Mischief!

When I went out to take Faithful Companion for a walk tonight, I heard voices. When I got to the end of the driveway, I saw what was up. A bunch of kids and a couple of adults were hurling rolls of toilet paper over the streetlight at the corner.

It's Mischief Night!

For the uninitiated, Mischief Night is the night before Hallowe'en. The elements of Mischief Night are as follows: toilet paper, soap. Toilet paper is used to decorate, soap is used to soap windows. When I was a lad, "I am totally going to get your house on Mischief Night" were fightin' words. The only respectable reply was, "Yeah, and while you're getting my house, I am going to be getting yours."

It was heartwarming to see that the tradition continues. And what audacity! The corner of Tollgate and Ferry Roads where the now festooned streetlight sits is where the Plumstead Township Chief of Police lives. Then I realized something. The biggest perpetrator of mischief on October 30th I knew as a kid was the police chief's brother. Those were probably the police chief's kids out there.

It was equally heartwarming that I'm sort of out of the game. I doubt anyone will be soaping our windows or 'decorating' the trees in the lawn with toilet paper, so I won't have to spend time this weekend cleaning it up.

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