Author Archives: preservehalloween

Second Halloween

Who is ready for second Halloween? Let’s make it April 30th. That date is six months from October 31st and, according to the Neo-Druidic Wheel of the Year, Beltane begins at sunset in the Northern hemisphere, with Samhain beginning at sunset in the Southern hemisphere. Sounds perfect. (This image is The Wheel of the YearContinueContinue reading “Second Halloween”

Super Blood Wolf Moon

We are sure many of you caught a glimpse of the super blood wolf moon last night. It was a beautiful sight and made our thoughts naturally go to werewolves. The idea of the werewolf has been around for centuries, appearing in the writings of the ancient Roman novelist Petronius, in Ovid’s narrative poem TheContinueContinue reading “Super Blood Wolf Moon”

Yule

While Samhain, Halloween, All Hallow’s Eve is considered to be the night where the veil between the earthly realm and the spirit world is thin, there is actually another night where that veil is thinnest. The pagan Scandinavian and Germanic people of northern Europe celebrated a twelve-day “midwinter” (winter solstice) holiday called Yule (also calledContinueContinue reading “Yule”

Happy Krampusnacht!

Krampus, the counterpart to St. Nicholas, is presented as a goat-like demon figure, similar to satyrs and fauns of Greek mythology, who punishes children for being bad by hitting them, stuffing them in a bag, and shipping them away. According to folklore, Krampus shows up on the night of December 5th – known as KrampusnachtContinueContinue reading “Happy Krampusnacht!”

Ragamuffin Day

Though not as widely remembered as Halloween, there was a time when another popular day would see kids dress up and knock on doors looking for treats. While we now consider Thanksgiving a time for family, football, turkey, and that big parade, after Abraham Lincoln officially proclaimed Thanksgiving a national holiday in 1863, many festivitiesContinueContinue reading “Ragamuffin Day”

Pumpkin Pie Spice

Back in the 1950s, before pumpkin spice flavored everything existed, the spice company McCormick decided to package cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, allspice, and cloves together into something they called “Pumpkin Pie Spice” that would allow cooks to avoid measuring out their own individual spices for baking. Although this decision was not revolutionary by any means, weContinueContinue reading “Pumpkin Pie Spice”

The WPA Federal Art Project

The Federal Art Project (which existed between 1935–43) was a New Deal program to fund the visual arts in the United States. It was created not as a cultural activity but as a relief measure to employ artists, which in turn, resulted in over 200,000 works of art during its existence. The WPA Federal ArtContinueContinue reading “The WPA Federal Art Project”

World War II and Trick or Treating

At the time of World War II in the United States, the nation had a lot more to worry about than the somewhat newly conceived notion of trick or treating. Many goods and services were unavailable to citizens on the home front, and in an effort to help alleviate hoarding, price hikes, and angry citizens,ContinueContinue reading “World War II and Trick or Treating”