green is universal

Are Green Treats Bound To Get You a Trick?

Dear Mr. Green,

What are some good green Halloween treats to give that will help avoid any tricks in return!

Happy Halloween!

Dear naughtiness or nibbles,

A ghoulish parade of miniaturized witches, ghosts, devils, demons demanding booty or threatening delinquency? It sounds like Halloween to me! And this time it lands on a Friday, meaning the little fiends can be out later and longer. Booooooooooooo!

First, let me say that no matter what treat you choose to give. I can't think of anything that might protect you from being tricked as well--you know - getting TP'd, or having a lighted paper bag filled with doggie doo on your front step (and you know what happens when you stomp out the flames with your foot--I do have cleaning tips for that, though! But that's another story.)

Personally, I'm a huge fan of Halloween. But nowadays the commercialism of the Halloween Industrial Complex (the costumes, the make-up, the candy, the decorations, etc.) all being sold before Labor Day, has made us buy into thinking that we need store-bought All Hallows gear in order to parade (or ready our kids to parade) under the cover of darkness. I'm happy to tell ya' - it doesn't have to be so polished and it surely doesn't all have to be purchased. And eco-wise, the carbon footprint of a store-bought costume is huge when you think about it--plastics and shipping and packaging--Oh my!

When I was a kid Halloween was SO different than it is today - and I'm not even that old. My twin sister, Mags, and I would begin talking about costume ideas with our mom months in advance...a spooky witch, a fairy princess, the Bride of Frankenstein. (These were my costumes...you should have seen the getups my sister wore!) Our outfits - glamorous or ghoulish, scary or funny - were entirely handcrafted and made out of old sheets, cardboard boxes, markers, paint, recycled newspaper for papier mache, and clothes rescued from a bin of hand-me-downs. We used reusable brown paper shopping bags (hand decorated), old handbags and totes and - in a pinch - even pillowcases to carry our trick-or-treating haul. It was all just supposed to be fun...we spent more time and effort on Halloween than we did money and energy, that's for sure.

Once the sun went down, under the cover of moonlight and darkness, traveling in groups of kids from our neighborhood spanning ages from six to sixteen, we'd scramble up and down staircases ("Trick or treat, smell my feet, give me something good to eat!"), wiggle through alleyways, scream as loud as we could as we wildly ran through darkened parks and paraded safely through our small town from door to door collecting candy and treats. And since we were all misbehaving under the collective watchful eye of our entire neighborhood, safety wasn't always the necessary concern that it is today.

I remember arriving home after a night of both tricking (there were incidents involving shaving cream filled mail boxes and even doodles and initials scribbled onto windows with bars of soap) and treating followed by spilling the booty of snacks and creative gifts I'd collected onto the living room floor. Just thinking about that wonderful moment of going through the treasures brings a smile to my face.

And much like then, today - for Halloween at least - the best stuff, eco-conscious or not, is still the best stuff. Kids will always be kids and the safest and most creative options will always be the ones that score big every time.

For terrific Halloween giveaways my favorite items, then and now, have little or no packaging. You know...stuff like:

• coloring books
• crayons
• erasers in fun shapes
• fruit snacks
• organic chocolates
• pumpkin seeds
• flower or vegetable seed packets
• locally produced treats from local merchants (saves on carbon footprint!!)
• a page of stickers
• mini-pumpkins
• popcorn balls wrapped in wax paper
• fun pens or pencils
• a handful of pennies...


... or any other inexpensive items you can find at your local dime store (are there any left?) or more likely, dollar store.

And if you're an adult with plans to participate in your community's Halloween festivities remember to have your lights on, your porch decked out to greet your ghoulishly goofy young guests, and have mountains of safe and fun treats on hand. If not, expect your house to get egged or TP'd...it is "Trick-or-Treat" after all.

about mr. green

From re-gifting, re-cycling, to natural cleaning products for your home, Mr. Green has all of your ecotiquette answers. Our Mr. Green (aka. Michael De Jong), is the author of "CLEAN: The Humble Art of Zen-Cleansing." He lives in Jersey City with his partner (Richard,) dog (Jack,) and three goldfish (Phil, Jill and Gill) all of which benefit from his natural cleaning techniques. De Jong, who cleaned apartments in New York City while working as a fine artist, began researching and inventing many of the recipes in "CLEAN" and is continually experimenting with safe, effective and eco-friendly alternatives. Raised in the mid-West by an immigrant family that valued the environment and re-cycled before it was fashionable, his quest for non-toxic solutions comes naturally to him. He is currently writing a companion series of "CLEAN" books dealing with such topics as the body, first aid, organization, and food, as well as posting a weekly Blog on www.thedailygreen.com. "CLEAN: The Humble Art of Zen-Cleansing" can be purchased at Barnes & Noble stores across the country or on-line at www.barnesandnoble.com or www.amazon.com.

Click here to send him a question and he'll put in the elbow grease to scrub out the answers!