What does your costume of choice say about you at Halloween?

I'm  going to reveal something that might shock people who know me as a creative sort. When it comes to Halloween I suck at being creative. 

Maybe because I ended up in the emergency room getting my stomach pumped as a wee lad after eating something we weren't exactly sure why it made me so sick, but I just never quite figured out how to get into the dressing up vibe.

​I guess those that know me and see how much effort I put into my everyday wardrobe might say my lack of attention to dressing up for anything jives.

But it is fun, as a photo journalist, to see how people represent themselves. With kids it gives you insight into what they are into at the moment. Whatever Disney film is current usually dictates quite a bit of attention.

Kids YouTube shows also dominate.

T-Rex blow up costumes are fun to watch as the wearer tries navigate simple things like walking or grabbing candy from a bowl held by Dracula while threatening to bite the Lord Prince of Darkness' head off (see above photo.)

And Dracula is fun from the comical representations to the pretty darn realistic. Again, perhaps revealing of character traits, at least in terms of the ability of committing to a charactor.

​From sexy to scary, whimsical to odd, well thought out to tossed together, we tell something about ourselves in how we decide to dress up.

For me, after my ill-attempted hobo where I still had charcoal on my cheeks as the ER doc shoved a tube passed my tonsils making me want to die even more than whatever evil was churning in my belly, but I just haven't found my personality in dress up beyond just remembering to wear pants.

My two costumes of note were my "guy with a stick" that I picked up in the yard after realizing I totally forgot it was a costume party and the time I cut the rear end out of a pair of jeans and told everyone I was Prince  at the Grammy's. (not convincing but my hairy derrière did become a popular photo op among my photographer friends that night.}

So I guess even my ill-attempts were still quite personality revealing?

I'm amazed at how people really go all out decorating their yards and businesses and have so much fun doing so. The bigger the decorating scheme the more visitors and therefor more money spent on candy.
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And I love how many communities create dozens of activities for families to come out and engage with one another. It is curious to witness the numbers of people and sheer support folks have in sharing simple things like sweets with one another just for the smiles they receive in return.

​Many organizations spend hundreds of dollars to give families a little community fun several times throughout the season.

Without jumping high up on a soap box and getting called all levels of hypocritical, it's disheartening getting on social media to read those comments by people complaining about this or that trivial thing about a three day festival that they didn't like. 

​One that draws over 100,000 people to experience it's downtown to choose from a dozen varieties of cheesy fries, perhaps buy a big wooden sign to decorate the house or an equally big bag of kettle popcorn to chomp on for days, eat a free apple, listen to some music to get away from the hustle bustle for a breather, play on bouncy houses, see old friends, get up close to a Packard in mint condition, pet a mini-goat or just get off our fat behinds and walk around a bit outside.

This is Franklin, Pennsylvania for three days in October. The rest of the time it's your quaint little downtown that many brag about.

So why take the time to get all Kareny on social media to complain about the crowd size or any number of weird things that bother you about a festival you decided to go to?

The annual Applefest gets its fair share of curmudgeony sorts that find a need to express their opinions that no one asked for on social media, which is their right.

I admit I don't like crowds or taking twice as long to walk from point a to point b, but you know what... I don't have to go. I could decide not to cover the festival. 

But I do go to cover it, I do find moments to get out of the crowd for a breather, and there are plenty of places to get away. 

I choose to go because it is important for the area and it is filled with people and businesses that I care about. It is just three days.

And I do have fun than more 10 times over than those things that bother me. And if I have a complaint, that's on me. No need to get on social media and show everyone what jerk I am.

​Applefest is perhaps the one event that really puts Franklin on the map. And not just those three days, people come back to experience the town the other 362 days.

It is also an event that brings tens of thousands of dollars to the area... that puts some farmer's market folks into the black for the year and frankly, is just a fun time for 94.37% of the people who go and 100% of the people who don't have to listen to idiots bitching about nothing. (Just a an educated guesstimate.)

There are always ways to improve things. I know personally that the people who put so much time into Applefest welcome constructive ideas.

They understand there is no event that can't be improved upon and that others can have good ideas that lead to positive advancements of an already successful festival.

They welcome input properly delivered. Usually Facebook post complaints are not the best avenue.

​Some of the things overheard or read this weekend astound and truly make me understand how little people actually know about how things work. 

This year a small group of folks who feel a need to spread their brand of Christian beliefs took advantage of the huge number of people in Franklin to stand on very public ground in front of the courthouse to spread their ideas.
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They had the right to be there as long as they did not disrupt visitors to the festival from passing by from one park to the other.

​I never felt they were disruptive physically and when I personally found myself disrupted mentally I knew that was on me. 

I did laugh out loud passing by at one point because of something that was not directed at me at all that I found ironically amusing. I thought, "I can choose to let it bother me, as one social media commentator most certainly did, or not let it bother me and go about my business."

The usual complaints about how difficult it can be getting through town or finding parking close to downtown..

Yet there are several alternative parking venues that are free and the Applefest organizers use their budget to pay for free shuttle services. Several area businesses turn their lots into pay lots, often donating that money to a non-profit organization or group.  And in the 10-ish years of covering this festival I've always found a spot. Yes I have to walk a little sometimes, but again, my big belly could use more of that.

Applefest 42 by the Numbers:
75 apple dapple cakes
100 bushels of apples handed out
175 apple pies
300+ vendors
400+ vehicles in the car show
500+ runners/walkers in the 5K
700+ pancake meals
3,000 apple dumplings
1 million views on Facebook
TOO MANY VISITORS TO COUNT
The 3 Best Days of the Year.