The real reason New Jerseyans don’t love Halloween

It’s no shocker that New Jersey isn’t exactly known for its Halloween spirit.

According to an article from ESPN, a recent study by J Bell Services ranked us in the bottom third nationwide when it comes to enthusiasm for the holiday.

And honestly, I get it.

We are the most densely populated state in the country. We are busy. We are harried.

We are packed in like sardines. We are realists and don’t have a lot of time on our hands.

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So even though we may celebrate Halloween for the kid's sake, the bottom line is we just don’t have enough damn time for it.

Even though Spirit Halloween stores pop up on every corner, it feels like the state just isn’t that into the spooky season.

Another reason cited in the piece is our lack of haunted houses. We rank fifth from the bottom, which is surprising for a state with as much eerie history and folklore as New Jersey.

You’d think we’d lean into that creepy vibe, but it seems like we’re just not feeling the scare factor.

And then there’s the candy situation.

New Jersey ranks third-lowest in interest for Halloween candy. That’s wild, right? Especially since we’re a state that definitely loves its food.

But that’s the point. We love food. So we don’t need junk food.

If you live in Wyoming, perhaps a fun-size Milky Way is a gourmet treat.

Maybe a Three Musketeers bar is considered a delicacy.

We have David Burke, people!

But here’s the thing – we do love a good costume.

Even if we’re not overloading on candy or haunted attractions, New Jersey still knows how to bring the creativity when it comes to dressing up. It seems like we’re more about the fun, imaginative side of Halloween than the traditional frights and sugar rushes.

So, while we might not be leading the pack in Halloween spirit, we’ve got our own way of celebrating.

We might be more low-key, but when we get into it, we do it with flair.

Like everything else we do here in New Jersey, we do it the way nobody else does.

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

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