Do you like 'em real or fake?

[Pumpkin_Man]

Well, I hate to say it, but artificial pumpkins are more convenient. They don't rot, and they have a light bulb, and in general they have their advantages, but I just don't think Halloween would be the same. Carving a pumpking, cleaning up all the pumpkin guts and carving the face is all a part of the Halloween tradition. And there's nothing like the aroma of a freshly carved pumpkin. That smell is one of many that I associate with fond childhood memories.

Mike

[HalloweenDot]

I agree, they are fun to carve with kids!

We always take the seeds and just sprinkle them around outside and then see what is growing in the spring (or fall and winter since it is often warm enough!).

I like both for different reasons. I like the real ones because they are fun to carve with our son and to bake and eat the seeds. I like the fake one's becuase they are alot easier to setup and the lights inside seem to shine brighter.

[Pumpkin_Man]

Well you sort of touched a nerve with me when you mentioned the pumpkin seads. Every May I plant a pumpkin patch in my yard The vines gro great, the blossems bloom great, then the rabbits come along and that's the end of the pumpkin patch. Perhaps Peter Cottentail and Peter Peter Pumpkin Eater are the same guy. <narf narf>

[Ghoul of the Graves]

I like the real pumpkins because I had fun carving it last year It smelt terrible but it was worth standing outside, in the rain I might add, and watching my mum light it up. Once that ghostly face shone out of the window I was sold. Real pumpkins for the win!

[ilovemichaelmyers]

I like both, I HAVE to have a couple of real ones every year to put outside the door. I also have a really cool fiber optic pumpkin that changes color! I have a few ceramic ones too that I can put candles in. I love to roast the seeds when we carve the real ones

[Pumpkin_Man]

Both have their advantages. TRADITION calls for real pumpkins to carve jack o'lanterns from, but I do have two plastic jack o'lanterns with a build in light socket and light bulbs that I put on top of each stereo speaker. I plug them into the switched outlets on the preamp, so when I turn the stereo on the jack o'lanterns light up. I run my tv audio through the stereo so they're lit up when I listen to music or watch tv.

I also place one fake jack o'lantern on top of the left channel power amp in the dining room, and plug it into the unswitched outlet there, and on the right channel power amp in the dining room I have this lit up 'haunted house' that I plug into that amp's unswitched outlet.

The whole thing is pretty neat. One time I had a couple of friends of mine over. I had just gotten back from the store, so all the equipment was shut off. They arrived a little early. They wanted to hear a new Bob Seiger CD that one of them had purchased, and when I turned on the preamp, those jack o'lanterns lit up and one of them didn't expect it and jumped a mile.

Mike

[HalloweenDot]

I have both too. The more the merrier. I can't believe summer is essentially over and Halloween is only ~10 weeks away. Summer went so quickly.

I like both, I HAVE to have a couple of real ones every year to put outside the door. I also have a really cool fiber optic pumpkin that changes color! I have a few ceramic ones too that I can put candles in. I love to roast the seeds when we carve the real ones

[Firefighter_Barbie]

Get your mind out the gutter! I'm talking about pumpkins. Some stores have been selling plastic/Styrofoam (I don't know what they're made of) pumpkins for several years now; in fact, my mom bought one ages ago and still uses hers. It's nice because it's cost effective and I guess it's not wasteful depending on how you dispose of your pumpkins. Personally, I prefer the real deal. What do you guys like?

I use real pumpkins because in my mind, halloween wouldn't be the same without carving and lighting them. With that said, I have 4 large plastic ones that have a light bulb inside that my family has used every year for 17 years. They can only be around the house due to the cord, but it helps cut down on pumpkin costs since they are so expensive here now (they average about .45 cents a pound) and I have a freaking long driveway that needs to be lit up lol

[Pumpkin_Man]

Fake pumpkins do have their advantages. Like I said I have three of them. What I like about them is that I place on on top of each of my livingroom speakers, and plug them via an extension chord into the switched outlet on my preamplifier. That way, when I turn on the stereo, the pumpkins light up. I put the third pumpkin and a ceramic haunted house on top of the speakers in the dining room. Again, as soon as I turn on the diningroom sound system, the pumpkin and the ceramic haunted house lights up.

I use my stereo for my tv audio, so all through october, when ever I listen to music or watch tv, my fake jack o'lanterns greet me with a lighted smile.

As for real pumpkis, that goes without saying. Halloween just isn't Halloween without the aroma of a freshly carved jack o'lanern lit by a flickering candle. And there's no shortage of places to put them in my house, so there will allways be plenty of them around.

Mike

[adrian]

i like both of them i use both kinds every year

[the night pumpkin]

i dig real pumpkins! i like finding the best pumpkins to carve, the smell, and all the seeds i get to eat!

[shanda]

Things remind us of our past.
I can't imagine a Halloween night without the crisp air, and a clear October sky with its vivid orange and pink tint. My freshly cut Jack-o-lantern on the porch with a real candle lit inside. The clove and cinnimon rubbed on the lid filling the air with the warm sweet scent of home as it is warmed by the flame.

Our modern lives make us want, and need the convenience of fake. Fake Christmas trees, fake easter eggs, fake pumpkins all have their places I agree.

For me, this is a small bit of my childhood I can enjoy and pass on to my kids.

[adrian]

Things remind us of our past.
I can't imagine a Halloween night without the crisp air, and a clear October sky with its vivid orange and pink tint. My freshly cut Jack-o-lantern on the porch with a real candle lit inside. The clove and cinnimon rubbed on the lid filling the air with the warm sweet scent of home as it is warmed by the flame.

Our modern lives make us want, and need the convenience of fake. Fake Christmas trees, fake easter eggs, fake pumpkins all have their places I agree.

For me, this is a small bit of my childhood I can enjoy and pass on to my kids.

i definitely agree. i've never rubbed cinnamon and clove on the pumpkin top i'll do that this year

[Firefighter_Barbie]

After reading this a bit closer I have to share a story with you all...

I met my good friend two years ago and it was getting closer to Halloween so naturally it was too hard to keep my excitment to myself. I was explaining what I was going to dress up as and she looked at me confused, then asked "What do people do for Halloween?" My jaw hit the floor and all I could say was "What do you mean?" That's when she told me that her and her 5 younger sibilings (all under 12) have NEVER TOTed before, decorated, or even carved pumpkins simpley because both their parents worked and just "don't have time" for the holiday (nothing to do with religous beliefs or anything. Needless to say I was shocked and felt as if her and her family were starved of a part of their childhood.

So her and I went out halloween shopping for a ton of pumpkins and costumes then she drove her sibilings over to my place and we all carved pumpkins then went TOTing...they had a blast and won't miss anymore halloweens

Btw, I've never thought about the spices on the pumpkin lids....that's an awesome idea and definatly going to try it this year

[shanda]

Wow! You all def. need to try this! Use pumpkin pie spice. It is an all included spice! Cut a small vent in the top of your pumpkin so the smells have an easy escape into the room. The flame will warm it and it smells just like pumpkin pie!!!

You can also press cloves into the inside of your pumpkin and rub cinn. on the inside.
YUMMY!!!