A couple in University Heights is counting down the hours until their favorite night of the year.
Paula and Andy Cameron love Halloween.
"Halloween is one of those few holidays where you celebrate it with your neighbors,” Andy said.
The couple has been celebrating with their neighbors on Maryland Street, and thousands of others, for more than two decades now.
They’re the creative team behind a little attraction called “Trick-or-Treat on Maryland Street.”
It’s a popular local haunt, due to its wildly theatrical and family-friendly environment.
"We don't do anything Halloween gore-ish. There’s no blood. There’s no jump out and shock you, or scream at you with a chainsaw or anything. It's all just atmosphere," Andy said.
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Atmosphere that is created almost entirely by the two of them.
Andy is the former sound and lighting director for the San Diego REPertory Theatre, and Paula is an actress and artist.
So they know a little something about drama.
To build the drama for Halloween night, they wait until just a few hours before sundown to put out the decorations.
"If we hang on, you know, it kind of builds the excitement,” Paula said.
The couple has a clock outside their home that not only counts down the days to Halloween, but to the appearance of their star attraction, an animatronic dragon named Norbert.
“They always look up and they say, ‘Dad, it's only so many days’, you know? And they're yelling and they're all excited. They just love him," Paula said.
Norbert is built from plumbing parts, bicycle cables, and an old fog machine.
And like everything else on Maryland Street, a lot of heart.
“You know when you were a kid, the thrill of coming around the corner and here's lights, and something's going on, and I'm gonna run down to that house and take a look. So, I love the idea of people coming around the corner and seeing the whole street lit up like that," Andy said.
