Why I Love Halloween

Most of the people I work with, who spend their days (and many of them, their nights) with children...yeah, they hate Halloween.  
I'm in the orange minority. I love it.  No, not because I like to dress Goth and hang out at the mall. 
Why?

• The costume thing.  What?  It's fun! I love the yearly themes at school. The teachers are doing nursery rhymes/fairy tales. Tomorrow I'm Little Red Riding Hood.  I borrowed a red cape and a red hooded sweatshirt.  I've got a basket or two at home at least. OOOOH, real hard. 
• I love a good all-school song at an assembly.  There, I said it. 
• The one bite of candy corn it takes to remember that candy corn is 5% good and 95% disgusting.
• Trick-or-treat is literally the only time during the year I see half my neighbors.  I'd like to see who's moved, who's had babies, and who springs for the actual chocolate.
• Who doesn't love candy?  
• The kids' costumes were less simple than my own (ask me about the original plan involving the whole family wearing homemade costumes celebrating the 25th Anniversary of the Mario Brothers) but once I gave up realistically adjusted my goals and headed to Halloween Spirit...easy peazy lemon squeezy. 
•  Two words: Great. Pumpkin.
• And then there's these. Come on...

Of course, talk to me after a day of rammy students, junk food-driven, indulgent class parties, and then another day of hauling Miss M. around the neighborhood by her poodle skirt because she is the. pokiest. walker. ever...and we have candy to get, people!  

Fun, harmless fantasy-inspiried holiday, or highly commercialized excuse to screw with children's blood sugar and socially sanction dressing like a hooker ...who is also a cat, mouse, Little Miss Muffet, etc. 

Halloween: love it or hate it?