Stormtroopin' the Fair

If you have never been to an official Star Wars costumers 'troop', then let me enlighten you. It's an absolute blast! Especially for those who like, love or are obsessed with anything and everything Star Wars.

This time it was the three Sundays of the Puyallup Fair, aka the Western Washington Fair. One of the top ten fairs in the country, it is a must-do if you live in Western Washington. Many, many families have this on their yearly event calendar, to be sure.

Now, in amongst the fair goers, families, fair workers, friends and foes, throw some Stormtroopers, Darth Vader, a few Imperial officers, a Jawa and a smattering of Jedi. Now, that's an interesting mix! I was amazed at the fact that most everyone comes to the fair, or anywhere else for that matter, equipped with cameras. Most with cell phone cameras but a good many with straight-up cameras ready to snap pics with the Dark Lord and his croanies. As a Jedi, I was curious to see who approached us for pics, since we are 'light side' characters. I'd say it was about 25% of the photo requesters wanted pics with the Jedi. Interesting. I am likewise fascinated by the numbers of folks that want to be force-choked or arrested by the Imperial forces...what are they thinking?

I had the pleasure of playing photographer with not only my own camera, but my friend Jim's camera as well. The challenge? To take interesting pics of the same thing repeated over and over. It was a challenge I was willing to take on.

The slideshow below features pics from the three days we spent at the Fair. Amazingly, we had very pleasant, sunny weather for the days we were there - what a treat!



So, why do I like dressing and trooping as a Jedi?

Would it sound too geeky to say that when I'm dressed as a Jedi, it portrays how I feel in real life? Probably, yeah.

I love the feel of the costume and how it makes me feel when I wear it. I thoroughly enjoy embodying the Jedi philosophy, as it so closely matches my own. Let's just say that being in 'character' as a Jedi is not a stretch for me in the least.

I like hearing people whisper "Jedi...", "did you see the Jedi Knights?", "look honey, Jedi!" as we walk past. I even don't mind being called Obi-Girl...really.

I agree with another costumer who recently said it like this: "I'd like to say I troop because of the kids, but honestly I like feeling like a rock-star..." I do like interacting with the kids, though. *smile*

I love how my robe swoops and how my lightsaber feels against my leg. I like being able to talk to people about the charity work to which we are contributing.

I love hangin' with other Star Wars geeks and never tire of movie quotes, jokes and quips. I am fascinated that grown adults would devote such time, finances, effort and energy to making their costumes movie-accurate. I love talking about all the details and how to make things better or more comfortable. I will spend hours happily contemplating what it would truly be like to be a Jedi, Stormtrooper, Clone, Vader, etc., and if you actually would be able to do anything resembling a lightsaber duel in the costumes...haha!





...and that's why I troop. Can't wait for the next one...

Star Wars in Concert!