Carving a Jack-O'-Lantern

This is another addition to my Halloween Guide for Dummies (and foreigners).

Its come to that time of year again. The jolliest time of all. When children run door to door singing in a cornucopia of pitches, the merry Carol, "TRICK OR TREAT!" Its Halloween again. The only holiday worth celebrating. It has no religious undertone in fact some argue it goes against religion, and before I get all political its the only holiday that embodies the spirit of FREE CANDY! Now of course with candy comes many other aspects of Halloween. I already covered the Halloween costume and now I'll cover the Jack-o'-lantern.

The Jack-o'-lantern has a long history. In Ireland and Britain lanterns have been carved from vegetables and gourds for centuries. The lanterns were given their current name in 1837 in the United States and first associated with Halloween in 1866. Since the original menacing face was carved on a gourd centuries ago many more have been carved in the spirit of Halloween with the soul goal of making the scariest pumpkin.

Here is my how-to guide to carving pumpkins:
Step 1: Pick or buy a suitable pumpkin (shape depends on what you want to carve, but round is a good standard).
Step 2: Stand the pumpkin so the stem points up.
Step 3: Take a pumpkin carving knife or another suitable knife and cut a circle through the pumpkin exterior, with the stem at it's center. Make sure you cut at a slight angle pointing inwards (this will be your lanterns lid).
Step 4: Take a spoon or scoop and remove all the seeds and flesh from the inside of the pumpkin scraping it clean (these can be saved to make delicious snacks like baked pumpkin seeds).
Step 5: After removing all the pumpkin guts you can begin the fun part, carving the SCARY face. If you have a chosen design take a marker and draw said design on if not I have supplied the best design.
Step 6: First carve out two triangular eyes (point up).
Step 7: Carve another triangle for a nose in the center of the pumpkin (again point up)
Step 8: Now carve a large crescent with the points both pointing up (add as many teeth as you want but usually teeth are sparse).
Step 9: Carve a triangular hole in the lid as a chimney to let smoke escape and air in.
Step 10: Place a tea-light or candle in the bottom of the lantern and light it.
Step 11: Place your Jack-o'-lantern on the front porch to scare the neighbours.

There you have it, a scary Jack-o'-lantern to be proud of for more information or inspiration go to these websites:
Cool Jack-o'-lanterns
Gusick's Jack-o'-lanterns
15 Incredible Jack-o'-lanterns