CentralOhioDad

Halloween - that magical, dress-up day that raises our blood sugar levels. How did a 'holiday' made for kids (mostly) turn into a drinking event that parents can't stay away from a bottle for 2 hours while walking with their kids?

I was amazed and replulsed with how many parents were carrying glasses of wine or beer while out with their kids the other night! And, how many houses offered ME a cup of wine, a beer, or a jello shot! I'm with a child for Halloween - why the he!! do I need a drink?

Our development is somewhat upscale but not overly so, and yet I see so many folks out walking with toddlers or young children, and they have some sort of alcohol with them! I just don't get it. It seems that any problem, and situation, any mood - can be helped or enhanced with a glass of wine!

AW showed me some Facebook posts of people with wine bottles and glasses right next to the candy bucket! Why??? Of course, AW couldn't abstain for one hour while I was out with DS6, so I came home to her smelling of red wine. She put hers in a thermos so it wasn't as blatant, but you could still smell it.

Yes, I like a glass of wine, a beer, a cocktail, but not during something like that when you are surrounded by children.

AW took DS to an early afternoon birthday party the other month - and the hostess was serving margaritas to the parents - at 1:00 in the afternoon! I just don't get it. AW did not (surprisingly) participate - even she thought it was odd to be drinking at a child's party that early in the day.

Thanks for letting me rant.

COD

CentralOhioDad

Could this be moved to the F&F forum??? Sorry!

Opivotal

No problem, CentralOhioDad.

seizetheday

I had the same thought on Monday. Why can nothing be fun without a drink? I am pregnant and I get a lot of people telling me they're sorry I can't take part in the drinking. Even had one friend ask what kind of wine she should bring me when she visits after I deliver. I don't expect to drink until after I'm done nursing this child, some time in 2018, and I fully expect to attend and enjoy a variety of parties and activities between now and then. Society and the media have made it so that fun must always include wine (especially for moms). It annoys me.

CentralOhioDad

I hear comments all the time from the moms in the neighborhood and how they "MUST" have their wine. And they complain about how their kids 'drive them to drink'. Umm, why did you have kids then?

HoldOnLoosely

I didn't notice Halloween and alcohol in my neighborhood until a year ago...or maybe it was there and I didn't pay attention to it. But, last Halloween, I took note...only b/c of my son.

It was dark, and my son tripped over the handle of a wagon in someone's yard when he ran to the house to knock on their door. The wagon was close to their walkway. He fell hard and hit the corner of the step on their porch with his arm (thankfully he didn't hit his head). He was in pain and couldn't get up. I looked around to find what made him fall down and noticed the wagon...filled with beer...decorated with glittery Halloween decorations. My children and everyone else with us noticed the beer too. He ended up in the ER since he was in so much pain and had difficulty straightening his arm. Nothing broken, but he had quite the bruise.

It was a shame. He put so much effort into his costume and he was looking forward to that night. To end up in the ER b/c of a wagon full of beer...

I didn't say anything to the neighbor, but I definitely had conversations with my children. I had to...they didn't understand.

maia1234

That was my life also. But I came to believe that all the people I knew were the "party" people. Those were our "peeps". So of course they would have a beer or a glass of wine out trick or treating or any other excuse to drink. Sun is up, sun is down, it is raining, or its is cloudy.... you understand.

Once I divorced ah, I find I don't really see or hang with the partiers. They were actually his friends. I am glad that I have moved on.

Maudcat

Ours is a drinking culture, no question. But I have another view. I haven't cared much for Halloween in recent years. Halloween scrooge, me. So, I always gave out candy with a nice, big, glass of chilled chardonnay nearby. My way of coping with a mildly unpleasant task. My way of coping with a lot of things, come to think of it. I no longer drink and, funnily enough, we don't get kids to the door in our current neighborhood. Coincidence? You decide.

dandylion

COD....you will find alcohol and drug usage and abusage in up-scale as well as not so up-scale developments......

firebolt

I didn't realize how important booze was on Halloween either until last year. I was in a cooking contest and made a pretty kick@5& dish...and came in 2nd place to chips and guacamole. The reason? Chips and guac dude served a chilled shot of vodka with his servings. After the event, EVERYBODY came up and told me I should have won...but, VODKA! (including chips and guac dude)...

They even suggested that next year I should offer a drink with grandmas creamy tomato basil with Parmesan and orzo soup.

Maudcat

Oh, firebolt, you were robbed! Sheesh.

torquemax777

Aren't open containers in public places (even a sidewalk) illegal in most places? This is why you can't take your beer outside a bar. Not to mention "public intox" seems strange this would not be noticed by law enforcement.

hearthealth

It was going on in our trick or treat neighborhood. Police came through only once.

Thomas45

Yes, but that doesn't stop people from doing it. It's a lot more common than you think. That group of men and women at the beach beside you who are playing music and drinking out of fruit juice bottles and 1L refilled pop/water bottles? Yeah, that's alcohol. Police don't care about public drinking as long as they can't see a label. I've watched people walk past police officers drinking out of bottles in paper bags, and as long as the label wasn't visible the officers didn't bat an eye.

Wisconsin

This was our first Halloween in our new neighborhood. Our old neighborhood/literally has a bar on every corner, but I didn't notice a ton of drinkers out with their kids. The new neighborhood is probably best described as upper working class, and the area takes Halloween very seriously. Lots of decorations, very active trick or treaters, etc. It seemed like every five or six groups had at least one parent toting a minimum of two beers. It was kind of depressing.

LexieCat

Try telling them you drank their trick-or-treat goodies:

hearthealth

When I was in college. Police officers stopped us walking home from a college event. They stated" if it's beer dump it out". It was soda. This year during trick or treat I was surprised with the adults walking around with liquor. The patroling police seemed to be more interested in patroling.

Redheadsusie

Our neighborhood goes all out Halloween. The parents all drink on the golf carts and everyone has fire pits in the driveways partying - it's a big party! This year my neighbor's and I were handing out candy and eating chili and pumpkin bread at the end of the driveway - a lady asked if I had a trash - I thought maybe she would hand me some candy wrappers- I said sure - oh no she hands me an empty beer can. Nice lady- real nice!

wanttobehealthy

Ok, so I must be one of the few who thinks that for those who can drink reasonably (albeit in my case, rarely), it's not the worst thing ever for parents to have a glass of wine at a party or gathering on Halloween...

To be honest, I was one of the parents in the cul de sac closed off neighborhood, having a glass of wine with a number of friends around a bonfire while the kids all trick or treated within eye shot (in the rain and cold).

I had probably half a glass of wine, then went and wandered a bit with the kids, went indoors to get out of the rain, ate at a friends, laughed, hung out, did not give drinking any more thought and it wasn't like others were drinking tons either -- and eventually went home....

I think that when we are surrounded for so long by drinking dysfunction, we are hypersensitive to it... and I think this is the first event/time/year in many that I have been around other adults enjoying alcohol reasonably, and haven't been upset or unsettled by it...

Wisconsin

WTBH, I would have had zero issues with that. It's the parents actually walking around with their kids, toting a minimum of two beers, that made me sad.