In which Besh earns $5 as a performer
November 18, 2009I’ve previously mentioned Besh’s affinity for watching the Tony Awards. But I don’t think that partly from watching this and partly from all the shows he’s seen, Besh has been in a kids dance class for a few months now. It’s a class for 2 and 3 year olds, a mixture of ballet and tap. Technically it’s called Creative Movement or something, but it’s at a dance school and he has dance shoes, so I call it dance class.
Yes, he’s the only boy. Yes, he’s been called Billy Elliot. And yes, I’ve already had some comments lobbed my way or in my vicinity when I take him. It’s a bit surprising to see such narrow mindedness in Austin, but I don’t care a lick. I figure if all their daughters and Besh stick with dancing for the long haul, in about a dozen years they’re going to have a different reaction to Besh.
Come spring there’s a dance recital for each class. Which means costume deposits are due in November. All the girls are getting fancy fairy costumes with wings and such. I think the instructors were a bit unsure what to do with Besh, so we’re providing black pants and a white button-down shirt (or “work shirt” to use the proper Beshism) and they’re providing a vest and bow tie that matches the fairy costume. Getting the vest required me to go get his measurements, so yesterday we went off to the tuxedo shop at the mall.
Walking into the empty store I told the man working there we needed measurements for a costume. He said it would be $5 and I wasn’t going to quibble. I showed him the packet the dance school had given me, but that was geared towards the girl costume (which made him much less uncomfortable after he’d seen a line where they had asked for the Girth measurement). The instructors had already told me as much, but they weren’t sure what measurements they needed for the vest. Like I said, Besh is the only boy. I think for a few years’ worth of classes there.
The tuxedo man wasn’t sure what measurements to do either, but he proceeded to measure and write down various measurements. Besh was enthralled with the process and the store. He kept walking up to various tuxedos, vests, bow ties and showing them to us.
“Have you seen THIS?!?! WOW!!!”
or
“This is such a fancy suit!”
One small tux had a number 4 on it, some kind of size.
“I can’t wear this because I’m three. But when I’m four, I can wear this. Won’t that be EXCITING?!?!”
After filling out a few measurements the tux man knew of, and inventing a few more (underarm to waist which I heretofore dub the Untowai measurement), I took out my wallet to pay him.
“Keep it,” he said. “It was worth it for the entertainment.”
So there you go, Besh earned his first $5. Which he would have promptly spent on riding the mall’s Christmas train if it hadn’t been closed.
