The weather reports say it's going to be pretty cold Halloween evening. The high that day is supposed to be about 30 degrees Fahrenheit.

Brrr…

It looks like trick or treaters will have to wear their coats over their costumes this year.

Or maybe they can use that parka to their advantage.

In 1991, an ice storm tried to ruin Halloween. School got out early that day. The power went out at my house that night and was out the entire next day.

But my brothers and I were still going to go trick or treating. Even if we had to bundle up.

I decided the best solution to the coat problem was to go as an Eskimo. I put on my winter jacket, mittens and pulled the hood up tight around my face.

I thought I was being pretty clever. No one else seemed to think so. Everyone looked at my funny or just kind of nodded when I told them what I was.

Looking back, they probably just wanted to give us the candy as quickly as possible and shut the door to keep the cold out.

Since I grew up in the country, going door to door in my "neighborhood" wasn't really an option.

Instead my parents drove us to town and we trick or treated at family friends' places and hardly ever any others.

We never came home with more than 15 pieces of candy, but that way we appreciated every Snickers and Milky Way.

Our last stop of the night was always an old neighbor's house in the country. We would stop in and visit for awhile and she would serve us hot cider and cookies.

At that point, our costumes started to disassemble. The masks would come off. Props would be left in the car.

One year I decided to dress up as a rock star and my mom let me wear lipstick to complete my outfit. At 9, I had never worn it before and it felt and tasted funny.

When our neighbor offered us treats, I stared at the bar on my plate. Not only would my lipstick come off, but I was afraid it would end up on my food and I would eat it.

I whispered to my mom whether I could eat wearing lipstick. She smirked, said yes and went back to her conversation.

I ate carefully anyway.

Other costumes presented other problems.

In second grade, I went as She-ra. ("She-ra" was a cartoon. Kind of like "He-man," but for girls.) It was one of those store costumes with the plastic dress you wore over your clothes and a mask.

I got in the car next to my youngest brother, who was about 2 years old, and he started screaming.

I asked why he was crying and my parents said it was the mask. I tried, unsuccessfully, to convince him that it was just me, but he kept crying.

I had to keep the mask in my lap until we got out of the car.

Other times I had a great costume, but illness threatened any trick or treating.

I caught a cold one Halloween, but there was no way I was going to miss out on getting to wear the cardboard, tin-foil covered wings and matching wand my parents had made for me.

A packet of Kleenex and some cough drops and I was ready to go.

Trick or treating, ice storm or not, can not be passed up.

So, kids, even if it's 30 degrees tomorrow night, don't miss it.

It's the one night of the year you can let your imagination run wild and get candy for it.

Cari Quam can be reached at 434-2235 or by e-mail at :mailto:cari.quam@austindailyherald.com