And from the shadows walks 2 devils... horns almost scraping the ceiling... black shaggy fur... sharp claws... ... ... stop... silence... sit... wait... stare... everyone down... they all looked away... they smiled... said we played a good game... then left... everyone started to breath again... I guess some childhood fears never leave...
... But I kid you not... they were surprisingly scary... scary enough that... even though I'm out of food right now... I'm will not go shopping because they have free reign after dark... anything goes...
"Back when my brother was young... he tells me... if you saw them you had to run... fast... They have these wooden sticks... if they catch you out after dark they hit you with them... Right there... in the back of the leg... and it really stings... ... and if you give them trouble... the black mask they wear is ink, charcoal, and soot... they take their finger and rub it on your face... and it is really hard to wash off... or they rub it on your clothes... and it completely ruins them... and they're scary... look at them...
... I don't know why...
... It's tradition... it's our culture... once a year..."
"In Thailand there was these 3 kids sitting on a wall... about this high... 1 meter 70 maybe... and the one kid dropped something off the wall... he called over to me... asked me to pick it up... and so when I leaned over and I was like this... they dumped 2 buckets of water all over me... That is how they celebrate New Years in Thailand... by dumping water on other people... I never knew... and this is what they do here..."
"But here... it's St Nicklaus day... he is like Santa Claus but he has a pope hat and a pope cane... and he walks around with an angel and a devil and asks the kids if they've been good... he usually gives them some small present... something for them to eat... and the devil takes the bad kids away...
... That is the morning...
... Then it's only the devils in the afternoon... huge heads... giant black horns... black face... shaggy monster getup... (like the guys from 'Where the Wild Things Are')... they have bells on them so you can hear them coming... and... as I said... you hear bells... you run... because all afternoon they chase you... they go door to door sometimes looking for kids warning them to be good... ... ... or else... kids cringing behind their parents... this is the stuff of nightmares... but right in front of your face..."
"It's really good for the kids... the rest of the year if they act up... we tell them... you be good or we send you to the devil... and then no problem..."
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