# Freaking out the new neighbors



## grimreaper1962 (Jan 11, 2012)

Let em have it!! Then show them what you can do for Christmas?


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## Druidess (Sep 2, 2010)

Great plan Grim! surely a bit of christmas eccentricity will draw them out of the holes they run and hide in. haha. thanks


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## grimreaper1962 (Jan 11, 2012)

Anytime Druidess! Enjoy your new haunting grounds!


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## Paul Melniczek (Jun 5, 2009)

Maybe plan a tamer event with some of them before the party, like a neighborhood bonfire or hayride. Let them see that you have an enjoyment of the entire fall season and Halloween happens to be the biggest event of it!


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## grimreaper1962 (Jan 11, 2012)

Who knows.... Maybe they are even more into Halloween than you are? ( not saying that they are ) Gotta look at it that way too. They might be fellow haunters or even members of this forum.


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## Druidess (Sep 2, 2010)

More into it than me...grim, your jokes never end do they? lol. Now I am dreaming of neighborhood ghouls...aaahhh. Paul, that sounds lovely. At the very least I'd have an excuse to have two parties.


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## ScaredyCat (Sep 9, 2011)

I say you use the summer to verbally warn --- ahem, I mean, inform --- them about your love of Halloween and your plans for October. Let them get to know you and realize that even though you may set up axe murderers and zombies in your front yard, you are simply a playful person who loves the holiday and there's really no reason for them to put the local insane asylum on speed dial....that is, unless they want to invite some of the patients to the party. MUHAHAHAHA!


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## Halloween Scream (Sep 29, 2010)

ScaredyCat said:


> I say you use the summer to verbally warn --- ahem, I mean, inform --- them about your love of Halloween and your plans for October. Let them get to know you and realize that even though you may set up axe murderers and zombies in your front yard, you are simply a playful person who loves the holiday and there's really no reason for them to put the local insane asylum on speed dial....that is, unless they want to invite some of the patients to the party. MUHAHAHAHA!


This is exactly what I did. We moved in around the 4th of July and I made it a point to mention Halloween (how much we love it, how we decorate, the fact that everyone is invited to the party) every once in a while, so that by the time October came around everyone* was excited!

*Of course, there is no guarantee that "everyone" will be thrilled about a Halloween nut moving in, but you can't always make everyone happy and life's too darn short!


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## azazel (Jul 18, 2011)

let the bodies hit the floor to quote SONG


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## Druidess (Sep 2, 2010)

This is why I love you guys. Looks like I will either be ranting and raving to you all about our bash or be here looking for consolation that YOU would have loved it. Thanks all. I feel the spooky love.


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## Trinity1 (Sep 5, 2009)

I'm with everyone else. Mentioning it here and there takes out the element of surprise come October. I definitely think that you should do it up the way you normally would. Plus, you'll get a feel for the new neighborhood before hand and I'm certain they'll be more then a few people that will be excited for the partay!!!


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## Dminor (Jul 21, 2006)

I just had the same issue. My girlfriend and I bought a place last February and by the time Halloween rolled around, I still hadn't spoken at any length with the neighbors.

What saved me was the fact that a handful of homes in our neighborhood and nearby blocks are into Halloween and put on street fairs with costume contests etc., much to my surprise (last year was their 6th annual). So there were a ton of kids and a lot of parents who thought it was great that we did our display. Also to my surprise, they said that would be back next year to see us again! Go figure!

As far as the neighbors go, no one cared. They thought it was fun and creative (granted, our display is spooky and not bloody/gory) and thought that we really brought some flare to the neighborhood.

I didn't have a single complaint about the sound fx, lights, etc. They all just stood out in front of the house in awe of what we had done (which was not much - just a half dozen tombstones, skeletons, webbing, lights, jack o lanterns and columns) and said that we had raised the bar and that they needed to "get on it", as it related to their own decorating.

As far as your situation goes, I think there are enough people that decorate for Halloween (it's the 2nd highest grossing holiday) that it won't freak anyone out....unless it looks like a crime scene. In which case, you may want to just print up little flyers to leave on their door inviting them to come and see it a day or so before hand - in the daylight.


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## stormygirl84 (Sep 4, 2009)

Welcome to Virginia, darlin'! What area will you be in? Central, upstate, Tidewater...?

I think you should go for it! I mean, yeah, we do have some sticks-in-the-mud around here who may act like you've got the plague, but you probably wouldn't want to party with them, anyway. I'm sure you'll have a blast, whether you have 3 guests or 30.

By the by, if you get the chance to visit Richmond, you have to go to the Poe Museum! Totally worth the trip. I get up there once or twice a year myself. 

Good luck and safe travels with the move!


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## Druidess (Sep 2, 2010)

Stormy girl Holy cow! you live in virginia. Im assuming we are the same age, and obviously we have the same obsessions. lol. oh, and you are the first one other than myself I have seen say by the by. 

Poe Museum!! yaaayyy!!! We will definitely have to check it out. We love Poe. We will be moving to the Virginia beach area. Thank you for the Warm Welcome! I cant wait to get there. It rains there.


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## stormygirl84 (Sep 4, 2009)

Yes, it certainly rains here!  It rained for most of the day yesterday, in fact.

I know the VA Beach area very well! It's about an hour south of where I live. (Two hours in bad traffic...) There are plenty of fun things to do and see - and that's just in the immediate area! You've also got Norfolk, Williamsburg and Richmond within day-trippin' range. I think you'll really like it here!

And as for my age, I'm 28. Married, no kids yet, and I've learned to ignore people who don't appreciate my love for all things Halloween! I think you will fit in just fine!


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## Pumpkinhead625 (Oct 12, 2009)

Another option is what I'll call, say, the "shock-and-awe-blindside" approach; decorate the outside of the house with cutesy, smiley, glittery pumpkins, ghosts and scarecrows, but when they get inside they find a hard-core torture chamber/zombie infested/blood-and-guts/ the-inmates-have-taken-over-the-insane-asylum theme


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## Druidess (Sep 2, 2010)

Haha pumpkinhead. That sounds fun, but I dont think I could handle my yard that way myself. We dont go too far on the gore anyway. 

Stormy, sounds lovely. I cant wait for this halloween being somewhere that the air gets crisp and cool again. It is 90 degrees here today. UGH. I'm not sure how far we will live from Virginia Beach ourselves. Lovie got orders to go there (air force). We will be moving there in June to a hotel and hopefully finding a house in a couple of weeks. We wont have much time to check out neighborhoods so here's to hoping we get into a big TOT area.


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## Haunted Dogs (Jun 15, 2007)

Hey, maybe you could host a summer luau to introduce yourselves to the neighborhood. If the people have a lot of fun at your luau, odds are they'd be thrilled to be invited to your halloween party. And you can always get them thinking along the Halloween lines by decorating with some wicked Tiki's. By doing a party in advance, you'd be able to figure out those that would most likely come, those who wouldn't, and those you'd rather not.


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## Wolfbeard (Sep 22, 2008)

We moved into our newly constructed house in late August of 1998. During the Labor Day weekend, one of my neighbors, who was very religious, walked over to see what I was working on in my garage. I had the belt sander going and was building this:










When he asked what I was working on, I said, "I'm just building a coffin." He replied, Ok." then walked away and i didn't think anything of it. 

The next day, his wife came over and said her husband was upset. I explained that I build a lot of Halloween props that I use for a charity haunt (Lions Club) and for my home on Halloween. I understood that seeing a new neighbor, out of context, building a 6.5' long coffin in September might be strange to non-haunters. He got over his initial shock and even asked to borrow the coffin on Halloween night. He had his brother come over and act like a stuffed dummy in the coffin, then jump out at people.

As long as the neighbors know it is done for the love of Halloween and not for truly evil purposes (even if it really is, heh heh heh ), your new neighbors should be fine with it.


p.s. I put out the "coffin table" in our library, starting in early September, to get myself into the spirit of the season. A normal coffee table is there the rest of the year.

Eric


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## Druidess (Sep 2, 2010)

I love the coffin wolfbeard! My lovie plans to make his first when we get the move out of the way, so I can see a simular event occuring. Its good to hear everything worked out well. I have much less apprehension than I had before about this first year out east. Now im just dreadfully excited.


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## Wolfbeard (Sep 22, 2008)

Haunt it and they will come...

Thanks for the coffin table compliment! Good luck with the move and do what you enjoy. You do not have to explain yourself or love of Halloween to anyone. I think most will get a kick out of your decorations. Many times adults get too caught up in real life and forget the simple pleasures they enjoyed as kids. Cool Halloween decorations can rekindle some of that and remind people not to take life too seriously, if even for a moment. Others, may scream, run away and hide in a closet. Either way, it is a win-win situation for the haunter!

Eric


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## Wolfbeard (Sep 22, 2008)

*Wow, weird action by forum when posting!*

Oops, it looks like a duplicate post gremlin has struck. I got a weird message when posting this, and a duplicate post resulted.



Eric


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## Guest (Apr 14, 2012)

Lol! We moved, and I "mentioned in casual conversation" (haha setting them up) that we like to put up some decorations at Halloween. My new neighbor does NOT celebrate Halloween, but thanked me for letting her know ahead of time. 

Fast forward to October. I am not a bloody or gory haunter, but...she said they were scared of the display. Her kids were scared to look out the window. They are older, so it is not like they are 4 and 6, waiting for Jason to break thru the door and axe them. They reassured me that I was welcome to keep my display up. 

I think most civilans- ie, not part of the Halloween Army- think of decorating at halloween as carving some pumpkins, perhaps a ghost hanging from the porch, and at the most a walmart scarecrow with potted mums and a bale of hay. Which is a great display, of course.

But not a year long, well funded Halloween tsunami. Which most of us do.


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## Paint It Black (Sep 15, 2011)

hollow, you cracked me up with that last great line, "year long, well funded Halloween tsunami."


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## The Auditor (Apr 2, 2006)

Welcome to Virginia. You'll find a love of Halloween is not that unusual in Hampton Roads.


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## stick (Apr 2, 2009)

Welcome to Virginia, are you going to be based at the Langley Air Force Base. They did have a Great air show there every year and I would work the fireworks show for them. As for your party question let your neighbors know that you are into Halloween before hand them in October go for it and enjoy the fun.


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## Jackielantern (Oct 31, 2005)

We have been fortunate that our neighbors have been very supportive, in fact we've gotten to know some better because of it, I think. 

One of the mom's wasn't too thrilled the first years, but I learned her son was having bad dreams. That is the opposite reason why I do what I do. Sure, I want to made the kiddos a little "uncomfortable" but not out and out scared (at least not until they're older lol). That second year I started inviting that little boy over to "help" set up. He could watch us assembly all the goblins and see that they weren't real. She really appreciated it, and had no problems with bad dreams anymore. Now I make it a point to do the same with all the real little ones. Although I think the kids are starting to feel a little too comfortable for my liking....... might have to quick it up a notch.

Good luck with the house hunting. Keep us posted!!


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