Release Your Inner Goth

One of the prime reasons I love Jewel as much as I do is that she shoves me way, way, wwwaaayyy out of my comfort zone. She makes me dance, she makes me think, she makes me stop being the comfortable suburban mother that I am 99% of the time. It's not always easy being friends with her - we seem incapable of idle small talk and go right for intense four hour chat marathons - but in many ways I enjoy the mental challenge. She asks a lot of questions and demands real answers. Funnily enough, someone recently told me that *I* am hard to be friends with, for much the same reason. I always seem to be challenging people to think harder about themselves, about their lives, about...everything. I'm not all that fabulous at casual conversation.

This week Jewel invited me along to a fund raising party for a local cafe... and while this sounds all innocent, let me tell you it wasn't innocent at all. First, it was held in the grounds of a historic convent. Secondly, it was a dress-up party and the theme was Victorian Gothic/Addams Family. Third, there was going to be dancing, and a ghost walk, and at least a hundred people I didn't know (but 3 who I did.) I don't really DO creepy, and I certainly don't DO dress-up, and I really, really don't do hanging out with random strangers on a cold Melbourne night.

However.

I went. I dressed up (and I looked bloody amazing... who knew a Morticia wig and sparkly black false eyelashes could transform a person so much?). I danced, I sang, I acted like a fool, I ghost walked, and I hung out with 100 random people...and I loved every single solitary second of it. It reminded me why it's so important to step outside of our everyday lives... because sometimes, you just need a break from the infernal treadmill.

Both Jewel and Cocoa commented that I am a "joiner" - in so far as they ask me to get involved or participate in something and I tend to go full steam ahead. So not only was I sporting the wig and eyelashes, but I also had black nailpolish, vampy fingerless glove thingies, loads of make up (including a totally fab black liquid eyeliner cobweb coming out of the corner of my eye), black skeleton necklace AND a black cape. When I went to pick up Cocoa, her son (who I see every day) did not even recognize me, "Wait a second. Which Michelle are YOU?" I know, I know..me, wearing long hair, make up and nails and whatnot, and NO photographic evidence. The mind boggles.

Truly I was surprised at how much I enjoyed myself, and how much I enjoyed the dressing up bit of it. I had several people tell me that dark hair suits me (hmmm...) and in the end it was decided that I need to get in my gear again and venture to school pick-up looking like that. You know, not a bad idea at all...

So - who is inviting me out next? This suburban mother goth is ready to PAR-TAY!