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What does Halloween celebrate?

Just a place where all John's threads can be kept nice and tidy.
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Gurdur
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Re: What does Halloween celebrate?

#21 Post by Gurdur » October 29th, 2010, 10:11 pm

Latest post of the previous page:

Evidence! Photos!

Maria Mac
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Re: What does Halloween celebrate?

#22 Post by Maria Mac » October 30th, 2010, 12:00 am

Have they always done trick or treating in Scotland? It seemed to arrive in England in the early eighties. I never took to it myself and have never once opened the door to trick or treaters. If I ever did I'd just offer them a lemon to suck on.

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Alan H
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Re: What does Halloween celebrate?

#23 Post by Alan H » October 30th, 2010, 12:08 am

Maria wrote:Have they always done trick or treating in Scotland? It seemed to arrive in England in the early eighties.
I think guising has been going on in Scotland for a very long time. When I was young, the kids had to do something for their treat, but there was never any threat of a trick.
Alan Henness

There are three fundamental questions for anyone advocating Brexit:

1. What, precisely, are the significant and tangible benefits of leaving the EU?
2. What damage to the UK and its citizens is an acceptable price to pay for those benefits?
3. Which ruling of the ECJ is most persuasive of the need to leave its jurisdiction?

Maria Mac
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Re: What does Halloween celebrate?

#24 Post by Maria Mac » October 30th, 2010, 1:43 am

Good job. It's bad enough having children begging on the doorstep without them threatening unsuspecting residents with tricks as well.

:angry:

Vicky
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Re: What does Halloween celebrate?

#25 Post by Vicky » October 30th, 2010, 9:02 am

In the Isle of Man we call it "Hop tu naa". Children have traditionally gone round people's houses dressed up as ghosts etc, carrying turnip lanterns. There is a special song to be sung before they are given small change or sweets.

Whilst as a child I had never heard of "trick or treat" (perhaps an import from the US?), I remember my father telling me that if a door wasn't answered, he and his mates would do some mischief before leaving (we'd call it vandalism. One of the deeds I recall him telling me was removing the stingy householder's gate from its hinges.)!

Here's a little more:-

http://www.isleofman.com/heritage/ePedi ... u-naa.aspx

Maria Mac
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Re: What does Halloween celebrate?

#26 Post by Maria Mac » October 30th, 2010, 1:20 pm

Thanks, Vicky. This thread is turning out to be more interesting than I thought.

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jaywhat
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Re: What does Halloween celebrate?

#27 Post by jaywhat » October 30th, 2010, 2:16 pm

Could it be, Vicky, that you open the door and there are kids dressed up and messing about and you say,
'What you up to now?'

:laughter:

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getreal
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Re: What does Halloween celebrate?

#28 Post by getreal » October 30th, 2010, 5:06 pm

Guising has been going on in Scotland for centuries. The "trick or treat" version is only a few years old and is an American import.

As Alan says, children dress up and carry a lantern made from a hollowed out turnip (not a pumpkin. Burning turnip has a smell which will always remind me of being wet, cold and embarrased.) Children would go from door to door and if the householder let you in, you had to perform (a song, a poem, or at the very elast a joke). In return we would get some nuts/apples/oranges. Never sweets.

Unfortunatly it has now morphed into another retail festival.

Aggh! I'm just an old misery guts!!
"It's hard to put a leash on a dog once you've put a crown on his head"-Tyrion Lannister.

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Dave B
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Re: What does Halloween celebrate?

#29 Post by Dave B » October 30th, 2010, 5:52 pm

Aggh! I'm just an old misery guts!!
In this instance I will happily join you in that status, getreal!
"Look forward; yesterday was a lesson, if you did not learn from it you wasted it."
Me, 2015

Vicky
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Re: What does Halloween celebrate?

#30 Post by Vicky » October 30th, 2010, 8:00 pm

In answer to Jaywhat, I like it, but as Hop Tu naa is pronounced "hop chew nay" I don't think that would work! :) :)

redsquirrel
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Re: What does Halloween celebrate?

#31 Post by redsquirrel » October 30th, 2010, 8:27 pm

The link below is the wikipedia article on Hop Tu Naa. Pretty much the same as your link Vicky, but with some additional stuff about new year.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hop-tu-Naa

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John Jones
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Re: What does Halloween celebrate?

#32 Post by John Jones » October 31st, 2010, 2:44 am

Wht a dull lot you are. And make no mistake, you are a lot, or some sort of weird collection.

Let me put my question again so that you cannot deliberately fall dead. What does a person celebrate who celebrates halloween?

If you cannot answer that without pretending that we are all celebrating All Saints Day, or The Celtic Samhain, then may you find happiness in your agenda. In the meantime, and this is a political statement, shove it up your ass. Till it hurts.

Maria Mac
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Re: What does Halloween celebrate?

#33 Post by Maria Mac » October 31st, 2010, 10:53 am

Oh dear, you seem to be getting a bit wound up, John. Isn't that the reverse of what trolls are supposed to do? Looks like it's back to trolling school with you!

By the way, what a person who celebrates halloween celebrates is being alive and part of the human community. Like other 'special days' throughout the year, people use them as an excuse to dress up and have a bit of fun. What the original purpose of Halloween is, nobody cares any more than they care about the meaning of xmas or guy fawkes night. But then you already know this so I will now ask you for the second time what is your purpose in coming to this forum and starting a bunch of what appear to be pointless and rather uninteresting questions?

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Lifelinking
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Re: What does Halloween celebrate?

#34 Post by Lifelinking » October 31st, 2010, 11:48 am

As well as guising, I have heard it referred to as galloshin' or galloshing in Scotland too. No idea of the origin I am afraid.
"Who thinks the law has anything to do with justice? It's what we have because we can't have justice."
William McIlvanney

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getreal
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Re: What does Halloween celebrate?

#35 Post by getreal » October 31st, 2010, 11:50 am

Maybe because you have to wee galloshes when you go guising--to keep your feet dry?
"It's hard to put a leash on a dog once you've put a crown on his head"-Tyrion Lannister.

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Alan H
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Re: What does Halloween celebrate?

#36 Post by Alan H » October 31st, 2010, 12:05 pm

getreal wrote:Maybe because you have to wee galloshes when you go guising--to keep your feet dry?
I have no idea how you 'wee galloshes', but I doubt very many people in Scotland call them galloshes!
Alan Henness

There are three fundamental questions for anyone advocating Brexit:

1. What, precisely, are the significant and tangible benefits of leaving the EU?
2. What damage to the UK and its citizens is an acceptable price to pay for those benefits?
3. Which ruling of the ECJ is most persuasive of the need to leave its jurisdiction?

Maria Mac
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Joined: July 3rd, 2007, 10:34 pm

Re: What does Halloween celebrate?

#37 Post by Maria Mac » October 31st, 2010, 8:15 pm

Happy Halloween everyone!
ImageImage
Just come back from my first ever halloween party. How's that for synchronicity?

Fia
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Re: What does Halloween celebrate?

#38 Post by Fia » October 31st, 2010, 8:29 pm

Synchcronising with my post anyway, Maria :)

Halloween as is done here is a tacky US import IMHO. All that unsustainable coloured plastic crap that goes into landfill; all the overwrapped and overpriced boiled bones with artificial colour flavour and sweetness; the ill disguised greed; the only time in the year we can ever buy pumpkins and the particular smell of singed neep. Hmmm... actually, I quite like the last two :D

Just thought I'd share here my ghoulish offering to the wee darlings that always sorted the stout hearted from the feint. I had a jelly mould in the shape of a human brain. I filled it with pink milk jelly, and when turned out, went carefully over all the furrows with strawberry sauce. Wobbled it at assorted children who had said they wanted jelly... great fun :D
Hey, my embarrassing Mum persona is carefully honed :wink:

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Alan C.
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Re: What does Halloween celebrate?

#39 Post by Alan C. » October 31st, 2010, 9:48 pm

Only had one guiser all night, a peerie boy of about 6 with his mother and what looked like; his aunt.
He was in a Batman costume :puzzled: and had a bucket for cash, wasn't interested in sweeties "gimme the money" He seemed to be saying as he shook his bucket.
I really don't know what to think. :shrug:
Abstinence Makes the Church Grow Fondlers.

Marian
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Re: What does Halloween celebrate?

#40 Post by Marian » November 1st, 2010, 2:02 am

Here are our costumes. No plastic landfill stuff, no cheesy plastic. Pure creativity and lots of cardboard boxes. All recyclable.
P1010230.JPG
P1010230.JPG (146.01 KiB) Viewed 9004 times
P1010231.JPG
P1010231.JPG (166.25 KiB) Viewed 9003 times
Transformative fire...

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jaywhat
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Re: What does Halloween celebrate?

#41 Post by jaywhat » November 1st, 2010, 7:11 am

Alan C. wrote:Only had one guiser all night, a peerie boy of about 6 with his mother and what looked like; his aunt.
He was in a Batman costume :puzzled: and had a bucket for cash, wasn't interested in sweeties "gimme the money" He seemed to be saying as he shook his bucket.
I really don't know what to think. :shrug:


We did not answer the door to several ringers because we absolutely hate the whole thing, but they got something to smile at when Dora (our somewhat scared cat) got up on the window sill and pushed through the curtains and stared at them with her beautiful quizzical look. We could hear them laughing.

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