This day covered some rather diverse ground. Funny relationships and juxtapositions all in one 12 hour excursion around Philadelphia. In the name of efficiency, it's time for one of those infamous lists.
One -- Sequins: "The Mummer Museum" - Yep, the Mutter one day and then the Mummers the next. What's a Mummer you say. "The Mummers parade is a celebration of the New Year but is serious business in Philadelphia. Clubs work on the costumes and practice all year for their one day in the sun (…wind, rain or snow). There are many lively discussions over the scoring by the judges and adherence to the complicated set of rules the marchers must follow when being judged. String Bands are judged on their musical presentation as well as the costumes. Seeing and hearing a String Band performing live in the parade is a one-of-a-kind experience."
This oddball of a celebration was very fun. The displays are pretty haphazard and apparently lightbulbs are at a premium; many have gone missing. Many of the costumes are gorgeous, well crafted and creative. Some are just plain bizarre (see the three WTF photos at the end of the series). We both did find ourselves curious if the rotund white guys dancing (very loose interpretation of the term) and cavorting around in this rather flamboyant human parade outfits have any idea of how easily they would blend in any Gay Pride parade? Hmmm?
Two -- Shiny Bits: The matchless exterior home embellishments of Mr. Iasiah Zagar. Whimsical, unique and extremely well executed. The design is wild and consistent at the same time. From our not so subtle peeping tom/sally actions, it appears the inside space is a continuation of this mosaic wonder. Love the painting/sign on the door.
Three -- Bugs: "The Insectarium" in west Philadelphia was fantastically marginal. We were greeted by Steve. He is the proprietor of both the museum and an extermination company. Interesting pattern; similar business plan to the Cockroach Hall of Fame in Plano. After a bit of history, we were taken to the outside and headed upstairs. Steve says, "The second floor is all dead insects and the third floor houses the live critters." We stopped in at the dead bug displays first. There were thousands of specimens in those insects skewered in a glass covered boxes. However, there were some pretty uncommon displays as well. Take the sign where all the letters are made of bugs. Then there's the life-size kitchen and bathroom that sits in the middle of the room. It is sealed (supposedly) and intended to be a living demonstration of how the lovely roach can take over a poorly maintained home. The plan is to let the viewer look at the obvious environment that appears to be mostly bug free but then after a few enticements, the place will become a seething nightmare of the evil insects. The only thing weirder is that it is currently not functioning as intended. Instead it is large reliquary for hundreds of long dead cockroaches.
After viewing the collection and reading much of the related information, we headed upstairs to see the loving cousins of the interred. This was where the true oddness was to be found. The so called "living" were far and few between. Most cases were empty or the residents were hiding but more often than not, they lay in plain sight feet up. Yes, death was everywhere. There were a few displays with moving multi-legged critters (walking sticks were doing quite well). The highlight of the exploration was when we were joined by two very curious and friendly little girls and their equally charming mother. Soon we were all sharing in the experience. When I lifted little Rosie to see the large (and yes, among the living) tarantula, she asked "What do they eat?" Being very well read (I watch the Discovery Channel) and always open to putting on my teacher hat, I said, "They eat other bugs but their favorites are pizza and especially spaghetti." She then said "With sauce?" Why of course I responded. They really took to Susan and were soon her shadow. Christiana became her shadow and in a typical sister bit way, the competition was on for attention. At one point, Rosie could not see in the display and Susan told that she needed a stool and quickly got one for her. Then a few windows down, Susan was having trouble seeing the featured bug and stated "I can't see it". This was quickly followed with Rosie casually saying "You need a stool." and proceeded to get her one... cute. Then there was the fantastic group human bug photos.... super cute!
Four -- Death: Yes, we found another museum focused on the process related to unavoidable "shuffling off this mortal coil" at The Museum of Morning Art at Arlington Cemetery in Drexel Hill, PA. After a call and some very effective and gentle begging by Susan, we got a tour appointment for 3:00. After a bit of a battle with unexpected mid-afternoon traffic, we arrived with 3 minutes to spare. We were met by Elizabeth Wojcik. After some cordial chit chat and satisfying her curiosity about our Oddasee, she took us into the museum for a private tour. Elizabeth was very informative and engaging. The information was great as we learned much about the museum's commitment to the study of the arts of dying and grieving. The first image she discussed was an Albrecht Durer print that featured a grieving woman. She explained the numerous symbolic aspects and objects within the image. The jewelry collection was especially impressive. Liz is a fountain of interesting information. There was much discussion about all of our beliefs and experiences in this regard. This was a marvelous conversation and tour. It lasted well beyond the hour we expected. Liz also gave me special permission to take photos. See but a few below. There was nothing morose or sad about the time we spent together but it was surprisingly emotional. The tour ended with hugs and promises of further contact. Lucky we were for seeing this unique collection of mourning art treasures. We talked for hours about the lack of rites and rituals in our culture as we went looking for a place to lay our currently among the living heads.
That sums up a very full day.
Love with sequin encrusted bug costumes and hair jewelry,
Rodney and Susan
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