Tuesday, March 10, 2009

FLYING MY NARRISCH-KITE

Purim Elisson 2009
Elisson indulges his silly side at the Local Bagel and Smoked Fish Emporium.
[Photo courtesy Houston Steve.]


Narrischkeit, for those who are Yiddish-impaired, is foolishness. It’s a useful personality trait on this silliest of days in the Jewish calendar: Purim.

At last night’s Megillah reading - one of the central features of the holiday is the public reading of the entire Book of Esther - I had the dubious pleasure of sitting right in front of a guy who would blow a trumpet to drown out the name of Haman every time it was read. Most people use simple hand-held noisemakers, but not this guy... and he’d blast that trumpet right in my fucking left ear. I would have smacked him upside the head, but he had brought a bottle of Balvenie 12-year-old DoubleWood single malt Scotch... so by way of reparations, I helped him kill about half of the bottle.

Good thing I saved the Adult Beverage Consumption until after I read my chapter, otherwise things might have gotten... amusing.

By way of a costume, since the rabbi had declared the evening’s theme to be a Tropical Cruise, I came dressed as... myself! Mr. Debonair, complete with shorts, floral shirt, Panama hat, and Maui Jim shades. Bright orange Crocs were the finishing touch. Panama Ya’acov, dat’s me.

This morning, the reading was faster and more businesslike, but we still had time to work on the remains of that Balvenie before heading out to breakfast. And I had come prepared with yet another Silly Hat... seeing how successful I was at creating a Ridiculous Situation with a similar chapeau last year.

[I guess I could have worn a colander, but I have yet to find one that will stay on without my keeping one hand clapped atop it. One day... one day.]

Lest you think I’m the only one with a Silly Hat Fixation, check out SWMBO’s brother - he’s the one in the official Davy (ha-Melekh) Crockettinsky Coonskin Cap.

Purim Moshesbro
Foat Wuth Foolishness.

It’s Purim! Have you flown your Narrisch-Kite today?

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