I had to see it for myself. With The 7th scattered to the winds and the ever-fawning courtiers dissolved into the mist, I knew any movement would be dangerous. The carriage was out of the question and even riding sidesaddle would have raised more than a bushy eyebrow, so I donned an old outfit from a costume ball: The Peasant Woman. (Saucy Chambermaid might have caused me to drift.)

The peasant outfit was a bit too clean and pressed to be authentic, so I first threw it down the staircase several times. (From experience, wrinkles are more accurately maintained by sleeping in the clothes, but a nap was out of the question.) Dirt was the second challenge. First I polished the mirrors with the outfit and then the blinds; this turned out a satisfactory version of Managed Filth. Then I remembered that I had a stuffed fish in a closet amd it polished off the whole look: Fish Market Peasant Woman. (It WAS a good thing Jeremy was away; he has orders to shoot anyone who looks like this.)

Thus emboldened that no REAL peasant would notice I was mocking them, I slipped out a side gate of Castle Astor and proceeded south to Ocean Drive. Several men tried to pinch me along the way, but I shunned their advances. (One offered me 3 kopeks for the fish or two for my kiss.)

When I reached The Palace all I could think was, "It is 4PM on a Saturday; normally this place would have been packed."

No more disturbing was the pack in front of Hotel Victor, home to Rich and Famous like The Countess Bedelia. Her friend, Paul, was in the background and he threw a worried look toward me (how did he see through my costume?). I took a photo (which I can't get up on Blogger) and one of the chicks said, "Why you takin' my photo, white boy?" And I quickly replied, "Anyone as gorgeous as you, NEEDS to have their photo taken", and ran.

So many more businesses are closed for "renovation" this year than last, including the posh National Hotel. The threat by organizers to sue for discrimination if you close your business seems to be less important than that of protecting your property and employees, and I never quite got the attitude that you have to open for business. Not ONE Palace employee could be convinced to work, especially after three had guns pulled on them two years ago. Even our armed security guard wouldn't work without a security guard, for HIM! 300 were arrested last night; that's double the first night number last year, and I guess the total will end up being about 1500. A sad start to summer.