Faire...not Fair!

I was fortunate enough to be able to take my family to the Renaissance Pleasure Faire today.   Now depending on your persuasion, you may think that the only people at a faire like that are only interested in talking funny, dressing funny, and acting funny.  THAT would be a gross generalization!  You are only part right.  The people who work at the faire are like that.  The people who go to the faire are only mostly made up of those people.  In fact, the responses to, "I went to the renaissance faire." fall into two categories.

"OH cool!  I love going there!  Did you get a turkey leg?!"
and
"OOOOh.  You go to that place.  Do you...um...dress up?"

It's easy to see, in the first twelve seconds, why people would respond with hesitation.  It has the possibility to  be the conversational equivalent of mentioning that you like photography and nature to someone who owns boxes of slides, a projector, and a sheet to hang on the wall.  Tread lightly is always a safe bet.

I can tell you that only 50% of the family dressed up and one of those only dressed in 50% of the costume.  I will also tell you that Sylvia was the one in 100% of a costume, lest ye thinkest indecentest thoughts about myest wyfe.  Jake only wore the peasant top to his costume since the last time we came was about 6 leg-inches ago and his bloomers had a little more bloom than he was comfortable with.  Kristiana and I are perfectly comfortable to pretend like we are in the zoo watching all of the people wander around...some of them in 50% of their costumes as well...in a different way.

It seems that there is a set of people who have clothing that does not fit into societal norms.  These people don't seem to care that the time period that their clothing represents is hundreds of years beyond the renaissance period.  All that seems to matter to them is, I get to dress up and it's not even Halloween!  Among this group of faire goers is a sub-set who think, "I have a bikini top made out of two patches of rabbit hide.  I'm sure loads of women wore these in the 1400's!"  Add to those, the women who were trying to reverse gravitation via corset and you have an interesting collection of outfits.  Sylvia wore a corset of sorts but she would have come in a respectable last place in an 'indecent use of a costume' contest.  No matter how much Kristiana prodded, Sylvia would not cinch any tighter than modesty allowed.

We told the kids about the last year that the faire was in Novato, CA.  Growing up we, invariably, closed the faire.  That is to say, we were always at the very back of the grounds when it was time to close and we were ushered out by knights shouting, "The Faire is OVER!"  We explained that the last night of the last time it was to be in Novato, at the Black Point Cutoff, we were ushered past a group of revelers who had decided that the final time they were to be in this location was going to be clothing optional.  Luckily the kids were still wee ones and we didn't have to answer any questions.  Also the celebrators, wisely, did not ask me to join in the jiggly parade.  The kids spent the rest of the time at the faire this year saying, "Is it almost the end?  We can go home before the end right?"

So now, THE FAIRE IS OVER! and the 100% of the costumes have been put away.  We did leave before the end, end of the faire so we don't know if a tradition had started or not.  In order to sleep at night I am going to assume no.  And rest assured, if you come to see me at my classroom this Halloween, I will be wearing 100% of my costume...maybe even 150%!