I, for one, am glad you didn't become a professional clown because I wouldn't have been able to see as much of you. Circuses and I aren't a good mix.
The next-to-last circus I attended was the last big tent circus in Texas. A Texas-sized thunder and lightning storm hit just as they brought the lions and tigers (and bears, oh my!) into the main ring. The tent nearly blew over. My sister and I ended up taking refuge in a utility shed until they canceled the show. (In hindsight, the flimsy wooden shed where all the big power cables came together probably wasn't the smartest place to be with lightning striking all around.)
The last circus I attended was a big Shriner's circus held in a cement-floored auditorium. No nets. The tightrope act's motorcycle stalled mid-tightrope; the performer barely made it back to the end of the rope. The high-wire performer hanging by her teeth slipped and just barely managed to catch the safety wire about 6 feet from the floor. Then the animal trainer, a man famous for working with multiple species simultaneously, using only his gloved hands (no chair, whip, etc.) dropped dead of cardiac arrest in the middle of his ring filled with lions, tigers, and leopards. After that, I figured the circuses and I both would be better off if I stayed away...
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Circus!
Date: 2005-06-15 02:17 pm (UTC)The next-to-last circus I attended was the last big tent circus in Texas. A Texas-sized thunder and lightning storm hit just as they brought the lions and tigers (and bears, oh my!) into the main ring. The tent nearly blew over. My sister and I ended up taking refuge in a utility shed until they canceled the show. (In hindsight, the flimsy wooden shed where all the big power cables came together probably wasn't the smartest place to be with lightning striking all around.)
The last circus I attended was a big Shriner's circus held in a cement-floored auditorium. No nets. The tightrope act's motorcycle stalled mid-tightrope; the performer barely made it back to the end of the rope. The high-wire performer hanging by her teeth slipped and just barely managed to catch the safety wire about 6 feet from the floor. Then the animal trainer, a man famous for working with multiple species simultaneously, using only his gloved hands (no chair, whip, etc.) dropped dead of cardiac arrest in the middle of his ring filled with lions, tigers, and leopards. After that, I figured the circuses and I both would be better off if I stayed away...