Buh!

I went shopping as usual a few days ago at the local Super Stop & Shop, and went into the 'seasonal' aisle. There, over two months before it is actually happening on Oct 31, were two giantly long shelves filled with Halloween candy and decorations. First, who needs all this candy? Second, who buys it over 2 months before the only day it will be handed out on? It kind of sickens me, both the useless waste of resources on marketing and how people are fooled into buying too much of what they really don't need (like wooden or plastic monster decorations made in China that will fall apart after one week outside). I think this symbolizes so much what is wrong with modern holidays and their marketing in USA. I don't mind Halloween at all, what I do mind is the mass-produced fake excitement about them. Bring me locally made pumpkin pie, some candy corns, and a witch hat and that is all I need. And a dark night of course and two kids in tow. Trick or treat!

Harry Potter-themes are used a lot in Halloween candy today, like these Blood Pop
(strawberry-flavored lollipops). I just finished volume 6 of Harry Potter last night. Dumbledore is dead, Snape is in hiding, Harry broke up with Ginny... what is going to happen!? Don't tell me!

This is just a small part of one of the aisles - multiply this with about 6 and you get the total Halloween shopping area in this supermarket. That is more than the total shelf area in a Swedish country store. And what do they do with the stuff that doesn't sell? Save it for next year? Give it to pigs? Send it to the poor in Africa? Burn it up?