a T-shirt, hoody and jeans Halloween. Maybe we’ll pig out on candy and ‘forget’ to give it to kids who come knocking on our doors. If their parents can afford to buy them costumes, they can certainly afford some candy.
