Secondly, some tips to help clean up after the not so happy halloween has occured. Just remember, for the most part, what happens on halloween, the toilet paper, shaving cream and more, is nothing personal. I would have to say that most of the time it's just some kids having a fun time with pranks. It's all in good fun, and think back, did you do the same exact thing to unsuspecting people when you were one of "those punks"... HAH!
The every so beautiful toilet paper strewn across the yard, over the trees, through the bushes, and if they were really talented, over the house to the other side! I have yet to clean up such a mess but I do remember being one of those punks and causing it... (Sorry about that by the way...) Anyway, you wake in the morning to look outside and notice the beautiful decorations, thinking "GREAT THERE GOES MY SATURDAY!!! GRRRRRRRRRRR". But it really isn't that bad. For one, toilet paper tends to fall into pieces quite easily, two, it really doesn't last long so maybe you just want to keep there for decorations anyway.
If cleaning it up is your goal you have two options, the first, grab your hose and plan on spraying water into the air for the next 3 days... Or two... Follow some simple steps.
- Let the sun come up and dry out the morning dew
- Start high up with a ladder, taking pieces from the roof line and trees. For hard to reach pieces you can use a long stick with duct tape inside out, using it to grab the pieces you're unable to reach. Get as much as possible into a garbage bag because if the ground it wet the toilet paper will turn into a big glue'ey mess!
- working your way down you'll now notice the mess that did end up on the ground. If you waited for the sun to come up and dry out the yard it's not a problem. Get your leaf blower and blow it all into the street.
- Clean up the pile you now have in the street, or jump in your car and drive up and down the street at 100MPH spreading it for miles into the lawns of your neighbors. (would opt for choice one)
EGGS! As harmless as they are, they can wreak havoc on car paint! (though they do make an addicting "THWAMP" when they burst open). The main problem comes from two sources, one, when the egg breaks out of it's shell, the shell shatters into small pieces and depending on how good of a picther the egg had, said pieces can scratch the clear coat or more into little rings! Sometimes being able to be buffed out, other times not, well, not so lucky. The other problem is that if the egg itself is left too long it can be quite corrosive to the vehicles paint so be sure to wash it off ASAP!!! Seriously, don't even drive to work, grab the hose and wash off as much as possible so that when you wipe it down you're not wiping egg shell fragments down the paint. Then use a good cleaner and soap and wash the rest off. I'm sorry to say that some damage could have already been done but if you're lucky you'll be free and clear with only a few minor scratches...
OH BOY! Shaving cream, now that's a fun one. It sprays out and behind are left such great designs, or by the stupid kids in town, their names. (yes, I had a friend that once did that, STUPID)... The good news, even though your entire car may be covered, it's not as bad as it may seem. Chances are good that by the time you woke up the shaving cream has become nice and hard. Crunchy even. Not to worry, just grab the hose and wet it all down, it should just begin to wash off. HOWEVER, you still need to give the entire car a good wash because some of the chemicals in shaving cream can be harmful to the cars clear coat. Especially if you just let it sit there for a couple days knowing that it will rain soon enough... But all in all, not a big deal.
Pumpkin Mess:
The deal, just wash it off. The main issue is that when a pumpkin hits, small or not, if it hits your car, yea, you're screwed, they dent. Wash off all the pumpkin vomit and call the body shop... Sorry.
On another note.... Last night I picked up an older man who was walking down the street, it was about 40 degrees, windy and getting dark. I know, not the smartest of things to do right. Well, I just felt like he needed a ride. His back hunched over, hands tucked under his arms to keep him warm, taking small steps that were not really getting him far at all. Maybe he would have killed me, stolen my car, drank my diet coke, who knows. I just had this feeling that he needed a ride.
So I pulled over and his eyes opened wide, he stood up straight and just about skipped over to the car. Getting into the heated car, I could just see a new energy come over him. And not the "I'm going to kill you energy"... But the, I'm not going to freeze to death tonight energy... After chatting, Steve here, had lost his job in Kansas a few weeks ago, lost his apartment, had been living in a shelter with out a place to go. Finally calling his family in Maine, they happily offered help if he could get home. They're not well off so they couldn't really help him get back, but they did say that if he could get back, he would have a place to stay, a warm bed of his own, meals and help to find a new job. He was walking from Kansas to Maine, gave up on hitch hiking and was trying to stick to the back roads so that he could at least keep walking where on the highway he would have to just wait for a ride. And not only that but he spent the entire day going West on rt. 202 instead of east, so here he was back tracking what he had already walked. His words "I ain't never hitch hiking again, it's scary, cold, and I've been living off smokes since I left"... Anyway, I got him at least another 10 miles closer to home, stopped and bought him some dinner and wished him well. Steve was so grateful for just that small ride and meal, a big smile and thanks all around and right then, I knew I had just made this strangers day.
Now I don't say this so that I feel good, I just say this so that every one else can see how easy it is to just lift another souls spirits. To bring a bit of light into someone elses day and give just a little hope on their journey of life... Am I this wealthy individual with so much money that I can go buying every stranger dinner, nope, but I do know that I was heading home to a warm house, and that I would be picking up some dinner for the family and I would be getting into my own warm bed with my family all in for the night....
Just keep in mind that what you believe to be such a simple mundane thing can be the world to another, that a smile can bring light into darkness and that even when things may not seem to be going "so great", there's always someone trying to get through a harder time.
