Drama Queen No More!

A comment on my last post, lamenting the fact that my weekend needed something exciting, like a car chase or Chinese organ thieves to spice it up, inspired me to write this.

I used to be a Drama Queen. Not just the type who got parts in high school plays a lot of the time. Although I was pretty lucky in that regard. I mean the type of person who, for whatever reason, required an inordinate amount of drama in her life. And if enough wasn't coming in, I'd generate it myself.

I suppose that a desire to act and a craving for everyday drama go hand in hand. It wasn't enough to watch movies and daydream. No, I had to learn how to join a rock band, swordfight, do ren faires, go to and do shows at Sci-Fi conventions, join a rock band, do community theater, take karate, AND hitchhike (sorry, Mom...) up to Arcata to visit the first love of my life. 10 years older than me, he was a fight choreographer and a perpetual Peter Pan type. A parents nightmare in that the work was never steady and he smoked dope pretty much from the time he got up each morning. Expected me to do all the housework and was quite content to have me work full time jobs while he pursued his vocation. My migraines really kicked up during our time together, possibly because I started my four year job as an appointment clerk at the IRS to pay the rent on our two room apartment.

But hey, he swordfought. It was very dramatic. And before we moved in together, I'd go with Chris to his choreography gigs as his assistant. It was romantic, a gypsy lifestyle, making our living by the sword. Of course, we got stranded in Eugene, Oregon in between jobs one time and for the first and only time in my life, I experienced what it's like to live off of foodstamps. Not so romantic. I did, however, hone the art of finding very cool clothes at thrift stores during this period.

But I digress.

It wasn't that I behaved badly during my youth. I've always had a fairly strong ethical streak, as well as a lot of empathy...but I was over the top in my reactions, moods and interaction. A drama queen. I wore clothes that looked like they escaped from Stevie Nicks' wardobe. I didn't just talk about a problem, I acted it out.

And I wondered why people didn't take me seriously.

I had good intentions and I was a fiercely loyal friend and co-worker...but dang me if I didn't go up to eleven most of the time. People like the me I was back then annoy the hell out of the me I am now (I dare you to diagram that last sentence). After my move up to San Francisco and all the crap that I've gone through, I've well and truly discovered that there's enough inherent drama in everyday life without having to manufacture anything extra.

Anyway, I'm going to be posting some pictures from my dramatic heyday as soon as I figure out how to scan 'em and turn 'em into jpegs. I'd ask someone to help me, but when you're trying to scan a picture of you dressed in a costume that shows 90 percent of your ass, you'd try to figure it out yourself too...