Saturday, April 25, 2009

This week a friend of mine hosted something he called "Bad Art Night: Diorama Edition"

The idea was that we'd all come over with shoeboxes and random art supplies and then we'd make bad diorama art. Since my friend's 9 year-old nephew was going to be in attendance, it was going to be a kid-friendly event, consequently Daisy was encouraged to come along.

Daisy and I scoured our house beforehand, looking for good diorama fixin's. The pickings were slim but eventually we gathered the following supplies:
  • marshmallows
  • cheap mardi-gras style necklaces (thank God I showed my tits all those times)
  • Peeps
  • rotini pasta
  • small pebbles
  • twine
  • jewel stickers
The first thing we discovered upon our arrival to the event was that the marshmallows and the curly rotini pasta were a fantastic combination. The rotini can screw into the marshmallow allowing you to attach marshmallows together or just make a mallowy-pastay sculpture. This was unexpectedly wonderful. I'm going to tell you right now that rotini and marshmallow are the Lego for the Aughts.

Naturally with all the Peeps, and the ability to cut/insert them, my first inclination was to make some sort of Peep massacre scene. I was on the verge of tearing the head off my first Peep when a rare bit of parenting concern came over me and I realized that perhaps a more wholesome diorama would be more appropriate for a kid-friendly event. I gritted my teeth and decided to go for camp instead of violence.

So, I made a Peep disco party instead. I covered a marshmallow with jewel stickers for a disco ball and hung it from the top of the shoebox. I stuck a bunch of Peep and marshmallow-rotini people on the dance floor, and dangled strands of mardi-gras necklaces along the front of the diorama. It was all festive and crap.

Daisy had made her diorama rather quickly and then darted out to go have a squirt gun fight with the other 9 year-old. I didn't get a chance to see what she had done since I was focusing intently on my dance party.

Meanwhile, I did chat with some of the other guests. Nobody in this particular social circle had any kids, so I was a bit of an anomaly with my child there. A group of women asked me a few questions about parenting, including whether or not it was a struggle to be a positive role model for my daughter.

"Well," I started, "I'm probably really not a very good role model, but I suppose I do try. I mean my inclination tonight was to make a dark and cynical diorama, but not wanting to freak out Daisy, I chose to make a lighter one instead."

Right around then Daisy skipped back into the room.

"Daisy, what's your diorama about?" I asked loudly, so that she'd share it with everyone.

"I made a Peep death scene," she said cheerfully.

Damn. The apple doesn't fall far from the tree, does it?

8 comments:

Avery Gray said...

Good girl.

Mike said...

Yeah, that's my girl.

meg said...

Pictures please

Mike said...

You know, I was going to take a picture and post it, but then I couldn't find the camera, and then it wasn't charged and I couldn't find the charger, and then I just kind of lost interest. Truly a loss for all humankind

Ms.PhD said...

Seriously? This is your real life?

Wish I had that much fun once a century... or maybe it's funnier from the outside?

Mike said...

Ms PhD, which part seems weird? That Daisy made a Peep death scene or that one of my friends organizes Bad Art nights?

Tasty said...

This makes me unreasonably happy. Specifically Daisy's diorama, but also, and soon-to-be-replicated, Bad Art Night! WOO HOO!

Mike said...

Tasty! You're going to do a Bad Art Night? That's awesome.