How Whimsy Got Its Groove Back

Hey there, all...

I love holidays. :) Most people seems to balk at the idea of setting aside a certain day to do something silly, or give gifts, or do whatever, but I adore the chance to pull a bit of reality off of people's eyes and expose folks to little bits of...well, unordinariness every once in a while.

Today's Halloween! I've been campaigning for people to wear costumes into work, mainly because my boss (One of them, anyway, Charles) told me that everyone had to wear a costume or I couldn't get away with it. He didn't mean it, of course, but it provided me with enough ammo to twist people's arm. "Wear a costume Thursday, or you'll ruin Halloween for *everyone*!"

I wore my kangaroo pooka suit to work today. The only ride into town left at 6:30 a.m. (thanks, Arlekin!) so I had a *lot* of time to kill before my shift began at 9, or even before Charles got in at 7:30. So, I stood in front of the Bookshop and gave candy to passersby, and waved to commuters and parents taking their children into school. I *forgot* how much fun it is to just...do something random.

I used to wear my pooka suit to work at Mr. Burger when I worked there, and someone asked me why I did it. I couldn't quite say why, but I think I've figured it out now. It *is* about the shock value, but more importantly it's about shocking people into letting their guard down and just genuinely enjoying a moment. I love the look on people's faces when they see me...they're going to work, bored, or a million thoughts in their mind as they think about...well, things they want to do that day, and then suddenly, there's this random idiot in a bright blue suit with a kangaroo tail, decked in a floppy hat with floppier ears. There's surprise, and then their face just kind of melts into a smile. The surprise makes the emotion genuine, and for that one moment there's pure enjoyment. I lived for that kind of thing. Whimsy is a powerful thing. :)

It's been a really long time since I've gotten swept up in something. I should lose restraint a bit more often. :)

In other news, my computer bit it *again* last night. Just froze and made weird noises. I'm pissed about it, since I happened to be doing something I *really* enjoyed at the moment. I think the CD drive is the culprit, so I'm going to ask around about getting a replacement...in the meantime, I'll probably only use the comp as a word processor until I can get new parts for it...Joey says I should save up about $300 to get a new motherboard and hard drive, and go from there, so that's what I think I'll do.

It looks I'm going to be camping out and (maybe) seeing "Rent" alone after all. Poop.

Still, I'm in the best mood I've been, like, all year. :)

Things to do today:

1. Write the first week of Boomer Express and mail it off to Tyrnn.


2. Mail ??Salvation?? character sketches to Potoroo.


3. Send blackfeather words of encouragement for NaNoWriMo.


4. Clean up my room and get laundry done.


5. Begin Attempt No. 5