Oct 30, 2012 3 min read

Halloween pretty much stopped being fun when we grew too old to trick-or-treat.At least, that’s been my general opinion since I was like 12. I guess taking the kids around the neighborhood was all right, as long as they shared their loot.In the meantime, Oct. 31 seems to have become the No. 1 holiday for grownups, and I don’t think it has much to do with candy corn.The reason was a mystery to me until a rare Halloween weekend night out while Mrs. Funk and I were visiting friends in Johnstown. We wandered into an establishment in our civilian clothes, which kind of put us at odds with what mostly everyone else was wearing.At first, the lengths to which people went to costume themselves overwhelmed us. Soon enough, we started having fun trying to identify who was dressed as what and complimenting the folks who went above and beyond.We learned that the bar was awarding various prizes for costumes, but we didn’t stick around long enough to learn who won what. I’ll tell you what impressed me, though.My first prize goes to a couple who decked themselves out like the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man and one of the Ghostbusters, complete with a makeshift proton pack with colored lights and everything.Second prize: Slash. The guy outfitted like the Guns N’ Roses guitarist, complete with top hat, really knew how to create his illusion. Honorable mention: His-and-her “Where’s Waldo.” They really looked the part. Which was kind of creepy.Dishonorable mention: “Lumberjack.” At least, that’s what the fellow wearing the costume purported to be. Let’s just say his “ax” extended from a strategic location on his body, and leave it at that. This is a family newspaper, after all.Speaking of which, many of the young ladies opted to leave little to the imagination. We guessed that one of the prizes must have been for – let’s see – how about “strumpet”? Feel free to provide your own synonym.Even the bartenders got in on the fun, dressing like a hot dog, hockey referee and girl with gigantic glasses. We weren’t entirely sure whether those were part of the costume or if she was trying to bring back ’80s eyewear fashion.We weren’t entirely sure about a few other getups. I thought one lady was a female William Tell, but she informed me her alter ego actually was someone named Katniss from something called “The Hunger Games.” I nodded my head and had to look up the reference later.Her friend was wearing a costume that was reminiscent of a medieval type of clown. I jotted down the word “harlequin” and asked if that was what she was supposed to be. She may have misinterpreted, as she seemed to be a little testy when she replied, “No, I’m the Queen of Hearts.”Oops.We ended up having a great time, though, and talked a bit about coming up with our own Halloween costumes. Wait ’til next year, I guess.It’ll take us that long to get over the “lumberjack.”Harry Funk can be reached at hfunk1213@gmail.com.