DON'T WORRY, BE HAPPY

Peace out and good vibes at the People's Joy Parade.  When this post goes up we should be about 4.5 hours out of Paris.           

LOLLYPOP

At least that's what it looks like to me, considering that I have no context for interpretation. Participants at the People's Joy Parade dress as their imagination directs them. I, for example, dress as this old, slightly stooped guy in dark colors to avoid attention. It usually works.

It's travel time. Paris tomorrow afternoon.     

FLORA AND FAUNA

Exotic life forms at the People's Joy Parade.

THE FAMILY THAT UNICYCLES TOGETHER...

Well, I guess nothing rhymes with that, but it was still wonderful to see. A dad with two daughters, the younger maybe 6, the older perhaps 11, all on unicycles rolling with the People's Joy Parade. Having that kind of sense of balance is something beyond my imagination.           

JOY TO THE WORLD

It's the first weekend of May and time for a uniquely St. Louis event, the People's Joy Parade. It was founded I don't know how many years ago by local artist Sarah Paulsen. Every strange person who wants to march, roll or ride is welcome, and they seem to get a little stranger every year. This group, seen in the staging area, calls itself the Psychedelic Society of St. Louis. More to come.       

SEND IN THE CLOWNS

Stephen Sondheim, were he still with us, might not approve, although one of our local opera companies (we got three) is doing A Little Night Music later this summer. These two are examples of why some children are afraid of clowns. They wouldn't harm a fly, but they might threaten one.                

BEES ARE ATTRACTED TO HEATHER

Our Artica friend Heather Bell at the People's Joy Parade, about to ride with the Banana Bike Brigade. She could also be doing a rolling promotion for the Pittsburgh professional sports teams.               

CELEBRATE CHEROKEE STREET

The People's Joy Parade takes place on and around Cherokee Street, certainly one of our more unusual districts. The sign gives some idea of the variety of businesses it contains. It's also the commercial center of our Hispanic community, smaller than in most U.S. cities but still active and colorful.                 

STREET SCENE

I didn't get to see many other parts of the parade because I had an eight year old to supervise. These clowns, seen earlier, were in front of our Artica group. From time to time they would stop at an intersection, work up the crowd, and fire off a confetti canon.             

 

KRISHNA, MAYBE

Hard not to notice this fellow at the parade. He had a flute so I asked him if he was dressed as Krishna. He looked a bit puzzled so I said, you know, blue skin, flute . . . ? He said with a chuckle that he used to belong to the Hare Krishnas but now he was a satanist. Whatever. I'm just the photographer.           

THE BIGGEST DRAGONFLY EVER

Ellie and I marched with the Artica crew down the route of the People's Joy Parade. I didn't get out to visit the other groups because she isn't old enough to go on her own but the two of us still had a good time. Artica's entry was a giant dragonfly mounted on the back of a pickup truck. The wings moved and two of the marchers guided them with ropes so they didn't get torn off in the trees. This took a lot of work.                       

PARADE VEHICLES

The floats and marching groups in the People's Joy Parade emphasize creativity and whimsy, not high end production values. Always present is the Banana Bicycle Brigade, led by a bike covered, as you could guess, with plastic bananas. The other designs are up to individual members. I'm not sure if you would call the one on the left a shrimp or a crawfish. Good thing the giraffe has a high seat and handle bars or it would probably topple over..             

MADELEINE MONDAY

My friend here marched along with me and the Artica crew in the People's Joy Parade. As is usually the case, face painting was available for the kids. Ellie is crazy about unicorns and got just what she wanted.                  

SMILE, DAMMIT!

The People's Joy Parade went off on schedule yesterday with glorious weather. It was wonderful to have it back after a three year break. This group of clowns, ranging from macabre to just plain weird, always shows up, although there were more of them than I remember from other years. Ellie won't go near the two on the left.            

RETURN OF THE PEOPLE'S JOY PARADE

Today marks the return of one of St. Louis' happiest, wackiest events, the People's Joy Parade, after a two year Covid absence. This is a picture from the archives showing local artist Sarah Paulsen, who founded the event and directed it for a number of years. It's now in new hands as it prepares to roll again.

It has few rules and a "hey, kids, let's put on a show!" feel. My daughter and granddaughter will be marching with our friends from Artica while I run up and down snapping. Lots of images to come.     

MADELEINE MONDAY

After a two year Covid suspension, this Saturday brings the return of a unique and wonderful St. Louis event, the People's Joy Parade (excessive number of pictures from past years here). Every kind of St. Louisan gathers in one of our odder neighborhoods and struts down the street in every kind of costume for the pure fun of it - no other reason.

My friends at Artica always always have something interesting. This year it's a giant abstract dragonfly mounted to the top of an old car. Those of us marching along will have oversized pinwheels to pass out to the crowd. There have been weekend sessions to get things ready. Ellie and I went on Saturday and she was given the job of painting the pinwheel sticks. As you can see, she took it very seriously. If you ask her, she will tell you that she is going to be an artist when  she grows up.        

WHEELS

Fun to watch, hard for me to do. The last time I rode a bicycle I needed a cortisone shot in my knee. I've been on the back of a motorcycle a couple of times but never driven one. If I tried, I would never do it wearing a fake rabbit head.

The group in the third picture is a club that participates in parades around town. They call themselves the Banana Bike Brigade. Oh, and that's a lollypop stick, not a cigarette, in the mouth of the rider in the last picture.

 

TÊTE-À-TÊTE

The eyes. Clowns aren't just weird clothes and horn honking. They have serious moments. They can search your soul. No wonder some people are afraid of them.        

And they don't call them fright wigs for nothing.      

READY TO MARCH

Children's marching/dancing teams at the People's Joy Parade. Note that there is just one boy. He doesn't seem real happy about being there.      

VESTI LA GIUBBA

There was a group of clowns in the People's Joy Parade who got something to eat afterwards (clowns get hungry, too, although you'd never know it) and hung around during some of the Cinco de Mayo festival. I'll have more but I particularly liked this one. S/he seemed sad/not sad, or maybe just pensive and observant. I like all the ambiguity.

Being an opera fan, clowns often make me think of I Pagliacci . Put on the costume and make people laugh, even if your heart is breaking. https://youtu.be/-kbi1EMcD3E