Superdorks

Well, I'm winding down from one of the most enjoyable dances in recent years.

Let's start with the theme. Tonight's dance was a "Superhumans" dance. There are of course dozens of superhumans and supervillains to choose from if you are a comic book nerd, but I am not, and besides, I don't really have a convincing costume for anything I know of. Such "concept" ideas as Instructo-Tron are rather lacking in oomph -- I wanted something with pizzazz. This afternoon, I was lounging in the lobby with zandperl and others, and idly brainstorming. Zandperl, who was my lieutenant in running our team in the MIT Mystery Hunt this year, said something about the superpowers from the Hunt, and we both looked at each other and squealed in delight. See, the plot of this year's Mystery Hunt was to become a superhero defending the town of Normalville, with six super powers and six costume pieces dictated by various metapuzzles. See here for more details. Anyway, in order to reach the endgame, you had to outfit your superhero with the six costume pieces: CAPE OF FEAR, PINK TIGHTS, LOAFERS, TIE, LACY BRA, and SARAN CAPRIS. After a bit of pre-planning, we departed for the Salvation Army store, with sammka and another TA in tow. We picked up lots of stuff, including some clothes for tomorrow's "Princes and Princesses" dance (which, being second Saturday, is in drag. Apparently "Kings and Queens" would be too blatant.). We went back to Zandperl's off-campus apartment, picked up some Saran Wrap, and headed to my room to complete the costumes. We decided to both dress up with the same six costume pieces, and dubbed ourselves "The Defenders of Normalville." She was Lake Effect, and I was Snow. We wore all six items with pride -- the pink tights (well, leggings for me -- I can't be too picky when doing cross-gender shopping in a thrift store), the loafers, the lacy bra (on the outside of the shirt, thank you), the tie, and the cape of fear. Oh, and the Saran Capris. That is to say, Saran Wrap rolled around the legs in the shape of Capri pants. The outfits were almost terrifying, and as a preemptive measure, I grabbed a mylar balloon that said "I'm Sorry" (left over from the Rochambeau tournament; don't ask) before heading out. We got quite a reaction. Lots of pictures were taken; I'll post or link to some at a later date. Nobody but the two of us had any real idea what we were, but it was still great.

Oh, and the dance itself. This was the first dance at which Tunak Tunak Tun was played as Canon -- they voted on it earlier this week -- but sadly I was still assembling my costume when they played it. However, Sammka and I managed to revive a dormant tradition. They played some rap song with a very obvious repetitive beat: "Thump, thump, thump. Thump. Thump." Once upon a time, I think as recently as 2002 but certainly no later, certain students would chant something during songs with this beat. Sammka recognized it from her student days, and I recognized it from my early staff days, and we both turned to each other and chanted: "Go eat corn. Go. Now." Then we started marching across the quad. Zandperl followed after us, confused but obliging. We continued, marching in a wide arc around most of the dancers. I figured we were just being nostalgically weird, but being dressed as a Defender of Normalville made me feel bolder than usual. (Before you protest that my behavior was decidedly not normal, let me remind you that this is CTY. Normality is relative.) After completing most of a full circle, Sammka turned to march the other way, and I followed. As I made the turn, I saw that we had indeed attracted followers. Fifteen. Or more. Kids. Chanting. GO EAT CORN. GO. NOW. And still others were responding without joining us, shouting "CORN!" or quizzically staring. At the end of the song, Sammka and I cheered each other. So awesome.

Then I danced some more, and let me tell you, I really like dancing with a cape. If you use it right, you get an extra five feet of personal space for free. Also, it's handy for wiping my sweaty brow. It's not so handy for swing dancing, though. Zandperl and I decided to go through the tunnel in BLT -- I was wearing boxers over my pink tights, so I took them (the boxers) off and brandished them. When I got out, I realized something: I hadn't disrobed or gone through the tunnel in ten years. Maybe it'll be another ten before I try it again.

So much goodness, it more than made up for the low staff atendance in Forever Young and Pie.

-TT