# Where do OLD Haunters Go?



## Frankie's Girl (Aug 27, 2007)

I've been around since (looking at profile) 2007? wow... and active on Halloween Forum year round. I'm one of the old ones I think. 

In my experience, we lose haunters due to several different reasons:

1. Age related. Age could mean the haunter's own age, or their kids/family no longer longer interested - mostly aged out of it being an activity they want to devote their free time/space. We hope folks tell us they're retiring or moving on, but sometimes we just never know and hope they had a whole lot of good years left after they stopped haunting their neighborhood. 

2. Busy busy busy. Family gets really active and downtime/extra $ for hobbies goes away, job/family takes center stage. This is less sad because folks can pick it back up when they get some time or second wind. 

3. Sadly, health issues or death. Either the haunter loses a beloved member that was the heart of their haunt, or the haunter themselves experiences illness or worse, passes away themselves. 

There are obviously a bunch of other reasons but those seem to be the major ones.

Totally my opinion but seems like we generally see the average haunter, the kind that dabbles in building and staging a display and not just purchasing a few props and setting them out, around 5 ish years. Folks that get REALLY into building stuff and collecting generally last longer than that because it's not just about the single day then; it's the fun of creating and building and really falling in love with everything Halloween so it's a part of your life, not just a hobby. 🎃


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## Jerseyscare (Oct 2, 2012)

My seasons are Halloween, Snowboarding and gardening.
But, I guess I have had other "hobbys" , but I have a tendency to turn hobbies into obsessions.
I would use Tera as an example of super active (best videos of Transworld), but creative went into other areas, after moving to a less TOTer friendly area. But, reading old threads and seeing names no longer spoken is interesting.
Jerseyscare


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## The Skeleton Crew (Aug 2, 2016)

Hopefully not to hell...
It all must end at some point. Even the masterful PumpkinRot hasn't been heard from in over a year and may never again. For me, I've had a very tough year starting back in June 2019 and have thought about tacking a year or two off. However for me sketching, sculpting and making props is very therapeutic. So instead of adhering to a rigid schedule I simply work on what I want when I feel like it. If it takes me 2 or 3 years to complete something so be it. I thoroughly document everything (mainly so I wont forget how I made something) so in the future I can pass my knowledge on to others.


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## The Joker (Sep 8, 2008)

Very interesting thread idea!

I've been around a while. Like @Frankie's Girl said, so many reasons. Some reasons are very pinpointed, and other members just fade away. I personally did both. I stopped posting for many years, and I check these boards extremely rarely now. Honestly, I've lost interest in the current state of the forum because most threads are either Home Depot 20XX, Home Goods 20XX, etc., or Reaper card or gift exchange. I see so few threads with personality anymore. I'm kinda bored with all the store watch posts and they just drown everything else out. 

With that said, Halloween decorating is bigger than ever at home, but my interest in the HF is near zilch. This is good thread idea though @Jerseyscare. It was worth logging in and actually positing.


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## Restless Acres (Apr 21, 2016)

Burnout is legit. I warn people about going too big too soon, and frankly, most people should never go too big. People don't like to go backwards. Men, in particular, anecdotally, tend to go bigger year after year, until burnout, then they get rid of everything.
Age also plays into burnout. A lot of people really start decorating in early middle age. You only get a dozen or so year before the body starts going. Kids (who help to a smaller or lesser degree) go off to college...


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## halloween71 (Apr 22, 2007)

I’ve been around publicly since April 2007 but lurked before that. When I first came here I was on here everyday trying to take in everything I could. I did that for years till 2014 when I divorced .. I didn’t come back till 2016.I did still do Halloween but just didn’t come on the forum. It is so sad to see people just disappear.. people who contributed daily and so much knowledge.
I’m back and will be unless something happens. A lot of haunters me included did not like Larry not holding the reigns of the forum. But I have adjusted and still feel this is home for my Halloween love.🎃


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## jdubbya (Oct 4, 2003)

The Joker said:


> Very interesting thread idea!
> 
> I've been around a while. Like @Frankie's Girl said, so many reasons. Some reasons are very pinpointed, and other members just fade away. I personally did both. I stopped posting for many years, and I check these boards extremely rarely now. Honestly, I've lost interest in the current state of the forum because most threads are either Home Depot 20XX, Home Goods 20XX, etc., or Reaper card or gift exchange. I see so few threads with personality anymore. I'm kinda bored with all the store watch posts and they just drown everything else out.
> 
> With that said, Halloween decorating is bigger than ever at home, but my interest in the HF is near zilch. This is good thread idea though @Jerseyscare. It was worth logging in and actually positing.


I echo Joker's sentiments. I had to go back and see how long I've been a member here and it's been 17 years! Used to be very active, posted a lot, was even one of the original moderators. Halloween hasn't changed much for us. We still do a big display, make some neat stuff, get jazzed every year for the big day. We work on stuff throughout the year and the enthusiasm never really tapers off. I've kind of fallen out of the forums for the most part. We have a small facebook page for our haunt followers that we update regularly. I'll share something here every now and then, specifically a prop that I'm happy with or our yearly Halloween pics but I choose not to reply to all of the "who bought what" or what store has what threads. Going back to my early years here, I can say that there were a lot of really serious haunters and prop builders, most of whom have sadly disappeared. The forum is very different now but that's to be expected, and I'm not trying to throw shade on anyone's interests. We all have our own. I log on or just lurk a couple times a month but for me, the forums don't enhance Halloween like they used to. I find my own enjoyment in what we do as home haunters and guess I don't feel a need to participate like I used to. Count me as one of the old time haunters that's still in the game. I do miss a lot of the other folks who have gone by the wayside though.


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## halloween71 (Apr 22, 2007)

The store threads have always been a staple of the forum. I buy so I am interested what I miss are tons of how to’s. That was unique and outside the box.


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## Engineerchic (Sep 6, 2017)

As a relative newbie, I struggle to post in the forum sometimes (at least new threads) because the projects I'm working on are pretty simple for the most part. This year I'm finally able to try things that - IF they work - could add knowledge maybe. But that's if they work! I hope to be in this for the long haul, personally, but it is a tough hobby to have space for.


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## IowaGuy (Jul 30, 2012)

^IF they work^
😂😂😂
Thats the story of my life when it comes to me building Anything involving power tools and my imagination. My epitaph will someday read "That worked a lot better in his head"
I've been around for a bit but then I dropped off for awhile (Lots and Lots and Lots of drinking). I found other FB pages I became involved with Haunters Hangouts, Extreme Halloween. But I got so tired of the negativity that I quit FB and never looked back, I prolly have hundreds of friend requests and notifications now. It wasn't until sort of recently I came back here to beloved HF and got active again after I posted about dropping my demons (Alcoholism). I've been in the yard haunt game since 2009(???) and I'm only 23 😉. I'll be around for awhile, Halloween has become too much a part of my life! My past dating profiles (Match, EHarmony, Tinder) have always mentioned my extreme love also. Its right up there with "Must love dogs" or similar things. This group of amazing folks always brings a smile to my face followed by bits of jealousy haha.


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## The Auditor (Apr 2, 2006)

I'm in the too damn busy and honestly too tired camp. I check in periodically, of course.


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## kittyvibe (Oct 27, 2008)

Ive been both active and lurker. I always appreciated this forum as being friendly and cooperative creatively and in spirit. Ive personally lost alot , house and health, so I havent had a place for my creative outlets but always looked at the new stuff out every year. 

I have been doing it up kittyvibe style best I can in my moms neighborhood since it was always huge with tots. Just massive amounts of kids. But the theme was only up for the one night so it got exausting. It kinda burned me out. Im a tinkerer, I like that speed lol. 

I have a new place and had big plans for a witch theme but my place gets zero tots. And with my family not gathering due to covid for the forseeable future, Im frankly at a loss what to do now. 

If I just did a party it would be only me and my bf. Kinda meh. And Id have to advertise to get any tots my way but dont want to get overwhelmed. ( Its a small street). 

Confuzzles abound. Ive been here 12 years.


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## ZombieRaider (May 18, 2008)

They don't post anymore because nothing in this world stays the same as much as I want it to....Constant change all around me....I was watching a guy on youtube the other night doing a video on "Dirty Dancing" anniversary....He watched the movie close to 100? times and then set out on a journey to the filming locations....I remember watching that movie in high school on a VCR....Now I'm watching this guy at the locations and you realize the thing that stayed most the same was the stone lodge in Virginia....Everything around it changed...Many people that made that movie are now gone...The lake lost it's water in Virginia, many buildings in the Carolina's (film's other location) are gone....I usually feel kind of depressed watching these kind of comparison videos because it's extremely easy to compare the original film to the current film and what has changed....It's like the stone and mortar is exactly the same as the day they filmed but the spirit of that moment is gone forever....The only tangible thing left is imprinted on that film as a memory....So yeah....Constant change....So how has these constant changes affected HF over the years?....I think this forum takes a hit because there is SO MUCH content EVERYWHERE these days....As joker pointed out, not nearly as much "how to" content as there used to be but I think that's because (YOUTUBE) it's so much easier to make a video and post it that shows exactly how to make it....Having the visual aspect with someone talking through a certain technique on video is much easier to comprehend than a handful of pictures and LOT'S of words trying to explain it....Also as he pointed out, store props have become the big focus in recent years here on the forum....I agree this is the number 1 place to go to find out and talk about store props because everyone that is interested in those congregate here....Having that base of people all over the US is almost like FBI for props....LOL....But again, I put this in the constant change category...Stores now realize they can sell a Halloween item for $200-$300 and people will buy it...Each year they make enough profit they are willing to take a bigger risk the next year....
Anyway, to wrap this up and answer Jerseyscare's question.... As to the cycle of membership to the forum, no longer "active"?
All of the above...Every answer member's have mentioned is correct.... Like I said, life is constantly changing for every single person on this planet...Your life is going to look completely different in 10 years in some aspect....Nothing you can do about it but move along with it and make adjustments accordingly.....Constant change....ZR


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## Screaming Demons (Sep 15, 2008)

I've been wondering the same thing lately. I was on YouTube the other night going through my subscribed channels. I couldn't believe some of the haunters who just quit posting. Some of them had professional quality and sized haunts and they seem to have just disappeared.


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## Jerseyscare (Oct 2, 2012)

I hadn't thought about the "other" social media, as I avoid, but believe that takes up spare time for many. I was also worried when Larry sold, but I think the positive "spirit" is still alive on HF. I do agree that there is not as much "hacking", maybe though we complain, every year there are (accumulative) more and more (old and new) props for sale. So, you don't need to hack something, but can instead just buy the kit. Some of that is good, no one is pushing to add air to door cylinders, instead there is Fright Props. Some of the "how to" may have suffered do to broken links and now you tube. It is reassuring to hear from decade plus members they are still going strong.
Jerseyscare


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## Delvec (Jun 28, 2020)

Im extremely new but I have been running forums from other topics. One was based on Star Wars collecting and interest kinda died after the last prequel film because that was supposed to be the end and over saturation of forums. Plus once interest all but died, real life took over and I ended up starting a forum around diabetes which was pretty busy for a few years but then Facebook blew up and many people would just go there instead including my own wife who was co owner of the site. I mean if the co-owner bails why would anyone else stay.


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## boo who? (Feb 28, 2005)

Most days, I need to be idling online waiting for work updates. So with a half dozen tabs open at any given time, the odds of checking this site several times a day are pretty good.


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## Halstaff (Nov 8, 2009)

Unfortunately, the rise of Facebook and other social media platforms has left the forums behind. Many of the old timers who design and build their own props have moved over where there is more interest in what we do. This forum still provides a nice place to talk about buying premade props but I do miss the discussions on hacking and creating new props. As an example, I posted about a new controller I designed with Addicore and didn't receive a single comment. In days past, that type of subject would have garnered a lot of interest. I still prefer the forums to discuss new ideas but that is no longer the trend. 
I still check in occasionally but no where near like I used to.


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## Deadna (Oct 19, 2002)

I left because the forum pages jumped around too much due to all the ads. I tried an ad blocker but it messed things up in other ways on my computer and I still don't know how to work this thing even after all these years 😊
One thing I noticed over time and NOT reading the forum was that I didn't feel the need to run out and buy all the items people were talking about on here. My hoarding pretty much came to a complete stop so some good came out of it!
BTW.....hello to everyone!


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## Krusty (Aug 28, 2019)

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## Defenestrator (Jul 27, 2009)

I always used to wonder where the Old Haunters go, too. I'm always happiest when we get some sort of signoff, and aren't left to wonder. Once upon a time, I think they used to fade away primarily due to age, or unfortunate family circumstance.

Now, I suspect much of it is as Jdubbya and Halstaff have said; I imagine that there are two other key contributors to their disappearance from this forum these days....1) there are just too many other areas for folks to easily share their work and interact, and 2) as a result, the forums are largely populated by other chatter that isn't related to prop building (the only reason I was ever here in the first place)

As prop building has faded as a focus here, these days I'm FAR more inclined to share whatever I'm building on Instagram rather than going to all of the trouble required to post something to HF. 

Also, I seem to have found many of the HF refugees over there anyway, so I don't feel as though I'm missing out on those interactions, either. 

I still check in here periodically just to keep up with some of the folks that I haven't managed to connect with in via YouTube or Instagram, but I rarely post anything I'm building here anymore.....my guess is when I no longer have to rely on HF to be in contact with those dwindling few, I'll be done here, too.


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## Restless Acres (Apr 21, 2016)

Deadna said:


> I left because the forum pages jumped around too much due to all the ads. I tried an ad blocker but it messed things up in other ways on my computer and I still don't know how to work this thing even after all these years 😊
> One thing I noticed over time and NOT reading the forum was that I didn't feel the need to run out and buy all the items people were talking about on here. My hoarding pretty much came to a complete stop so some good came out of it!
> BTW.....hello to everyone!


It's not hoarding, it's, "collecting".


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## Push Eject (Oct 11, 2005)

Neat question! We still do Halloween pretty big, but not so into the forums anymore. Just life... kids got older and have their own hobbies and demands on family time. Then the forums changed and old posts got broken or lost. Kind of took the wind out of my sails a bit.
I still think fondly of those who helped and gave encouragement when we were starting out in 2005! And it's nice getting the occasional email with "what's trending" -- like this post!
Hope you all are well and have a fun Halloween no matter what!
pe


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## Spookzilla (Nov 4, 2007)

Where do old haunters go you ask? Well they keep on throwing me in the grave I always claw my way out!

Life is about change so its not surprising that allot of the "old timers" from this forum are gone or have become inactive. Some of us that are not running a haunt ever year for the tot's, like myself, keep an interest in the hobby and a passion for the Halloween holiday. Which is why I crawl out of my coffin every now and then to share some wisdom or advice from years of working in commercial and running my own home haunt. Besides I always find it interesting to read about and see photos and videos of the new and creative ways today that some people who are still building their own props and staging their home haunts. Along with the worms in my brain squirming with disgust when I read about some who buy tacky ready made prop and or participating in those ghastly trunk or treats!


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## njwilk (Oct 18, 2005)

Joined in 2005, but I’m an occasional drop in now rather than a daily visitor. 
Halloween is still a year round hobby, not so much this year. I usually do at least one bigger prop every year or a group of related pieces. Went from 10 or 15 trick or treaters to over 600 the past couple of years so I’ve appreciated the variety of discussion on this forum from how-to instructions to tombstone epitaphs to security concerns and best buys for candy and animatronic parts.
I think part of the reason I wandered away is that I’m on my phone way more than computer and the user interface Is not as comfortable on the phone.


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## dawnski (Jun 16, 2012)

Been on here since 2012 but haunting prior to that. Definitely age is going to factor in at some point as no one helps me and it's getting physically harder to do what I used to. But in regards to the forum, I find more useful info and photos in the various Facebook Halloween groups. FB makes it easy to load your photos, be seen by fellow Halloween fans and quick comments/likes. But the community aspect is lacking (hard to foster that on social media with all the trolls). People like the ease of social media. Takes more effort to do the same thing here--load photos, wait for a few responses, etc. I guess the real question is where do all the old forums go? It is a dying medium and that's a shame. As internet forums die off, finding community can be harder than ever


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## Restless Acres (Apr 21, 2016)

The Old Haunters Home, where else?


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## kuroneko (Mar 31, 2011)

Honestly, people can't do this forever. It takes a lot of time and work and at some point people get tired of it, burn out, or get to point where they just can't do it any more. I know I've slowed down a bit due to health problems.



Krusty said:


> I am with you Halstaff....
> I don’t have any interest in store bought as the design and execution of a hand made prop is stimulating and satisfying for me!
> I really enjoy your videos.....and have picked up lots of information from them!
> I also am losing interest in this forum and have noticed the same.... What to buy?
> ...


I feel like a lot of knowledge is being lost due to the next generation not picking up where the "old timers" left off. I'd love to build my own animatronics from scratch, but I just never got into it. I'm seeing the same trends you are across the board. It's slowly skewing more into "what to buy" and there are fewer and fewer tutorials and "hey, look what I'm working on!" I remember the forum being filled with projects and people asking "how do I build this?" Now it's mostly "(store name) (current year)" threads.
I'm totally guilty of buying crap instead of building it. It's always a debate on whether it's worth my time and more importantly my energy (which is extremely limited these days) or do I just spend the money and be done with it. I've gotten much more picky over the years as to what I buy and I've tried to build up my skill set so that eventually I will have a mostly home built haunt.
Lately I've been shifting more into the semi-homemade category where I'll take a store bought item I already have and upgrade it somehow. I know that's how most people start out so I don't feel so bad about it. It allows me to try things without too much extra effort or money.
I do hope things shift back toward being more crafting/building, but the forum as a medium is dying. Maybe the next big platform will host the next generation of builders and the shoppers will be left behind. Everything is a cycle.


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## Restless Acres (Apr 21, 2016)

Several people have commented that this website is more about buying props now than making them, as it was allegedly in the past. I have only been here since 2016, so can't really comment, but I imagine everyone is aware that there is a separate section of HD entitled Halloween Props, that is almost exclusively dedicated to building props. And, not looking at number of posts, but for most of the year it is much busier than the General Halloween page (which is more dedicated to buying props), except for July-October. It's very busy over there year round.
Again, I have only been here four years, but there is plenty of prop (etc) building on the other page.


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## Industen (Oct 12, 2006)

I could never leave this forum. I usually get very post active around June. I always check out what people are up to but I hide in the shadows until then.


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## ZombieRaider (May 18, 2008)

Restless Acres said:


> Several people have commented that this website is more about buying props now than making them, as it was allegedly in the past. I have only been here since 2016, so can't really comment, but I imagine everyone is aware that there is a separate section of HD entitled Halloween Props, that is almost exclusively dedicated to building props. And, not looking at number of posts, but for most of the year it is much busier than the General Halloween page (which is more dedicated to buying props), except for July-October. It's very busy over there year round.
> Again, I have only been here four years, but there is plenty of prop (etc) building on the other page.


People definitely built more props in the past because we didn't have the Halloween Overload Extravaganza! of everything imaginable back then like we do now...I think what they are refering to is before we had all this stuff in stores, we didn't have all that chatter in the general section because all that stuff didn't exist...If you wanted anything cool you had to build it, there wasn't an option of going to Spirit Halloween or Home Depot or where ever and buying it complete....It was just a different time....That being said, I love all the options available now and I think it's helped many more people get into it that otherwise would have never decorated in the first place....Then people like me that isn't in their 20's anymore don't have the ambition to build everything from scratch though I am starting to make stuff again....Everyone's opinion on that differs of course....LOL....ZR


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## hllwnfan (Aug 18, 2009)

I completely agree with @The Joker . I’ve been a member since 2009 when i was in college. And also agree with others life happen and things change but I always check out HF but get discouraged when all I see is menards, zulily, grandin road, etc. and nothing else that spike my interest. I’m not much of a poster on here but love to read all discussions that are interesting but like I said before all I’ve seen is stores. So....what if we just put all the stores into there own section and not in the general section with other discussions that way for people who are looking for something uncommon or different to read and post about don’t have to scroll or move to other pages just to find something other than the same thing. sometimes I see people post questions for help with something or to get an opinion on things way down the list and might not be seen because of the repeat of certain discussions. Just my thoughts on all this and a great post. These are posts I also find interesting and out of the norm.👍


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## kuroneko (Mar 31, 2011)

I actually had to check when I finally joined! I'm pretty sure I was a lurker for a few years, but I joined in 2011.



ZombieRaider said:


> People definitely built more props in the past because we didn't have the Halloween Overload Extravaganza! of everything imaginable back then like we do now...I think what they are refering to is before we had all this stuff in stores, we didn't have all that chatter in the general section because all that stuff didn't exist...If you wanted anything cool you had to build it, there wasn't an option of going to Spirit Halloween or Home Depot or where ever and buying it complete....It was just a different time....That being said, I love all the options available now and I think it's helped many more people get into it that otherwise would have never decorated in the first place....Then people like me that isn't in their 20's anymore don't have the ambition to build everything from scratch though I am starting to make stuff again....Everyone's opinion on that differs of course....LOL....ZR


I very much agree with the uptick in affordable Halloween merchandise being a more recent thing! It's true that it seems like in the last few years, multiple stores have really stepped up their game and offered more Halloween stuff. Before that you had to go to Halloween pop-up stores like Spirit to really find a lot of "cool" Halloween props and such (even that is more of a recent thing). Regular retail would only have bag-o-webs, small tombstones, and like 3 other things. Now everyone is selling pose-n-stays, fancy resin tombstones, and at least full-sized animatronic. Doing a full on Halloween/haunt has certainly become more accessible and easy to the average person.



hllwnfan said:


> I completely agree with @The Joker . I’ve been a member since 2009 when i was in college. And also agree with others life happen and things change but I always check out HF but get discouraged when all I see is menards, zulily, grandin road, etc. and nothing else that spike my interest. I’m not much of a poster on here but love to read all discussions that are interesting but like I said before all I’ve seen is stores. So....what if we just put all the stores into there own section and not in the general section with other discussions that way for people who are looking for something uncommon or different to read and post about don’t have to scroll or move to other pages just to find something other than the same thing. sometimes I see people post questions for help with something or to get an opinion on things way down the list and might not be seen because of the repeat of certain discussions. Just my thoughts on all this and a great post. These are posts I also find interesting and out of the norm.👍


I fully support this idea! Now that every single store has something to offer there's definitely enough posts to warrant its own section on the forums. I think it would cut back on duplicate posting and help the General Section go back to the way it should be. It will definitely prevent that dreaded "wall of buying stuff" that seems to dominate the section now and bury everything else. I'm not sure how many discussions are getting buried (especially this time of year) and are just sort of lost. I'd hate for new people to be asking questions and not getting answers because their post was buried under the latest "BUY STUFF 2020." Then they end up just sort of leaving because they feel like this forum is just concerned with the next big sale.


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## Krusty (Aug 28, 2019)

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## Halstaff (Nov 8, 2009)

Krusty said:


> I tend to be mostly on the prop section of this Forum and can’t comment on the early years as I wasn’t on here... but even the prop section is heavily saturated with fixing store bought stuff and how to paint and shape tombstones out of foam......
> 
> Animatronics builds aren’t very well represented here and I believe it is because of the video media which is so prevalent now.
> My posts on building homemade animatronics hardly get a comment?
> ...


I have been around for awhile and in the old days, (yea, I'm an old timer ) we used to have extensive discussions on the best way to hack a prop or design something completely new. I work on things all year round so Halloween is more than a season for me and I enjoy the challenge of coming up with new things or finding better ways of animating props. My display is original and no one else can simply stop at the store and purchase props like mine.

However, my opinion seems to be in the minority. I do still occasionally post a project on the forums but it is more out of nostalgia than of expecting to generate a discussion or interest. I don't think there is a better platform for these types of discussions than on the forums as they are organized to keep independent conversations together. So much easier to keep track of! I do feel sorry for the newcomers to the hobby that might be interested in building their own animated props as this resource seems to be on its way out. 
I agree that YouTube and Facebook are great platforms for showing off your work but they don't lend themselves to having multiple people participate in a conversation on a single topic. You can watch a video and see how someone else has done something but it doesn't allow an entire group to brainstorm an idea or help you solve a problem.


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## boo who? (Feb 28, 2005)

Often the prop forums would be a little over my head. I'm not up to re-wiring a motor, programming complicated lighting effects or hacking a circuit board. I can work a Shiatsu massager into a build and set up a window projector without having to call the fire department - but that's about it. I don't mind the sale notifications too much. IMO, there are already too many sub categories here.


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## ZombieRaider (May 18, 2008)

Halstaff said:


> I do feel sorry for the newcomers to the hobby that might be interested in building their own animated props as this resource seems to be on its way out.


Still waiting for someone way smarter than me to make an easy to use user interface gui for a popular standardized super cheap controller like an arduino or raspberry pi so I can easily program servos, relays, leds, etc...I feel like that's where the bottle neck is for me....On occasion I do want to make something move, I usually use a fright ideas box but they are too expensive to do all the things I'd like to do....I keep hoping a decent front end comes along for those controllers to bypass all that coding but so far....nope.....ZR


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## Halstaff (Nov 8, 2009)

ZombieRaider said:


> Still waiting for someone way smarter than me to make an easy to use user interface gui for a popular standardized super cheap controller like an arduino or raspberry pi so I can easily program servos, relays, leds, etc...I feel like that's where the bottle neck is for me....On occasion I do want to make something move, I usually use a fright ideas box but they are too expensive to do all the things I'd like to do....I keep hoping a decent front end comes along for those controllers to bypass all that coding but so far....nope.....ZR


Well you are in luck!
Check out my post on this very forum - Simple DIY RC Prop Controller!


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## hhh (Mar 1, 2012)

I apparently have been here since 2012, though lurked before that and I've never been a copious poster. I probably check in weekly, but I check in more when I'm not working on stuff myself because then I have more time. I don't do social media.

I keep things relatively small because I don't have the storage space or the spousal buyin, but I like seeing what other people are up to. The DIY stuff is definitely more interesting to me, but it's also fine to see what people are buying as that can be a source of ideas too. I think a large part of why I'm attracted to halloween is the DIY aspect. As a kid, when I saw displays I was interested not just in the aesthetic, but also how it was done, and how I could do stuff like it. Buying stuff just isn't as interesting. I've never bought a halloween costume. In many ways, halloween is an excuse for me to make stuff.

I program for a living these days, but electronics is still a hobby, and I will say the accessibility of electronics has come a long way. As a kid I wired up a desktop PC to be able to turn a stepper motor back and forth. At some point I got some PIC chips to program, but the barrier of writing machine code and needing a special programmer (and having to erase it with UV light, etc) was just too much and I never used it. But arduino has changed a lot. The price is low, the language is manageable, debugging isn't awful, and there are lots of available tutorials and libraries and pre-made parts, and I use it for all kinds of things now.

There are also graphical programming interfaces, like scratch, which apparently can be used with arduino. I recently got my 7-year-old kid an mbot robot which is essentially an arduino with plugable sensors that you program by dragging blocks around. He hasn't yet come up with an idea to use it for halloween, but I think that will happen before long. If any of you are new to programming and deciding to get into arduino, post how it goes.


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## ZombieRaider (May 18, 2008)

Halstaff said:


> Well you are in luck!
> Check out my post on this very forum - Simple DIY RC Prop Controller!


That's an interesting system but not really what I mean't exactly....Customized arduinos and specialized programmers are a no go for me....What makes the standard arduino product line stand out to me is how popular they are and the huge support system....They aren't going away anytime soon and because there are so many in the market, they are super cheap...As an example I bought 3 used arduino uno rev 3s for $20....Plus there are simpler projects I just want to fade a light on and off so even those unos are overkill...I could use one of the smaller ones for under $10 for those projects....I guess I'm kind of surprised no one has made a computer interface considering how popular the arduino craze has been...It seems like a no brainer to me because of everyone who would like to use them but not learn the code.....It's nice there is a lot of code already written though....I'm sure when I finally get around to it, I'll use that for simple projects...BTW, I've watched your youtube channel for quite awhile now and Thanks for the content you provide....It's very educational.....ZR


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## hhh (Mar 1, 2012)

I think we're derailing the thread, so I'll keep it short. Maybe start a new thread on this for more discussion.
S4A scratch for arduino - graphical programming for arduino. I haven't tried it, but sounds like it might be what you need to get started.
CircuitPython python is a much more approachable programming language, and you just drop files on the boards like they're thumbdrives and it runs the code. they cost a bit more because they have to do more work, but looks like adafruit has boards starting at $9 which is pretty good.


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## DavyKnoles (Dec 5, 2009)

I thought I'd toss my two cents in since I am without a doubt the oldest member here. I actually first joined the Halloween Forum about two months after Larry formed it way back in 2002. There were only a dozen or so members back then, and we all got to know each other intimately - or at least as intimately as you can get to know someone using a message board. Probably because of that, coupled with the fact that the entire internet experience was vastly different 18 years ago, the forum experience was a great deal more personal and personality driven than it is now. Everyone would come on line at the same time and we would literally chase each other from one thread to the next telling stories and jokes and just commenting on each other. When the timing was right, an evening on the Halloweenforum was like attending a really good party. And, of course, the experience was enhanced when Larry made a deal with Halloween Radio so that with a single click, you could listen to Halloween tunes while playing with all your friends on the forum. And the members? All of us were Halloween fanatics of one sort or another. We had a girl from Australia who posted detailed stories about what it was like to host a home haunt in a small town off the Princess Highway; a guy from Pennsylvania who made Halloween props professionally and used to write about the process of creating them; a gentleman from the Midwest who owned and operated an-open-all-year haunted house attraction; and of course, I used to share, in prose, my experiences as a monster (which now is call a "scareactor") at the Queen Mary in Long Beach California during their Shipwreck terrrorfest event - which is now called "Dark Harbor" - not realizing at the time that me and my two friends were creating the legacy of the Queen Mary Sliders which the three of us actually started in 2002. One of the biggest running gags back in those days was the tomato Martini. Many a post on one thread or the other would end with the statement "Tomato Martini's all around." This started with one of our members, a gal from Indiana who had inherited a tomato farm. She would go on about tomato production until someone - might have been me - suggested she use them to create alcohol and the fabled fictional tomato Martini was born. The idea was so totally random that it caught on and members mentioned the tomato Martini for a couple of years. I actually took the concept to a new level when I tried infusing some vodka with fresh tomatoes and actually made a tomato Martini, which actually wasn't too bad. The recipe still exists in some long ago post. And our group was small and intimate enough that many of us actually met face to face. Most of the people I met did, of course, live in Southern California where I lived. But I also met Grinningbook, who was from a small town called Churchill in southeast Australia and Moonstarling and her family from central Florida. But my favorite face to face was with Eerie Myst, who I called Mysty, and her mother who came to see me perform at the Queen Mary. I remember being nervous as a cat the night she showed up. She was gorgeous too, a former stripper with long blonde hair. I'll never forget seeing her in the crowd and then going into a slide, scaring the crap out of her just as I'd planned. I'll never forget that kiss at the end of the evening either, which was something I hadn't planned on. But after that first year, Larry started playing with the forum's format. At first it was just open with no subsections. Then Larry added them as needed so where there was once only a General Halloween section, then there was a section for off-topic stuff, literature and role playing and so forth. And as that changed so did the players. A lot of the old timers dropped out and were replaced with new faces. And suddenly it wasn't the same anymore. Once the forum's most frequent contributor, I drifted away around 2005 or so. When I came back in the early teens I couldn't remember my old password so I had to join again. But it wasn't the same. As someone early in this thread pointed out, now it's much less of a party and much more or a simple store watch. It's not surprising though. In 2002, Larry's on-line Halloween Network, which included the forum, was the ultimate source for Halloween information. But technology and the raw amount of information available over the internet has group exponentially since those days. Now there's a zillion other sources from YouTube videos to dozens of Facebook groups all dedicated to Halloween. So a message board format like the Halloween Forum is a sort of quaint anachronism. I usually come back to check things out with a sense of nostalgia. But I rarely have anything to contribute. Why would I? I don't know anybody anymore and I don't much care about what's on sale on line at Home Depot. So getting back to the main theme of this thread, where did every go? All you really have to do to understand it is to listen to the lyrics of that old Elton John song, "Crocodile Rock," cause that pretty much says it all. But as far as I'm concerned it goes along with a phrase I seem to use way to many times these days, namely: "I thought those days would never end. Until they did. And now I simply wonder where they went." Pardon me for waxing poetic. I think I'll toddle off now and mix myself a tomato Martini.


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## trentsketch (Aug 4, 2009)

I mainly lurk every so often at this point. I know what kind of props I'm good at making and where to look if I start playing around with things outside my expertise. I also, through connections in my work, have a shocking specific group of people to bounce ideas off of with similar aesthetics to me. There are things I always come here to look for, but I just don't post as often. Am I still haunting? Every year from the ground up. Do I have as much time as I used to to hang out and discuss haunts for the fun of it? Not really.


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## halloween71 (Apr 22, 2007)

ZombieRaider said:


> They don't post anymore because nothing in this world stays the same as much as I want it to....Constant change all around me....I was watching a guy on youtube the other night doing a video on "Dirty Dancing" anniversary....He watched the movie close to 100? times and then set out on a journey to the filming locations....I remember watching that movie in high school on a VCR....Now I'm watching this guy at the locations and you realize the thing that stayed most the same was the stone lodge in Virginia....Everything around it changed...Many people that made that movie are now gone...The lake lost it's water in Virginia, many buildings in the Carolina's (film's other location) are gone....I usually feel kind of depressed watching these kind of comparison videos because it's extremely easy to compare the original film to the current film and what has changed....It's like the stone and mortar is exactly the same as the day they filmed but the spirit of that moment is gone forever....The only tangible thing left is imprinted on that film as a memory....So yeah....Constant change....So how has these constant changes affected HF over the years?....I think this forum takes a hit because there is SO MUCH content EVERYWHERE these days....As joker pointed out, not nearly as much "how to" content as there used to be but I think that's because (YOUTUBE) it's so much easier to make a video and post it that shows exactly how to make it....Having the visual aspect with someone talking through a certain technique on video is much easier to comprehend than a handful of pictures and LOT'S of words trying to explain it....Also as he pointed out, store props have become the big focus in recent years here on the forum....I agree this is the number 1 place to go to find out and talk about store props because everyone that is interested in those congregate here....Having that base of people all over the US is almost like FBI for props....LOL....But again, I put this in the constant change category...Stores now realize they can sell a Halloween item for $200-$300 and people will buy it...Each year they make enough profit they are willing to take a bigger risk the next year....
> Anyway, to wrap this up and answer Jerseyscare's question.... As to the cycle of membership to the forum, no longer "active"?
> All of the above...Every answer member's have mentioned is correct.... Like I said, life is constantly changing for every single person on this planet...Your life is going to look completely different in 10 years in some aspect....Nothing you can do about it but move along with it and make adjustments accordingly.....Constant change....ZR


I live within 20 min of dirty dancing lake my son lives in the same town as it. The lake is filling back in .


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## halloween71 (Apr 22, 2007)

kittyvibe said:


> Ive been both active and lurker. I always appreciated this forum as being friendly and cooperative creatively and in spirit. Ive personally lost alot , house and health, so I havent had a place for my creative outlets but always looked at the new stuff out every year.
> 
> I have been doing it up kittyvibe style best I can in my moms neighborhood since it was always huge with tots. Just massive amounts of kids. But the theme was only up for the one night so it got exausting. It kinda burned me out. Im a tinkerer, I like that speed lol.
> 
> ...


I remember you from way back - the good old days🎃


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## halloween71 (Apr 22, 2007)

DavyKnoles said:


> I thought I'd toss my two cents in since I am without a doubt the oldest member here. I actually first joined the Halloween Forum about two months after Larry formed it way back in 2002. There were only a dozen or so members back then, and we all got to know each other intimately - or at least as intimately as you can get to know someone using a message board. Probably because of that, coupled with the fact that the entire internet experience was vastly different 18 years ago, the forum experience was a great deal more personal and personality driven than it is now. Everyone would come on line at the same time and we would literally chase each other from one thread to the next telling stories and jokes and just commenting on each other. When the timing was right, an evening on the Halloweenforum was like attending a really good party. And, of course, the experience was enhanced when Larry made a deal with Halloween Radio so that with a single click, you could listen to Halloween tunes while playing with all your friends on the forum. And the members? All of us were Halloween fanatics of one sort or another. We had a girl from Australia who posted detailed stories about what it was like to host a home haunt in a small town off the Princess Highway; a guy from Pennsylvania who made Halloween props professionally and used to write about the process of creating them; a gentleman from the Midwest who owned and operated an-open-all-year haunted house attraction; and of course, I used to share, in prose, my experiences as a monster (which now is call a "scareactor") at the Queen Mary in Long Beach California during their Shipwreck terrrorfest event - which is now called "Dark Harbor" - not realizing at the time that me and my two friends were creating the legacy of the Queen Mary Sliders which the three of us actually started in 2002. One of the biggest running gags back in those days was the tomato Martini. Many a post on one thread or the other would end with the statement "Tomato Martini's all around." This started with one of our members, a gal from Indiana who had inherited a tomato farm. She would go on about tomato production until someone - might have been me - suggested she use them to create alcohol and the fabled fictional tomato Martini was born. The idea was so totally random that it caught on and members mentioned the tomato Martini for a couple of years. I actually took the concept to a new level when I tried infusing some vodka with fresh tomatoes and actually made a tomato Martini, which actually wasn't too bad. The recipe still exists in some long ago post. And our group was small and intimate enough that many of us actually met face to face. Most of the people I met did, of course, live in Southern California where I lived. But I also met Grinningbook, who was from a small town called Churchill in southeast Australia and Moonstarling and her family from central Florida. But my favorite face to face was with Eerie Myst, who I called Mysty, and her mother who came to see me perform at the Queen Mary. I remember being nervous as a cat the night she showed up. She was gorgeous too, a former stripper with long blonde hair. I'll never forget seeing her in the crowd and then going into a slide, scaring the crap out of her just as I'd planned. I'll never forget that kiss at the end of the evening either, which was something I hadn't planned on. But after that first year, Larry started playing with the forum's format. At first it was just open with no subsections. Then Larry added them as needed so where there was once only a General Halloween section, then there was a section for off-topic stuff, literature and role playing and so forth. And as that changed so did the players. A lot of the old timers dropped out and were replaced with new faces. And suddenly it wasn't the same anymore. Once the forum's most frequent contributor, I drifted away around 2005 or so. When I came back in the early teens I couldn't remember my old password so I had to join again. But it wasn't the same. As someone early in this thread pointed out, now it's much less of a party and much more or a simple store watch. It's not surprising though. In 2002, Larry's on-line Halloween Network, which included the forum, was the ultimate source for Halloween information. But technology and the raw amount of information available over the internet has group exponentially since those days. Now there's a zillion other sources from YouTube videos to dozens of Facebook groups all dedicated to Halloween. So a message board format like the Halloween Forum is a sort of quaint anachronism. I usually come back to check things out with a sense of nostalgia. But I rarely have anything to contribute. Why would I? I don't know anybody anymore and I don't much care about what's on sale on line at Home Depot. So getting back to the main theme of this thread, where did every go? All you really have to do to understand it is to listen to the lyrics of that old Elton John song, "Crocodile Rock," cause that pretty much says it all. But as far as I'm concerned it goes along with a phrase I seem to use way to many times these days, namely: "I thought those days would never end. Until they did. And now I simply wonder where they went." Pardon me for waxing poetic. I think I'll toddle off now and mix myself a tomato Martini.


I miss Larry so much. When I was on social media I did follow him.I did get to interact with a lot of the Halloween forum community.I loved Halloween radio.


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## Stochey (Sep 22, 2009)

I seemed to have drifted off when Larry didn't run things anymore. I'm still around but now its a once a month, maybe check instead of every day. I did not intend to drift away when Larry left, it just.. happened. I much prefer the way the forum used to look as opposed to now.

Also I have extreme burnout. My Halloween party was everything to me for so long and then I finally got my own house and threw the perfect one. Then I threw another one last year and I just can't stop thinking about the things that didn't get done to a point where I dread the next one. Idk what is going to happen with that.

I fully support moving the store threads to another section! I do look at them but I much prefer actual discussion about different aspects of Halloween more.


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## DeadShelly (Jun 26, 2020)

WOW ! What incredable responses. If you all would share one thing you learned on this forum or elsewhere, I think it could get interesting again. I love to follow Steve's Haunted Yard and yes, he posts on You tube now also but I believe that the rest of you are destined to create great spooktacular things and be an inspiration to us all ! Don't lose your spirit or your own creativity just because this forum has become stale ! Like Steve says "Get your haunt on " ! Together we can make this forum interesting again.


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## Muffy (Sep 25, 2006)

Hi, here's Muffy, and old member. Should say I kind of retired due to health issues with everyone in the house. If you ask yourself when its time to retire.../.we addressed that issue in this house by not being able to get on the ladders anymore....that's when it all started to fall apart and 5 years following that things just fell apart a little more till there was nothing left. Halloween display stayed packed away every year, nothing came out. It is such a loss to my livelyhood I can barely talk about it. The amount of things I bought in those 5 years that have never come out of the boxes would make any haunter cry, let aside the building materials purchased to make our own props. Still it all sits.

In January of 2020 my husband died and Jerry my ex who helped me put the haunt up and built a lot of the props got older>>>78. I once again had high hopes of getting this haunt up but we just found out Jerry has cancer and is about to embark on those things. I just wanted to see my haunt one more time before I die. Last July I had 2 strokes and I'm still not 100%. I'm still sitting here guys wondering if I start in August could I get the whole thing up by Halloween. I had mentioned on the boards here that last year our town started having a big deal on Halloween so we had very few kids come to the house. So if I made any major changes I would advertise my haunt to be open the day before Halloween in hopes of getting some people to return.Hard to believe that I had 1200 kids come through here on 2012, paper did a big write up on it. Last year I had 20 kids. Broke my heart.
When you love Halloween the way some of us do its the hardest thing in the world to let it go. Takes a lot out of a person. I had quit coming to the board out of sheer depression, just could not read the boards anymore. Too many memories and far to much excitement about new ideas. This where my Halloween passions really evolved. I think when I found this place I kind of lost my mind. There was so much information and creativity...it was wild. And the people were so happy to share those ideas. That is when I started the year round prop building group. We had some wonderful projects and project leaders. I was magical.

I miss all of you so very much. I'm back right now and gonna see what my feelings can produce this year. Can I get some of it up. Would especially be great to actually unpack these totes and see whats in them. Time will tell, wish me luck. Love ya all.


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## Restless Acres (Apr 21, 2016)

Muffy said:


> Hi, here's Muffy, and old member. Should say I kind of retired due to health issues with everyone in the house. If you ask yourself when its time to retire.../.we addressed that issue in this house by not being able to get on the ladders anymore....that's when it all started to fall apart and 5 years following that things just fell apart a little more till there was nothing left. Halloween display stayed packed away every year, nothing came out. It is such a loss to my livelyhood I can barely talk about it. The amount of things I bought in those 5 years that have never come out of the boxes would make any haunter cry, let aside the building materials purchased to make our own props. Still it all sits.
> 
> In January of 2020 my husband died and Jerry my ex who helped me put the haunt up and built a lot of the props got older>>>78. I once again had high hopes of getting this haunt up but we just found out Jerry has cancer and is about to embark on those things. I just wanted to see my haunt one more time before I die. Last July I had 2 strokes and I'm still not 100%. I'm still sitting here guys wondering if I start in August could I get the whole thing up by Halloween. I had mentioned on the boards here that last year our town started having a big deal on Halloween so we had very few kids come to the house. So if I made any major changes I would advertise my haunt to be open the day before Halloween in hopes of getting some people to return.Hard to believe that I had 1200 kids come through here on 2012, paper did a big write up on it. Last year I had 20 kids. Broke my heart.
> When you love Halloween the way some of us do its the hardest thing in the world to let it go. Takes a lot out of a person. I had quit coming to the board out of sheer depression, just could not read the boards anymore. Too many memories and far to much excitement about new ideas. This where my Halloween passions really evolved. I think when I found this place I kind of lost my mind. There was so much information and creativity...it was wild. And the people were so happy to share those ideas. That is when I started the year round prop building group. We had some wonderful projects and project leaders. I was magical.
> ...


Maybe you could consider hiring a neighborhood teen to help? I hurt my wrist a few years ago right before Halloween, and there were things I just couldn't do with one hand. Put an ad on Nextdoor app looking to hire someone to help, and a neighborhood lady sent her teen grandson over to help and she wouldn't let me pay him! I would definitely plan on keeping the size of display manageable. Perhaps you could partner with the town, with whatever they are doing. Can't really do a Haunted House this year, but maybe next year you could supply the props for a school-run charity haunted house in some town building or local donated warehouse.


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## kuroneko (Mar 31, 2011)

Muffy said:


> Hi, here's Muffy, and old member. Should say I kind of retired due to health issues with everyone in the house. If you ask yourself when its time to retire.../.we addressed that issue in this house by not being able to get on the ladders anymore....that's when it all started to fall apart and 5 years following that things just fell apart a little more till there was nothing left. Halloween display stayed packed away every year, nothing came out. It is such a loss to my livelyhood I can barely talk about it. The amount of things I bought in those 5 years that have never come out of the boxes would make any haunter cry, let aside the building materials purchased to make our own props. Still it all sits.
> 
> In January of 2020 my husband died and Jerry my ex who helped me put the haunt up and built a lot of the props got older>>>78. I once again had high hopes of getting this haunt up but we just found out Jerry has cancer and is about to embark on those things. I just wanted to see my haunt one more time before I die. Last July I had 2 strokes and I'm still not 100%. I'm still sitting here guys wondering if I start in August could I get the whole thing up by Halloween. I had mentioned on the boards here that last year our town started having a big deal on Halloween so we had very few kids come to the house. So if I made any major changes I would advertise my haunt to be open the day before Halloween in hopes of getting some people to return.Hard to believe that I had 1200 kids come through here on 2012, paper did a big write up on it. Last year I had 20 kids. Broke my heart.
> When you love Halloween the way some of us do its the hardest thing in the world to let it go. Takes a lot out of a person. I had quit coming to the board out of sheer depression, just could not read the boards anymore. Too many memories and far to much excitement about new ideas. This where my Halloween passions really evolved. I think when I found this place I kind of lost my mind. There was so much information and creativity...it was wild. And the people were so happy to share those ideas. That is when I started the year round prop building group. We had some wonderful projects and project leaders. I was magical.
> ...


I hope you get to do it all again even if it's just a scaled down version. I agree with Restless Acres about getting help. I'm not sure I would have been able to get as much done last year as I did without help. My own health issues have really forced me to cut back and it's so hard to see your efforts crumble after working for so long. I knew I would have to scale back eventually, but I figured I had time as I'm not even that old yet. But my body has other plans and I'm just grateful for my support husband and our friends who help me out when they can.

Best of luck to you.


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## MichaelMyers1 (Jan 12, 2008)

Im here on and off! Been a member since 2008, and came over from Halloween.com when lots of people left! I have TWO HF hoodies from back in the day!! I lurk a lot and tend to come back this time during the year!


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## MichaelMyers1 (Jan 12, 2008)

Stochey said:


> I seemed to have drifted off when Larry didn't run things anymore. I'm still around but now its a once a month, maybe check instead of every day. I did not intend to drift away when Larry left, it just.. happened. I much prefer the way the forum used to look as opposed to now.
> 
> Also I have extreme burnout. My Halloween party was everything to me for so long and then I finally got my own house and threw the perfect one. Then I threw another one last year and I just can't stop thinking about the things that didn't get done to a point where I dread the next one. Idk what is going to happen with that.
> 
> I fully support moving the store threads to another section! I do look at them but I much prefer actual discussion about different aspects of Halloween more.


When/Why did Larry leave?


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## Krusty (Aug 28, 2019)

.


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## night-owl (Mar 7, 2006)

I registered 14 years ago, left for a while, came back, and left again. In addition to the differences that some others have pointed out, there also used to be a lot more conversation about Halloween in general, the paranormal, etc., in addition to more varied discussions about decorating. So even though I've never been an actual haunter, I was moderately active on this forum.

I doubt it will work for me to be as active as I was before, although we _are_ trying to do more outside decorating this year.

(14 years, not 16 - fixed it)


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## professor_key (Apr 2, 2010)

I've been on the forum for ten years, mostly as a lurker, learning and being inspired by so many from these discussions. 

For me, Halloween is the perfect opportunity and excuse for me to try new projects - I tend to have decent ideas and good technical capabilities but am lacking in artistic ability, and Halloween is very forgiving in that regard. 

I tend to come back to the forum each year as the summer fades, still impressed by the capabilities of the members and inspired to keep making new props. I also appreciate having a place where an obscure question about a prop or technique is very likely to yield a helpful response. 

Other media is making forums out- dated, but i hope others will continue to check- in and contribute. Despite the evolution of the forum, I still appreciate the members and all the information it contains. 

Sent from my SM-G960U using Tapatalk


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## Krusty (Aug 28, 2019)

.


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## ZombieRaider (May 18, 2008)

Krusty said:


> That’s where I am now.... just mostly lurking and not very active posting stuff because when I joined about a year ago it seemed like a good resource for ideas. But whether it is the time of year coming up to Halloween or ? but now I find nothing but what to buy and where to buy it....
> I have moved on......! I was disappointed with the lack of discussion or interest in my prop building threads and came to slowly realize most people here don’t care other than a quick look and move on...
> Perhaps prop building is also a dying hobby? Just clicking a like button has no social interaction or useful discussion value.
> Perhaps when I first joined this forum it was the same and just seemed more to me? But that has changed and I have lost interest in store bought stuff that dominates discussion lately.
> I will still have a spectacular display of hand built animatronics and continue to refine them as years pass but won’t bother posting write ups here because it doesn’t seem to interest most?


I think everything in life has sped up to the point people quickly search, grab what little information they deem important and move on....If they really like it, give a quick thumbs up to let you know they really liked what you did....I've noticed everyone's attention span has severely decreased with all the information being absorbed in a single day now, myself included...Even in person conversations have severely diminished, if they have a phone in their hand, forget it....As I've stated before, Youtube is my go to for learning...ANYTHING....I've noticed there's usually 1 or 2 guys that have a TON of content on anything you want to know on there....I don't think we appreciate how nice it is to have all this information as easily accessible as it is, until someone makes something really cool but won't tell you how they did it and you really want to know....ZR


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## Krusty (Aug 28, 2019)

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## Edmund K (Aug 18, 2017)

This is such a great thread, as it asks us all to ponder the basic question, "Why do we come here and participate, lurk, or even just mash the "like" button?" 
I only found this forum in late 2016, but I had been an avid Haunter since I was twelve (1979). Finding this forum was a bit of a homecoming, stumbling into a world of fellow enthusiasts that I never knew existed!
The amount of knowledge stored and shared here has that extra ingredient, -passion! Exactly opposite to some other forums that I belong to, pertaining to ownership of a certain sportscar made by GM, I don't think I can recall any posts that ever berated or chastised a person for asking a question that might have already been asked in threads past. The people here are always ready willing and able to lend their experience.
The cycle of participation on this forum has been, for me, led in small part by intimidation and a feeling of "worthiness". Is this crazy prop that I just cobbled together out of hardware store scrap worthy of posting about, after seeing some incredible animatronic marvel that looks like it just came from a movie set? I have learned over the time here, that all are indeed welcome, and there is something to learn in each experience. 
Every couple of years, I tend to undertake something that challenges my skills, and then enjoy (or put up with) the results of that labor. It's a flurry of activity for a certain time, and I try to make threads pertaining to the project. The thrill of hunting down parts and pieces, taking something ordinary and making it downright unrecognizable from its original state; that's a big part of the fun for me! 
But then the dust settles, and I have completed my project. With little room to store anything of great size, I hesitate to keep building, as it will have no home for the off season. I certainly don't want to rehash the same old projects that I already ventured to share here, so I stop posting, simply for lack of content. I keep reading the threads, picking up inspiration from many posts.
I truly enjoy the "spirit" of this community (yes the pun was intended) and appreciate so much the support and insights that are ever present. 
There does seem to be a cycle of participation, and it's evidenced right here in this very thread; those who blazed the trail came back to share their stories and insights, and that makes this a worthy place to haunt!


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## Jerseyscare (Oct 2, 2012)

Edmund K,
The longevity of the Forum should be attributed to Larry and the Moderators, who seriously make this a safe place to be a member. I have a small FORD convertible also with a forum, that I watch grownups, turn into trolls. Without the moderators things can go badly, quickly. The Group Buy, did a little damage here, years ago, but beyond that, I always find this a warm home. EVEN for those who LIKE inflatables or blow molds LOL! I have to agree with those who suggest the "Stores" should not be in the General forum, as its busier then the Prop Build. Not to say, I don't follow several of the threads and enjoy the photo's and videos. But, I am enjoying seeing those who were very active, in my lurking years and early member years, say though not real active here, they are still haunting.
Jerseyscare


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## Krusty (Aug 28, 2019)

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## bobby2003 (Oct 5, 2017)

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## osheilaart (Apr 17, 2002)

DavyKnoles said:


> I thought I'd toss my two cents in since I am without a doubt the oldest member here. I actually first joined the Halloween Forum about two months after Larry formed it way back in 2002. There were only a dozen or so members back then, and we all got to know each other intimately - or at least as intimately as you can get to know someone using a message board. Probably because of that, coupled with the fact that the entire internet experience was vastly different 18 years ago, the forum experience was a great deal more personal and personality driven than it is now. Everyone would come on line at the same time and we would literally chase each other from one thread to the next telling stories and jokes and just commenting on each other. When the timing was right, an evening on the Halloweenforum was like attending a really good party. And, of course, the experience was enhanced when Larry made a deal with Halloween Radio so that with a single click, you could listen to Halloween tunes while playing with all your friends on the forum. And the members? All of us were Halloween fanatics of one sort or another. We had a girl from Australia who posted detailed stories about what it was like to host a home haunt in a small town off the Princess Highway; a guy from Pennsylvania who made Halloween props professionally and used to write about the process of creating them; a gentleman from the Midwest who owned and operated an-open-all-year haunted house attraction; and of course, I used to share, in prose, my experiences as a monster (which now is call a "scareactor") at the Queen Mary in Long Beach California during their Shipwreck terrrorfest event - which is now called "Dark Harbor" - not realizing at the time that me and my two friends were creating the legacy of the Queen Mary Sliders which the three of us actually started in 2002. One of the biggest running gags back in those days was the tomato Martini. Many a post on one thread or the other would end with the statement "Tomato Martini's all around." This started with one of our members, a gal from Indiana who had inherited a tomato farm. She would go on about tomato production until someone - might have been me - suggested she use them to create alcohol and the fabled fictional tomato Martini was born. The idea was so totally random that it caught on and members mentioned the tomato Martini for a couple of years. I actually took the concept to a new level when I tried infusing some vodka with fresh tomatoes and actually made a tomato Martini, which actually wasn't too bad. The recipe still exists in some long ago post. And our group was small and intimate enough that many of us actually met face to face. Most of the people I met did, of course, live in Southern California where I lived. But I also met Grinningbook, who was from a small town called Churchill in southeast Australia and Moonstarling and her family from central Florida. But my favorite face to face was with Eerie Myst, who I called Mysty, and her mother who came to see me perform at the Queen Mary. I remember being nervous as a cat the night she showed up. She was gorgeous too, a former stripper with long blonde hair. I'll never forget seeing her in the crowd and then going into a slide, scaring the crap out of her just as I'd planned. I'll never forget that kiss at the end of the evening either, which was something I hadn't planned on. But after that first year, Larry started playing with the forum's format. At first it was just open with no subsections. Then Larry added them as needed so where there was once only a General Halloween section, then there was a section for off-topic stuff, literature and role playing and so forth. And as that changed so did the players. A lot of the old timers dropped out and were replaced with new faces. And suddenly it wasn't the same anymore. Once the forum's most frequent contributor, I drifted away around 2005 or so. When I came back in the early teens I couldn't remember my old password so I had to join again. But it wasn't the same. As someone early in this thread pointed out, now it's much less of a party and much more or a simple store watch. It's not surprising though. In 2002, Larry's on-line Halloween Network, which included the forum, was the ultimate source for Halloween information. But technology and the raw amount of information available over the internet has group exponentially since those days. Now there's a zillion other sources from YouTube videos to dozens of Facebook groups all dedicated to Halloween. So a message board format like the Halloween Forum is a sort of quaint anachronism. I usually come back to check things out with a sense of nostalgia. But I rarely have anything to contribute. Why would I? I don't know anybody anymore and I don't much care about what's on sale on line at Home Depot. So getting back to the main theme of this thread, where did every go? All you really have to do to understand it is to listen to the lyrics of that old Elton John song, "Crocodile Rock," cause that pretty much says it all. But as far as I'm concerned it goes along with a phrase I seem to use way to many times these days, namely: "I thought those days would never end. Until they did. And now I simply wonder where they went." Pardon me for waxing poetic. I think I'll toddle off now and mix myself a tomato Martini.


David.. I think without a doubt your wrong, Sir —… Am the top notch grooviest hip elder member here…above YOU::— A real lush Tomato dear— 🍅 Cheers:::- I truly still love Halloween—- let me prepare you a fabulous tomato martini!!! Bartender set them up Remember those love struck Frankenstein’s ::- Dawn and Victor.. Oh that haughty ((Black Widow)) plus don’t forget (( osheilaart )) They took away her title.. The cemetery and James Dean, Red Gold Tomatoes::- I do miss our little haunt here ::— and often wonder—- what happened to all those wonton blood bloodthirsty creatures.., —-Our first members ::— in real life…


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## internet troll (Nov 7, 2014)

I’ll put in my 2 cents in about 50 years when I start to get close to being old….


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## UnOrthodOx (Apr 24, 2007)

Been a member since 2007. Beed doing the yard haunt since 2005. I see myself 'fading' slowly at this point. 

A lot of this last year was figuring out how and what we are going to look like going forward. Likely no kids to help either set up or run things, want to continue the pumpkin party. And if it becomes the only thing we can do like this year, that's not a terrible thing. 

I think we peaked in activity in 2013. 

2014 we had to scale back as we had a major remodel of the house. 2015 tried to get going again. 2016, we focused on remodeling the YARD to match the house from 2014, by the time 2017 rolled around, I had adult kids with jobs of their own, but still started building back. Nearly matched 2013 in scope of effort in 2019...and then 2020 axed our ability to have the carving party that had been our base since 2010. 

2020-now has been different. I'm going to be honest, I didn't feel much like working on Halloween projects when things were so much in flux 2020-2021, and I began exploring other hobbies as a result. 

In 2 years, I've become quite a damn good chef, however. I mean I've always been a decent cook, but nothing like what I've unlocked these last two years. We started lockdown not being able to eat out....we've come out the other end not WANTING to because I can do SO much better at home, even compared to most top end restaurants. Most Sundays now see me doing a 12+ hour cook of SOMETHING. I can then freeze bits for use on days I don't have that time. That's a solid chunk of time I used to use for building. 

We're now financially in a position we can travel more, and the kids are of an age that we can leave them behind if we wish which opens up times of the year previously impossible. 

Age is creeping up. I've always struggled with arthritis, but it's a degrading condition I have to manage for my builds. 

So, a combination of things.


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## xxScorpion64xx (Oct 15, 2011)

Wow, I just stumbled upon this thread , feeling nostalgic seeing replies from some HF old timers and great contributors , I joined in 2011 and it was truly awesome back then when Larry was the showrunner, it was a different vibe , more personal, you would ask for help and we would troubleshoot until we figured it out. It was great. I think I started losing interest in the forum when the what did you find/buy and the secret reaper started to take center stage. Over the years I've felt stressed to top the year before as far as my Home Haunt is concerned. I'm getting older and do everything by myself, so the grind is wearing me out , I've run out of storage, I feel burnt out but I love Halloween and have a lot of fans of my home haunt and don't want to let them down. I just want to do my part and keep the spirit of Halloween going in my area at least. I'm feeling close to shutting it down but not yet.


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## Cephus404 (Oct 13, 2017)

I've been decorating for 45+ years and I think I'm retiring. I even ran a pro haunt for a couple of years and built a lot of the scares for that. About 15 years ago or so, I sold off all of my pro-haunt stuff to another pro-haunt because the house I lived in got nobody coming to the door. We had a grand total of 2 people over 17 years living there. Once we moved into our final house, we got a couple of kids, never more than 30 or so, and this year, we got absolutely none. It's a lot of work for a huge spread when nobody shows up to enjoy it. When we started, about 6 years ago, people would come by all month to look. Now... nobody. I'm finding it difficult to care anymore.


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## dpeterson (Aug 31, 2008)

I've been crafting props for Halloween since...ooo...1970s? Still going strong, though there definitely have been ups and downs as life changes across the decades, from dorms, to apartments, to houses, to living overseas, to downtown Chicago, back to Wisconsin countryside. I'll probably craft my own Halloween props until I kick tha golden bucket. I recommend that people who are ovreloaded, take a break or just roll back the expectations. Do quality over quantity. Do it for yourself, and the kids, not for the accolades. Country living has definitely caused problems for me now. Still trying to figure out how to best use my haunting chops in such a location. It takes time to build up a reputation, and COVID has been a blight. I'm considering just building and selling my stuff to those who want to buy props for better situations than mine. Anyway...I want to be that weird guy who puts out a display for the rare few who appreciate it. Halloween Until I Die!


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## boo who? (Feb 28, 2005)

Still haunting at full throttle and loving all things H Day!. I stopped posting here after every time I would post a new thread, one of the mods seemed to delight in moving the convo to some far off low-view forum even when similar threads would appear, remain and thrive on General. Once or twice? - OK. But nearly every time? So ... so long --->


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