With Halloween on the horizon, it is time everyone is reminded how overrated this spooky season really is. In looking forward to the celebrations, people seem to have forgotten what a hassle the holiday actually is, for everyone but small children. 

The Halloween parties seem like great fun; but under current circumstances, COVID-19 is likely to be attending as an unwelcome guest. Throwing any sort of party is likely to result in more than a few people needing to quarantine immediately afterward. It is a possibility that a large gathering of young adults could cause a spike in cases, forcing the schools to re-close.

Haunted houses are another safety hazard under quarantine, as they often have actors getting up close to scare attendees. Haunted houses are also usually attended by groups of friends, and involve tight corridors that make social distancing impossible. Many are still operating despite COVID-19, which could result in an increase in cases.

On Halloween night, people are left with a few choices: leave no candy which will disappoint hopeful trick-or-treaters, hand out candy and be forced to stay home, or leave a bowl out and have it stolen immediately by one person. Candy bowls with several people touching them are a no-go with corona on the prowl, and handing out candy is less risky, but still potentially unsafe. Candy is a massive part of Halloween, and can now be considered a potential bio-hazard, which really puts a damper on the festive atmosphere.

Costumes are a major component of Halloween, but in the past few years, there is always just five or so major ideas that 90% of people are dressed up in. The holiday always seems to feature either the same popular costume everyone is wearing or something obscure that nobody recognizes. Just think about how many crewmates from Among Us will be roaming the streets. There are essentially only three categories for costumes at this point, the big popular one, the costume that everyone asks “Who are you supposed to be?” and the generic spooky season dress-ups; witches, ghosts, werewolves, etc.

Carving pumpkins is a classic Halloween activity that people look forward to until they realize how annoying it actually is. First comes hollowing out the pumpkin which is generally a major inconvenience and usually involves removing the goop and seeds. Then comes the actual carving which comes out worse than imagined, because pumpkins are a difficult material to work with and a majority of people are not skilled carvers. Then the pumpkins completely rot within a week filling the air with a horribly overwhelming scent.

Monster Mash can only be played so many times before it becomes incredibly irritating. Halloween, unlike the winter holidays, has almost no music. Fall as a season seems to have been overlooked by many songwriters, which results in a distinct lack of suitable Halloween music to play.

Halloween is overrun with overrated outfits, messy, gross, and under current circumstances, potentially hazardous.