The village of Elbridge is prime real estate on Halloween night, which is why I make it a point to be at my parents’ house on Brown Street.

Each year on Oct. 31, my aunts and uncles, cousins and family friends all gather to admire the most creative costumes, coo over the cutest kids – and hear the funniest jokes.

Yeah, we’re that house. I can say “that house” because we hear it every year. When the kids come walking up the front porch with their eager eyes and open pillow cases, we explain the rules: if you’re over five, no candy unless you tell a joke or a riddle, or do a dance or sing a song. Most kids roll their eyes and moan, “oh man, THAT house!”

This year, though, trick-or-treaters came prepared.

“The joke is our costume,” one pair of girls told us before the door was open all the way. They were dressed in black with the letter ‘P’ on the front of their shirts, and black circles around their eyes.

“We’re the black-eyed peas. Get it?”

So, yes. We are “that house,” and proudly so. You could consider our ritual an attempt to hold children to a higher standard; but the truth is that it’s just a novel way to fill a cold October night with warmth and laughter. As it turns out, it’s just as fun for the kids.