Halloween brings forth a combination of frightfulness and fantasy that a lot of us humans find hard to resist. October 31st gives us a chance to step out of our humdrum comfort zones and step into a getaway full of ghouls and excitement. Whether you see Halloween as an excuse to wear a sexy costume or the opportunity to dress up as that clever idea you saw on Pinterest, the holiday allows you to do just that. We, as humans, love to hate our boring routines, and October, representing anything but, allows us to stir up that cauldron of interest we seem to lose over time.

Although kids are often told to avoid strangers and, even more specifically, candy from strangers, not even these basic premises of parental regulations can deny the power Halloween has over consumers. Looking back on trick-or-treating, it does seem a little sketchy, but I know as a kid that heap of candy I earned by the end of the night was a treasure to behold. I had to show off my great finds, like chocolate-covered pretzels, and if my sister got some sour straws and I didn't, don't even get me started. We only think life was easier back then, but in all reality it was a war.

Dressing up was and continues to be something I enjoy every Halloween. The first costume I remember was in actuality a witch, or, even more specifically, a "Sweet and Sparkly Sorceress," but I used it as Little Miss Muffet in kindergarten. As a naturally nervous and clumsy kid, I knew even then it was too good to be true to rock being the sparkly sorceress/Miss Muffet nursery rhyme character without something going awry. Sadly, as I walked towards the tables in the cafeteria with my tray filled with food, I tripped and ruined my glorious costume. Yeah, I know, traumatizing, right? However, my teacher helped me wash it off and I finished my day with a heap of candy and an aching but satisfied belly. So, if not even a sloppy-joe-stained costume could ruin my Halloween spirit, do not let something silly like seeing someone in cat ears and a tight suit ruin yours. Even I have fallen to the epidemic of the cliche "cat" costume. Halloween is a time to express yourself, and if someone wants to be a sexy *insert anything here* and you want to be the founding father, Benjamin Franklin, let the holiday do its job!

So, if you are debating staying in this Halloween, do the extraordinary and let Halloween take you for a spooktacular ride, avoiding Ouija boards and seances, however. Even the dead on All Hallow's Eve show up and show out, so what's stopping you? Embrace your imagination and adventurous mind this Halloween, transforming that shadow to unveil the boogeyman, or that vampire costume to not actually being a costume. Or simply carve a pumpkin with some pals and binge watch classics, like "Hocus Pocus" or "The Craft." Happy Halloween!