Boo-Yah
Hot off the keyboard, the Halloween 2025 Edition. Read it and freak.
Last weekend, Europe marked the end of Daylight Saving Time, which means darkness falls across the land starting around 5 pm. Our Dutch neighbor has resumed his charming nightly ritual of lighting a votive candle in a hanging lantern. Bike rides now warrant gloves (at least for me). Weeks ago, stores set up Christmas merch.
But before winter fully clamps down its icy, unforgiving grip, let us behold and honor the greatest holiday of all time: HALLOWEEN! The little guy has tomorrow off from school as a staff study day — pure coincidence it’s October 31, but I couldn’t be more grateful. We definitely need the extra time for costume prep, as life these days has been hectic as all get-out.
Plenty of spooky shenanigans are on tap tomorrow: trick-or-treating in Amsterdam (which, to my delight, has exploded in popularity over the last few years), followed by a Halloween party thrown by our equally obsessed friends, an American-and-Dutch family who do this holiday its proper justice.
It was a vastly different scene five years ago, marking our first Halloween in Europe. Instead of a party we’d planned with friends, we had to pivot to cobbling together a spooky scavenger hunt in the woods for our little monster, who was technically in quarantine after a Covid scare at school. He didn’t really seem to mind, but I did. I still remember coming home, filling my skeleton goblet with wine (and dropping in a plastic eyeball, as any self-respecting Halloween enthusiast does), and sobbing in self pity: crushed that my favorite holiday was scuttled, homesick as hell, and, of course, terrified during those unprecedented pandemic times.
Alas, times are still terrifying in many ways. But at least for now, I can’t wait to be scared silly for all the right reasons.
Published Clips: Halloween 2025 Edition
In honor of spooky season, below are stories I’ve written about all things haunted, scary, or creepy. It’s also perfect timing for another shout-out for my current big project: 100 Haunts of a Lifetime, by National Geographic. If you haven’t yet shared your spooky spot, get to it!
CNN: Hotels are leaning into their spookier sides to sell ‘rooms with a boo’
National Geographic: The Twisted Transatlantic Tale of American Jack-o-Lanterns
Cosmopolitan: I Braved a Night Inside the Scream House: Here’s What It Was Like IRL
Cosmopolitan: Everything You Need to Know About Halloween Before You See Halloween
Sierra: How To Tell a Really Good Ghost Story Around Your Next Campfire
Vine Pair: Killer Boo-quet: 10 American Wineries with Haunted Histories
And That’s a(n Adorable Little Mummy) Wrap!
Beyond the ghosties and ghoulies, something else scary is brewing around here: We’re moving apartments. [Dun dun duuun!] Consequently, the current state of our soon-to-be-former abode is enough to send anyone screaming in fear: a terrifying mess of boxes, clutter, and chaos. But hopefully, some sanity (and most certainly, cheaper rent) awaits on the other side.
Up next: a long overdue Subject Line Smackdown. Until then, have a spooktacular Halloween full of fun, frights, and way too much candy.
Blane
Happy Halloween!!!
So how long before the Christmas merch comes out before Labor day?