Things are winding down here in the Coast Range. Hunting season is coming to an end, gardens are all tucked in for the winter and almost everybody has gotten the firewood in. To top it off, the weather has turned wet and blustery, the afternoons are shorter and the interminable election process is over! Even the roadsides are getting dull as trees finally lose their autumn leaves and red, white and blue political signs are collected and returned.

This is the season, when nothing much is going on, that country folks start to hunker down before the holidays.

In the midst of these doldrums, it’s not surprising that many of the Summit residents are still talking about the Halloween dance! The costumes were clever and colorful as usual, with a number of them winning prizes.

Earl Newman as “Frank” Einstein won in the “Brains of the Bunch” category. Hugh Cochran won “Mysterious Earthy Man of the Woods” for his leaf-laden costume. In the “Word of the Day: Greed” category, Freddie Mac (Vince Zettler) and Fannie Mae (Cat McKenzie) wiped up. Nobody could identify the Flower Man who claimed the prize for “Deepest, Dark and Evil as Seen on Fox TV,” but everyone recognized the winner of “Essence and Spirit of Summit” as Barbara Gast and “Kingpin of Summit” as Michael Riley.

The political and economic times were reflected in many of the costumes. One woman, “recently-made-redundant” by Hewlett-Packard, came dressed as a pink slip. Mark Scacco from the Blodgett Country Store came as Joe Six-pack with wife, Debbie, by his side dressed as Amy Winebox. Mr. and Mrs. Bigg (Tom and Pattee Empey) were busy soliciting votes, although no one was sure what office they were running for. And no one was surprised that there were several Sarah Palins.

As usual there were a number of minimalist costumes (a Santa hat or mask) and hippies.

To the disappointment of many, there was no Grand Parade this year. No one knows why.

Judges Debbie Boyd and Pattee Empey handed out locally produced jams, jellies and candles to winners in all of the categories.

While the costumes provided a great deal of entertainment, a local band from Burnt Woods, The Peoples Front, was the real show, providing a wonderful musical backdrop and some lively dancing music. With Jacques Gabriel on drums, Bob Daley on electric mandolin, Mike Riverstone on bass and Nicole Padilla on vocals, the band rocked the Grange Hall with its world-music beats.

This party had some “firsts” for Summit. It was the first time the new sound system, purchased last summer by the Summit Grange and Summit Community Educational Outreach, was used for a dance at the Grange. It was also the first time the group had put on its own light show for Halloween.

Most amazing of all, it was the first time in anyone’s memory that the band started right at 8 p.m. Even more amazing, it was the first time a band ended its performance at 11 p.m. sharp, despite the desperate pleas of the local night owls. And finally, a “first” most deeply appreciated by the party-goers was the decibel level. It was actually low enough for everyone to converse without shouting or leaving the building.

Nashville resident Kathi Downing can be contacted at ramdown@peak.org or 456-4252.