friday random ten: “Hallowe’iner” edition
At the office this morning, I was visited by a trio of co-workers collectively wearing hot dog, ketchup and mustard costumes and handing out “treats” of ketchup and mustard packets. It’s going to be one of those days, and I’m okay with that.
This kind of surreality is one of the reasons why I like Hallowe’en so much. It’s a holiday that has traditional practices, but all of them really seem tailor made to be jumping off points for self-expression and creativity. Costumes or jack-o-lanterns, they’re all about taking an idea and turning it into something tangible; and most importantly, just about anything goes – “weird”, for one day (or, occasionally, a weekend) at least, is considered a positive. For a lot of people on the edges of the mainstream, despite the whole disguise motif, it’s a rare chance to actually express a bit of themselves in public and not be the target of looks of disapproval or derision.
It’s a great release, since once October’s gone, much of the world slides headlong into the “holiday” season, and for those of us who find it difficult to get into the “holiday spirit” (as defined by narrowly defined traditions and forced merriment), the rest of the year can be a challenging time, given the sensory overload of sleighbell-infused pop arrangements, marketing-influenced iconography, and clueless but well-meaning people constantly telling you to “Cheer up! It’s Christmas!” everywhere.
anyway, tunes:
- “H.W.C.” – Liz Phair
- “I Believe” – R.E.M.
- “Who Knows” – Avril Levigne
- “Virginia Wolfe” – Indigo Girls
- “1963” – Dimensional Holophonic Sound
- “Vaya Con Dios” – Les Paul & Mary Ford
- “My Body is a Cage” – Arcade Fire
- “Giant Robot Birdhead” – The Aquabats
- “Baby’s Coming Back to Me” – Jarvis Cocker
- “Fixing a Hole” – The Beatles
Oh, and for the record, this year’s office costume is my usual casual friday kit with a pair of twisted yellow renfaire horns. They’re subtle, and (despite my male pattern baldness not hiding the cord much at all) it takes people a few minutes to notice; that slight awkward delay is fun.
