Star Trek Club Halloween Party

I had spent a lot of time over the last three months working on a costume based on a Land of the Lost character. I knew from the beginning that I wouldn't be able to wear the thing all night, but I thought I could just wear the the thing for an hour or so for the costume contest. About a week before the party I found out that I couldn't breathe very well in the mask, and I had to re-work part of the costume with Velcro so that the mask could be more easily removed in an emergency. A couple of days before the party, I discovered that that once the hands were attached to the costume I wouldn't be able to get into the costume by myself. The day before the party, I decided that the paint had made the costume so stiff that I shouldn't try to wear it at all.

But, I decided to put the costume in a box and take it with me just in case I felt up to trying it. And I wanted to show a couple of friends what I had been working on all this time.

So, off to the party I went, wearing a purple dress and purple flowers in my hair. Most of the club is also into renaissance festivals as well, so I knew that other people would be in similar costumes. And I packed some purple fairy wings. It took two trips to get the box and the pumpkin and everything out of the car, but that was okay.

I put my pumpkin on the display table, signed up for the pumpkin contest, and signed up for the costume contest just in case. The rules required me to sign up for the costume contest by nine, but I was still unclear if I had to actually be in the costume by nine. Then I went to grab some food and talk to some of my friends. I showed the Enik mask to a couple of people, and someone offered to help me get dressed if I decided to put the thing on.

One of my friends loves the party and always enters the costume contest, but she is always late to the thing. So I was very surprised to see her walk in just after eight. She came as an elf in a beautiful blue dress.

One of my friends wore a green historical costume of some sort, and I just didn't get what he was supposed to be. His wife was dressed as an elf. She told me that he was supposed to be a leprechaun, and they were lawn ornaments. They were both well made costumes, but I would never have thought lawn ornaments.

Some more people came in, and people were talking about their costumes, and some people were talking about costume that they wanted to wear but couldn't because of some rule the place has about wearing masks. I had not heard about this rule, and the mask for the Enik costume totally covers my face, eyes and all. So someone else told me if I just brought the mask and they didn't try to take it from me downstairs that I would be alright wearing it in the party area as long as I didn't try to go anywhere else with it.

So, I decided to go ahead and put the thing on, rather than try to do a better job of it later and wear it next year. They might not let me past security with it next year.

So, a bit before 9:30, the elf went with me to the ladies room to help me get dressed. The kid's costume contest was at 9:30, so I was hoping to get into the thing before then so we would get to see the kids.

Well, the last time I had put on the costume, it was uncomfortable, but it only took five minutes or so to get into. So I though that with help it wouldn't take very long at all. But the paint had made the thing so stiff I was having trouble just getting my feet all the way to the sewn-in shoes. The elf was trying to help with my right foot, and a witch who happened by helped with my left foot, and I finally did get into the thing. At home, that had been the easy part. Now, the mask and the arms and hands and everything from the waist up was supposed to go on all in one piece, but as soon as I would almost get the mask on my glasses would pop off and I would have to start all over again.

Twenty minutes later, I've got the costume on and my glasses are in place under the mask. I look great. I walk out of the ladies room.

And I can't see a thing.

I could see just fine at home, but the lights at the party are very dim. So that didn't help. But the thing that really was the problem was that I got so hot in the thing that the eyes got all steamed up. So the elf walked me to a chair and I sat down and tried to pose for pictures and such, but I couldn't see anything and I couldn't hear much, and they couldn't hear me through the mask unless they were close enough to me to put their faces right up to the mask. Someone tried to get me some ice water, but I couldn't drink it because of the black mesh covering my mouth. So he wants to cut a tiny hole through the mesh to get a straw through, and I'm like no my lips are right there and I don't want to get cut.

Someone arranged for me to trade places so that I got to go first. The elf led me onto the stage, and I tried to wave and such on cue. Then the elf lead me back to the ladies room, but her name was called for the contest before she got me out of the thing. Luckily, with the Velcro I added, the mask I was able to get off by myself. By the time she came back and helped me get out of the top half of the costume, the contest was over and I didn't get to see any of it.

I kept the legs on and put on a shirt and went back to the party. Everyone was sure I'd get best in show, since my real competition did not arrive before the 9:00 deadline. Still, I did not get first place. At least three others got more points than I did. I lost points for not being visible for the whole hour in costume, and for not "staying in character." So I was awarded Best Homemade Costume.

First place went to my friends the lawn ornaments. They were rather shocked and shared some of the prize with me and the elf and another friend. Fifteen dollars at Target, which I will probably spend at the after Halloween clearance sale.

Second place went to a couple in Space 1999 costumes. Not that they weren't good, but in 1999 we had a whole group come in those costumes, and they had an act that included disco dancing.

Third place went to a group of pirates. Most Batty went to the witch who helped me get dressed. The elf in the blue dress got Most Spellbinding. Best Detail went to a test pilot who had been collecting patches for three years to make the costume.

Best Group went to some characters from South Park. Kenny was killed several times during the party.

There were other awards, but since I missed the contest, I really couldn't say anything about them. One costume should have gotten an award but didn't--a man came in a command gold captain's uniform from the original Star Trek series. Then he put on a mask and gloves, and I thought it was some sort of alien mask, but it was a fish head mask.
He was Captain PIKE. Get it. PIKE. That was so funny.

I was the only one who entered the pumpkin contest, so I won first place in that. I didn't have time for the Weird Food Contest this year. First place was a jello-mold thing called Roswell Roadkill--Alien Autopsy. Second place went to a coffin shaped cake, and third went to something called Klingon Blood Pudding. (Funny, the Roadkill came from one of the Klingons, and the Klingon Blood Pudding came from one of the pirates.)

Later in the evening I won a long awaited Rende award, but I've already posted about that.

It was all great fun, but next year I think I'll just go as a witch or a vampire or something I can just get ahead of time and enjoy the rest of the party and not have to worry about the costume contest.