Odd Complaints at Western Days
A couple of weeks ago, I had a booth at Western Days - a western-themed event at the fairgrounds. I was taking old-time photos - people would dress up in a selection of costumes from Kim’s Costumes, stand in front of a backdrop for a few shots, and then buy a print.
Over the course of the weekend, I heard some complaints that were interesting mostly because of who was complaining.
The Snake-Oil Salesman
There was a snake-oil salesman near me. Sold a salve that is supposed to cure any kind of pain. Warned me, repeatedly, that the guy in the booth next to him is a hustler, a sleaze, pushing a disreputable product. Sadly, the snake-oil salesman was right - even by snake-oil salesmen standards, a guy selling real estate timeshares via a free Carribean vacation giveaway is a sleaze.
The Assistant District Attorney
Kim’s Costumes provided the costume that a model wore for a magazine article about prostitution in 19th Century Milwaukee. So we had a copy of the magazine - it was the cover story - on the table. A couple was getting ready for a picture. Since the men’s costumes are simpler, the man was standing around waiting for his wife. Looked at the magazine article, and mentioned that there was a certain elegance back then that has been lost. Said that he’s an Assistant DA, and the prostitutes he has to prosecute are mostly drug addicts, and their services are entirely lacking in style. So here is this man of the law, complaining about the lack of style and elegance among modern whores. His wife, at this moment, was dressing up as a whore. She did it with style and elegance.The picture turned out very well.
