Happy October
Welcome to a month of beautiful fall colors, erratic weather and the tail end of the election season.
This month wraps up with Halloween, one of my all-time favorite holidays. It is an off-the-wall celebration that starts with the incredible sugar highs of childhood, then evolves into adult celebrations of unlimited forms.
I hope you enjoy the magic of October and the transition to winter.
Enjoy, stay safe, and thanks for your support!
Dennis "DJ" Quinn
Happy Halloween
This month I share the true story from Halloween 1980. It’s a life event shared by a couple guys that still brings us laughs today.
DJ Quinn with Little Brother Scott in October 1982
A Trick or A Treat?
A true story by Dennis “DJ” Quinn
At the ripe age of 23, I left Montana and took a job as a flight attendant in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The gig was great. It offered flexibility, lots of time off, and the chance to work flights throughout the US, Europe, and Asia. On my days off, I had plenty of time to kill, so I volunteered to become a Big Brother.
In March 1980, I was matched with Scott, an 11-year old boy being raised by his single mother Jennifer. Scott and I would get together for a few hours each week and hang out doing ‘guy things’. That included movies, bike rides, and going to sporting events. The idea was to share time together, build a friendship, and set a good example. Jennifer was enthusiastic about our match, and supported us in whatever we chose to do.
In October, I had planned to do something with Scott for Halloween. Unfortunately, I ended up being scheduled to fly.
“Hey Scott,” I mentioned the week before. “I’m not going to be here for Halloween. I have to fly.”
“That’s okay,” he responded.
“Are you going to go out trick-or-treating?” I asked.
“No. My mom is working late. I’m going to stay home by myself and give out candy.”
“That sounds like fun.”
“Yeah. I have it planned out. I’m going to hang up a sheet to turn the hall inside our door into a scary room. I’ll be inside with the lights real low. I’m going to dress up. Then when kids come in for candy, I’ll scare them.”
I laughed. “Have you done that before?”
“Nope, it’s the first time. I know it will work.”
“Well have fun. I’ll be thinking about you when I’m on my trip.”
The following morning I left on a 3-day trip. By the time I returned, I had picked up a nasty cold. I was scheduled to leave again the following day, but my head was congested and my ears were plugged. I called in sick for the second trip and went to bed. I woke the next day (Halloween) at home, feeling better but still congested. By midday, a restlessness started stirring inside me. Here it was Halloween, I was home with nothing to do, and I knew Scott was home by himself.
“How would I feel if I was home alone on Halloween when I was 11 years old?” I wondered. Would I want to be alone?” The answer was NO. So I decided to go surprise Scott. Since I needed a Halloween costume, that afternoon I headed to Target.
Two hours later, I was almost ready. As I wrapped the final three layers of masking tape over the four rolls of toilet paper that were strung around every inch of my body, The Mummy came to life. The Mummy added more tape around the neck, then a few strips over the top of his head. He made one more pass down his forehead, across his face to his chin, then back up the other side. Finally he taped in two oversized plastic eyeballs, each with dime-sized vision holes in the center. Red blood vessels ran horizontally across the bulging eye balls, adding the costume’s only color.
With every inch of his body tightly wrapped in toilet paper and tape, The Mummy looked in the mirror and bellowed, “Perfect!” Then, moving like the Pillsbury Dough Boy crippled with severe joint pain, The Mummy shuffled toward the car.
Twenty minutes later, darkness was falling as The Mummy parked at Scott’s apartment complex. Knowing Scott was handing out candy at his unit’s front door, The Mummy shuffled around to the back. In the darkness, he stepped on Scott’s patio and reached for the sliding door. Slowly, silently, he slid the door open.
Inside, a trace of dim light glowed from behind a sheet that was hung to separate the foyer from the living area. Muffled sounds drifted from inside Scott’s “scary room”. The Mummy moved one foot inside the apartment, then slowly followed with the other. Suddenly a voice bellowed from behind the curtain.
“Just take one!” Scott’s spooky voice commanded. The Mummy heard footsteps running away.
As the children ran off, The Mummy shuffled forward, inching nearer toward the curtain.
“Trick or Treat!” Another group of kids had arrived. Scott growled, the kids screamed, and The Mummy moved closer.
As the children grabbed their candy and bolted, The Mummy moved right behind the sheet. Scott was giggling, standing just inches away on the other side of the sheet. Scott was alone. He was relaxed. And he was waiting….
The Mummy grabbed the sheet, ripped it open and screamed. AHHHHHH! He moved toward Scott, arms outstretched, shuffling erratically. The Mummy approached Scott and screamed again. AHHHHHH!
Scott took one look, turned, and dashed out the door.
“SOMEBODY’S IN HERE, SOMETHING’S IN HERE!” His screams echoed down the hall. “SOMEBODY IS IN MY APARTMENT!”
The Mummy shuffled out into the hall. Scott stood at the far end of the long hallway dazed, confused, and terrified. All along the hall separating Scott from The Mummy, residents flew out their doors. They looked back and forth. No one moved. No one said a word. The moment was frozen in time.
“Scott! Scott, it’s me,” The Mummy yelled. No response.
“Scott, it’s me. Dennis, your Big Brother!” The Mummy was choking back laughter as he waved his tape-stiffened arm.
“It’s me Scott. Come on back here.”
Scott didn’t move. He just stared.
“It’s just me Scott. Your Big Brother.”
Finally, Scott stepped forward. It him took five minutes to walk down the hall. When he reached his apartment, he was still breathing heavily.
“You scared me so bad,” Scott hissed. “I couldn’t tell what it was!”
“I just wanted to come and wish you Happy Halloween!”
“I thought you were gone out of town!”
“I was supposed to be on a trip,” I explained. “But I called in sick. So I came to visit.”
“How…how did you get in my apartment?” His eyes were locked on the bulging bloodshot plastic eyes.
“Through the sliding door. It was unlocked.”
“Sheese!” he huffed as he let out a sigh. “You scared me. You really scared me bad!”
Scott finally settled down once we got in the apartment. More kids stopped by, a few looking for candy; most were just curious to find out what had happened.
“It was my Big Brother,” he told them. “He sneaked in and scared me. He thought it was a good joke.”
It was, in fact, a great joke. A fabulous prank. It wasn’t until The Mummy became Big Brother as he peeled off the toilet paper and tape on the drive home that I had second thoughts.
I can’t believe I did that. An 11-year old kid is home alone. Some guy with bug eyes all wrapped up in toilet paper and tape sneaks up behind him? What the Hell was I thinking.
Actually, what I was thinking was that it was hilarious. No telling what Jennifer would say when she came home and found out about the stunt. My guess was that she would laugh, which is exactly what happened.
That spontaneous Big Brother/Little Brother Halloween celebration was worth it. Scott is now in his mid-fifties, and we still laugh about that night. Each year his family puts up great outdoor Halloween decorations. Their primary focus is to scare the kids who show up looking for free candy.
Maybe I did set a good example on that dark Halloween night. It’s heartwarming to know that even though Scott still hates mummies, he loves celebrating Halloween by scaring kids. Just like his Big Brother once did.