It is that glorious time again, October and autumn, which we now call Halloweentober. The greatest, spooky holiday cannot and shall not be constrained to a single day. The fact that Halloween isn't a national holiday is a shame, too, but that's a story for another post...
I'm all in my Michael Myers zone right now. This is a series that I think may be my favorite of the holiday. I enjoy and like each and every single film, and H2018 blew me away. The mood and angst was phenomenal, and the music works so well. So this month I'm watching every Halloween film, even the outcasts. I may even watch the Rob Zombie films, which I haven't seen yet. I don't do redneck, inbred white trash horror, and that is what Rob Z does best.
We've put out decorations a week ago, and today we are carving our first pumpkins. This year, I feel the need to do more active Halloween celebrations. I haven't been to a haunted house in a very long time. Growing up in Dundalk we had quite a few to choose from. The first haunted house I can remember visiting was the North Point haunted police precinct on Wise Avenue across from the McDonalds. I bring up the Golden Arches simply because sitting inside and eating happy meals during Halloween, right out of the first pumpkin pails, we'd sit by the window and look out at the large brick building across the street. Unassuming 11 months out of the year, but in October it had this large sign with a skeleton painted on the façade. I loved him at 10 years old.
The haunt itself was novice, a place for the kids. I remember a Dracula vampire and a horned, red devil with a costume probably purchased at J. J. Newberry. There was the strobe light and lots of noise. At 8 or 9 years old I was frightened enough to enjoy the hell out of this experience.
We also had, for the older kids, the Haunted Dungeons at Fort Howard. This fort was used during the War of 1812. Cannons sit on the embankment as testament to the history there. In the summer families come for cookouts. I nearly always came in autumn.
This mostly outdoors haunt in Sparrows Point gave me some of the very best frights of my life. Surrounded by woods, you walk on a long desolate trail to get to the dungeons, and the woods are full of things that go bump in the night. Once I looked behind me, and all you see are the shadows of hundreds of trees, but between the trees, there was this something else. A tall, spindly figure came upon us, and I freaked out. I scurried up to my friends and told them what is behind us. It was this 15-foot figure, draped completely in a black cloak. A guy on stilts - awesome!
In the dungeons, the scares are what you'd expect. I mostly visited here in the late '80s and early '90s, so it was chainsaw wielding lunatics, zombies, Jason masked maniacs, strobe lights and piped in thunder and lightning.
Other haunted attractions around here are Legends of the Fog and Bennett's Curse. I think I'll visit both this month. It's been years since I ventured out for some physical Halloween activities. But tonight it's an evening with the Conner's. Some of the best television Halloween specials in American history, and I was lucky enough to watch them live when the show was on air.
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