My kid’s Halloween basket was a textbook of dos and don’ts

I know we should all be thankful and gracious for the kindness of strangers. That on Halloween, America generally embraces the social compact that if cute kids come to the door in costumes, they get candy is an example of human goodwill in general.

Let’s face it, though. When you’re a 7-year-old kid, that candy feels like a paycheck you’ve earned. How good or disappointing that candy is is a childhood equivalent of how much that paycheck was gouged for taxes.

So, the following needs to be read through a 7-year-old’s lens, not the more gracious and humble adult one.

My kid scored this bucket of candy from generous neighbors last night, and I thought, as all parents do, oooh, what did he get? This can serve as a textbook case of Dos and Don’ts for the rest of us.

Do

You’re never going wrong with a full-size Hershey bar. This is outstanding. An A+ among kids.

Don’t

This Kinder is a gray area. It’s technically candy, sure, but this Italian-based candy brand has only been around since the '90s and feels sort of like a cheap NFL expansion team. The packaging never looks quite like candy, either, but more like that of a protein bar.

Do

Now, THIS is Halloween! M&M’s have been around since 1941 and are part of New Jersey history. Terrific choice.

Don’t

Pretzels. OK. Thank you?

Do

Skittles is a solid choice and a great utility player among Halloween candies. They may not be the star of the team, but you can always count on Skittles in the clutch.

Don’t

First, don’t give apples. Second, if you’re going to violate first, inspect, inspect, inspect.

Don’t

Yes, someone gave him a pencil. With the eraser broken off. Just, nar.

Opinions expressed in the post above are those of New Jersey 101.5 talk show host Jeff Deminski only.

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