In a couple of weeks I’m invited to a toga party for a 50th birthday party.
It’s for a casual acquaintance, but it’s within walking distance and … well what the hell? I know him well enough that he would feel a bit slighted if I didn’t attend.
I’m separated from my wife (as some of you know) and we’re going through a kinda messy divorce process right now with division of assets, etc. so, it could be fun and cathartic, but I fucking hate dressing up. I even mentioned as much in a few Halloween posts in the past.
Awe shit, just typing this I know what the answer should be. But how do you attend a toga party without feeling, and looking like a complete dweeb? I’m going to wear a t-shirt and shorts underneath, of course, but I’m dreading this. Why not just have a normal fucking party?
What kind of sheet do I buy and what do I do with it? Angst.
Would I attend a toga party? That depends on if it is a party I would attend anyway. If I would go if it was a normal party, I would have no problem going in a toga.
I voted “Probably not.” I’m not much on parties these days, but there might be very specific conditions in which I said yes, but highly unlikely. In my roaring 20s, I would’ve said, “Yes, why not?” In my 30s, I would’ve said “Maybe.” In another 10 years, it’ll be a “Hell no.” Probably in 20, I’ll be back around to “Yes.”
Take it from me*, a sheet’s not a great idea for a toga. If you’re going to buy something, go to Jo-Anns or ideally some place like SR Harris that sells fabric real cheap and get 4.5 - 5 yards worth of fabric. You can get it for a few dollars a yard and it will not be as much of a pain in the ass as a sheet. Then watch as many youtube videos on making a toga as you like.
*theater major, we had toga parties all the time in college.
Depends on how drunken the partygoers are likely to get.
Some mild alcohol use, a little beer, a little wine, maybe some cocktails… Sure, let’s have fun. (I don’t drink, but I don’t mind being around people who do…in moderation.)
Frat-boy drinking orgy with vomiting? Not in the slightest bit interested.
Of course I’d go. At 50, the party is more likely to be a symposium than an orgy. Visit the local fancy dress shop and hire a proper toga. And you want a tunic beneath it, not a t shirt.
I would love it if someone invited me to a toga party (provided, as **snfaulkner **said, it was something I’d go to anyway). I realize it’s hard for someone who doesn’t enjoy dressing up to “just go along and enjoy it” but believe me, no one’s going to be looking at you , or at least not any more than they’re looking at all the other toga clad peeps. They will probably give the side eye if you don’t dress up or if you put in so little effort as to show that you’re not into it. I agree that you should opt for a few yards of fabric as opposed to a sheet. Maybe you can find some with hockey players on it or something.
If I were to go, I think I’d try for something a little classier than a wrapped bedsheet. Looking in Google, various costume shops have Roman tunics available for rent.
But even in college, I was never the toga-party sort so I’d probably not go.
You can’t. But everyone else at the party will have their dweeb on, so you’ll just be a dweeb in a sea of dweebs, whereas not wearing a toga will just make you look like an even bigger dweeb, of a sort that sticks out like a sore [del]dweeb[/del] thumb. Embrace the dweebery and dweeb out.
