Smiley Anders for Oct. 24, 2012

Our Tuesday People section article about Baton Rouge Little Theater’s costume sale reminds me of my favorite Halloween costume from years past.

I still take some pardonable pride in its creation.

I decided to go to the Halloween party rather late, and didn’t have any idea what I was going to wear.

So I rooted through the closet and found the removable fuzzy lining for an old winter raincoat, which I had unzipped and removed because in this part of the world we seldom need such a heavy lining.

I then found an old skullcap of some kind; no telling where it came from.

To the cap I somehow attached, standing upright, a Cajun Injector I had bought to use on the Thanksgiving turkey.

And there was my costume.

I went as — are you ready? — the furry with the syringe on top…

Mower the merrier

I was delighted to learn that the Krewe of Yazoo, my favorite marching lawnmower team and a fixture at Spanish Town Mardi Gras parades, will roll in the Halloween Parade downtown at 2 p.m. Saturday.

The parade, with the theme “Boo on the Bayou — A Red Stick Apocalypse” has as its grand marshal former Gov. Edwin Edwards.

It benefits the Greater Baton Rouge Food Bank and the Children’s Hospital at Our Lady of the Lake. (Go to http://www.1031consortium.com.)

David Randall of the Krewe of Yazoo says he won’t give away the krewe’s theme, “but suffice to say it’s VERY Halloweenish.”

He adds, “Smiley, we’re dying to march in Saturday’s Halloween parade. Hope that doesn’t sound mowerbid…”

(So THAT’S why he told me about the krewe being in the parade — so he could sneak in that lousy pun…)

Consume with care

It just wouldn’t be Halloween without memories of disgusting and/or dangerous candy.

Joan Hall asks, “Does anyone remember those orange wax harmonicas by WowE-E from the 1960s, and ‘Corn Suckers,’ shaped like a shucked ear of corn, with a wrapped coin inside? Linda Allen, my sister, found a quarter inside her grape sucker.”

(Neat idea: coins inside candy. What could go wrong with THAT?)

Paint that church

When I got a note from Barbara Thibaut headed “Help Paint our Church,” I had visions of volunteers with buckets and brushes.

But she says it’s a fundraiser for historic Ascension of our Lord Catholic Church in Donaldsonville at 11 a.m. Sunday in the Donaldsonville Lemann Center.

It features “delicious Louisiana cuisine, a silent and live auction and raffles,” for a $50 donation. Call [phone].

Worthy causes

On Saturday the “Take Down Blindness” wrestling tournament at Live Oak High in Watson benefits Baton Rouge Regional Eye Bank.

Bouts start at 9 a.m.

Contact Coach Chris Collier at [phone] or [e-mail].

Looking for stuff

The kids in the fourth grade at Aviston Elementary in Illinois (just east of St. Louis) seek postcards, souvenirs, etc., from Louisiana for a project to learn more about the states.

Send stuff to: Fourth Grade, Aviston Elementary; 350 S. Hull St., Aviston, IL, 62216.

The boys in camo

After I mentioned that the, uh, unusual camo uniforms worn by South Carolina football players at the LSU game were Under Armour creations to benefit the Wounded Warrior program, I heard from Lise Anne Werlein, of New Orleans:

“Thanks so much for clearing up the dilemma of the South Carolina uniforms.

“I couldn’t decide whether they were leaving for Afghanistan after the game or they did not want to be seen by the Tigers.”

Hidden ball trick

Talk of ugly football uniforms reminds Doug Johnson, of Watson, of “the uniform I would like for my team if I coached.

“The jerseys would be covered with full-size prints of footballs.

“That should give a would-be tackler a little problem in determining who has the ball tucked under his arm!”

Short story

Don Simoneaux says, “Here’s a saying that may hit home:

“When confronted with my memory issues (or lack of), I tell the confronter, ‘I have a good memory; it’s just
short.’ ”

One Snickers over the line

Seasoned citizen Dudley Lehew, of Denham Springs, issues, “a warning for members of our generation who still like to go out and trick or treat:

“You’re too old to trick or treat when, if someone drops a candy bar in your bag, you lose your balance and fall over!”

Write Smiley at Smiley@the
advocate.com. He can also be reached by fax at [phone] or mail at P.O. Box 588, Baton Rouge, LA 70821.