Ok, mea culpa- the Clothing Swap happened a while ago, but trust me it's been a busy time for this RightRides intern. But thanks to Mary, one of the great ladies who organized the Clothing Swap at the Delancey for RightRides, I've got a few photos she took of the event. And what an event it was! Cheap drinks, free clothing, great prizes, great DJ AND a sword-swallowing hostess!After picking up a great pair of pumps and a Calvin Klein sweater, my favourite sideshow queen Lady Aye announced the raffle winners and the prizes kept coming and coming! Clothing, subscriptions to Time Out and the New York Times, jewelry, a haircut at Beehive Salon, 10 free lessons at the Brooklyn Guitar School- it was crazy!
Then, Lady Aye performed her death-defying sword swallowing with the winner of her prize. Jessica was a little nervous (she blamed the fantastic drink specials onstage!) but she managed to pull a 19 inch steel sword from Lady Aye's mouth without killing her! I was terrified, and my boss and RightRides co-founder Oraia couldn't watch as Lady swallowed the sword, past 3 gag reflexes (the show is perfect for children- it's educational!) until it touched the bottom of her stomach- apparently she can feel it! Then she bent over and Jessica her new assistant got the go-ahead and wink and grabbed the hilt and pulled it out. Yikes!
Talking later, Lady Aye told me that sword-swallowing was a childhood dream of hers. But until she overslept and was late for her job in the World Trade Center on Sept. 11, 2001, missing the attacks, she never learned the craft. After 9/11, Lady Aye decided to grab life by the melons and apprenticed with a sideshow performer from Coney Island, learning to sword-swallow and perfecting her onstage performance. I had a great time talking to her and all the fans of RightRides who came out to support the program- hope to see you at the next event!
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