Halloween Story Time With Justin James

We asked Justin James to share a childhood memory about Halloween. Here’s his story.

Halloween has always been such a memorable and enjoyable event for my family, my friends and me. My parents, especially my mom, would always get into the Halloween mood once the first day of October rolled around. The house was always very tastefully done up for the celebration (if that’s even possible) and still is—mom would spare no expense when it came to decorating the house. We didn’t do dollar store trinkets or cheap, spooky ones; mom was all about creating a nice autumn look. I think that’s where I got my love for subtlety and attention to detail.

“The next couple weeks at school must have been the worst for parents and teachers, having to deal with all the sugar-fueled monsters until our stash of Halloween amphetamines ran dry.”

When I was younger, my dad would take my sister Nicole and me out trick-or-treating while my mom would stay home and hand out candy to kids. We typically stayed pretty local with our trick-or-treating routes, but we did see other kids migrating to our neighborhood because of the houses that would give away full-size candy bars. When that happened, it was amazing and pretty much like finding the Holy Grail. Once we got home, we would empty out our pillowcases full of candy and do the “razor blade” check, and eliminate the sketchy-looking pieces from our collection.

My parents would try and enforce spreading out the candy over a few weeks (I pretty much loved all types of candy, except for Tootsie Rolls), but we’d figure out a way to get to it. The next couple weeks at school (trading candy at recess was always a favorite thing to do post-Halloween) must have been the worst for parents and teachers, having to deal with all the sugar-fueled monsters until our stash of Halloween amphetamines ran dry, and our sugary superpowers went from Hulk-like to a mild-mannered Bruce Banner. I think I stopped trick-or-treating midway through high school. Ah, the memories.

Follow Justin James on Facebook | Twitter