nyc and halloween and me.
in Thoughts and Feelings
as adult daughter, alligator man, benefit of the doubt, body, bridge, brooklyn bridge, cheeseburger, craziest, daughter, dental hygiene, five cents, halloween, newsies, Newsies-obsessed, NYC, NYC--that, own eyes, pop, shake shack, tutu
I did it.
Let me be more specific.
Halloween in NYC–that’s what I did.
And it was just as crazy as one would expect.
Though, maybe the craziest part was not the five or so people who made up the Brooklyn Bridge.
Or the huge alligator man, complete with moving and snapping jaws and a grandiose, sweeping tail.
Or even the guy just walking around in speedos.
I’m not sure what his costume was supposed to be, exactly, but he sure did leave an impression.
Just watching him made me clutch my jacket around my shivering body a little tighter.
But the craziest part might have been this Newsies-obsessed family we met, made up of an adult daughter and her two parents.
They kept on going on and on about Newsies.
The daughter was dressed as one.
Though, I couldn’t really tell if she was wearing a costume or not.
I mean, it’s not like she was peddling papes for five cents a pop or anything so helpful as that to give us a clue.
“Maybe her blackened teeth were part of the costume…” my friend Leao wondered, after they had finally stopped talking to us about Newsies and had moved on.
“It’s not like Newsies are known for poor dental hygiene, though,” I pointed out.
Still, we liked to give her the benefit of the doubt, anyway.
And now I not only know, but I have seen with my own eyes each and every song from the Newsies sound track that’s on this girl’s ipod.
Because simply telling me that she has the soundtrack just doesn’t do it, I guess.
And I also know about the Newsies blog she created, as well as the 30 female characters she added to the story because, NO FAIR! THE ONLY FEMALE ROLE IS THAT ONE LEAD’S SISTER!
And she only got to sing one line.
Anyway, they were interesting, for sure.
Well, and strange, too.
What was also interesting and strange was eating a cheeseburger at the Shake Shack in my tutu and corset. Those kinds of things just are not conducive to eating. And if you must eat–well then, a cheeseburger isn’t exactly the first thing you naturally reach for.
And Leao and I walked in the Halloween Parade in the West Village tonight. It was ridiculous and hilarious and freezing and fun and one guy dressed as the Black Swan sure did want my tiara.
Sorry, man–get your own tiara. This one’s being used. Clearly.
But way to sport both a tutu and a beard; I’m guessing that doesn’t happen a ton.
I’ve never been in such a jostling and cattle-like crowd before. I think I could have lifted my feet from the ground and not even moved. But I was too busy clutching my purse and trying not to get separated from Leao to try it.
Oh, I also got glitter-fied. Captain Glitter (it’s okay, I’d never heard of her before either) found me and asked if I’d like some glitter.
Hello!
Who says no to glitter offered by Captain Glitter herself?
Yeah, not me.
So then I became sparkly.
Nice.
And I also informed Leao that next year I will be a Sasquatch or a polar bear or maybe even a beluga whale. Basically, something warm. Cause this little black swan was so cold tonight. And here’s a new definition of commitment for you: walking down 6th avenue in pointe shoes.
FOR FOUR HOURS.
So yeah, I was not sad to take those off at the end of the night.
And I’m not sad to be warm now.
Or to be going to sleep.
Which is my cue.
Good night.
change everything.
in Performance, Thoughts and Feelings, video
as art, benefit of the doubt, black, black and white, complexities, douchebag, hand gestures, pop, realization, song, strange things, way
Oh, here you go.
It’s a song.
I wrote it recently and so far, have only played it for my pop. He seemed to like it very much. But he seems to like most of what I do. It’s the things that I don’t do that he seems to not like as much. Like when I don’t vacuum my room. And when I don’t turn off the fan in the bathroom when I leave. Something that I haven’t forgotten to do in a very long time, you’re welcome, pop.
Oh, but this song. It’s called change everything. It’s about art and my perspective and how important the act of making art is to me. It’s about how the world isn’t black and white; I’m sorry, it’s not. And part of that realization has helped me understand that people can do terrible, hurtful things to each other and still love each other. That the two aren’t mutually exclusive, though to hurt someone isn’t exactly being loving, don’t get me wrong.
But we are all many different layers and complexities and yes, let’s try to keep it simple, please, but let’s also realize that sometimes we’re trying our best just to give each other the benefit of the doubt even though the last guy was a total douchebag. And sometimes we’re learning how to walk and we stumble and we fall down and as we do, we accidentally hit each other on the way to a hard landing on the ground. Or maybe it’s not an accident. But either way, not much is black and white when it comes to our hearts and our responses and our views. When it comes to us.
And so here I am. I respond to life by making art and it helps me immensely. I am not sure if that is selfish, but I am sure it’s necessary.
Oh, and I am aware that I do some strange things when I sing. Like hand gestures. But what are you gonna do, I guess.
