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Cool
"Stuff" About America's I found it hard to believe myself, fellow Big Dogs, but it's true..... Halloween is one of the
oldest hollidays in the entire world. It is thought to
have originated around 4000 Halloween originates from a Celtic tradition called Samhain, a festival that marked the end of the Celtic calendar year in Ireland, Scotland, and the Isle of Man. They believed it was a time that spirits or fairies could enter our world, and the Celts would put out treats and food to placate the spirits. In fact, Halloween is still the Wiccan New Year. “Halloween” is short for “Hallows’ Eve” or “Hallows’ Evening,” which was the evening before All Hallows’ (sanctified or holy) Day or Hallowmas on November 1. In an effort to convert pagans, the Christian church decided that Hallowmas or All Saints’ Day (November 1) and All Souls’ Day (November 2) should assimilate sacred pagan holidays that fell on or around October 31. (This is similar to the way Christians established December 25 as the birthday of Christ, to co-opt the Roman Saturnalia holliday.) Halloween also has a lot to do with the stereotype picture we have of the devil as a being colored red, with horns and a tail..... Back in the days when Christians first co-opted Halloween as All Hallows’ Eve, they believed very literally in the devil. However, to them, one of the best ways to fight the devil was to attack his greatest weakness, the pride that led him to become a fallen angel in the first place. To this effect, they would depict him with red horns and a ridiculous tail to mock him, hoping it would cause him to flee. Intent can get lost over time, so many people have an unrealistic idea of the devil, not understanding the ridiculous caricature as the mockery that it is. "Trick-or-treating"
evolved from the ancient Celtic tradition of putting out treats and food
to placate spirits 72.2% of Americans surveyed said they will hand out candy, 46.3% will carve a pumpkin, 20.8% will visit a haunted house, and..... 11.5% will dress up their pets, spending over 300 MILLION dollars! Orange and black are Halloween colors because orange is associated with the Fall harvest and black is associated with darkness and death. Bobbing for apples is thought to have originated from the Roman harvest festival that honored Pomona, the goddess of fruit trees. Young unmarried people would bob for apples floating in water or hanging from a string, and the first to bite into the apple would be the next one allowed to marry. According to Irish legend, Jack O’Lanterns are named after a stingy man named Jack who, because he tricked the devil several times, was forbidden entrance into both heaven and hell. He was condemned to wander the Earth, waving his lantern to lead people away from their paths. Originally, though, Jack carried his lantern around, not in a pumpkin, but in a hollowed-out turnip! Pumpkins also come in white, blue and green. Dressing up as ghouls and other spooks originated from the ancient Celtic tradition of townspeople disguising themselves as demons and spirits. The Celts believed that disguising themselves this way would allow them to avoid being recognized as human. During the pre-Halloween celebration of Samhain, bonfires were lit to ensure the sun would return after the long, hard winter. Often Druid priests would throw the bones of cattle into the flames and, hence, “bone fire” became “bonfire."
In Alabama it's illegal to dress up as a priest on Halloween. Halloween candy sales average about 2 billion dollars annually in the United States. Chocolate candy bars top the list as the most popular candy for trick-or-treaters with Snickers #1. Black cats were once believed to be witch's familiars who protected their powers. In the UK, however, it is white cats that are thought to bring bad luck; there, black cats are considered good luck. Many animal shelters don't allow black cats to be adopted around Halloween for fear that they will be tortured or sacrificed. Signs of a werewolf are a unibrow, hair palms, tattoos, and a long middle finger. ("Geez, in the little coal mining town in Appalachia that I grew up in, I knew a LOTTA guys that looked like that! Should I be worried!?") Some medical historians have connected the dots between the concept of vampires with rabies outbreaks. People suffering from rabies are often sensitive to light and they are inclined to bite other people. "Halloween," the movie:
One of my all-time favorite movies, "The Blair Witch Project," I consider one of the most innovative movies every produced; it spawned an entirely new motion picture genre - the so-called "found-footage" movie. And it remains as the most profitable movie ever produced; it took just eight days to shoot and cost a mere $22,000, yet made over $240 MILLION dollars. I have NO idea why this would be so, but according to the the data geeks and candy lovers at Zillow.com, trick-or-treaters in Seattle, Washington stand to bring home the most Halloween loot.
Ronnie Montan
Ronnie Montan
Ronnie Montan
Easy Cash Code
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B.C., which means Halloween has been around
for over 6,000 years!
who roamed the streets at Samhain. The
practice developed into it's modern form in Britain during the middle
ages. On Halloween the poor would beg for "soul cakes," a sweet-bread
treat. In return, they would say a prayer for dead relatives of
the householder.
There's a $1,000 fine for
selling Silly String in Hollywood on Halloween. The prank product
has been banned in Hollywood since 2004 after thousands of bored people
would buy it on the streets of Hollywood from illegal vendors and
"vandalize" the streets. The city ordinance calls for a maximum
$1,000 fine and/or six months in jail for "use, possession, sale or
distribution of Silly String in Hollywood from 12:01 AM on October 31 to
12:00 PM on November 1."
cheapest mask they could find
for the character Michael Meyers. This
turned out to be a William Shatner Star Trek mask, which they
painted white.
