The Guide to Post-Halloween Madness

Let's take a look at my little family for a prime example.

After the constant begging of my four pets became too much for my head to endure, I finally gave them permission to decorate our neohome and go trick or treating. I'll admit to you readers that it was fun to see my pets' faces light up after receiving candy or to watch my Shoyru, who dismisses any existence in ghosts, scream when she went into a local haunted house.

But after all the fun of Halloween was over, I had to deal with the impossible task of erasing as much of Halloween from our neohome as possible, and let me tell you, I'm still not completely finished yet.

So, being the annoying but helpful girl I am, I invented 5 ways to help you deal with Post-Halloween quickly and efficiently.

(Note: If you live in the Haunted Woods and maintain the self-denial that every day is Halloween, I suggest you ignore this article entirely or take a nice long trip to Happy Valley. A culture shock is to be expected.)

1.) Halloween Candy

Nothing is more important than making sure your pets don't hit those large bags too often. The first thing you have to do is establish with your pets that you alone deal out the candy (if they listen to that rule, then you're golden). Even if they listen to you, it is imperative that you hide the candy in a spot they won't be able to find it. A good hiding place would be something like a spiffy metal safe in your bedroom that your pets don't know the combination to. If you don't own a safe, try a locked cabinet or something only you can access. It's also important to remember the amount of candy in each bag. If you come home and you find a lot of missing chocolate Aishas or something, then it's time to move the stash somewhere else. Finally, be flexible with how much candy you give your pets. It's okay to give them a couple pieces a day if they haven't had much sugar beforehand. But if they've been eating sweet treats all day, then give them maybe one piece after dinner and no more.

2.) Decorations

No one likes to take down decorations, but you still have to do it in a timely fashion (though this may not be the case if you live in the Haunted Woods). You don't want Halloween decorations still up when it's already Borovan Day, do you? To get those pesky decorations down easily, give your pets the option of helping you with them on a day usually spent doing chores. Trust me, your pets will be much more willing to take down creepy garlands or fake Spyders than dust cabinets or clean their rooms. If it's a big job and your pets are reluctant to help, make a game over which pet can get the decorations in their boxes the fastest without destroying them. But if it's a smaller job, you can always take those pesky little things down yourself while the pets are at school.

3.) The Bandwagon

Now if you are a Halloween lover like myself and many other Neopians, it's hard to get yourself to realize that Halloween is over. Even though taking down decorations seems perfectly therapeutic, you maybe are one of the many stubborn Neopians who are still in denial that Halloween has ended. After I talked to a large crop of doctors, it has been suggested to me that all Neopians who are still in denial should take a nice long trip far away from the Haunted Woods. The Happy Valley is a wonderful place to take a vacation or even Faerieland (actually, anywhere with a overly-sugary niceness to it is a wonderful location). If this doesn't work, or if you've been scarred by the overly nice faeries and the pets in winter clothing, I suggest you go to Neopia Central and try to distract yourself from all things Halloween (or all things overly cute and sweet *shudders*). It should also be noted if you start seeing Meepits following you everywhere you go, then you should probably go see a doctor.

4.) Getting Your Pets on the Bandwagon

Now that you have (hopefully) succeeded in ushering Halloween out of your neohome and your own mind, it's time to put your pets in the "Halloween is over!" spirit. If you are still in a fragile state from the culture shock (see rule #3), do not and repeat DO NOT take your pets to the same location, for they will become just as scarred as you. If you weren't scarred by the cutesyness, then by all means take your pets to those locations stated in rule #3. And whatever you do, STAY AWAY FROM THE MEEPITS!!!!!

5.) The Final Step

The final step is a rule that should be heeded by all. Once you and your pets have distanced yourself from Halloween and feel mentally stable, it is now a good idea to ease back into all that is creepy. Take it one step at a time; I suggest you do a quest from Jhudora first, then ease into a game of Von Roo's Deadly Dice, then more creepy activities that are far away from the Haunted Woods. Finally, once you are ready, take a short trip to the Haunted Woods and try not to go nuts. It's a good idea to only spend a few minutes in the Haunted Woods each day until you can fully handle the spooky goodness.

Now that you've finally managed to get Halloween out of your system, it's probably around Christmas, so you should probably get ready for that and not even think about that cold and creepy Haunted Woods that's ever so close to Neopia Central.