Life in the Ville by Jimmy Del Ponte

If there’s ever a real argument comparing these days to the good old days, two words can help win the discussion, full-size. Not just candy bars either. Back then, there was no such thing as a fun size. And instead of a regular-sized goody bag, my friends and I carried full-size pillowcases. Everything back then (’60s–‘80s) was bigger. Cars were bigger, toys seemed bigger, and, of course, Halloween candy bars were … full-size.

On Halloween night, the streets were full of kids. Each house on my street near Davis Square had a family with kids. There were parents and kids everywhere. As always, I’ve asked some of my Somerville friends to share their memories of Halloweens gone by.

Peter: “I remember sitting on the living room floor, trading candy I didn’t like with my sister, and they were full-size candy bars!”

Sophia: “We had six kids trick or treating for candy, so it was a candy store at the end of our run. We kids brought so much candy home, my mom emptied shoe boxes and filled at least a dozen of them according to the type of candy. My favorite boxes were the Milky Way bars and Milk Duds.”

Pamela: “We used to leave our house in Ball Sq. to trick or treat with pillow cases for bags. We would go back when they were full. One year, we each filled six pillow cases. Wish I had that energy today!”

Maureen: “Lasting memory for me until the end of time, Mrs. O’Hare on Highland Rd., dressed up in costume and scaring all the kids. One year, it was a gorilla with Tarzan-like sound effects played in the background, another year, a witch. She was unrecognizable, and the attention to detail was insanely good. What good times.”

Bob: “I remember hiding the wood for the bonfire in the Northeastern JR High schoolyard from the ‘authorities’ until we were sure the coast was clear, and then it was ‘burn baby burn.’”

Jon: “There was an elderly couple somewhere in our neighborhood who used to make 4-5 dozen homemade taffy apples. They made the taffy themselves. When they ran out, they would apologize and offer you either some homemade cookies or a quarter.”

Mike: “Some of the things we did on Halloween (as kids) could still get us jail time today! Thank God we could run fast in those days!”

This year, because of the virus, we will have a scaled-down, fun-size Halloween. Exercising safety precautions, including masks, under your masks, and social distancing, hopefully will ensure that we go back to a full-size Halloween next year.