This week brings a plethora of birthday celebrations, as three of my friends celebrate natal days in this week and my mom's birthday is today. Dan and I had flowers sent to her at school in honor of her big day. I'd hoped to be able to fly out there for a visit, but a) we've spent a ton of dough on trips to CA in the past year and change, and b) I've spent the last five weeks traveling so I'd kind of like to stay at home, and c) I only get to see Dan on the weekends so had I gone out I would have gone two weeks without seeing him, essentially. I realize it's kind of silly considering the first year and a half of our relationship we lived in 2 different STATES and saw each other maybe once a month, but in the past several years have living together I've grown accustomed to seeing him all the time.
A blog that I read sometimes had a contest earlier this month for people to send in stories and/or photos of the best or most memorable costumes they've ever had. I didn't see the post in time to send anything (and I couldn't top the winner anyhow) but it got me thinking about costumes I've worn.
When I was little, my mom made my Halloween costume every year. I was a tomato plant, a princess, a clown. One year I don't remember what I wore but my sister went as a flower in a flower pot (an old lampshade frame covered in brown fabric was the pot) and she won the fire station's costume contest for her age group. Her prize was a My Little Pony puzzle, and I was So Jealous.
As I got older, my costume ideas got more unusual. In the fifth grade I decided to make my own costume - I was "Over the Rainbow" and drew the Oz characters on a mortar board, wore the most colorful and stripiest clothing I could find, and constructed a rainbow-shaped cardboard hat, painted like the rainbow. I think my dad helped by drawing some birds on cardboard that I cut out and attached to the top.
Unfortunately, the only photographic evidence of this costume that exists is in my fifth grade yearbook. And it's a b&w photo. Maybe someday I'll scan it.
In sixth grade, I decided to be Mac Tonight. Not Mac the Knife. Mac Tonight, from the McDonalds commercials with the guy playing the piano who had a moon head. My mom helped make the moon head, and surprisingly, a few people knew who I was. I was a gypsy, a spider, Scarlett O'Hara. In college, my costumes were mostly put together at the last minute and involved lots of makeup. I never did the sexy/slutty thing, though.
Then, in December of 2000, I saw the movie The Nightmare Before Christmas on a big screen re-release. I loved it. I loved Sally in particular. Then and there I decided to grow my hair out so I could be Sally for Halloween of 2001 - and I did! I rented the movie a few times so I could get it just right; I sewed that costume by hand, painted my face blue, dyed my hair red. It was a great costume. Since then, my costumes have been, for the most part, not as exciting. Dan and I dressed as Lucy and Charlie Brown my first Halloween in Colorado, Dan even going so far as to shave his head (save one lock over the forehead). Since then, I've been out of town for work most Halloweens so I haven't gotten much into costuming, save two years ago when I made Dan a Max from Where the Wild Things Are costume and I went as Pippi Longstocking (henna'ing my hair again).
I love costumes, and I love to dress up. The Dorothy costume this year was hand-sewn for my 23rd birthday party (a costume party, natch) and the only new part was the ruby slippers. I think they turned out pretty well, though if I ever intend to wear this costume again I should really get a different blouse. Dorothy-Busting-Out is not the best look.
The question is what Dan and I will do tonight, and tomorrow night. We have a lot of options but haven't made any decisions about what we will do. There are concerts, parties, pillow fights, and there is a slight possibility we'll get a few trick-or-treaters, though when they don't wear costumes I just get kind of pissed off. Because if I'm 29 freaking years old and dressed as Dorothy and you want me to give you some candy, you're going to have to do better than Crazy Normal Looking Kid Wearing Regular Clothes. I mean, even Adam Sandler was more creative than that.
(Most photos were taken on Sunday after we attended the Obama rally. Dan's got photos he took at the rally here.)
2 comments:
Being the owner of a black leather jacket in college, Bad Sandy from Grease was always my go-to costume for a span of about 4 years. When I was younger, my mom slapped a skirt, some pantyhose & a scarf on me and called it a stewardess costume. I've always wanted to go all-out and rent a kick-ass costume, but for the past few years I've either been busy on Halloween or had no parties to attend. SOB.
Mac Tonight! Moonhead! I love it!
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