Monday, March 2, 2009

PURIM COSTUMES

Throughout Jewish history people dressed up on Purim. Some costumes are normal work clothes some people have, others are made of clothes that are worn by specific people, then there are those food or drink costumes, and the I just threw what ever random article of clothe I had, with sunglasses.

Why do we wear costumes on Purim, and no its not to copy Halloween. Well at one point in time G-d hid himself from us as he made a hidden miracle for the Jews of Persia. So we commemorate to this by hiding ourselves, like g-d did. Okay so now you know.

Some famous work clothes costumes are; the soldier, doctor, nurse, hatzolah guy, policeman, fireman, cowboys, pirates and clowns. These are easy, and you can buy it anywhere. I always see some kids playing around as if they are real soldiers, and some threatening their friends that they will arrest them with their plastic handcuffs. the doctor one works real well with the healthy theme, or the hospital theme, the kids just need a white lab coat and a stethoscope.

Then there is the specifics. Dressing up as a president (Obama wont be hard), animals, fruits and vegetables, Elvis, Terrorists, the guy on the monopoly board (I did this once) and many more like this. Gorillas are the favorite animals people dress up as. Food is easy, I dressed up as a cherry once. Elvis is a famous one out there, just as much as any character in the Purim story. That reminds me; Esther is the fave among girls, vashti isn't, who wants to look ugly? Mordechai is made out to be a guy with a Black hat and a beard with a black jacket, he wore a turban and a robe! Haman is very distinct, a triangle hat and your done, but this year he is being taken over by Bernie Madoff. Achashveirosh the king of Persia, my brother loved dressing up as him. And of course there are the people who throw on anything with a pair of sunglasses.

I love to hear the stupid comments people make about costumes on Purim. Here are some; "You did a good job on your vashti costume" and then one wearing it says "I'm supposed to be Esther", or "I cant tell who is under that mask", or "I love your costume, what did you dress up as?" all of these can go with the cheesy greeting on the shaloch manot.

I actually like costumes people make themselves, their very creative. I always liked to make my own costumes. I was the monopoly guy once (my shaloch manot went with this as a theme), an Arab (I took an old shirt and one of those big red rubber bands and made a kafia), a crazy doctor (I used some sort of scissor shaped clamp as glasses, I clamped the thing to my nose, it had two holes to see through) and another time an outsourced worker for dell computers named Badu.

Listen, any costume can be great or bad, it depends on what you do with it. Heres to a well dresssed purim.

8 people gave their 2 cents:

Originally From Brooklyn said...

Amen.

Mikeinmidwood said...

Chid Ish Behavior

You going to be leaving it at an amen, or are you going to uphold your part for a well dressed purim.

MAK said...

I liked the outsourced worker for Dell, that is very funny. when I was younger I loved dressing up as Esther, though when I got older, I went as Hermione Granger, a tiger, a tree (I have no idea why) a magic user, my mother (that was funny, I woulfd either be mistaken for her, or asked if I was married) a pirate, and I have no idea what I'm doing this year

Mikeinmidwood said...

MAK

Thanks, I knew it would be a hit, if only you couldve seen it. Dressing up as your mother sounds like a good idea.

Ookamikun said...

MAK, you never dressed up as Susan or Lessa?!

MAK said...

oooh, hey Moshe, maybe I'll do that this year! Thanks for the idea!

Ookamikun said...

Or Angua.

So did you?

Dylan Weeks said...

Nice post thhanks for sharing