Ejected Into Space While Orbiting Parades

Tiff Graham Blog Post

More than sixty plus days ago I ventured into outer space territory. I searched for space themes in parades locating the spaceships, clear helmeted space suits, and alien representatives in real and fictional parades.

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Source: https://www.nice.fr/uploads/media/default/0001/16/Carnaval%20de%20Nice%202018.pdf

Having read about the frontiers of planetary exploration in the news, I was intrigued by the vastness of galaxies in the Universe. I would often stare with my lower jaw dropped at NASA’s Hubble telescope imagery of planets, star clusters, and other space objects in observable

enlightenedWhat do we want? We want people to pay attention to our concerns about inequalities, injustices, and civil rights. How do we do that? We carry signs and banners, wear t-shirts and buttons, pass out flyers, give speeches and sometimes free food to bring attention to an issue that matters to us. It takes considerable effort to mobilize people to march and parade for a cause while publicly displaying their grievances, concerns, and advocacy for a social movement. Yet, every day around the world people take to the streets in this festive manner to demonstrate how serious they are about particular

cool Are you a movie director, writer, or someone who thought, “you know, this show would be better with a parade scene”? No. Maybe you’re a person who believes parades are boring? Oh, the horror. Either way, I have a list of humorous parade parodies from movies, television commercials, sketch comedies, and live streaming broadcasts that are sure to make you reconsider what you think about a parade.   

Since parades are recognizable, familiar scenes, often presenting a happy, family-friendly, positive image of local communities, they are excellent instruments of parody and subversion because we

angeldevil In October, I searched the Internet for parade and parade-like events related to Halloween, Zombie Walks/Crawls, and Day of the Dead. The number of events worldwide was astounding, from rural to suburban and urban settings, the visual and text documentation of these events and the people who attended them was extensive. Initially, I thought I would focus on the popularity of dead themed costumes in these events, but I found myself spiraling into thoughts about death and the realities of death, leading me to think, this is so depressing. Why would playing dead be fun, when actual death is not

blush winkHave you thought about character costumes, mascots, or uniforms in parades affiliated with a recognizable brand? It might not be your first thought when seeing a bunch of people in Wonder Woman costumes striking poses, Smokey Bear waving from a truck bed, or a big faux fur bird, bear, or alligator mascot in sports jersey walking with a marching band in a parade. Maybe some people are thinking intellectual property (IP) thoughts of trademarks, copyright, and other legal concerns when seeing any branded entity in a parade, but not me. Yet, my mind veered to these thoughts while watching a

Utopian visions: Nudity on parade

Tiff Graham Blog Post

surpriseAfter attending the Topless Day Parade in Venice Beach, California August 26, 2017, I considered multiple ways I could approach this topic of nudity in parades and marches. Here are eight possible approaches to talking about nudity in this event and other parades and marches with nudity: 

  1. society and cultural attitudes towards nudity - how it differs depending on social context and various countries’ public nudity acceptance, rules, and taboos
  2. science fiction, religious movements and nudity - the Raëlian Movement beliefs and why they sponsor the Topless Day Parades
  3. audience/bystanders and their

Parade Material Culture: You caught what at a parade

Tiff Graham Blog Post

surpriselaugh 

What sails through the air? What makes people shout and pounce to the ground or reach to the skies? What is free for those who wake up early and wait patiently? It’s parade trinkets/throws/swag/loot/handouts/kamelle, of course. Things we don’t know we want, till that moment when a parade goes by. Maybe it ends up in your mouth, in a bag, a drawer, or eventually the trash, it doesn’t matter, these random parade gifts are eagerly received by both children and adults.

 

I have so many questions about these objects thrown and handed out during a parade: 

1.  Is it a DIY or a commercially

Part I: Before you go, you need parade strategy

Tiff Graham Blog Post
Have you thought about your strategy?

1)    You must get to the parade and that means driving or walking to the parade carrying a spacious bag to stash those parade trinkets, flyers, and other paraphernalia passed out or thrown. (Bring some water too)

2)    You need your technology of camera and/or videocamera and probably phone (which can be your primary or backup camera). Phones are great, except an 8 megapixel phone image has its limits, especially when you realize later you can’t zoom in for a clearer image of those letters on the signs attached to the slow moving convertible or float. And