Less than 48 hours

Down to the wire on Halloween and all my plans have melted like cotton candy in warm, wet mouth. It's not a total wash. I'm still going out and I'm still getting dressed up. My goals are a little more modest than they were is all. I think that's what I really want. I don't want to say it's about my age, so let's just say I'm at the point where standing around in a noisy party with young people I hardly know who are all drinking excessively isn't exactly my idea of a good time. I'm content to have a quiet evening with good friends. In the struggle between camaraderie and revelry, camaraderie wins out. Michael called this afternoon and asked us over for some quiet drinks. Sounds very pleasant. We might watch House of Dracula. or Night of the Living Dead. We are definitely going to have a few drinks. I do wish it were a little more organized. They're a fun loving bunch but not always ambitious. Still, I let my anxiety and depression keep me from getting it together this year. I think next year I'm going to organize a scavenger hunt. I think that will be loads of fun.
I'm not sure if I'm going to wear my costume. We are going to a double feature on campus, by Angela doesn't want to get dressed up and Michael and Danny aren't going to be dressed up, so I don't know. We're still dressing up for the kids on Monday night.
I'm glad I'm thinking about this not just in terms of the here and now but also about the future as well, when we have kids of our own. Things like a scavenger hunt the entire family can get involved in. Plus I've decided that every year we're going to make s'mores! It's easy enough with a regular grill or a gas stove. And the holiday isn't over yet. The real fun is to be had Monday, when the kids are all dressed up.
I keep thinking about the final scene in "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown". Charlie Brown laments the effort put into another holiday that fails to live up to our expectations and says that perhaps they should hang it up. Linus indignantly replies that "next year will be different! Just you wait and see!". Now I truly understand what he means.