The Grinch and I

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Today, I was at the ROTfest in Highland Park, NJ. This is Alex Dawson's attempt to make the world a stranger place via a series of odd performances (Elvis was there, singing his version of Christmas carols) and opportunity to display his truck/bookstore/work of folk art, the Rac-On Tour. I was there to read some of  my Solstice flash fictions as a last-minute replacement for a fire eater who'd had a dental emergency.

And I missed, people tell me, one of the best performances of the day. That's because I was in it.

When I arrived, Alex told me that I'd also be reading Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas. (He likes to throw this kind of thing at you  unannounced; I think he has a theory that the unexpected is the parent of creativity. And since JB was there in a Grinch suit, he was told to stand in front of the stage and do whatever came to him.

So I read. I read well and I could tell this was one  of my better readings. But because I was focused on the words, I could only spare a glance or two at the Grinch. Who, apparently, acted the whole thing out. Even though nobody had told him about this before either.

Marianne told me he was wonderful, "a first-rate actor." Then she said, "Your reading was also  excellent. The two of you worked really well together."

So I missed something worth witnessing, it seems.

But if you have to miss a good performance, the next best thing is to be in it.

And I should mention . . .

I don't know JB's full name. But I have his card. He does, it says, Animation, Cosplay, Illustration, Sculpting, Voice Acting, Music Parody, Puppetry, and Etc. He sells things at Etsy.com/shop/JackSquatJBcrafts and will create an original character design at Patreon.com/JackSquatJB for "ANY support amount!"

He also seems to be a nice guy, 

Oh, and also . . .

I just now learned that JB made the Grinch suit himself! In the picture, it looks great. In real life it looks even better. Easily the best Grinch costume I've ever seen.

Above: My good friend and I. Photo by Marianne C. Porter.

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