What a week. I am still processing this shooting in Orlando - the overwhelming implications of it - to hate that much, all the straightsplaining, the Islam blaming, the stories coming through. The massive healthcare bills facing the survivors - the impact on my tribe of gay friends.
Naturally and inevitably, people here want to do something to help. To help the survivors; knowing that nothing we do will bring back the murdered or turn back time, but to push back with love, with refusal to be cowed, with support and solidarity.
So, two fundraiser shows were hurriedly put together, and I was told I am in both. Not asked! This is what happens when your "son from another mother" is organising it all.
I already had an Emcee gig on Saturday, a fantastic show called DIY Burleskiwi. Contestants from all over NZ, with a budget of only $100, put together costumes and routines to knock our socks off. It was a fabulous night and here's a few pics of me:
,,, and here's the curtain call. The stand out item I feel is Pixie Twist's cheese hat. SO much creativity was shown, I was just blown away.
I am sitting here still with my makeup on from the Sunday night fund raiser, only eyelashes removed so far. So no pics, and as I did Mary Poppins, you've seen it all before anyway. But since Orlando, I've started "blocking" my eyebrows. This is the practice of erasing one's own eyebrows and redrawing them with a higher arch. Drag queens do this because men have lower and more prominent brow bones than women so it helps to feminise the face. Naturally being a woman I don't NEED to do this, but I have a strong sense of wanting to show solidarity with my cross gender drag sisters. It is a bit of a chore but irrationally, it matters to me now.
So, I am off to smear melted coconut oil all over my face, wipe it off with warm damp mutton cloth, then off to bed before a week of preparing for our show Queen VS Queen on Friday night, where I get to perform with, and against, Polyfilla, possibly New Zealand's most famous drag export ever. ARGH!! Then on Sunday 26th, a lunch fund raiser for Orlando.
Go well, lovelies. xo
It never occurs to me that the survivors of these sort of atrocities have to pay to stay alive, because we have the NHS. My grand daughter has been forced to watch a child die in the Philippines whilst on nursing experience recently, because the parents could not afford to save it. I cannot imagine how this must feel as a nurse.
ReplyDeleteIt is totally unacceptable to those of us who have grown up with free health care, indeed. And I understand that the small reforms brought in recently in the U.S. will help, but there'll still be plenty of unmet costs.
DeleteIt's lovely that you are involved in helping to raise money. Like Tom above, it never occurre to me that the survivors would have medical bills to pay. Not sure if it made your news, but we also had a politician shot and killed this week, a result (it's inferred) of this week's referendum over whether to remain in the EU or not. It's been a bad week for intolerance and hate.
ReplyDeleteHelen I can't hardly think about Jo Cox this week, it was the last straw. :(
DeleteI never thought about survivors having to pay medical bills either. Not something that really crosses the mind here in the UK. Ditto about the above shooting. Sometimes you think that the world is going mad. So much hate at the moment so it is really nice to hear of such lovely acts of kindness. Hope that the fundraising went well. Xx
ReplyDeleteThat's what happens blogging when tired, one misses things of importance! Between the doorsales, collection buckets and a generous donation from another bar in town we raised over $2,000 Nz. Sadly with the exchange rate as it is, that will be about $1300US, but it all helps.
DeleteDear Mrs. C.,
ReplyDeleteYou all were so wonderful to perform and take up a collection! That's a really good amount of money, and to do it so fast!
Very best,
Natalie
It's a drop in the bucket Natalie, but the bucket will be filled by such drips and so we keep at it xo
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