Halloween in Salem, Massachusetts

For the second year in a row, my roomie and I made our way up to Salem to take in Halloween festivities.

There is perhaps no other locale in the world whose economy depends so heavily on Halloween.

Even in the afternoon it was absolutely packed. But this is what happens when Halloween falls on a Saturday. The weather was also unusually warm. It was nearly 70 degrees although it was very windy.

The one big downside is that bathrooms were very hard to find and when they were found they didn't exactly have all the amenities. I'll go no further than that.

Christopher and I did not go in costume and did not do so last year. Of course, there are those at the Cantab who think I'm scary just as I am. But we're thinking of going in costume next year. I suggested that we buy a couple of Snuggies and dress up as monks or start our own little cult.

I haven't dressed up in years. When I lived in Ottawa during the 1990s, I usually threw on my mask of then Prime Minister Jean Chretien. Of course, that wouldn't work so well down here.

Come to think of it I didn't see any Barack Obama masks. Then again such a thing could be construed as an act of racism. I did, however, see this bumper sticker. I'm sure the Witches for Obama would consider the owner of that automobile to be some kind of pagan.

Last year, I saw a number of women dress up as Sarah Palin. I didn't see any of that this year although I'm sure they crossed paths with other revelers.