Photo courtesy of Izzy Nino de Rivera, taken at the Cambria Scarecrow Festival.

  Fall; the leaves are changing, and so are people’s moods. Many San Luis Obispo High School students differ on the emotions that engulf them this time of year, either with a new found excitement or hatred. Whatever way, stuffing a scarecrow could help relieve the anger of the cold weather coming or confirm the exhilaration. 

  Let’s start with the basics, it is known that scarecrows used to act as a shield over crops and predominantly were found in large fields where hay was in abundance and so were crows. Now in urban San Luis Obispo the threat of crows taking our crops is minimal as well as hay, so scarecrows are put up in the county for fun. One big event that includes scarecrows is the annual Scarecrow festival, held in Cambria, where hundreds of scarecrows are put on display for the public to see. But do all of these scarecrows use the classic straw and hay filling?

  “The most common is recycled plastic and the least common is straw,” said Paulla Uffeirhede, the President of The Cambria Scarecrow Festival.

    Recycled plastic is very beneficial but what about recycled socks where the matching pair has been stolen by the washer machine, or dogs hair that has been freshly groomed? These also are recycled and offer a more comforting and plumping effect to the scarecrow at hand. 

  “I have an excess of tomatoes in my garden so probably tomatoes,” said senior Zoe Bumen. 

  While this is a great idea, it may be counter productive as it could cause more scarecrows to come and could depict a murder scene. 

“I’d stuff my scarecrow with soccer balls to give it a plump look. Also it would be hard and take on a shape easily scareable to a crow,” said senior Reece Candaele. 

  In the end, what a scarecrow is stuffed with does not make the scarecrow, but rather the fun it ensued. If you make a scarecrow this season make sure to send Expressions a picture to keep the fall spirit going. 

Send pictures to [email protected] today!