January is, perhaps, the strangest time on the countdown to Halloween. The classic cliche of "so close, yet so far." So hopeful, yet so hopeless. Sure, we can now say "this Halloween"...but it feels further away than ever, as all the remnants of last Halloween have gone for good. November hurts, because the countdown resets then. So many days, weeks, months to go until the world transforms again. An entire year. And yet, it somehow doesn't seem so far away, as the sky clouds over in mourning and the remaining decorations, maybe forgotten, maybe triumphant, move in a sudden breeze as if to say, "It did happen. It was real. " These little scraps of leftover Halloween are the strangest combination of sadness and hope. It feels so far away, yet so close at the same time. As if the door hasn't shut quite yet. If December doesn't slam the door in your face, though, January certainly does. Any stray pumpkin that may have survived November, Thanksgiv