{"id":1313,"date":"2013-10-09T13:40:11","date_gmt":"2013-10-09T13:40:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.whataboutwatermelon.com\/?p=1313"},"modified":"2017-06-09T13:40:45","modified_gmt":"2017-06-09T13:40:45","slug":"jack-o-melon-says-happy-halloween","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.whataboutwatermelon.com\/index.php\/2013\/10\/jack-o-melon-says-happy-halloween\/","title":{"rendered":"JACK-O-MELON SAYS: \u201cHAPPY HALLOWEEN!\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"pic\"<\/p>\n

Yes, Halloween isn\u2019t until tomorrow, but I\u2019m posting this today because I\u2019m not really sure when most people read these blog entries. (I could post it tomorrow, but you might read it on November 1, and there\u2019s nothing worse than expired holiday greetings.)<\/p>\n

Continuing a tradition I started a few years ago, I carved the \u201cjack-o-melon\u201d above and set it on my doorstep. He looked a bit alone, so I surrounded him with a few mini pumpkins to complete the display. (He looks a little frightened by the pumpkins, doesn\u2019t he? Sort of like they\u2019re ganging up on him like a hoard of mini-pumpkin zombies.)<\/p>\n

After I carved my not-so-scary watermelon, I jumped online to learn more about Halloween. Here are a few of the more interesting facts I discovered:<\/p>\n

1. Pumpkins have long been the standard when it comes to Halloween carvings, but it wasn\u2019t always that way. Turnips, potatoes and beets were the original Jack-O-Lanterns, but immigrants from Europe used pumpkins when they arrived in the U.S. because they were larger and more readily available. (Can you imagine a carved beet?!)<\/p>\n

2. Halloween is the second highest-grossing holiday of the year, behind Christmas.<\/p>\n

3. More than 35 million Halloween greeting cards are given each year. (Yet I\u2019ve never given nor received a Halloween card in my entire life!)<\/p>\n

4. 50% of kids prefer to receive chocolate candy<\/a> for Halloween, compared with 24% who prefer non-chocolate candy and 10% who preferred gum. (Which group were you in?)<\/p>\n

5. The origins of trick-or-treating dates back 2,000 years when Celtic villagers disguised themselves in costumes made of animal skins to drive away phantom visitors. Tables of food were often left out to sooth unwelcome spirits. In the Middle Ages, people began dressing as ghosts, demons and other creatures, performing antics in exchange for food and drink.<\/p>\n

6. The five most popular adult Halloween costumes in 2012 were: 1. Witch, 2. Vampire, 3. Pirate, 4. Batman, and 5. Zombie. The five most popular children\u2019s costumes in 2010 (the last year data was available) were: 1. Princess, 2. Batman, 3. Spider-Man, 4. Witch, and 5. Disney Princess.\u00a0 (Source: National Geographic<\/a>)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Yes, Halloween isn\u2019t until tomorrow, but I\u2019m posting this today because I\u2019m not really sure when most people read these blog entries. (I could post it tomorrow, but you might read it on November 1, and there\u2019s nothing worse than expired holiday greetings.) Continuing a tradition I started a few years ago, I carved the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1314,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-1313","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-general","8":"entry"},"yoast_head":"\nJACK-O-MELON SAYS: \u201cHAPPY HALLOWEEN!\u201d - What About Watermelon?<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.whataboutwatermelon.com\/index.php\/2013\/10\/jack-o-melon-says-happy-halloween\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"JACK-O-MELON SAYS: \u201cHAPPY HALLOWEEN!\u201d - What About Watermelon?\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Yes, Halloween isn\u2019t until tomorrow, but I\u2019m posting this today because I\u2019m not really sure when most people read these blog entries. 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