I'm Like Cinderella! I'm Going To The Ball! The Organ-Grinder's Ball That Is.

A writer friend of mine gave me two very good pieces of advice once. He said that if you were going to be a writer, you had to write about things you knew about. Hence all the goofy stories from my childhood and where I grew up, and people I've known, as well as the occasional dirty joke, tales from the Tiki, and a beer story, here and there, thrown in for good measure. The second piece of advice was to go out and see new things, new people, and new places. That is the inspiration for me going to the Organ-Grinder's Ball.

My buddy, Genn6, has been helping to put on this oddly named show for a couple of years and has always described it as a "fun time". She falters a bit when pressed to describe in some kind of detail what kind of "fun time" it is, but just says that it is one of those things that must be seen to be believed.


The Organ-Grinder's Ball is a Fetish Fashion show. The Email I recieved gave these details:


"There will be 4 new and fabulous fetish-fashion scenes with 40 hot models as well as "cirque du soliel" style entertainment (think stilts and aerial dancing) and a burlesque troupe."


"It will only be a huge success if we can pack Metropolis wall to wall with friends, freaks, fiends and folly."


"This is like a night at the theater, a concert, the circus, an adult club/dungeon, a house party and a bar all rolled into one!"


Amanda and Craig, the authors of the Email as well as the creative directors of the show, said that this was,"a shameless plug for my art!", whatever that means.



Let me just go on record here and state emphaticly, this is not my "thing". It never has been, but it sparks my curiosity. It isn't the titilation of possible nudity that interests me in the least. It is the curiosity of who would go to such a thing, in much the same vein as who would go to an execution, an Amway meeting, a parade, mud wrestling, a bowling tournement, or a Yanni concert? I don't honestly believe that the crowd would be made up solely of casual observers like me. The idea that it is going to have a circus atmosphere I find interesting, as nothing says sexy like hairy, sweaty carnies. I can't for the life of me imagine what a fetish fashion show would look like. I suppose that they would be selling the new spring line, as well as bringing back old favorites from last year to the sound of blaring techno music or out-of-tune calliope music, but I don't think I will be purchasing anything unless they have a hat I just can't live without. (I have a weakness for a good looking hat.) I'll be the first one to admit that I have an appreciation for well made leather, but only as far as a holster, a shoe/boot, or a mans leather jacket, size 44, is concerned. Anything else is gear I can do without.


Intially Franklin was going to go with me but he had to cancel as his baby sitter didn't pan out. So I am on my own. A prospect I find a little frightening, as this trip is something totally out of step for me. I don't drive much and I've got a three hour round trip ahead of me. I don't go out much and this is going to be a large crowd I'm guessing. I'm not even certain what to wear to this occasion. I mean really, what does one wear to a fetish fashion show to "blend in"? A Day-Glow hunting vest and a T-shirt that says "Mustache rides 5 cents"? Cut-offs and flip-flops? A berret and a turtleneck? I'm thinking maybe hipwaders and a hard hat. At least I won't have to worry about a spilled drink in my lap or a stilleto heal hitting me in the head from the can-can dancers. I would have liked to go in a tux, but it just wasn't in the budget.


There are no cameras allowed, so there won't be any pictures to publish, even if we didn't have that no nudity clause in the charter of this site, but I plan on taking extensive notes, and with a little luck, I will have some funny stories to share when I get back. That is really why I'm going. I've been running very low in my creative well here as of late, and when Genn6 called to ask if I would like to come I thought "Why not?" and agreed. This may turn out to be one of those horrible evenings that you wish you never would have embarked on, but, by the same token, this could be an evening ripe with blog-fodder for weeks to come and we all share a few laughs. One can only hope.

Doc