November 2 completes the elegaic trifecta of Halloween, All Saints Day, and All Souls Day, celebrated in California and other Latino-influenced cultures as the Day of the Dead.

In San Francisco, folks gather on Mission Street near 24th outside the Mission Cultural Center, parade down 24th St. and the mural-lovely Balmy Alley, then end at Garfield Park.

The mood of the event is somewhere between festive and somber. You’re as welcome to dance in a skeleton costume as you are to march soberly while bearing the picture of a departed loved one.

While the event has been a popular one for many years, it’s never attracted the out-of-control crowds and drunks that afflict Halloween in the Castro — see previous entries over the last two days — and remains a family-oriented, neighborhood-y thing.

The only minus points are awarded to desperate Mission District hipsters and Burning Man types who feel compelled to bring their faux-tribal drums. I hate those guys.

For more information, see Upcoming.org.