Since I was a wee child I have loved to play dress-up.
With my imagination and a few hand-me-down clothes and scarves and hats and discarded bits of fabric, I managed to travel the seven seas and to see the deepest jungles of Africa and to soar in rocket ships to the moon.
It seems a logical next step then, as an adult, to enjoy living history organizations and cosplay and community theater and Halloween costumes, (nothing scary, thank you).
While Pete does not fully understand the desire or fun I find in putting on other characters, he supports me and cheers me on. He often advises on what looks right or what to add or subtract.
And I am indeed also fortunate to have friends who enjoy this type of creativity!
In recent years, opportunities have presented themselves for me to put together personas...
...I have played doctor at the Henry Doorly Zoo to fix kids' toys at Teddy Bear Clinic...
... I have worn outfits suitable to 16th century Istanbul in the Society for Creative Anachronisms...
... I aged considerably when I dressed as a little old lady (complete with baggy stockings) for a costume contest...
All fun and presenting their own creative challenges.
And each time I put together a personality, I try to be as exacting as possible and then "stay in character" while I'm dressing the part.
The devil, they say, is in the details, and I work to include as many of those as possible.
Anyway, when I found myself going to a meeting and costume contest this year, even on short notice, I knew I had to put something together.
With the pandemic yet on our minds, I could not resist putting together a medieval plague doctor.
Early on, when the world first shut down for the pandemic, I thought it amusing to research and make the mask.
Sadly, upon completion, I did not see when I would have an event where I could wear it.
So, I set the mask aside to wallow in pandemic isolation and did not complete the outfit.
When I learned the costume contest this year was going to happen, I remembered the mask and quickly cobbled together a "passable" costume.
After I got it all together, I put it on and snuck up behind Pete. He said he nearly jumped out of his skin and said that the costume will startle lots of folks...
Hmmm... no skill is ever wasted...
all those hours putting together trips to Africa and the moon from found items sure can pay off some sixty years later.
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