A couple of Saturdays ago, our youngest son and his girlfriend decided to pay us a visit and spend the night. One of the things they wanted to do while in our neck of the woods was go to the local haunted house which was having its final evening of the season on Saturday…November 3rd. It was blackout night for the inside portion meaning they gave one or two people in the group one of those little finger flashlights to keep you from hurting yourself as you made your way through the haunt with no other consistent lighting. It was brilliant, adding a whole new level of fear since it was difficult to see areas and hiding spots until you were either right on top of them or just passing.
This is the part where I need to tell an important fact about my husband and his kids, they do not scary easily in haunted houses. No, they’re not the macho jerk guys who try ruin the experience by proving how brave they are in a made up in environment. They’re simply analytical so they more study the space and the actors. They know it’s not real so there’s nothing to be afraid of. I, on the other hand, immediately submerge myself in the show screaming and jumping…a lot. I’m not as bad as some but in our group, I’m the person the actors single out to pick on.
This dynamic of opposites allows for a surprisingly enjoyable time when Dave and I go to these places. Something we tend to only do when one of our kids is working at a haunt or they want to go and we’re nearby; we’ve never voluntarily gone to one as a couple otherwise. Dave is my shield when we walk through haunts and is quite accustomed to be pulled this way or that or whichever way I need to keep him between me and anything that could possibly scare me. I’m honestly surprised he doesn’t get whiplash. In a place designed to terrify, it’s not an easy job. It has the effect, however, of making him laugh through most of the show, not at the actors but at me as I’m hiding behind him or burying my face in jacket so I don’t have to see what’s following us. Occasionally someone startles him enough to make him jump slightly but I’m pretty sure most of the enjoyment comes from him “protecting” me…and finding my reactions amusing.
This last visit to a haunt was particularly enjoyable because our son’s girlfriend is a lot like me, except she she actively seeks out going to scary places. Can you imagine? She too is a screamer and a jumper, although she doesn’t pull our son around as much as I do his dad. I, at least, was able to laugh more as we made our way through the corridors of psycho clowns, deranged medical staff and rooms covered in faces, both the inside and outside areas. It was fun having another person around who made the actors feel good about how they were doing their job.
I like to tell the kids when they’re mocking me for being so afraid in these created fear factories, it is after all, about making the actors feel good about their performances. They put a lot of effort into scaring people and I want them to know they’re succeeding. Pretty sure they do not believe me.
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