We’ll never know how it got to be the end of October already, but when it comes to milking Halloween for all it’s worth, Nashville has you covered. So bust out your crazy costumes and see how much of this you can fit into one weekend. We dare you. Also, we love y’all a whole lot and want to make sure you stay safe out there. Miller/Coors is partnering with Nashville MTA to provide free rides tomorrow night from 7pm-1am, or you can give Zingo Nashville a call to get you and your car home safely, or you can add GoFastCab to your phone book to book your cab by text.

FRIDAY, October 30th

• Nashville Zoo’s Ghouls at Grassmere. 5pm-9pm, Nashville Zoo. Tonight’s your last chance to round up the kids and head to Nashville’s wildest (or at least furriest) Halloween bash. You’ll find trick-or-treating, haunted hayrides, games, costume parades, and obviously some really cute animals. Say hey to Gumu for us! See website for ticket prices.
• Team Green Adventures’ Bone Bash. 7pm, Cannery Ballroom. Party it up for a great cause with the Arthritis Foundation. Music, games, and costume contests with ticket and silent auction proceeds going to the foundation. $25 GA/$55 VIP.
• The Hallo-CREAM Party. 9pm, Mercy Lounge. Just some straight-up good music brought to you by our friends at the Nashville Cream. Matt Friction and the Cheap Shots, Tallest Trees, Chris Crofton, and however much more good music they can cram into one evening. FREE.
• Shocktober: Rocky Horror Picture Show. Midnight, the Belcourt. Our favorite local theater is getting into the spooky spirit with two midnight showings of this Halloween classic on Friday and Saturday nights. Unfortunately, both showings are sold out, but you might have some luck on Craigslist. This one also comes with a live cast.

SATURDAY, October 31st

• Halloween Hoedown at the Hill Center. 8am-6pm, Hill Center at Green Hills. Free fancy reusable shopping bags to the first 200 Whole Foods shoppers (if you can peel yourself out of bed at 8am), costume contest with loads of great prizes, outdoor concert at 2pm, tons of local vendors… yes please! FREE.
• Franklin PumpkinFest. All day, downtown Franklin. We won’t even try to explain what this entails, except to say that it’s one of our favorite events of the year. And there will probably be caramel apples as big as your face. Head over to the official website for a schedule of adult- and kid-friendly stuff. FREE.
• Nashville Symphony’s Halloween on the High Seas. 11am, Schermerhorn Symphony Center. Class it up a bit when the Nashville Symphony and the Nashville Ballet team up to play some spooky tunes from Pirates of the Caribbean and other pirate-y favorites. $25.
• I Run For The Party Halloween 5K Fun Run. 3pm, Divison St/ Music Square East. Run a 5K, drink some beer, party in the streets.
  
• Nashville Predators vs. Dallas Stars. 7pm, Sommet Center. If you’re looking for something decidedly un-Halloween, then please, for the love of all things holy, go cheer on the Predators to another win. They need some love. $26+
• Yazoo Halloweast Pub Crawl. 7pm, Five Points. If elbowing your way through a boozy crowd of hundreds and hundreds of people, then join Yazoo’s classic annual crawl between 3 Crow, Red Door, the 5 Spot, Beyond the Edge, Battered & Fried, and Drifters BBQ. And if you make it to all six of those bars, you probably will be crawling.
  
• Stryper. 7:30pm, Wildhorse Saloon. Laugh all you want, but nothing says Halloween like aging 80s glam-rockers in a sea of denim, big hair, and spandex. $15-$45.
  
• Avett Brothers Halloween show. 8pm, Ryman Auditorium. We would be remiss if we didn’t mention this one, but unless you’ve got your tickets already, you’re out of luck. And remember, the folks at the Ryman are cool with Halloween costumes, but absolutely no face masks will be permitted including fake beards. So if you were thinking about dressing up as an Avett brother or Iron & Wine or Jesus or something, leave it at home.
• Zombie Zulu: Night Of The Drunken Dead. 4pm, French Quarter Cafe. Watch Shaun of the Dead on a giant screen, listen to some live music, shake your undead booty, and drink some beer. See website for ticket information.
  
• Hustler Hollywood’s Nightmare in Music City ’09. 9pm-2:30am, Mercy Lounge & Cannery Ballroom. It wouldn’t be Halloween without a giant party at Mercy Lounge. Indoor and outdoor DJs will be spinning all night long, five bars with drink specials, a free photobooth to immortalize your sweet costumes, and we also heard something about  “GIANT HEATED TENTS” in case it’s actually cold outside. $15 GA/$50 VIP.

SUNDAY, November 1st

• Jacksonville Jaguars vs. Tennessee Titans. 3:05pm, LP Field. Witness history with the Titans’ first win of 2009. We hope! $43+.

If we missed anything, leave it in the comments!

Photo by sweetvenus.

Related posts:

1. The Weekendist: Super Bowl Sunday Edition
2. The Weekendist: Flowers, Film & Roller Skates Edition
3. The Weekendist: All Circuits Bent Edition
4. The Weekendist: Apples To Apples Edition
5. The Weekendist: Not Quite Snowed In