Cilium Delirium...

While waking up this morning, Daniela's red pillow cover stared back at me, a flannel softness punctuated by cilial strands. I kept quiet. A few minutes later, she noticed too, composedly commenting, "I want to go get a wig today."

By midday, Daniela, Ari, Gabriela, my schwiegermutter, Charlotte, and I were on our way to Old Town Alexandria, our destination...Crown Wigs, an address on the 700 block of King St. I brought my camera along hoping to conceal both my dispassion for wigs and my perceptions of the synthetic garden of acrylic willows. I imagined the styrofoam catacombs that awaited as we coasted along the Potomac river on the George Washington Parkway towards Alexandria. I kept quiet and drove.

In the end, my apprehensions about the wig store were mostly misplaced. We enjoyed our visit, especially Gabriela. (Ari was bored most of the time, and sat in protest surrounded by solemn stares similar to his own.) Here is the edited pictorial narrative.


If you would like to read the captions at your own pace, click here.

After riding around the styrofoam carousel, we strolled down King St. darting in and out of the quaint storefronts. Tourists in our own backyard, for an afternoon--a refreshing virtual vacation. Tonight, the wig-acquisition sits atop the dresser, transplanted temporarily. A few hours ago, Daniela tried it on. I watched cautiously.... "I hate wigs," she lectured her reflection in the mirror.