Great ideas for Halloween

Haunt Project is a great site if you are looking for ideas for costumes for Halloween or if you need some good ideas on how to scare the neighbor kids when they come calling on Halloween night.

I am still scarred from the freaky family that lived up the street from us.  I think it was probably fifth grade.  I was out collecting Halloween candy with a few friends, and we were about two blocks from home, but still in the same neighborhood.  But it was far enough away that we did not really know who lived in the houses.  Se we walk up to this one house and start ringing the doorbell.

Nothing happens.  So we ring it again.  Still waiting, and just as we start to walk away, the door swings open, and a woman dressed up like a witch appears and says, "Come on in."  That should have been the warning that something was up.  Who invites you into their house on Halloween?  But we were greedy little kids and wanted the candy.

So we trundle in, and the door slams shut behind us.  We realize the hall and living room is kind of dark, and only lit by candles, and as we turn to see who shut the door, two little goblins rush out from somewhere screaming and grab onto our legs.  We're still trying to see who shut the door--it's Frankenstein!  It's the father, dressed up in an elaborate Frankenstein costume, who starts with the whole undead monster routine, grunting and groaning, arms waving, clumping towards us.

And now the witch mother starts waving her broom and cackling.  And all this is happening is near darkness.  The monster family, screaming, wailing, clawing at us, and we're trapped.  At this point, I don't know what the heck is going on--there's some little screaming goon attached to my leg, the Frankenstein father, who seems to be seven feet tall is looming over me as he grunts, and I can still recall the witch lady screaming and cackling as she swats us with her broom.  Somehow things calmed down a little, a bowl of candy appeared, we grabbed a couple of pieces, and got the heck out of there.  And skipped the next six houses on that block just on principle.

And for years afterward, I always gave that house a wide berth.

Now, what can I cook up for Halloween this year?