When did Halloween become the Coachella of college?
I think virtually everyone can agree that holidays are stressful. You have to find the perfect gifts, bake the best pie, or in Halloween’s case, create the perfect costume. Halloween seems to have changed a bit over the years, much in part to the role that social media now plays in the occasion. You have to find a costume that people will recognize, but it can’t be too popular because then four other people will be wearing it. Essentially, what you need is the perfect blend of creativity, nuance, and effortlessness. Easy, right?
This isn’t to say that some people don’t rock a Jim from The Office vibe where you write “book” on your face, and suddenly you’re “Facebook.” But each year, I seem to get more and more stressed about what I’m going to dress up as, or if I’m going with a group, and if we’re going as “Sex and the City” who is going to put on the wig and be Miranda?
This is also not to say that I’m a “Halloween Hater.” On the contrary, I enjoy a Halloween party as much as anyone. Still, sometimes I long for the simplicity of those elementary school days where everyone would go to school in their unique, thrown together costumes; the teachers would play The Addams Family or Hocus Pocus and pass out candy corn.
So, for next year, I need to remind myself to revel in the Halloween spirit but not to get stressed out over an outfit that I’m going to be wearing for 3 to 4 hours. I have to remember that the process of finding the costume and getting ready with friends IS the fun part. And, even if someone does happen to be wearing the same costume as me, to make the most of it! Grab all the Daphne Blakes’, Blair Waldorfs’, or race car drivers and score a fun group photo! But, overall, no matter what you choose to do on your Halloween night, please make the most of it! And if that means staying in and binging the Scream movies, all the more power to you!