orlandosentinel.com/news/local/orl-halloween-how-to-103109,0,3378089.story
OrlandoSentinel.com
Halloween how-to: Try these tricks so you can enjoy treats
Linda Shrieves
Sentinel Staff Writer
October 31, 2009
Halloween may be a kid's favorite holiday (after Christmas, of course). Kids know what to do, but what about adults? Here's the skinny on the hottest neighborhoods for trick-or-treating, the best treats and what time it's OK to turn out the lights.
Best trick-or-treating areas
Live in a neighborhood where there aren't many trick-or-treaters — or people handing out candy? You can head to malls or community events — or follow the lead of candy-hungry trick-or-treaters and head for well-heeled communities with reputations for giving out more chocolate and less candy corn. Not that we'd do that (because frankly, it's a pain to drive around with kids on a sugar high) but some choice neighborhoods include Celebration, Hunter's Creek or Waterford Lakes (where there are more kids per capita than any other place in Central Florida). Translation: They're used to kids there.
One of the best
Dommerich Hills in Maitland, where the streets are teeming with kids. For years, the neighbors in this subdivision have put on what appears to be one heck of a street party. Said resident John Deroo: "It's the biggest neighborhood party I've ever seen. One guy has a popcorn machine; another guy makes snow cones. They all try to outdo each other."
Trick-or-treating deluxe
In Isleworth, the ritzy subdivision that's home to Tiger Woods and Shaquille O'Neal, the mansions are so far apart that kiddies in costume go trick-or-treating in golf carts. Not only do they dress up the kids, but some families also decorate their carts — as the Flintstones' mobile or a circus train, replete with clowns.
Trick-or-treating to the oldies
Thinking about trick-or-treating in a 55-plus community? Fuhgeddaboutit. Even The Villages, the huge retirement community in Lake and Sumter counties, stopped having its annual trick-or-treating event for kids several years ago. "I don't see too many kids around here," said one employee. "Except when the grandkids are visiting."
Are you ever too old to trick or treat?
Apparently not. In an informal e-mail survey of moms, we found none would turn away teens or college students — as long as they are dressed in costume. Even those who show up at her doorstep without a costume get some candy, said Orlando mom Barbara Jones, though it "may be something my daughter got and does not like."
Candy or healthy goodies?
Are you handing out raisins or apples or little bags of peanuts? Good for you, but you're in the minority. Eighty-two percent of Americans hand out bite-size candy bars and 45 percent hand out multiple types of candy treats, such as miniature candy bars, lollipops, gummy candy and non-chocolate candies, according to marketing firm NPD Group. Breaking from that tradition is Gail Hill Smith, an Orlando mom and health counselor, who hands out boxes of raisins, peanuts in shells and individually wrapped toothbrushes. (Don't egg her house, please.)
Be prepared, people
Most Americans say they buy enough candy to prepare for Halloween. But 25 percent admit they often run out of treats. When the supply of candy runs out, they either turn off the porch lights and refuse to answer the door, or they run out to buy more, or scavenge around for other food or coins to hand out. And, yes, some hand out the candy their kids have just collected. (Shame on you, parents!)
Lights out!
What's an acceptable time to turn off the porch light and douse the jack-o'-lantern? Local moms turn off the lights around 9 p.m., sometimes a little later if Halloween falls on a weekend (as it does this year).
Linda Shrieves can be reached at 407-420-5433 or lshrieves@orlandosentinel.com.
Copyright © 2009, Orlando Sentinel
04 November 2009
02 November 2009
Awakening the inner "frisky" -- from a NJ newspaper...
November 1, 2009
Being frisky at 70 isn't a problem
Dear Dr. Marcia: My husband of 45 years and I are pushing 70. When we retired a few years ago, we moved to an active-adult community, and we've never felt better. We're in great shape and exercise every day.
This has made my husband quite frisky, and even when we are out with friends, he jokes about how "active" we are and is always grabbing me and joking around. I get embarrassed, but he doesn't care. Even our adult kids tell him they don't want to know.
What can I do?
-- Sincerely, Blushing
Dear Blushing: Please tell me you wrote this to brag, because if you didn't, you must be kidding! Tell your kids to deal with it. Any of your friends who think it's disgusting are just jealous.
Enjoy!
Being frisky at 70 isn't a problem
Dear Dr. Marcia: My husband of 45 years and I are pushing 70. When we retired a few years ago, we moved to an active-adult community, and we've never felt better. We're in great shape and exercise every day.
This has made my husband quite frisky, and even when we are out with friends, he jokes about how "active" we are and is always grabbing me and joking around. I get embarrassed, but he doesn't care. Even our adult kids tell him they don't want to know.
What can I do?
-- Sincerely, Blushing
Dear Blushing: Please tell me you wrote this to brag, because if you didn't, you must be kidding! Tell your kids to deal with it. Any of your friends who think it's disgusting are just jealous.
Enjoy!
Poignant reader email -- one of my favorites
Dear Mr. Blechman,
I just finished reading “Leisureville” and I’d like to thank you for writing such an intelligent and entertaining book. Your work reminds me of Joel Garreau’s “Edge City” insofar as it strains to describe a phenomenon in a balanced way while still making your own concerns quite clear. As much as I enjoy James Howard Kunstler’s rants, he’s never been accused of moderation, but that’s what makes him so endearing. There were also hints of Jane Jacobs' later works, "Systems of Survival" and "Dark Age Ahead". “Leisureville” closely resembles a geriatric version of Setha Low’s “Behind the Gates” (although I admit your writing style is a bit better). Ms. Low was primarily concerned with the social and political fragmentation and mistrust that inevitably results from the self-segregation of gated suburban enclaves.
As a young man I fled the suburbs of the Jersey shore and ultimately settled in San Francisco. A few weeks ago I returned to Toms River, New Jersey to visit my mother who now lives in Holiday City. I talked to her about how she likes her new living arrangement. She said it was a mixed bag. Safe. Clean. Affordable. Lonely. Dull. Restrictive. She confirmed all the stereotypes about sex-crazed neighbors and rule obsessed committees. I had lobbied very hard for her to come and live with me in California citing the cultural offerings and free accommodations, but she ultimately wanted to stay near my sisters and brother and all the grandkids in Jersey. She also wanted to live independently. Fair enough.
As an adolescent I had plenty of contact with the elderly residents of these ever-expanding adult communities. I did housekeeping and gardening chores for many retirees as a way to earn money for college (Rutgers ’96). I enjoy the company of old people so it was a good fit. And to be honest, the generation I was dealing with back then was more likable than the new crop of boomers. They were savers and planners. They had survived the Depression and war. They told stories of how they were smuggled out of Poland “just in time”, or described burning their dining room furniture one piece at a time to keep their Brooklyn tenement warm through the winter. These people didn’t need plastic surgery or granite counter tops. They appreciated the fact that they had good food, a tidy home in the country, and money in the bank at a time in life when their own parents had been destitute. Boomers? Not so much…
I have very few fond memories of my early years in the suburbs. My family was working class and just barely managed to stay afloat. The suburbs are predicated on the concept that if you can't afford your own detached home and private vehicle, you don't belong. Public transport is considered a form of communism. Suburbia is a pay-per-view environment: private country clubs, summer camp, dance lessons, music lessons. Even the beaches in New Jersey are privately owned and charge admission. We couldn't afford any of that. To save money for college I rode a bicycle everywhere and I can't tell you how many times as a young man I was pulled over by the police and questioned. I would ask what I had done wrong, and they would always say that riding a bicycle along the highway, especially after dark or in bad weather, was suspicious. The unspoken message was that only the poor and undesirables do that sort of thing, so they needed to see what was in my backpack. Books usually. They always seemed so befuddled and sent me on my way with a warning. Nerd. Guilty as charged...
I hadn’t been back to Toms River for fifteen years. (I preferred to pay for airline tickets so my mom could visit me in California instead). I was reminded why I left. When I was a kid, the small historic downtown of Toms River still had a working movie theater, a shoe store, restaurants, and a dress shop. All that fell away by the time I graduated high school as strip malls and chain stores chewed up the landscape outside of town. The only things that remained were the government buildings since Toms River was the county seat. Now, most of the old buildings aren’t even there anymore. Little by little they were removed as the roads were widened and parking lots were installed. Downtown is just another kind of mall now, this one devoted to municipal services. Two hundred years of history were paved over so commuters could get through town and make a right hand turn forty five seconds faster.
When I express my concerns about sprawl people often suggest that San Francisco is an anomaly and out of step with how most Americans want to live. After all, nothing like a compact mixed use city has been built anywhere in the country for a hundred years now. I respond by saying that a hundred years from now San Francisco will still be well populated and vibrant. I don’t think the same will be true of most cul de sacs and strip malls. Most of the suburbs will have become mulch by then.
Again, many thanks for your good work.
- John S.
I just finished reading “Leisureville” and I’d like to thank you for writing such an intelligent and entertaining book. Your work reminds me of Joel Garreau’s “Edge City” insofar as it strains to describe a phenomenon in a balanced way while still making your own concerns quite clear. As much as I enjoy James Howard Kunstler’s rants, he’s never been accused of moderation, but that’s what makes him so endearing. There were also hints of Jane Jacobs' later works, "Systems of Survival" and "Dark Age Ahead". “Leisureville” closely resembles a geriatric version of Setha Low’s “Behind the Gates” (although I admit your writing style is a bit better). Ms. Low was primarily concerned with the social and political fragmentation and mistrust that inevitably results from the self-segregation of gated suburban enclaves.
As a young man I fled the suburbs of the Jersey shore and ultimately settled in San Francisco. A few weeks ago I returned to Toms River, New Jersey to visit my mother who now lives in Holiday City. I talked to her about how she likes her new living arrangement. She said it was a mixed bag. Safe. Clean. Affordable. Lonely. Dull. Restrictive. She confirmed all the stereotypes about sex-crazed neighbors and rule obsessed committees. I had lobbied very hard for her to come and live with me in California citing the cultural offerings and free accommodations, but she ultimately wanted to stay near my sisters and brother and all the grandkids in Jersey. She also wanted to live independently. Fair enough.
As an adolescent I had plenty of contact with the elderly residents of these ever-expanding adult communities. I did housekeeping and gardening chores for many retirees as a way to earn money for college (Rutgers ’96). I enjoy the company of old people so it was a good fit. And to be honest, the generation I was dealing with back then was more likable than the new crop of boomers. They were savers and planners. They had survived the Depression and war. They told stories of how they were smuggled out of Poland “just in time”, or described burning their dining room furniture one piece at a time to keep their Brooklyn tenement warm through the winter. These people didn’t need plastic surgery or granite counter tops. They appreciated the fact that they had good food, a tidy home in the country, and money in the bank at a time in life when their own parents had been destitute. Boomers? Not so much…
I have very few fond memories of my early years in the suburbs. My family was working class and just barely managed to stay afloat. The suburbs are predicated on the concept that if you can't afford your own detached home and private vehicle, you don't belong. Public transport is considered a form of communism. Suburbia is a pay-per-view environment: private country clubs, summer camp, dance lessons, music lessons. Even the beaches in New Jersey are privately owned and charge admission. We couldn't afford any of that. To save money for college I rode a bicycle everywhere and I can't tell you how many times as a young man I was pulled over by the police and questioned. I would ask what I had done wrong, and they would always say that riding a bicycle along the highway, especially after dark or in bad weather, was suspicious. The unspoken message was that only the poor and undesirables do that sort of thing, so they needed to see what was in my backpack. Books usually. They always seemed so befuddled and sent me on my way with a warning. Nerd. Guilty as charged...
I hadn’t been back to Toms River for fifteen years. (I preferred to pay for airline tickets so my mom could visit me in California instead). I was reminded why I left. When I was a kid, the small historic downtown of Toms River still had a working movie theater, a shoe store, restaurants, and a dress shop. All that fell away by the time I graduated high school as strip malls and chain stores chewed up the landscape outside of town. The only things that remained were the government buildings since Toms River was the county seat. Now, most of the old buildings aren’t even there anymore. Little by little they were removed as the roads were widened and parking lots were installed. Downtown is just another kind of mall now, this one devoted to municipal services. Two hundred years of history were paved over so commuters could get through town and make a right hand turn forty five seconds faster.
When I express my concerns about sprawl people often suggest that San Francisco is an anomaly and out of step with how most Americans want to live. After all, nothing like a compact mixed use city has been built anywhere in the country for a hundred years now. I respond by saying that a hundred years from now San Francisco will still be well populated and vibrant. I don’t think the same will be true of most cul de sacs and strip malls. Most of the suburbs will have become mulch by then.
Again, many thanks for your good work.
- John S.
25 September 2009
Reader email (from an architect designing integrated housing)
Dear Mr. Blechman:
I wanted to drop you a quick note to let you know how much I enjoyed reading Leisureville. It was humorous while raising very real concerns about how we as a society engage, or disengage, with each other especially during the retirement years.
As an Architect on Cape Cod who designs a wide range of community facilities (ie, community & senior centers, libraries, churches etc..) and housing from modest single family homes to multi-unit and affordable housing developments, I am always interested in housing trends and the social forces which affect the design process and how people live, work and socialize.
Our firm has had the good fortune over the last few years to have aligned with a local non-profit housing developer (Housing Assistance Corp.) to design and build several housing developments and our team discussions are always about "fostering community" among the "age integrated" residents and building well designed and environmentally responsible housing.
After reading your book, it made me appreciate all the more that we are living in and developing real community buildings and housing for real people "warts and all". Developing affordable housing for lower income individuals and families is a real challenge and NIMBYism, even here on Cape Cod is alive and well. Your book has helped to re-energize my work.
Sincerely.
Rick F
Yarmouthport, MA
I wanted to drop you a quick note to let you know how much I enjoyed reading Leisureville. It was humorous while raising very real concerns about how we as a society engage, or disengage, with each other especially during the retirement years.
As an Architect on Cape Cod who designs a wide range of community facilities (ie, community & senior centers, libraries, churches etc..) and housing from modest single family homes to multi-unit and affordable housing developments, I am always interested in housing trends and the social forces which affect the design process and how people live, work and socialize.
Our firm has had the good fortune over the last few years to have aligned with a local non-profit housing developer (Housing Assistance Corp.) to design and build several housing developments and our team discussions are always about "fostering community" among the "age integrated" residents and building well designed and environmentally responsible housing.
After reading your book, it made me appreciate all the more that we are living in and developing real community buildings and housing for real people "warts and all". Developing affordable housing for lower income individuals and families is a real challenge and NIMBYism, even here on Cape Cod is alive and well. Your book has helped to re-energize my work.
Sincerely.
Rick F
Yarmouthport, MA
Making Suburbia More Livable
"The nation's sprawling suburbs may have been a good place to grow up, but they're a tough place to grow old. Here's how towns are beginning to 'retrofit' their neighborhoods—and what your community might look like in the future."
-- The Wall Street Journal
-- The Wall Street Journal
14 September 2009
More interesting reader comments
An excerpt from a reader who lives in an age-segregated community in San Diego.
-----
"Our 55+ is now 25 years old, and there is serious conflict between what is called the "young-old" group (the next generation recently moved in) vs. the "old-old" group who were the community founders (and are close to very old age). The younger group wants to keep it active and believes that it is just a stage before eventually moving to non-active retirement living. The older group wants to put in/keep in place substantial elements of assisted living."
.....
There is one more item that may be only a peculiarity to our community (unlikely) and that is: Stealing is a problem for the elderly; leave an item unattended and it is very likely to disappear. (I have personally lost two jackets, golf clubs accidently left around the greens, kitchen items brought to pot lucks, etc.) these are not destitute people so it must be for the thrill of it or the attention one gets when caught. (and there is almost no consequence to an older person for getting caught.) the only conclusion I can reach is that there are a number of lonely, unhappy people isolated in their retirement utopias.
-----
-----
"Our 55+ is now 25 years old, and there is serious conflict between what is called the "young-old" group (the next generation recently moved in) vs. the "old-old" group who were the community founders (and are close to very old age). The younger group wants to keep it active and believes that it is just a stage before eventually moving to non-active retirement living. The older group wants to put in/keep in place substantial elements of assisted living."
.....
There is one more item that may be only a peculiarity to our community (unlikely) and that is: Stealing is a problem for the elderly; leave an item unattended and it is very likely to disappear. (I have personally lost two jackets, golf clubs accidently left around the greens, kitchen items brought to pot lucks, etc.) these are not destitute people so it must be for the thrill of it or the attention one gets when caught. (and there is almost no consequence to an older person for getting caught.) the only conclusion I can reach is that there are a number of lonely, unhappy people isolated in their retirement utopias.
-----
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