Gosh, Is Jack-o’-lantern a Taboo Term?

Halloween is past, but remnants remain—and what’s better than pumpkins as Thanksgiving approaches. Already, my local Costco sells massive pumpkin pies. Why now, I cannot fathom. It’s not like they’ll keep.

Yesterday, I used Leica Q2 to capture the Featured Image and companion. The first is nearly a 100-percent crop, shot wider-open than the other to make some bokeh. Vitals, aperture manually set for both: f/2.8, ISO 100, 1/2000 sec, 28mm; 11:49 a.m. PDT. The second: f/5.6, ISO 100, 1/800 sec, 28mm; seven seconds earlier.

The hill, along Mission Ave, is where I first spotted Johnny more than four years ago. In 2017, when profiled in my “Cats of University Heights” series, he lived with a small colony of ferals. His caretaker took him indoors during summer 2021; he was the last left—and alone. The years, and life on the street, caught up with him. She did right by Johnny, and I understand that he’s happier for it.

Circling back to this post’s title, I really must ask: “Is Jack-o’-lantern a taboo term?” You have all these people losing their minds about gender identity and proper pronouns. Something about Jane-o’-lantern just doesn’t sound right to me. And you?