Hello dear friends. I have been on a bit of a hiatus from my blog, but I am back with a new adventure! My summer was spent doing all sorts of fun things like barking at the birds, rolling on worms, and avoiding baths as much as possible. As Fall has been approaching however, I have once again shifted my focus back to finding another nifty odd job to help out the family.
This time around, I looked to the world of entertainment. There is nothing quite like bringing a smile to people's faces, and who is more adept at making you laugh than a clown. You guessed it friends; I decided to join the circus and become a clown.
I caught up with the Ringleader Brothers and Barnabas Bailey Cream circus to try my paw at the funnest job ever! I could feel the call of the open road. I could smell the funnel cakes and loose meat sandwiches, the hot dog stands and foot long french fries cooked in old grease. Yes sir-ee, it was the job for me.
The only catch was finding the right routine to dazzle the ring master and convince him I would be a great addition to his retinue of clowns. I decided to pull out all the stops and make myself as flexible as possible since there are so many different types of clowns in the world.
I practiced my sad clown face in honor of the great Emmit Kelly - a personal favorite of my beloved grammy.
I even tried my paw at being a scary clown like the ones featured in Stephen King novels and movies that my mommy won't let me watch.
Ultimately, however, I elected to go with a happy clown, since everybody loves a happy clown. Once I decided which clown I was going to be, I had to come up with a few acts which would catch the ring master's attention.
I had heard once that rubber chickens were really funny, and I thought it might be a good choice to incorporate in a fun clown routine. There was only one problem.....no one told me what I was supposed to do with the rubber chicken once I had him.
Apparently, nomming the rubber chicken and making it squeak like a little girl is not considered appropriate entertainment when you are a circus clown.
I made a similar mistake with a squeaky ball. I didn't know I was supposed to juggle it. The circus needs to publish a manual if they are going to be so persnickety about performance requirements.
Since I struck out with the rubber chicken and the squeaky ball, I knew I had to find a way to wow the ring master. I dug deep within myself and decided to break out into song. I belted out an Ethel Merman-styled version of "I Gotta Be Me."
I immediately followed it up with a jaunty rendition of "You Fill Up My Senses." My eyes were misty by the time I reached the end of it.
It seemed like the tides were finally turning in my favor......until we reached the topic of clown cars. There were no clown cars to be had anywhere. I had to settle for a clown wagon.
Somehow, it just didn't have the same comedic effect and wasn't quite as funny. It turns out, the wagon was strike number three against me.
When it came time for the ring master to offer his critique of my overall performance, he told me I wasn't the right fit for his circus.
The ring master said I took my job too seriously. Apparently, that is not an attractive quality in a circus clown. Go figure........
Well, it looks like the open road will just have to wait for awhile. I may not have made a good clown in the eyes of that ring master, but it doesn't mean I wasn't a great clown. Sometimes others may not appreciate the talents we bring to the table, but it doesn't mean we aren't terrific.
It doesn't really matter what other people think about me. The thing that matters most is what I think of myself. I put my heart and soul into my performance, and I can be proud of that. I may not be a clown in the circus, but I can still bring joy to those around me. And who knows. Maybe there is another circus out there who appreciates a squeaky chicken nomming, show tune singing, wagon dragging clown. I'll look for that circus in the morning! Just remember, no matter what, I think you are terrific!
