Forced gaiety aka you WILL participate in the party!

[LDAHL]

I have heard many places are discontinuing costume days for fear of offending against the various standards of sexual or political decency being imposed by the many professional and amateur takers-of-offense out there.

[Alan]

I have heard many places are discontinuing costume days for fear of offending against the various standards of sexual or political decency being imposed by the many professional and amateur takers-of-offense out there.

That's smart. Who knows what the social justice police will come after you for next year?

[iris lilies]

Oh I think you are always safe to make fun of rich white man like Steve Jobs, Jeff Bezos, Warren Buffett. It’s just that they are not easy to caricature-ize so they make boring Halloween costumes

[catherine]

I have heard many places are discontinuing costume days for fear of offending against the various standards of sexual or political decency being imposed by the many professional and amateur takers-of-offense out there.

They have suspended Halloween parties in the schools in my former NJ school district, but that's because the majority (or at least a significant minority) don't celebrate Halloween, being largely from Asia.

I did see a cute costume on Facebook.. one of my son's couple-friends went dressed as Lois Lane and Superman, but he did the Superman in a really cute way. He dressed as Clark and Superman, with a Superman T-shirt underneath a half buttoned white shirt and tie half undone as if he were running to the phone booth. I thought it was really clever.

[razz]

Saw a sign today that made me think of this thread.

Suggestion: Dress up in a tshirt with a cat in it somewhere. Add any image of an instrument, any shape or size and what do you have - a mewsician!!!

[Float On]

Mrs Potato Head is so cute! I love fun costumes. Last time I dressed up was '90. I was bank branch manager and there was a competition between the branches. We took 1st place with our Wizard of Oz. I was Lion. We each won $100 plus we got dinner out. $100 was probably what I spent on yarn for my costume!

[Alan]

Mrs Potato Head is so cute! I love fun costumes. Last time I dressed up was '90. I was bank branch manager and there was a competition between the branches. We took 1st place with our Wizard of Oz. I was Lion. We each won $100 plus we got dinner out. $100 was probably what I spent on yarn for my costume!

Last year her group did the Wizard of Oz as well, my wife enjoyed that because she didn't have to dress up.

[Tradd]

I don’t mind if the others want to dress up, it’s the forced part. I’ve been joking I’m going as “stubborn b***h” in my regular work clothes.

The manager would probably best described as “culturally ignorant.” It’s a point of pride with her that she doesn’t read and doesn’t keep up with the news. Her MO is basically if she’s nice to everyone and wants to have fun, no one will be offended. She doesn’t get it. The one young gal in my department was essentially bullied by manager into dressing up even though gal doesn’t like anything about Halloween. She hates the scary stuff, etc. She got a costume of something non-scary.

Manager was strong arming people in other departments to dress up. We have one gal who is a very conservative Catholic from SE Asia. She’s put her foot down and is not going to dress up. Wouldn’t surprise me if she goes to HR.

[Tybee]

I am surprised by this level of obtuseness. We used to live near Willow Creek and many fundamentalists do not like or do Halloween. How can they push people to dress up? That is awful.

[saguaro]

Love Mrs. Alan's costumes!

I went as a cereal killer way back when- I taped an empty cheerios box to my front, and carried a camping axe. No one got it on their own.

I had coworker who did this. I found it hilarious. Her version of the costume was small cereal boxes taped on her with plastic knives sticking out.

Btw, it was at the last workplace where forced gaiety was the norm, courtesy of a cabal of female coworkers who had nothing to do but plan these things ALL THE TIME. I wondered if they ever had time for their jobs.

At my current workplace, people can wear costumes for Halloween but it's not that big of a deal. Holidays are celebrated but it's not over the top.