Classic 80s Halloween: A Xennial’s Look Back at the Best Years to Be a Kid

You know, as a member of that weird age range somewhere between Gen-X and Millennial, I'm still not sure where we fit in the list of American generations. Elder Millennials are vastly different than regular Millennials, with more in common with Gen-X, but with Gen-X gatekeeping their angsty period of time, Xennial has become the common term.

What Makes Xennials Different

These are the "Millennials" who grew up in an analog world. After the Atari, but before the Nintendo. Not only do we have the sound of a dial-up internet connection burned into our brains, but we also surfed the early internet chat rooms. We were the first to hop on a chess match on Yahoo Games. Just like Gen-X, our first media was the cassette, whereas normal Millennials were born into the world of CDs...

We've tried to talk about the difference, but as soon as I saw it in pictures, I knew it might lead to a better understanding to our young Millennials just how different we are.

Oddly enough, and right on time and theme for this time of year, it was classic 80s Halloween stuff.

The First Halloween I Remember

I can remember the first Halloween my mother let me Trick-or-Treat. It was 1989, and I was six. The full responsibility of me and our middle sister was thrust onto our 12-year-old sister, keeping track of us in the neighborhood. Later in the 90s, they called that a Buzzkill...

Of course, I probably should have prefaced it with "This is back when kids still trick-or-treated..." Call me old-fashioned, but trunk-or-treats and getting candy at businesses down Main Street just isn't the same. There's no tricks, no mischief, no opportunity to get into trouble by creating epic memories... I'd bet most hovering parents don't even have to check kids these days for eggs and toilet paper stashed away in the costumes...

Weak

We lived in a little Mayberry of a town in a neighborhood full of kids. I bet we didn't venture more than a few blocks from home, but I still managed to have the full experience of Halloween my first year.

We were poor, and Mom was super-crafty. I remember our oldest sister was duded up like the hair bands she listened to, probably Poison. Our middle sister was a witch with a homemade costume and the kitchen broom. And Mom put me in Dad's little league baseball costume because it was readily available in the attic.

Our oldest sister let us toilet paper a yard with their porch light turned off. We shaving-creamed another house that was giving out pennies and toothbrushes. It was a grand old time. We even found the neighborhood haunted house and ran away from the door crying with fear.

The 80s Were Built for Mischief

I can't remember their names, but they were brothers with classic muscle cars. They had strobe lights, fake spiderwebs, loud and spooky music, and they were dressed to the nines.

The older brother, Les, was Dracula. His younger brother, Lee, was a werewolf. As the crowd of kids gathered and waited for the courage to walk up the driveway, I didn't know any better and played guinea pig for everyone else... at which point Lee the werewolf chased me back down the driveway, somehow galloping on all fours.

What A Time To Be Alive

Take a look at all of this classic 80s Halloween stuff and tell me it doesn't bring up memories from your childhood.