I considered not posting today. On October 1 of all days. On a rainy October 1. On a rainy October 1 with my glowing decorations and burning scented candles welcoming me home from work.
There just didn’t seem to be enough to talk about today that I haven’t talked about before.
I sat down on the couch and watched whatever Halloween programming was on the Food Network (which really does put on a killer slate of Halloween programming). It seems to be always the default channel on our TV.
But then my wife yelled something at me from the kitchen.
“What?” I asked, turning down the volume on the baker explaining how his grim reaper was wrapped in modeling chocolate.
“You have a package on the doorstep,” she said.
I didn’t get up right away. I first tried to remember if I had any outstanding Amazon orders. I couldn’t remember any. Then I tried to remember if I had any tipsy nights recently, which also often equals Amazon orders. Nothing.
So I convinced my eldest to bring it in so that I wouldn’t have to move from the couch.
Turns out, it was a gift from a friend in Pennsylvania who sends me and my family care packages every once in a while because she’s that kind of person.
It took one glance inside the box flaps at the orange and black tissue paper to realized that this one was a Halloween care package. And it was an instant mood changer. My whole family gathered around the island in the kitchen and poured all the wonders in the box out.
There were chocolate covered Oreos with skull faces and purple and black sprinkles. Pumpkin and Jack-o-Lantern Peeps. Gummy worms. Gummy boogers. Chocolate bugs. Spooky Lips lollipops. Chocolate skulls on sticks. A book on New England epitaphs. Another on Edgar Allan Poe poetry illustrated for children. Other stuff. Including this:
And that little gift hit it home for me that not only were we in the prime of the Halloween Season now that it’s October, we are also in the month of our baby’s due date. To phrase it in the form of a cooking competition: The countdown starts…now.
PS: I did at least started October 1 right:
