So, I'm going to address a question I've been asking myself for years. Why do I put myself through going to the circus every year? And why do my kids love it so much?
As with all of my more controversial blog entries, this one comes with a warning prior to reading. If you are a carnie (employed by a carnival), are employed by any type of circus, come from circus people ancestry, enjoy riding motorcycles inside a big metal ball, or are blessed with special talents such as the ability to wrap yourself up in fabric hanging from the ceiling while wearing huge feathers attached to the back of too tight, glittery, leotard without hanging yourself... you may want to skip this one.
First of all, my lovely fashion conscious daughter #4 announced that this was the best circus she had ever been to and wanted a costume just like exhibit A.
Where can I find that in a size 6X ya think?
Exhibit B
I don't know about you, but this just doesn't look natural. Maybe it looks too natural, and that's what bothered me so much... It just looked like a bad idea, that's all.
Exhibit C
I think this is this the elephant that later went to the bathroom all over while giving rides. It's really ridiculous to consider the size of an elephant's bladder... Wow!
Exhibit D
Oh yeah, this was a great part! The Pekingese dog training thing. A bunch of pampered, spoiled little furry dogs running around and jumping over these little tiny hurdles. Then there was this one little ugly dog, who looked different from all the others... was probably 10 times as smart as the stupid Pekingese, but because he looked different, he wasn't allowed to stay with the Pedigree dogs and do the tricks. He had to stay in a separate dog house and was scolded every time he jumped ahead of the "smart" dogs and did their tricks. What a bunch of separatist crap?! But guess what? Once again, the kids couldn't see they had fallen for the propaganda. They couldn't see the irony of the dog being different and being segregated to the doghouse. What's wrong with these kids anyway? They just keep laughing and eating and giggling and smiling.
Exhibit E
One thing the kids did learn was the importance of living in a capitalist society. The circus is no cheap trick; you nearly have to take out a loan to go. Honestly crack toys that are going to break the minute you get in the car for at least $10 a piece, $5 snow cones, $3 popcorn? Not to mention the $8 elephant ride! Seriously? For 5 children?
Exhibit F
As we arrived at the circus, I once again chastised myself for giving into this habit, this custom, this addiction to the circus. The animals looked drugged. I thought the tigers were either going to eat Tarzan in his much too tight and revealing tiger print tights, or they were going to fall over from the amount of sedatives they had received prior to the "big show."
Exhibit F
Then I watched as my children experienced the circus again. I could see them bringing back all the memories of our annual trip to the Shrine Mosque, soaking in the sights, gobbling up the snacks, and I could see our new children with their mouths agape, laughing and giggling like you have never heard. As I watched all 5 children enjoying the circus, some for the first time, others returning year after year; I was reminded why they love the circus so much!
**The attitudes and opinions expressed in this blog entry are entirely for fun and are not meant to cause emotional pain, familial discord or mean spirited blog comments. Ha
No comments:
Post a Comment