The Art of Decorating -Yourself

Author: Zoe Burrows

As a sophomore Feb, I really didn't know what to expect from the Halloween season at Middlebury College, but as it turns out, it was anxiety city! Beginning the week I felt more than a little apprehensive about what was to come. Would there be candy to eat? What was I to wear? And most importantly, would other people be decked out too?

Halloween at Middlebury seems to be a 24-hour-plus event, starting Thursday night and not petering out until the early morning hours on Saturday. Walking back to my dorm room Thursday night, I encountered a huge group of students dressed in their Halloween best, singing, chanting and laughing outside of Battell Hall. The swim team was evidently having its Halloween initiation. They proceeded to run laughing and hooting toward McCullough, moving as one impressive mass. Now I was excited for the day to come.

Relief washed over me when I spotted the first costumed student, Katie Polebaum '06.5, crossing the street Halloween afternoon. I had been worried that maybe I was mixed up and it wasn't Halloween at all, since I had seen no candy, no costumes, and little holiday cheer. Polebaum explained, "Halloween [is my] favorite holiday and I didn't want to wait until later to get dressed up." Polebaum was decked out in a fancy pirate outfit, what seemed to be one of the most popular costume themes Friday night, probably inspired by the screening of "Pirates of the Caribbean."

Although I missed the costume competitions in Ross and Proctor at Friday lunch and dinner, I was told that by dinner students were flaunting their stuff. Results of the competitions are as follows:

1st Place: Sophomores Erin Bell & Erika Norman - as Firelady & Police Officer.

2nd Place: Senior Lindsay Wolff as a Christmas Tree.

3rd Place: Senior Sarah Peters as Tinkerbelle.

Peters from North Waterboro, Maine, got her Tinkerbelle costume at Old Gold in Burlington and said, "I wanted to wear the costume before the premier of my directing 700 project last weekend." Other contestants were unavailable for comment, but should be congratulated on their spirited efforts to make the most of this wonderful holiday full of sugar, chocolate (I'm addicted) and crazy good times.

Dining Service Technical Leader John Nordmeyer, organized the competition. However, he did not make the final prize decisions, which were based on the pictures taken of each contender on Friday night in Ross and Proctor dining halls.