Essays

Creepy South Carolinians spot a clown

Posted on by El Santo

So this is making the news: creepy clown sightings in South Carolina.

The first thing that strikes me: how lazy news outlets are at picking stock footage.  I mean… come on, Fifth Estate.  Are you really going to be posting photos of the International Clown Convention in Mexico?  Of performers who just want to bring joy and merriment to children with delightful antics?  Posting clown-themed cosplayers from a comic convention would be way more appropriate… but, you know, cosplayers might get angry.  Clowns… we’ll just squirt you with water from a flower and then honk a bicycle horn or something.

Secondly, apparently someone has a photo of the guy.  And I gotta say… that costume?  That is some Party City garbage.  How does he expect that to last?  I mean, let me tell you… I started off wearing Party City style clown outfits, and while they’re fine at first, they don’t really let you move.  The stitching is abysmal, but that’s what you get when you order everything from Oriental Trading.

Do yourself a favor, South Carolina clown guy: pony up for a decent outfit at Mooseburger Originals.  The clothes fit well and are long lasting.  My original clown pants were discolored in the wash, which was my fault… but I still reuse them because the material is top notch!  You can use it when you’re kicking back in your cabin in the middle of the woods, or when you’re driving around in your black car, or when you’re paying Pokemon Go!  Yes, I know what you’re saying… it’s pricey.  But Rob Zombie seems to be doing pretty well for himself, and he can front you the cash.

Finally, we cannot discount that this clown is just confused and disoriented.  He is in the South Carolina woods, after all!  They’re famous for being home to gators and pirates and chupacabras.  What’s he going to do when he gets lost?  I mean, he probably offered those kids cash so he could get an Uber home.  Instead it’s just some of that good old South Carolina hospitality: shotguns to the face.  I can understand sticking that in the face of the revenuer, but clowns are just as afraid of you as your are of it.  Just sit him down, talk with him, and see if you can get him back to his clown family.

Death and clowning

Posted on by El Santo

And now for something morbid.

Just a short while ago, I received news that my mom may have experience kidney failure. She is currently at a hospital for treatment. There’s a very real possibility that she may die, or I may have to give up one of my own kidneys to keep her alive.

This put me into mind about death, and how it lead to my decision to do clowning. First off, this isn’t the only death in the family. Our dad suffered a stroke while I was in college. While he didn’t die immediately, I had to watch his health erode over the years until, one day, he suffered a fatal heart attack caused by stroke complications. During that time, I was living on the other side of the country, and every phone call was a painful possibility that this could be the one. This could be the call.
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Clowning and the circus

Posted on by El Santo

  
Clowning has been around since, well, forever. Yet current clown iconography always seems to tie clowns to the circus, an institution that reached its peak in the 1950’s (around the time of the Baby Boom).

Circuses these days are not quite the big deal as they used to be, though. The Ringling Brothers and Cirque du Soleil are about the only game in town anymore. And with the Ringlings downsizing their animal acts and the Cirque going through their own financial issues, it seems that the influence is getting smaller and smaller. Blame the rise of alternative forms of entertainment available to kids these days.
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