Trick-or-Treating After 13 Isn’t Normal!

mAlice

professional daydreamer
Thirteen is a good age to stop trick-or-treating for many reasons. There’s the symbolic unluckiness of 13, which seems appropriate for a holiday devoted to death and doom. There’s the fact that 13 is already a transitional age in many cultures, with rites of passage like bar and bat mitzvah marking the metamorphosis from child to adult. Most importantly, there’s the fact that 13 is the last plausible age at which a kid could sincerely get excited about dressing up and trick-or-treating. After 13, children transform into jaded, surly, rebellious jerks, as predictably as the onset of menses and the deepening of boys’ voices.

eens who trick-or-treat, you see, aren’t motivated by the same independence-seeking and joyful self-expression that motivate younger trick-or-treaters. Teen trick-or-treaters see trick-or-treating as a sort of scam—a way of sticking it to the man by obtaining the man’s candy without having to pay the man. It is the role of a functional society to teach teens that such scams are antisocial and unsustainable, and also that it’s pretty lame to appropriate a children’s holiday just to get a few free Snickers bars. (You’re in high school? You’re old enough to buy your own damn Snickers bars.) The cynicism that prompts older teens to throw a sheet over their heads and go ransack the neighbors’ Smarties stash casts a pall over the younger children’s pure-hearted excitement about throwing a sheet over their heads and ransacking the neighbors’ Smarties stash. With trick-or-treating, intention is everything—and if we allow teens with malicious intentions to commandeer this holiday, soon there won’t be any treat left in trick-or-treating.

http://www.slate.com/blogs/normal/2016/10/28/the_trick_or_treat_cut_off_age_should_be_13.html
 

DEEKAYPEE8569

Well-Known Member
The last time I went Trick-or-Treating, I was 17 or 18. My girlfriend at the time; yes, I said 'girlfriend;' came over to the house dressed like a cat; the ears, the whiskers; black makeup on the tip of her nose.....and the spandex, OMG the spandex. Mom was the first one to chime in; 'Now I know why you want to go Trick or Treating.' 'Well.....yeah.....'
 

mAlice

professional daydreamer
The last time I went Trick-or-Treating, I was 17 or 18. My girlfriend at the time; yes, I said 'girlfriend;' came over to the house dressed like a cat; the ears, the whiskers; black makeup on the tip of her nose.....and the spandex, OMG the spandex. Mom was the first one to chime in; 'Now I know why you want to go Trick or Treating.' 'Well.....yeah.....'

Last time I went trick or treating, I was 11.
 

vraiblonde

Board Mommy
PREMO Member
Patron
As we enter our teens, we become less interested in free candy. Usually by age 13 or so, kids have their own social lives and there are parties and events that take the place of childhood pastimes like Trick or Treating.

With children being more and more stunted in their social growth and kept dependent infants for longer and longer, it's not surprising that some of them would still want to TorT like little kids well into their teens.
 

Clem72

Well-Known Member
If you dress up, I give you candy. That's the social contract. If you don't, I say move along.

And little children are a hell of a lot more motivated by free candy than "independence-seeking and joyful self-expression", just like the older children/adults.
 

lucky_bee

RBF expert
If you dress up, I give you candy. That's the social contract. If you don't, I say move along.

:yeahthat: That's my rule: must have a costume, at the very least a mask, to get candy here.

I remember my last year for TorT was at 14. My guy's 14 yo is currently moping about the house asking, "what on earth am IIIII supposed to do?!" He doesn't want to go ToT and he doesn't want to hand out candy. I told him he's welcome to do as he does every other day: go to his room and ignore everybody :lmao:
 

DEEKAYPEE8569

Well-Known Member
As we enter our teens, we become less interested in free candy. Usually by age 13 or so, kids have their own social lives and there are parties and events that take the place of childhood pastimes like Trick or Treating.

With children being more and more stunted in their social growth and kept dependent infants for longer and longer, it's not surprising that some of them would still want to TorT like little kids well into their teens.
Vrai, your 'dependent infants.....' comment aside, so what if teenagers go TorT'ing?? Teens in their late teens still can't go to parties and drink anything other'n soda and punch anyway legally, so what's the harm in putting on a costume and going TorT'ing? At least the parents know where they are/what they're doing; unless the little b*stards are liars. And, when someone who looks to be in his/her late teens rings your doorbell, you can ask, 'Aren't you a little too old for this?'.....while putting a rock in his/her punkin'/bag/pillow case etc.. The kid walks away thinking there's more candy and you know the truth. Problem solved.....
 

vraiblonde

Board Mommy
PREMO Member
Patron
Vrai, your 'dependent infants.....' comment aside, so what if teenagers go TorT'ing?? Teens in their late teens still can't go to parties and drink anything other'n soda and punch anyway legally, so what's the harm in putting on a costume and going TorT'ing? At least the parents know where they are/what they're doing; unless the little b*stards are liars. And, when someone who looks to be in his/her late teens rings your doorbell, you can ask, 'Aren't you a little too old for this?'.....while putting a rock in his/her punkin'/bag/pillow case etc.. The kid walks away thinking there's more candy and you know the truth. Problem solved.....

When I was a 12 or 13 year old, we didn't want to do what the little kids did. We wanted to either give out candy like the adults, or do something with our friends. It wasn't cool to go trick or treating unless you were escorting a younger sibling, in which case THEY got the candy, not you.

When I was a teenager I went to parties all the time where there was no alcohol. We drank soda and had no problem with it. Do kids these days not see a point in socializing with their friends unless there can be alcohol involved? I'm not sure I get your point.
 

getbent

Thats how them b*tch's R
I trick or drink.

Yes!!! We would do that when our kids were younger. Then more recently, we help friends of ours hand out the adult treats on Halloween :) One for you, 2 for me..... :lol:


On a side note: my youngest is 14 and she's dressing up and riding around the neighborhood in a golf cart with other teens. Not sure if she's T or T or not. Last year she walked the neighborhood with a bunch of friends just to socialize.
 
Last edited:

DEEKAYPEE8569

Well-Known Member
When I was a 12 or 13 year old, we didn't want to do what the little kids did. We wanted to either give out candy like the adults, or do something with our friends. It wasn't cool to go trick or treating unless you were escorting a younger sibling, in which case THEY got the candy, not you.

When I was a teenager I went to parties all the time where there was no alcohol. We drank soda and had no problem with it. Do kids these days not see a point in socializing with their friends unless there can be alcohol involved? I'm not sure I get your point.

When were you a teenager? '70's? 80's? That's as far back as I'm gonna go.

If I have to have a point, I guess it's, 'Too old for some things; too young for others;' applies to many "tweens."

Conversely, there are; or at least, used to be the undisciplined who know that underage drinking is against the law; but do it anyway.

But, I've also been to parties where there was underage drinking; but there were also adults present who took car keys before anything was in hand; soda, beer, liquor; didn't matter.
You handed over your keys when you arrived just in case you gave in to temptation. Granted, this was when I was a teenager; well, from the age of 16, when I had car keys.
I can't really speak for 'kids these days'; to quote you; as I'm not one of them. I don't know if alcohol is a prerequisite for party attendance.
 
Last edited:

lucky_bee

RBF expert
When were you a teenager? '70's? 80's? That's as far back as I'm gonna go.

If I have to have a point, I guess it's, 'Too old for some things; too young for others;' applies to many "tweens."

Conversely, there are; or at least, used to be the undisciplined who know that underage drinking is against the law; but do it anyway.

But, I've also been to parties where there was underage drinking; but there were also adults present who took car keys before anything was in hand; soda, beer, liquor; didn't matter.
You handed over your keys when you arrived just in case you gave in to temptation. Granted, this was when I was a teenager; well, from the age of 16, when I had car keys.
I can't really speak for 'kids these days'; to quote you; as I'm not one of them. I don't know if alcohol is a prerequisite for party attendance.

JFC. All those in favor of removing the italics font button :howdy:
 

DEEKAYPEE8569

Well-Known Member
JFC. All those in favor of removing the italics font button :howdy:

Why? Why does it bother you so? Hmmm?? Tell you what.....I'll try to make a conscious effort to stop using italics. Howzat sound? I'll go back to using [ these ].
 
Last edited:
Top