Halloween

[elSicomoro]

When I lived in Philly, it seemed like people put up lights for every holiday: pink for Valentine's Day, green for St. Pat's Day, orange and yellow for Halloween/Thanksgiving. I have seen some houses here in St. Louis decorated with lights for Halloween...maybe holiday lights (beyond Xmas) are a nationwide thing these days. I guess I'll see over the next several months.

[xoxoxoBruce]

From Christian Century , Nov 15, 2000.

In 1999 Halloween became the second-biggest American holiday, based on the amount of money spent on decorations. According to Unity Marketing, Americans spent $659 million on Halloween stuff in 1999, pushing it ahead of Easter into the No. 2 spot. (Christmas is easily No. 1, with $1.9 billion spent on decorating.)

From How-stuff-works

Halloween continues to be extremely popular with kids of all ages; 85 to 90 percent of U.S. children go trick-or-treating or engage in other Halloween festivities every year, and many adults also join in on the fun. In a 2000 poll, the National Retail Federation found that 65 percent of U.S. adults between 18 and 34 attended Halloween costume parties or other celebrations.

Halloween continues to be extremely popular with kids of all ages; 85 to 90 percent of U.S. children go trick-or-treating or engage in other Halloween festivities every year, and many adults also join in on the fun. In a 2000 poll, the National Retail Federation found that 65 percent of U.S. adults between 18 and 34 attended Halloween costume parties or other celebrations.
In the United States, Halloween lags just behind New Year's Eve and the Super Bowl in total number of parties, and it's second only to Christmas in total consumer dollars spent. According to the National Retail Federation, U.S. consumers spent an average of $44 per household in 2002 on Halloween candy, costumes and decorations. Familes with young children spent an average of $62. The 2002 holiday brought in about $6.9 billion in sales in the United States.

From Pittsburgh live

Spending nationwide for Halloween is expected to hit an estimated $3.29 billion, up 5.4 percent from the $3.12 billion spent in 2004, according to the National Retail Federation, which began tracking Halloween spending in 2001.

We're talking big bucks here, but the per person isn't that bad unless you want it to be.
There will always be somebody on the block that wants to be "The Joneses"

[Elspode]

Wolf, but the SpongeBob costume, then make a great big penis out of yellow sponge, attach it to the BVD's, and you'll be prepared for any eventuality.