Happy Halloween

The last week I have been working at the warehouse helping people rent costumes for Halloween.
This has been fun. It is like being a wardrobe girl as you get to find all the pieces that go with a costume and put it all together for the customer.
It has been really fun seeing some of the costumes come together. Today I dressed a pirate, a gypsy, a pheasant and a salsa dancer.
So here is the thing I notice. At this point in the game when we are just a day away from Halloween it seems like people are just paralyzed with the idea of making a decision. This is the point where you would actually have to commit to being a pirate or a roman soldier or a vampire or whatever.
I notice that a lot of people come having no idea what they want to be. The idea of making a decision is sort of overwhelming and so they try on things and then decided to maybe come back tomorrow. Really tomorrow. What about all the parties on Halloween Eve since Halloween is on a Saturday this year it means and extra day of parties. Some of these have turned out really fun and others still have no idea what to be so they leave no closer to a costume than before. It is kind of a bummer.
Sometimes people want to be someone. They don't want to explain that they are a pirate or a devil or a cavalier or Jane Austen. They want you to look at them and know that they are Little Bo Peep or a hippy or the Queen of Hearts.
The other thing is that people who procrastinate are also reluctant to spend money. I walked into work today to find that a costume I rented out the other day got cancelled. So I guess that people have this huge buyers remorse but what they don't realize is that maybe they could win a costume contest and pay for their Halloween fun.
Also at this point in the procrastination game people say "Oh I could buy that a black cape at Target for $15." Really? Have you been to Target? Cause I was there just there this morning and unless you are four or have four legs there isn't much selection left so good luck finding a cape at any of the cheap retail stores.

When I used to work in the costume shop at another theater where we did not rent Halloween costumes people were always calling around Halloween to find costumes. Here is how that conversation goes.
Customer: Do you rent costumes?
Me: We rent to schools and theaters who are doing plays?
Customer: Well it's for a school Halloween party/ fundraiser.
Me: Well it is going to be at least $150.
Customer: Oh No that's to much. Do you know anyplace that has costumes.
Me: (rattle off names of places who rent/sell costumes)
Customer: Do you have the phone numbers of those places.
Me: um they should be in the phone book or on the internet

King of Shadows

I'm off work and using the time to go see some plays.
When I tell people I work in theater I think they imagine that I get to see a lot of plays and I guess that technically I get to see the plays from a different perspective. But I do get to see a fair amount of shows.
The play "King of Shadows" by Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa at Pillsbury House Theater is a show that has been on my to see list since it opened at the beginning of (R)October. With only one more week left to see this show I decided to get myself down to the Pillsbury House and see it.
First of all I love this theater. It is in my neighborhood and it is small but they do really excellent work.
The play is directed by Randy Reyes and is about a homeless youth, Nihar, who is befriended by a social worker, Jessica.
Nihar, played by Qadir Kahn, is homeless and survives by selling sex. After Jessica,(Catherine Johnson Justice) interviews him for her book he asks if he can crash at her house for a couple of days. Jessica is the guardian for her teenage sister Sarah (Taj Ruler) and she is dating a cop, Eric (Josh Foldy).
Nihar predicts the weather and tells a story of the King of Shadows and the Green Lady who he believes stole him from his real parents and took him to live in their world. He is trying to escape The King of Shadows and the Green Lady.
Jessica wants to believe Nihar and to help him. Trust is a huge part of the play as Nihar has to trust Jessica enough to let her interview him and then he asks her if he can stay at her house and she has to trust him enough to let him stay.
It is suspenseful as you wonder what is reality and what is myth created for survival.
Overall I think this play is good and would highly recommend it to friends.

wash in delicate

My favorite baseball team is in the post season. After wearing my favorite Twins shirt for four of the last 5 days I decided it was time to wash it before going to watch the tiebreaker with friends.
When I posted my facebook status that I washed my shirts one of my friends (a Cubs fan???) told me that I washed all the "luck" out of the shirt.
OK first of all I was a little upset at her for jinxing my new favorite shirt but it is OK because I am a professional wardrobe girl.
As a professional wardrobe girl I have done my fair share of laundry with glitter and sparkles and lace and motifs. Needless to say I know how to take care of laundry. I think this extends to luck. I believe that I can wash a shirt without washing the luck out. I wash in cold water on the delicate cycle. I air dry or tumble dry low.
That is how a wardrobe girl keeps her Twins shirt lucky.