Out of costume?!

BEHOLD. A PHOTO OF ME WITHOUT WIG/LASHES/CORSET/CONTACT LENSES TAKEN ON MY CRAPPY WEBCAM. This picture might surprise some of you who might have assumed I was blue eyed, black haired and pale. I'm also not wearing heels, which puts me at around 5'3" on a good day.

I loved dress up and playing pretend when I was little. I liked to be a princess, Xena, sailor moon or even Luke Skywalker. I used to imagine myself looking totally different in my head and would go into excessive detail when explaining my new persona to the other kids.

"OKAY GUYS. GUYS. I HAVE BLONDE HAIR, BLUE EYES AND I'M HANDSOME AND A BOY BECAUSE I'M LUKE SKYWALKER. SO I'M WEARING BEIGE AND I HAVE A LIGHTSABER."

When I got older I graduated into cosplay, which is like playing pretend but a lot more expensive and time consuming. Through cosplay I learned to sew, do makeup and hair, model and even act. For such a nerdy hobby it has taught me a lot of things and has introduced me to so many friends.

I can't remember where I was going with this, but it makes me really happy to know there are adults out there who still like to dress up and play pretend, and people who appreciate the effort and love we put into it.