Thursday, 01 November 2001 | Medusa

Last night I went out in my Medusa costume for the third time in less than a week, and though lots of other people were in costume as well, it felt like any other day of the year—not like Halloween—but like Halloween observed. Although the people at each party were entirely different, and though I modified the costume slightly each night, by the third night I almost felt like I wasn't in costume at all, but that the rubber snakes and wires were just a piece of awkward jewelry, like big, dangly earrings that happened to brush the roof of the car when I sat inside. Part of it, I'm sure, is that at last night's party, I knew few people and talked to even fewer. Somehow, if no one seems to notice you've got snakes springing off your head and a little stone doll tucked under your arm, you forget that you look out-of-place. Well, at least until you leave the party.