Moment of fear...

Have you ever had it happen where you are alone, but in public, maybe having a quick lunch at a local cafe, when something startling happens, something to make the entire cafe jump -- like perhaps a large boom sounds outside, or the power suddenly goes off -- and immediately when it's righted, everyone looks around in embarrassed relief, and maybe you lock eyes with a stranger and shrug and giggle in a "whew! aren't we silly!" sort of way?

I think what that moment is really saying is "I thought for a moment that we may have only had 90 seconds left to live, and I'm letting you know that you are the one I'd have spent that time humping."

chicken man

Chicken Man (with apologies to EAPoe)

It was warm in fall and far from home,
      in a port city down by the sea,
where was met a man fully stark of dome
      whom people would gather to see;—
And this man knew not how fate would lead
      to him giving a chicken to me.

I was a guest and he was well-known
      at this conference down by the sea,
but I watched him speak and my notes read "rrrow"
     as he stood on the dais before me.
By evening I knew would come the event
      that would introduce he and me.

The evenings were ours to explore the streets
      of the old city there by the sea,
to talk of hoodoo and grisgris and far-flung adventures
      and the nature of reality.
So that in the depths of the lengthening night
      I asked him to come with me,
to further explore the growing affection
      even a three-legged pig could see.

We laughed in the dark and continued to talk
      although long days had made us giddy—
yes!—that must be the reason that he exclaimed
     "I have slain a monster!" with glee.
"Tell me, tell me!" I begged, as he pressed me downward.
      "Read my fucking book" growled he.

So the conference ended, and our paths diverged hence
     me to my hollowed-out city—
     he to his red-dusted kitty—
And neither the angels of providence
      nor demons of productivity
Could ever dam our excited exchange
      via every technology.
 
Then on my favorite day, the PO wrote to say
     that they held a package for me.
In the midst of the crowd, I laughed out loud;
      the man had sent a chicken to me.
Of posters and postcards, of ties and surprises,
of the strangest exchanges and best interchanges,
     I will always hold dearest my plump Little Betty—
     and the man who gave a chicken to me.

 — July 2012

Were I made a different way

Were I made a different way
My homes could have been more peaceful.
    no falling walls
    no trembling beds
    no murmuring just outside

Were I made a different way
My nights could have been less eventful.
    no peering giants
    no banded snakes
    no shadow men at my bedside

Were I made a different way
The hauntings could seem endless.
    the temperature jump
    the vibe in the air
    the force holding me in place

Were I made a different way
The terror could be relentless.
    the weight as it sits
    the hand on my shoulder
    the leaning in close to my face

Were I made a different way
To believe would be so easy.
    in profligate myths
    in fanciful notions
    in the weakest, most superstitious fears

As I am made the way that I am
I know that it’s all chemistry.

— 8 January 2013

NYE 2012/2013 Snake Headdress

I woke up feeling poorly on New Year's Eve morning. Everyone has been sick lately, but I knew I wasn't dealing with the flu that's been going around. What I didn't know was how long the blech was going to last, or whether I should commit to plans for the night. Turns out, I felt much better by early afternoon.

This meant I had to get serious about whether I was going to a party I'd been invited to...and if that meant I was going to make something special to wear. Isn't that 80% of the point of a New Year's Eve party? Besides, I figured making something would help motivate me to actually GO.

Based on something I'd seen online somewhere (don't ask me, I spend so much time looking at random pictures I could never retrace my steps), I decided a snaky headdress would be neat and...unrelated enough. So I dragged ass to the dollar store and got supplies.

A side note to that trip. As I was standing in line at the Dollar General, checking my email on my iPhone 5, I noticed the woman standing next to me, also checking her email on her iPhone 5. In line at the dollar store on my iPhone, next to a woman on her iPhone. Of the several ways of reacting to that situation, I decided to silently congratulate us both on our priorities.

So, basically, snakes, wire, plastic headband, chrome spray paint (which never ever EVER dries on soft plastic, so don't paint rubbery snakes and then set them on anything like, say, your flesh, while wearing a necklace made to match, as you will have a big silver paint print on your chest by the time you get to the party, even if that does wind up a pretty funny story).

I have to figure out what to do about that, actually, the never-drying situation.* I'm wondering if maybe I lightly dust them with talc, or even dry-brush some black or dark grey acrylic on them...and then I stop thinking about it because, seriously, how often am I going to wear this? I'll just store it pointing upward so the snakes don't fuse to anything.

When I arrived at the party, the general response was, "Cool, you made that, right? ... Nice blouse, you made that, too, right?" My reputation precedes me, dontcha know.

*The answer is primer. There probably isn't anything I can do about plastic I've already painted: the headdress is always going to be tacky. I did a test last night with a similar toy and a spray primer, which I then finished with the same Krylon chrome spray, and it turned out great. The reason I'm so devoted to finding a solution is because Krylon chrome spray paint is awesomely chromey. It just seems to never cure on plastic. Now I can chrome all the toys I want -- and that IS going to happen.

**I spoke too soon. While the initial drying phase worked out well, after the plastic/primer/Krylon piece had set for a few days, it also become unusably tacky. Quest continues.

By the way, here's something I've recently concluded. Posting whole how-tos on this site is pointless. They're time-consuming, and I don't think anyone actually looks for/reads them. I keep my own notes for techniques that I need to reference, so anyone with questions will just have to ask.