Fremont Solstice Parade

The parade went off with out a hitch!

Here are our guys carrying the pieces of our pyramid:

When we got to the center of Fremont, which they call the Center of the Universe, they constructed it:

Then the drummers drummed in an increasing frenzy and we shimmied for all we were worth:

I’m really proud of us and how it all turned out. There was one part that was a bit funny and embarrassing, though. At a certain drum rhythm, we did all these cool heiroglyphic-like arm movements. When we first learned them, we gave each move a name and we would shout them out to help remember them.

Breaststroke!… Up parade!… Down Parade!…Vessel!… Hathor!…Ripple!… Un-du-late…WALK TWO THREE FOUR!

BREASTSTROKE!…etc.

Well during the parade about a quarter of the group was still shouting out all those names. I was totally cringing. It started to get pretty funny at one point, because a couple of smartasses in the crowd started saying them along with them. Breaststroke! Up parade! Down Parade!

You’d think that someone would tell them to stop, but you wouldn’t believe how amped up everything seems. You’re dancing along in your pretty costume, the drums are so loud, the cheering crowd is intoxicating, and you’re hyperfocussed at the same time on remembering the routines, not tripping over a road turtle, and not getting runover by the flow of the parade. So, we just rolled with it, embarrassing shouters and all.

Delilah, my teacher and idol. (She doesn’t normally have a chin beard.) 

The parade ends in Gasworks Park where we took some group pictures. I was thirsty and giddy and I really wanted a beer, but THEY WOULDN’T LET ME INTO THE BEER GARDEN. When they asked me for ID, I looked down at my outfit and hoped I’d get in with an oh please smile, but no dice. He also didn’t care about my wrinkles or my 30 year old husband or his thinning hair.

Here is a link to more photos. SB did such a good job!