IS HALLOWEEN GETTING TOO P.C.?

I have always loved Halloween. The crisp air, the costumes, the goodies. Yum. Yum. Fun. Fun.
 
It’s a great time for acting out, playing dress up. I figure that’s why we love it so. We get to be someone else and, better still, we get to eat lots of goodies.

As a kid, my brothers and I would raid the closets and create all sorts of crazy costumes. We’d go out. Collect our candy and have a great time. A good house was place where ‘good’ goodies were handed out, you know, real candy bars.
 
When became the adult, I made sure the Halloween larder was well stocked with the ‘good’ stuff - Snickers, Almond Joys, Gummi Bears, etc.
 
I saw an article the other day on how to make Halloween 'correct'. It was tips and hints on making it eco-friendly and safe.  I mean Halloween is slightly decadent, not abjectly correct, so I was a little put off by it.
 
As I said earlier, this is a time for creative play. In my family we never bought store costumes. We made our own. The fun was working up an idea and then finding the clothes to make it happen or creating something out of cardboard boxes, paper bags, and tape. It was exciting, raucous, but most of all adventurous.
 
Halloween's a time of dark crisp nights, fragrant candles, piles of fallen leaves, strange autumnal smells and in all of that something pre-civilized lurks and excites. Maybe that's why some parents are cautious.
 
Anyway, here are some of those tips offered up by the Political Correct.

•  use soy or beeswax candles, no oil products.
•  get creative and dive into your closets for costumes
•  latex masks are safer than vinyl
•  use 'natural' cosmetics
•  hand out 'fair trade’ or organic items
•  hand out nontoxic crayons with coloring books
•  avoid fake jewelry, it was probably made in China and has lead in it
•  have pumpkin recipes ready for the post Halloween recycling of your jack 'o lantern
•  use a recyclable bag to collect your booty in.

 
Don't get me wrong, some of these suggestions are great. Being creative, recycling stuff, yeah, that's good stuff, but they make it sound so righteous, even dour. Halloween is neither. It’s adventure with candy and laughter tucked in with a few scares.
 
Am I becoming a grumpy old Crankee Yankee rather than a Frugal Yankee? What do you think? How does your family make Halloween special? I’d love to hear what you have to say.
 
Oh, before I go, there is one thing more. On November 1, there will be some great sales on next year's Halloween stuff. Look for those 70% off sales. That’s fun, too.

 The Frugal Yankee resides at FrugalYankee.com. There are tips, podcasts, humor, recipes and more, alld esigned to enjoy life and spending less.