LAAFF - I Went To It.

Instead of saying LAAFF like "laugh," as it is no doubt intended, I prefer "La-aaa-fa-fa." It just has a nicer flow. It's short for the Lexington Avenue Arts and Fun Festival, which is held each year in downtown Asheville on....Walnut Street. Just kidding. It's on Lexington, you gullible fool. I went to it last weekend.

I never went to many street festivals before moving here, so I can't say if it's like other street festivals around the country, but I would bet that it's at least similar. Street fairs are a place for people to dress up like weirdos, smell like patchouli, and drink beer, right? Yeah, I thought so. So LAAFF is just like any other street festival/freak show you've ever attended. Except that it's in Asheville, so it there's an extra layer of patchouli. It's like patchouli + beer + protester sweat + more patchouli. I think the basic philosophy behind LAAFF is "if you can make it out of feathers and cardboard and then wear it, please come downtown on Sunday to meet your soul mate. Dogs on RCA cable leashes welcome!"

I noticed a couple of things about LAAFF. First, there were an inordinate number of exceptionally tall women there. Before you ask, no, they were not on stilts; I checked because there was at least one person there on stilts, so I was hip to that game. Not only were there so many tall women, but they all had exceedingly long hair. Long hair and Asheville go together like dreadlocks and Asheville. It makes me wonder, though, what it is about a street festival that brings out all of the female population who are over six feet tall and have hair down to their asses. Is it the opportunity to decorate their hair with feathers and pipe cleaners in an environment where they won't be judged?

The next thing I noticed is that there are a LOT of people in Asheville who sell soap. Not only were there vendors selling soaps, but there are stores all over downtown that sell soap. I went to LAAFF today and I've been downtown a zillion times; there are a LOT of people in Asheville and at LAAFF specifically who use soap sparingly at best. How are all of these vendors and stores staying afloat?

LAAFF was actually a lot of fun. The great thing about Asheville is that it has festivals like LAAFF and overall a great downtown atmosphere. People like to joke about the costumes and the weirdos, but stuff like that is what makes LAAFF great. There was music from local groups, dance by local dancers (no, not strippers, although I'm sure that would have gone over like gangbusters) art by local artists, and weirdness by local weirdos. It's fun, and next year you should dig out your feathers and tutu and come.