Gotta Love The Pumpkin Guy!
In the past, the word "jack-o-lantern" was used to describe the mysterious and inexplicable floating light seen at night, usually in swampy areas. In the US they were known as "will-o-the-wisp", "corpse light" in England, "witch fire" in Africa, and "fox fire" in Ireland.

According to folk legend, having been turned away from both, heaven and hell, the jack-o-lantern light is a soul that is forced to wander the earth forever. It's dangerous to see one, because they can force humans to blindly follow them to their deaths or disappearance.

There is an Irish folktale that provides a good background for the origin of the name. There was a man named Jack who was hated by most of the villagers for his drunkeness and terrible attitude. He was drinking one night when the devil came to claim his soul, however he was able to convince him to have one last drink with him before going to Hell. After they finished drinking, Jack explained to the devil that he did not have the money to pay for them and quite cunningly convinced the devil to change himself into a sixpence and then to change himself back after paying. The devil agreed, but Jack picked up the devil's coined self and placed him into his coin bag, which had the shape of the cross on it. The cross made the devil powerless and therefore could not escape. When Jack died, Heaven did not let him in because he was far too greedy during his life on Earth. Hell also denied him because of his trickery, which infuriated Satan. Jack was eating a turnip when the devil threw him a lit coal. He picked up the coal and placed it into the turnip, creating a lantern for him to use as he wandered the earth. Therefore, jack-o-lantern means "Jack of the Lantern."

The custom of carving a pumpkin into a jack-o-lantern is a thousand year old custom from Ireland. People would hallow out turnips, carve simple and sometimes scary faces, and used them as lanterns to light the roads for Halloween travelers. They were also used to scare away evil ghosts.

I Still Laugh.....

Remember Disney's "Sleepy Hollow"?

If you have NEVER seen this I would definitely run out and buy it, rent it or netflix it.....Growing up with Disney
was like breathing for me and I can still remember
the first time I watched this


and listening to Bing Crosby's narration and song. This short little
animated flick resurfaces my childhood memories with such magic and laughter!


We brought our own kids up with a tradition of watching this on Halloween while we drank apple cider and munched ourselves into popcorn comas. I am now hoping that I can share the experience and story of "Icabod Crane" and the "Headless Horseman" with my own grandchildren.


Enjoy a few images and Bing Crosby's song and go out and pick this up....or I will send the "Headless Horseman" your way....BOO!

Trick 'O' Treat!

The History of Tricking and Treating.....
Trick'O'Treating, like Halloween, can be traced back to All Souls Day, a long time ago. All the poor people would go out at night to people's homes begging and the people would give them treats called soul cakes. After a while of this happening, times changed and the children became the beggars. As they went to different houses, they would be given fruit, bread, and maybe money. Now, when the custom came to America, the children would be given candy to prevent the people from being tricked. It was tradition that if a person did not give the child candy, the child would play a trick on them, such as egging their house.

What is your fondest memory of going out on that eerie night? Did you go to Halloween parties or carnivals? Did any of you have a real "Haunted House" in your neighborhood and all the local kids had their own story to tell about it? Was Halloween a family event with everyone dressing up including good ol' mom and dad? Did you decorate your own home and play scary music? What kind of treats were your favorite and what kind did your house give out? Did you you use a pillow case for collecting your treasures on that auspicious night? Oh yes and the most important question of all "What was your favorite costume"? Com'on and share....

A "Giveaway Treat" and Welcome!

Win a "Cauldron Cutie" stump doll witch!
Congrats To "The Smiling Goat! You Won!


Become a follower of "Soft in the Head Hauntings" and leave a comment and your name could be the one drawn from the resident "Harry Potter Sorting Hat" on June 1st...I hope to see many new faces and some old friends! WELCOME to my corner of the "Halloween World"...

The Beginning........

Meet "Nightshade" the First of My Halloween Raven Characters and Her Sister Hemlock"!!

"Nightshade the Enchantress"

















"Hemlock the Mystic"

SUPERSTITIONS.....

A burning a candle inside a jack-o-lantern on Halloween keeps evil spirits and demons at bay.

If a candle suddenly goes out by itself on Halloween, as though by breath or wind, it is believed that a ghost has come to call.

Gazing into a flame of a candle on Halloween night will enable you to peer into the future.

If you hear footsteps trailing close behind you on Halloween night, do not to turn around to see who it is, for it may be Death himself! To look Death in the eye, according to ancient folklore, is a sure way to hasten your own demise.
The old Celtic custom was to light great bonfires on Halloween, and after these had burned out to make a circle of the ashes of each fire. Within this circle, and near the circumference, each member of the various families that had helped to make a fire would place a pebble. If, on the next day, any stone was displaced, or had been damaged, it was considered to be an indication that the one to whom the stone belonged would die within twelve months.
If a bat flies around a house three times, it is considered to be a death omen.
A person born on Halloween can both see and talk to spirits.
Knocking on wood keeps bad luck away.
If you see a spider on Halloween, it could be the spirit of a dead loved one who is watching you.
Put your clothes on inside out and walk backwards on Halloween night to meet a witch.

Ghost Stories Are The Best......

I can still remember, many years ago , sitting up well past midnight with my friend Marcia reading scary stories and eating popcorn in bed. We would huddle next to each other as if we were sharing the same skin, and not from the cold but from the newest book we had checked out from the library. It seems that when the weather began to change and the colors of the trees turned golden it was time to start reading the stories that made even the hair on a bald man stand up, those creepy, heart pounding and sometimes leg crossing ghost stories! My favorites were the "Alfred Hickok" and "Edgar Allen Poe" series. I remember lying awake all night after reading, turning every common household noise into a 300 page thriller! My imagination would run amok! Marcia and I swore we could hear hearts thumping, hands creeping and the proverbial ghost shrieking through the halls. I wouldn't change a thing! I loved being a kid, especially a kid whose fondness for all things Halloween has only enhanced her imagination the older she has gotten....BOO!