Halloween


Halloween has always been one of my favorite holidays. Enjoy the pictures chronologically, or skip ahead to a specific year. 1999 \| 2000 \| 2001 \| 2002 \| 2003 \| 2004 \| 2005 \| Compare Costumes
Here's my pumpkin. It is hard to tell in this picture, but the spider web also glows.
	In 1999, after Britney Spears exploded onto the pop scene, people started telling me I look like her. I didn't see the resemblance, but thought it would be fun to dress up like her for Halloween. And the school girl outfit from her debut hit "Baby One More Time" seemed like the most recognizable choice. I nailed the outfit, down to the smallest details like grey thigh highs (not black) and double tiny silver hoops. Heck, I was more accurate than the Britney doll (seen here).
	Here's the gang at a party. This and the above picture made it into the yearbook. Clockwise from bottom: Ben (the mechanic), Don (the nerd), Kenny (The Flash), Nick (as Pedro), Chris (the thug), Mike (the cowboy, hidden), Jeff (as Pablo), Pete (the high schooler), and me (Britney Spears).
	Chris and Kenny. Kenny went as the washed-up Flash, who is now a depressed alcoholic because he can't get any jobs since his show was cancelled. We insisted that he be The Flash because he might not look like he can go very fast, but amazingly, he can.

	In 2000 the pressure was on to top the school girl outfit. And the best way to do that was to become Britney again but wear something that I knew NO ONE else would be wearing. (In 1999 there were several other girls who dressed as Britney, but just looked like Catholic school girls.) Britney wore a red vinyl catsuit in her video for "Oops!...I Did It Again" So thanks to my friend Kathy's mom (Thanks Mom Mahan!), I had a Britney outfit that no one could top. And once again, everything was identical, down to the hairstyle and make-up.
	Here are two of the three roommates. Shanelle D went as a medieval maiden, and Lecia was some sort of Hawaiian slut. Shanelle L was out of town and missed out on all the fun. Hmph! Her loss.
	Too many people to list here, but you can see the Oompa Loompas, the drunk Mexican, Zorro, a pimp, a cow, and Jesus Himself.
	Here's Jody, the drunk Mexican, and his girl Lil Kim. And yes, that is a cardboard cutout. Do not be confused.
	The perfect accessory to the perfect pop diva? None other than a boy band member. At the time I was dating a guy that was a spitting image of Lance Bass from 'NSYNC, so I helped him dress like Lance in the "It's Gonna Be Me" video. Viola! Another spitting image. (How pathetic.)
	Lance Bass, Britney Spears, Jessica Simpson and Nick Lachey.
	Here is my roommate without her lei. Did she get "leid" that night? The world will never know.
	Here are three of my former residents (yes, I used to be an RA) as some kind of Super Hero trio. From left: Cameron, Scott and Ben.
	A bunch of guys I know went as Slim Shadies. Sit Slim Shady Stefan "here next to Britney Spears..."
	Thanks to Marty for sending this picture. He is underneath the Drunkbot 2000 costume, which had blinking lights and everything. Pretty cool. He's a TSC major and knows several people I work with, which I just discovered. Small world, huh?

	In 2001 I finally broke the Britney habit (sort of), and dressed up as Lola from Barry Mannilow's "Copacabana" which, for some unexplainable reason, I love. Notice the yellow feathers in my hair. Lecia was Poison Ivy, and I don't know why I am standing so close to her, as I'm severely allergic to poison ivy.
	Larkin opted to go as Hugh Heffner, and got all the ladies, especially those that worked well as accessories: Playboy bunnies. Oh yeah, and I won best costume at his party. Thanks for the rum, guys!
	Stefan was Ace Ventura, and his hair looked amazing. He had been growing it out for a little while and took advantage of it for Halloween. Dan went as Harry Potter, and was a chick magnet. He even had a wand, lightning bolt scar, Firebolt broom and the golden snitch.
	I don't know who this guy is in real life, but I recognized him immediately as Phillip the Hyper Hypo from Saturday Night Live. Apparently I was one of only a few who knew who he was supposed to be. If you haven't seen this great Mike Myers character, watch old reruns of SNL on Comedy Central until you do. He's hilarious.
	On Wednesday (the 31st), Dan, ShaLo, Lecia and I headed for Georgetown. Although there isn't anything in particular to do there, it is still fun to see all the other people dressed up in their costumes. Thanks Mom and Dad for letting us crash there overnight. For fear of being cold, I broke out the Oops! outfit again (because the Lola outfit doesn't cover much), and ShaLo was Holly Golightly from Breakfast at Tiffany's.

	In 2002 we decided to do a group costume: Mystery Inc. I was Daphne, Daniel was Fred, Shank was (supposed to be) Velma, and Stefan was (supposed to be) Shaggy. Shank couldn't make it out because he got held up at work (at Verizon) for several hours and was (understandably) not in the Halloween-y mood. I guess the mantra is true: Verizon never stops working for you, even on Halloween.
	This was Cameron's first Halloween, and as luck would have it, he was Scooby Doo. Kathy says that it was the only costume they had left in his size (and which he wouldn't be embarrassed about later, i.e., a bunny). So of course we had to get some pictures with him. Cameron didn't care for the tie-on Scooby head. Still cute though!
	When we got over to Kathy and Billy's house Cameron was getting ready for bed, so the costume came off soon after the picture was taken. The glasses were part of Daniel's costume last year (as Harry Potter) and were supposed to be for Velma this year. I think Cameron would make a good Harry Potter in future years.
	Daniel and I went out to Champps for a late dinner because it was too cold and too late to fight traffic to go to Georgetown. Champps was one of the few places where everyone dressed up. Even though Shank couldn't make it, we ran into another Velma there (and she even came armed with Scooby Snacks).
	I knew I wouldn't find Daphne's outfit hanging on a rack somewhere, and I didn't want to bother Kathy's mom again (she helped with my Britney Oops catsuit). So I learned how to sew. I made Fred's ascot, my scarf, my headband (including a bra's hooks to keep it tightly in place), my dress, and I used an old pair of shoes and painted them lavendar to match the trim. I also made Shank's red skirt (because it would be impossible to find one in his size in a store), John's Domo-kun outfit (below), and colored my hair auburn and bleached Dan's hair blonde.
	John went as Domo-Kun, the mascot for a Japanese satellite network. I think he was a little embarassed to wear this because not too many "normal" people (i.e., non-computer nerds) recognized him. But because I made this outfit, I had the right to make him put it on and parade around CC3 (the AOL building where he works) and see people's reactions when he said he was there to fix their computers. I think it brightened everyone's Halloween.
	Here's the picture Domo-Kun is most often recognized for in the US (this picture has been floating around the internet for a while now).

	I usually start planning what I'm going to be for Halloween during the summer. I hadn't figured anything out by mid-August when I dragged Dan to see Pirates of the Caribbean. When the movie was over, I turned to him and said, "I think I know what we can be for Halloween," and Dan got even more excited than me.
	Needless to say, we loved the movie and the characters, and thought it would be tons of fun to look and act like them on Halloween. Here is a picture of us posing like Captain Jack Sparrow and Elizabeth Swann when they are marooned on the deserted island. (Too bad I don't have a beach in my back yard to make the picture perfect.)
	Dan and I agreed on the deserted island scene because 1) that would explain why only Jack and Elizabeth were around (and Will Turner and/or Captain Barbosa weren't), and 2) because it seemed that they were the most managable costumes to make—trying to make one of Elizabeth's more elaborate costumes would have been a nightmare. Yes, once again, I sewed both costumes. Dan did his part too. He stopped shaving the day we saw the movie so that it would have enough time to grow in .
	Mikki and Ben came with us to Georgetown. Mikki went as Little Red Riding Hood, and Ben went as the Big Bad Wolf AS Grandma. Notice that the Big Bad Wolf found fake boobs to wear also. He must be very resourceful to have found/made fake boobs in a cabin in the woods.
	The only sane way to get to Georgetown on Halloween is via the Metro. Our car was full of people in all kinds of costumes. Here we have a girl in a black dress, a cat, a dog and dogcatcher, Ben, Dan, Mikki, me, a jockey, The Hulk, and a pimp.
	Dan ran into some friends whom he knew from way back at JMU. Here's his friend, and also one of the several Roy Horn and Montecores we saw that night. What a great costume! Morbid, but very funny.
	The weekend before Halloween Dan and I were out getting last minute costume stuff at CVS when a guy came up and asked me to help him get some makeup to blend in the skin-colored horns he was going to wear (he was going to be a sharp dressed Satan). I was wearing a JMU shirt, and he said that he had gone to JMU as well. While at Third Edition, a bar in Georgetown, I spotted him. Turns out he knew some old friends of Dan's (who were also there). I guess it's a small world after all—no, wait, wrong ride. I mean, Yo ho! A pirate's life for me!
	Ben was smart since he had a dual costume. When it got too hot or he wanted to have something to drink, he could take off the wolf mask and be Grandma (before the Big Bad Wolf ate her). Good thinking Ben!
	This is as close to the Caribbean as we got on Halloween. But considering how awesome the weather was (it was the start of an Indian summer), I'm not complaining.
	We spent most of the night at Third Edition, but later we went to Lulu's which is about six or seven blocks down M Street. We ended up not staying there very long, since it had been a LONG night and Mikki's feet hurt (I got to wear comfortable shoes this year, flip flops). Then we walked another four or five blocks to get to the nearest Metro stop to go home. Check out the contents of the basket. It's filled with Mikki's socks, shoes, and hood, Ben's wolf mask, and who knows what else.
	The metro ride home was much tamer than the one to Georgetown. Oh look, Ben has stripped off the nightgown and boobs too. Is it obvious from this picture that we were tired? Hope everyone else had a great Halloween. Stay tuned for next year! I wonder what we'll be then...
	Halloween Aftermath: Dan hadn't shaved around his mouth in over two months, and considering he has never had facial hair, he couldn't be happier to finally shave off the mustache and goatee. Having his goatee put into two braids for so long might have made him a little crazy. I call this his System of a Down picture.

	In 2004 I took on making more costumes than I could really handle, but it was worth it. The first costume I finished was for my friend Rob. He went as (High) Towelie, from South Park. The best part of the costume was the gimmick we came up with for it. I sewed pockets into the costume and filled them with small white wash cloths. Then, if he saw a hot girl that he wanted to talk to, he could hand her a wash cloth and say (in Towelie's high-piched voice), "Don't forget to bring a towel." And if he was bold drunk enough, he could write his phone number on the towel before handing it to said hot girl. (If you haven't seen the Towelie episodes of South Park, you probably won't get the line.)
	I also made Dan's costume: Stupdendous Man from Calvin and Hobbes. The only way I kept my sanity during the Halloween season was liking all of the costumes that I was busy making.
	My coworker Starla was helping me brainstorm up costumes for Halloween this year and suggested Justin Timberlake and Janet Jackson from the Superbowl. I knew it would be challenging to make, daring to wear, and I'd definitely be the only one out there. Starla pointed out the minor detail of me being white, but that wasn't going to stop me. Hello? Makeup!
	Because I wasn't going to know until the last minute if Dan would be in town, I decided to make plans with Ivy to be my "accessory." He was a great sport, cutting and bleaching his hair, and also creating his own costume so that I could focus on the other four. Check out the Compare page to see how similar he looks to the real Justin.
	The costume that I underestimated was Spaceman Spiff. I put off starting Larkin's costume until four days prior to the Halloween festivities beginning, and ended up having to take a day off of work to finish it. And had I bought spandex like I wanted to, it probably would have worked better and been more comfortable. But each year I learn more and more about sewing, so when I have children, they will have the best looking and longest-lasting costumes around.
	Halloween weekend started out with a trip down to JMU on Friday night for some apartment parties and BW3's (where I ran into Shanelle and Patrick—small world). After going to the Homecoming Game...tailgating party on Saturday afternoon we headed back to NoVA for some additional parties, and karaoke.
	At Rico's party in Ashburn. This party was crazy. The decorating was crazy, and they even had two professional Dance Dance Revolution pads. I need to get that game (oh yeah, and a PS2).
	It seems like Little Red Riding Hood is always a popular choice for the ladies (see Mikki's costume in 2003).
	On Sunday (Oct. 31) Ivy, Hans Hoffer, and I went to a Red Skins game. I thought it was appropriate to dress up for the event since the inspiration for my costume came from the Superbowl. Most people didn't recognize my costume when I was fully covered, but when I walked around post-"wardrobe malfunction" everyone got it immediately and asked to take pictures with/of me. We had a great time.
	For 2004, Wonder Woman was a popular choice. I think subconsciously The O.C. had something to do with the costume's popularity this year. (Summer dressed up like Wonder Woman for Seth the prior Chrismukkah.) Here's Kate and a random Wonder Woman at a bar in Georgetown. Kate's costume is better.
	On Halloween night, Lecia, Kate, Ivy and I went to Georgetown to see all of the great costumes. See some of the best below.

Lecia with Lt. Jim Dangle (from Reno 911!)	Me with Raoul Duke (from Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas)	Lecia (the cowgirl) and Kate (Wonder Woman)	Me and Mr. Clean	Me and Barf (from Spaceballs)

	This year it was hard deciding on a costume. There weren't any major incidents in 2005 that would make for good Halloween costumes (like Janet and Justin in 2004). And let's face it, natural disasters aren't fun. So Dan was not going to be Tsunami, and I was not going to be Hurricane Katrina. I finally decided to go with what I thought would be really cute costumes: Buddy and Jovi from Elf.
	Originally I wanted Larkin to be the Office Space guy (covered in Post-It Notes), but he didn't love the idea, as it might be a fire hazard. Point taken. That idea was out. So I decided to make him a cult member from Dude, Where's My Car?'s Zoltan cult. Ryan and Christi were also looking for costume ideas, and when it comes to a cult costume, the more the merrier.
	Rico (who is a very big fan of Halloween also) was the one who originally recommended doing the Elf costumes, so I am forever in is debt. He and his girlfriend (after changing their minds about costumes no less than ten times) dressed up as a Trading Spaces duo, complete with hard hats and official shirts.
	Friday night we went to a party that I found through Craig's List. It was great because everyone there...well, all the guys there had great costumes on. ALL the girls were dressed as slutty something-or-others. Slutty devil, slutty nurse, slutty Dorothy. You name it, and there was a slut version of it there.
	Although the party was held by total strangers (to us anyway), we ended up running in to several people we knew. Small world. Here's a great example of a stellar costume. This outfit is 100% duct tape (including the tophat).
	My friends Ben (Jesus) and Dan (Buddha) are also big into Halloween. They went for the religious theme, and were a little worried people might be offended. No worries, everyone was cool. People were more disturbed that the hot Smurfette (Mike) was actually a guy.
Fire Marshall Bill	Buddha, Silent Bob, and Jovi	Buddy Christ with Silent Bob	Jovi and Smurfette	Good vs. Evil
	Here's a tip for guys: The best way to get a girl's attention is to have boobs of your own. Then, when she feels yours, you get to feel hers. Part of what made Mike's costume so wonderful is that he made the skirt himself because he didn't know that they don't sell white shoes or clothes after Labor Day.
	Dan Bui's goal was to make it onto my website. Congratulations Dan! You made the cut.
	Not a costume, just plain scary. Kathy has decided that if she doesn't get to have a third child, this hairdo is how she will threaten her husband. (That's Dan's wig, by the way.) [Update Summer 2006: Kathy is pregnant with TWIN boys, so she won't have to sport this 'do after all. Thank goodness!]
	Griffen was a Zoltan cult member too, though she didn't like it. Saturday night we went to Georgetown, to what has become our regular Halloween spot, Third Edition. I was not disappointed with the turnout or great costumes there.
Two Smurfettes in Georgetown	Jesus, Magic 8 Ball, Smurfette and Buddha	Magnum P.I.	Jake the Snake, the Ultimate Warrior, the Iron Shiek, and Roddy Rod Piperson	Our gang
	Buddha and Jesus
	Everyone apparently loved trying on my hat and wig. Here's Ryan with it...
	...and Dan with it. So Halloween 2005 was fun. Just wait till next year...