To tell trick or treaters to fuck off?

[Rosebean92]

Last night myself and my elderly mil who I often care for were at her house preparing to watch strictly (very exciting i know). The doorbell went and I was quite surprised to see 8 kids with 2 adults trick or treating. Baring in mind the house was not decorated at all no pumpkins no nothing and as we were at the back of the house the lights werent on in her front room so lord only knows why they knocked... anyway my mil said i'm sorry but i dont have anything for you.

The kids looked really disappointed and they went to go knock on the next door neighbours house, seeing this my mil said "dont knock on that door the elderly man who lives there isnt very well". (Not covid but he's been in ill health for some time)

Well little jimmy decided to go ahead and ring the doorbell, the poor old sod answered the door and said "no sorry!" and shut the door in their faces.

The two adults - I'm asuming the mothers, looked embarressed and I said "Why did you let him do that? You shouldnt be going around the houses anyway why dont you just go home!?"

Not going to lie I was angry at this point and felt this is just beyond ridiculous. The kids started to get upset and one of the mums muttered something I didnt quite hear and they left.

I mean what the actual fuck were they thinking?! We really didnt mean to upset the kids but we didnt want them there - so as not to drip feed we live in a large city and none of the houses on the street were decorated for halloween at all - most of the residents are elderly so even if we werent in the middle of a pandemic its not a good place to trick or treat anyway.

I feel like I've ruined halloween for those kids now :S

No lit decorations = you are not playing so no trick or treaters should be ringing/knocking!!

That's insane. T or T was banned in my county

@Leaannb People had no idea what it was from 2002 to 2008?!?! What a load of rubbish! I'm 36 and went trick or treating as a kid! We always carved a pumpkin. Everybody did! I remember pumpkins selling out everywhere in 1988 when I was just 4! So it was very very popular back then. Even my parents remember carving Turnips on Halloween in the 1940s before carving pumpkins became a thing. They knocked on doors and back then they had to perform a skit or a song in return for sweets.

You are wildly incorrect!

@Xenia

31st is qute a new thing. It was in the US originally. For us, Catholics, there are religious reasons against ghosts etc and 1st (today_) is a Holy Day all Saint's Day. The day before is All Soul's Day so I was never really into that trick or treat blackmail stuff, believing in satan and ghosts. Would be good if we could all just drop it now.

I saw some children dressed up coming up this road but they didn't seem to call and I had the house in darkness and don't do sweets/sugar anyway as it kills children off and makes them ill and their teeth fall out.

A new thing?! No it isn't! Even my parents remember carving Turnips on Halloween in the 1940s before carving pumpkins became a thing. They knocked on doors and back then they had to perform a skit or a song in return for sweets.

You are wildly incorrect!

Not unreasonable at all OP. In fact if you were preparing to watch strictly (as was I) then they must have came to your door during the press conference or thereabouts. I would have no hesitation in telling the mums that they were out of order and maybe if they were indoors like they should have been they might have just discovered we are about to go into lockdown again

Halloween - origins from Celtic festival Samhain (2000 years ago in Ireland, UK, Northern France). Bonfires and costumes to ward off ghosts. Barriers breaking down between physical and spiritual worlds. Celebrating the harvest.
Two Roman Festivals became combined with Samhain. Feralia and Pomona (Apple bobbing comes from this).
Later on in 8th Century - All Saint's Day (All-Hallowmas Day) 1st November.
The evening before became All Hallows Eve.

Mischief Night - Used to be in May. British origins mid 1700s?
Trick or Treating in Scottish/Ireland/Northern England from as far back as 16th Century. Trick or Treating started in North America around 1900s.

The phrase 'Trick or Treat' is believed to have originated in Northern America though.

Idiot parents letting kids knock doors where there are no pumpkins outside. Why the hell do they think people want disturbing - people watching TV, people on night shift, elderly people, babies asleep etc.

Are they the same Mumsnetters who want no reasonable neighbour noise at a reasonable time in the afternoon so their kids can nap?

Was so disappointed when we moved to this country and realised Halloween wasn't a thing here. So many mean & cranky people who don't give a crap about kids

You’ll presumably have come from a country that separates Infants from illegal immigrant parents. And where people voted for that kind of behaviour.

Their parents a idiots of the highest order. I wouldn't have answered the door in all honesty. And I would not have said anything to the mums as they don't care but the poor kids do.

@Whatsonmymindgrapes

Maybe they were thinking it’s been a hard year for everyone and about to head into another lockdown and just wanted to have some fun for their kids. Maybe? But fretting and worrying and locking yourself away sounds like a much better alternative.

Yes, who gives a crap about old people who are ill and don’t want to answer the door? They don’t matter and they’ll be dead soon anyway.

I had a pumpkin in the window, just in case, sweets in a bowl outside, and nobody came.
I shall have to eat all those tubes of Smarties myself. 🐷😋

We went trick or treating to about 10 decorated houses in the nearby streets, all but one was happy to see us and had bowls or pumpkins with lollies stuck in ready. One had decorated but apparently wasn't expecting anyone to knock. We ignored undecorated houses.

Maybe they were thinking it’s been a hard year for everyone and about to head into another lockdown and just wanted to have some fun for their kids

So many mean & cranky people who don't give a crap about kids

Wow - let the parents make fun for their own kids! Why make it other people's responsibility to entertain them?

Bit of an assumption that people not wanting to answer their door to strangers 10-15 times a night 'don't give a crap about kids'. You might as well assume that parents who encourage their kids to wander the dark streets at night, knock on random strangers doors, and eat sweets from those strangers 'don't give a crap about THEIR kids'.

In all seriousness, if people adhered to the custom of not going to doors without lit pumpkins, there wouldn't be an issue for those who don't want disturbed. Sadly it doesn't happen that way in many areas as OP mentioned. Often kids are unaccompanied, in some areas they are far from being 'kids'. In some areas parents are walking some distance behind their kids and are clueless what doors their kids are knocking on until it's too late.

We ignored undecorated houses

Job done then