warm up winter

Wow. Time for another update already? Well, its a dark moon, or was on Sunday, so i guess it is. As usual, its been a crazy-busy two weeks. Since the last time we talked, i created a fabulous Astarte costume, learned to play the Polish National Anthem on my accordian, got called in to consult on sending on an unquiet ghost, quit smoking, found another of the elf figurines i collect, had a holiday dinner at elder daughter's house, spent a lovely evening catching up with my sister-in-lawless, realized a childhood dream of becoming part of the Xmas display in the window of Higbee's downtown, lost my voice just in time for opening night, and started to decorate the apartment for Yule. That seems like maybe a smaller list than last time but i assure you, i've been plenty busy.

First, Astarte.
She appears as a character in the original play we're producing this holiday season at the Liminis: "Aporkalypse!. Now as it happens, i'm a bit familiar with historical Astarte, who was represented as looking like this:
which wouldn't exactly work for us here. Not that we've any strictures against nudity. If anything, the combination of long skirts and snakes would have made some of her choreography difficult. So i opted for something more bellydancer-ish (a choli top and baggy pants) but in gold lamé. Gold cuz its all middle-eastern yanno *cough*. The result, which i do not yet have a picture of, is rather a drag version of Princess Jasmine, especially since her headpiece is constructed out of cheap glitter xmas ornaments:
Oh, i had fun making that. i really wanted to get a tree-topper spire thing to put up above the star, but she apparently crawls in between one actor's legs at one point, so no spiky headwear. Alas.

This same play is why i learned the Polish National Anthem, as well as a little ditty called "Sow Took the Measles". Aporkalypse was written by local playwright Chris Johnston, with the convergence crew in mind. And the actress who would have originally played the mother figure can pick out a basic tune on accordion, so once again my instrument was cast and not me - how does this keep happening? However, she had to decline the role due to other commitments, and the actress who replaced her does NOT play. No problem: Chris just re-wrote the scene to incorporate two new cameo characters who come carolling - and just like that, in addition to costuming i was suddenly IN the play as well, with lines and everything! (The other caroller is played by my friend Joe, who really *knows* how to play). Sadly, i also caught my mother's cold on Thanksgiving, which became laryngitis the night before we opened. i only have five lines, so i stayed silent right up until we went on and somehow managed to croak them out at an audible level - but the general consensus is i had tranny-man voice.

The ghost is less interesting a tale than it seems, at least from my perspective. A dear friend's neighbor passed away, and he felt the spirit was still wandering their duplex. i wasn't able to sense it in the short time i had, and i've been assured he's since gone on to wherever such spirits go. i've never tried to lay an unquiet ghost and don't really know what i would do or have done had i Sensed him. Circumstances did not allow me the time to tune in and find the spontaneously 'right' course of action i'd hope to have chosen, so whether i can or could have done anything remains unanswered.

The elf figurine was a wonderfully lucky stumble that i probably should not have splurged on, but couldn't resist. i don't know anything about these figures other than they come in several sizes, they're almost always seated, almost always holding or playing an instrument, and they appear to be from the early-mid 60s. There's no markings of any kind to help identify them, and googling 'elf figure' is too vague to be useful. i have half a dozen or so more of them, but its been nearly five years since i ran across the last - which is the rare variant seen in the background here.

Most of the ones i own are in storage with my beloved gnomes, so i'm not quite sure how many i even have - about six small ones, i think, another medium seated one like the one i just found, the unusual standing elf, and the prize of the collection, a large seated elf in luxuriant gold-trimmed red velvet.

And speaking of velvet..
Certainly the high point of the last two weeks was appearing at the lighting ceremony downtown as the Snow Queen. As you may know, i perform as a living statue. A month or so back, i saw an ad for the lighting ceremony and had the brainstorm that i could perform and stay WARM if i had a nice cloak! So in the spare moments i had not costuming the play, i made myself a lined white (ok, panné) velvet cloak. With a thrift-store blanket sandwiched in the middle; the cloak turned out to be as warm as a coat.

The dress was left over from the bridal veil job i did a few weeks back: i had to detach the bodice from the skirt, because while the skirt fit, that tiny bodice was never going around my giant earth-mama bosom. If i do this again, i'll do a better job with the bodice than just pinning it to a blouse, but i only had a little time to get it together. Of course the piece that really drew it all together was the crown:
And you thought i had fun making Astarte's headpiece! i want to try my hand at some more crowns in the future, possibly for the Fairie Festival next spring (*if* i get on the stick and get my application in, eep!) Since part of the time i was performing i was out on Public Square, i did encounter a higher-than-normal volume of street people. One of whom snarked in passing that my outfit must have cost a fortune - well, if i'd bought the dress new he'd be right; but in fact the whole thing was put together for under fifty bucks.

The really cool part, tho, was getting to be in the front window of Positively Cleveland, which occupies the space that was once home to Higbee's Department Store. If that name sounds vaguely familiar to non-Clevelanders, its because that exact same window is the one the kids have their noses pressed to at the start of "A Christmas Story". The Santa scene was shot on the ground floor, when the store fixtures were all still there - sadly, much of its gone now; although the panelling still exists.

That morning, i'd been upstairs in the Silver Grille, a name that conjures magical memories for anyone who grew up here. The Silver Grille was the fine dining restaurant up on the tenth floor. i'm not exactly sure when Higbee's was built, perhaps early-mid 30s? But its a great example of Art Deco design, and the tenth floor is still intact. One rides up the same classic old elevators and there you are.. i didn't walk around the corner only because i wanted to believe that if i had, i would've ALSO found the Twigbee Shoppe, Bruce the Spruce, and whatever magical winter wonderland the display department had put together that year.

The restaurant is closed now, but the room is available to the neighboring Ritz-Carlton for special occassions. My friend at Positively Cleveland had put together a brunch there that morning where people could come up and revisit memories of Christmases past. There was no appearance by Mr. Jingeling - another local tradition - as i believe the character was retired after Earl Keyes, the man who portrayed him longest, passed away. Anyway, i just realized that Mr. Jingeling resided on HALLE'S seventh floor; why, that was blocks away! Instead, those who attended got to listen to live music by Ryann Anderson ("Music that's like ice cream for your ears"!) and see the Snow Queen standing in front of the central fountain.

i could wax on (and on, and on) about my memories of past holidays downtown. My brother's birthday is the 18th, and my family would come in to town every year around then, to spend a weekend in a downtown hotel room, see the displays at all the stores, visit Santa and Mr Jingeling, do our shopping at the Twigbee Shoppe, and ride the miniature train around the base of the twelve-story tree at Sterling Lindner. Sometimes we'd have brunch at the Silver Grille, where kids meals were served in little cardboard stoves (!) but often as not we'd eat at - was it the Minute Chef? - that faced right out on the Square, with the mysteriously forbidden-to-kids Kon-Tiki Room just beyond.

Its hard now to capture how very special this was. Its a standing family joke that the year revolved around two poles for my brother: Cedar Point in the summer, and the visit downtown in winter; and as soon as one high point had been passed, he'd start asking how soon it was to the other. In these days of on-demand everything, there just isn't the same anticipation; and without the investment of energy and wishful thinking, the sense of the numinous isn't there when you do get whatever it is. We knew, if we missed that trip up to town, it would be a WHOLE YEAR before we'd see the little moving figures in the windows, get the key to Santa's castle, walk up and down the marble ramps in the Terminal Tower and experience all the other delights that were *only* to be found at that time of year.

The funny thing is, before he moved to California, my brother did several Christmases downtown - why, here he is as Tinsel the Elf, greeting baby Eldest Daughter:

i'd forgotten that one, to be honest. What i do remember is him as a Tin Soldier - first in the toy department at Halle's and later in the window at the May Co. i learned several of the living statue tricks from him, altho i don't think he called it that when he performed. After he moved to California, the tradition of the Tin Soldier continued, with another local performer in the role at Tower City. Last week, a quarter of a century later (!) i finally got my turn.

And that is MORE than enough blog for tonight. See you in two weeks people!