Halloween Costume Pictures!!

[aggienaut]

A little fun with photoshop (=



My friend Mark and I. That mustache he has is REAL!! I'm quite envious.
And you can't really tell but I'm holding a sword.

\More related pictures under the cut! (Including one of me dressed similarly at around the age of 16!)



Hat 2 (an ushanka)! (And a Service in Chechnya medal of course)


Modelling my new hat 10+ years ago!


This is not from last night but I thought I'd post it because its similar and I really like it.
(My ex and I)

Related Rant
   Now, I'm not a communist, and I understand that the Soviet Union more or less intentionally killed millions and generally acted psychotic, BUT, I think there is a extreme difference between Soviet and Nazi. While I was out and about on Friday night some asshole gave me the sieg heil nazi salut .. I wanted to fucking punch him. And I was wearing the furry hat (ushanka) at the time, how could ANYONE mistake that for nazi rather than russian?! I think anyone who can't tell the difference is a bleeding idiot.

Serious business!

( Even more pictures up on flickr! )

Comments

[fsk8ing-judge.livejournal.com]

Anyone who doesn't know the difference between a Soviet and a Nazi is either drunk beyond belief, or an idiot. Which one do you think applies? I vote for idiot.

I like the costume. I bet it got a lot of positive comments.
And I think you look adorable in your then new hat 10+ years ago!

The photo of you and your ex is timeless--it could have been taken yesterday, or 100 years ago. I love it. Oh, and also, I looked at the flickr photos--nice job with photoshop.

[fidget]

I swear I read this whole thing, but...Well, I'm really embarrassed to admit this, but I kind of have a thing for Soviet soldier types. No idea why, but I really, really (really) do. And you have pretty eyes.

[emo-snal.livejournal.com]

Yeah it really pisses me off when people don't know the difference. It just portrays a mind-blowing lack of understanding of the history of the last 50 years.

Oh AND I just remembered I wasn't wearing the visor-cap at the time, but the big furry one (ushanka) ... which should REALLY scream Russian and not at all nazi.

Thanks for your really nice comments! And for looking at my pictures! I really appreciate it. =D

[emo-snal.livejournal.com]

Thanks! I'll have to soviet it up more often then! =D

Its funny my eyes seem to exactly match the colour of the uniform.

Also, thanks! (=

[catlips.livejournal.com]

i love that costume, also you hardly look different in the 10 year old picture!

Looking One's Age

[emo-snal.livejournal.com]

Hahaha thanks. When I was 24 I was hanging out with a bunch of random people once and we got to playing "guess my age" with eachother. 4 out of five of them guessed correctly at 24. I never knew that one COULD look exactly 24, but apparently one can. d=

[wallynotorious.livejournal.com]

Hahaha! My friends have a couple old Soviet / North Vietnamese uniforms just like that. But they wore them to court. ;D

Fun with Uniforms

[emo-snal.livejournal.com]

ahahahaha oh my. Up at school where it gets colder than it does down here I would sometimes wear the ushanka on really cold days. Its very unusual looking but hey its fricken warm. Also I'd break out my army greatcoat on really cold days. I actually really like the style of military jackets, I just wish I could get them in black or grey instead of olive green. The olive green is kind of an eyesore / makes me look like some militant crazy. /=

[nefariousvirus.livejournal.com]

thous are some bad ass costume.

Timelessness

[emo-snal.livejournal.com]

Oh and the picture of my ex and I, there's no photoshopping involved -- thats a SLR film camera with sepiatone film =D

Mustache

[emo-snal.livejournal.com]

Me too! I think he may have shaved it off already, in which case I'm mad at him. I would TOTALLY rock that mustache.

Re: Mustache

[emo-snal.livejournal.com]

Haha I just raided my closet! (Yeah I've got weird things in my closet :-[

[jenandbronze.livejournal.com]

Thanks for the education and you look good.

[siredurado.livejournal.com]

Awesome costume!

[boxsofrain.livejournal.com]

I love it, you are absolutely adorable. Oh, I don't see how someone could mistake you as a Nazi, and I am Jewish!

[mylittlepeony.livejournal.com]

Idiot indeed. I don't know how someone could have made that mistake lol. Awesome costume, at any rate!

[emo-snal.livejournal.com]

Yeah. Wearing the furry hat there's no way you can accidently mistake it for being Nazi ... unless you are so dense and uninformed that you just think of anything thats foreign looking and uniform as scary nazi stuff.

Re: Timelessness

[fsk8ing-judge.livejournal.com]

I just love that photo; thanks for the details.
I love photography; it's my passion. And anytime someone can share a bit of information or a story with me, I just sit and grin from ear to ear.

Re: Timelessness

[emo-snal.livejournal.com]

Yeah I really miss using the SLR, but its so much bulkier than the digital camera. The digital one I can always have in my pocket in case I see a picture, the SLR, you're eithter hauling it around or you're not. And the main thing is that then I'd have to go through all the trouble to scan my pictures or else no one would see them. The ease of uploading and sharing digital pictures can't be beat.

But I do really miss the mechanical SLR. The total control of manual adjustments...

But yeah I really love photography. You can check out my pictures on flickr .. or at least the set I created of the best (72) of them. (=

[stormmm.livejournal.com]

Nice mustache (your friends). Also, that pic of you and your ex is beautiful.

Re: Mustache

[emo-snal.livejournal.com]

Basically it just comes down to I like hats, and like military style clothing, and I like Soviet style things. Its not even that its specifically military per se, like you won't catch me walking around in camo, but if the military jackets I have were black or grey I'd probably wear them every day, you know? I like the STYLE (cut/fit/that kind of thing))of the military things.

[scarlettfan84.livejournal.com]

awesome post!

sadly i couldn't party i had to stay at my dad's house with my twin handing out candy to the kids, so they wouldn't egg his house when he was at work.

[emo-snal.livejournal.com]

Thanks!

Aw thats unfortunate. See any good costumes on the kids at least?

Also, you have a twin!?

(=

Re: Mustache

[emo-snal.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I love the jackets and such, but olive green is such an eyesore of a colour! Plus at that colour its obviously part of a uniform thats kinda weird to be randomly wearing around. I really really wish there was a magic way to change the colour of a green jacket.

At least I have a peacoat thats dark blue, and I wear it whenever its cold. Its funny people (A) ask me if its old navy (me: "well, its old, and its navy, but its not Old Navy") or (B) assume I'm in the navy and start talking to me about that (usually ex navy guys themselves do this upon recognizing that it is actual issue).

[pouncing-tiger.livejournal.com]

Cool pics.

Some people just don't know anything about history — or uniforms.

Re: Mustache

[emo-snal.livejournal.com]

I also happen to like war movies because of the extraordinary psychological situations it puts people in (if its not a dumb cheesy movie at least). Especially movies that take place in submarines, there's always a lot of psychological interplay going on, I find that really interesting.

[scarlettfan84.livejournal.com]

yeah i got an identical twin :)

did i see any good costumes? some kids went as a ghost, a ninja, a pirate, or bat-man. a girl went as a ninja turtle, i thought that was awesome. i also saw a kid dressed up as a CSR from blockbuster, no joke. my sister was like "whoa, where'd you get that shirt?" he said he got it from salvation army for $2.00. we were so impressed because it seemed like something never done before! my little cousin went the devil. she said everyone gave her extra candy because they thought her make up was perfect and believable. (her father works as a make up artist in california) i wish i had a pic of it, i'll try to ask her mom for a copy!

if you're ever selling that hat i'll pay $$$

omg, i want it x_x

Ushankas!

[emo-snal.livejournal.com]

The ushanka (furry hat)? The capitalist in me would love to sell mine to you at an outragious profit, but... the fact is they seem to be plentiful.

Just today I was perusing this website that has six pages of ushankas (x9 a page, 54 of them!). All at pretty decent prices. Some do look kind of shitty, but some look like they're probably actually pretty good, and still cheap.

I was thinking about getting a second third =D one myself. Because I like having one with the Soviet emblem on front for costume purposes, but I'd also like to have one without the emblem (I could take it off but I'm pretty sure it would leave an ugly hole and I might not be able to get it in again), for just plain wearing around on a cold day without looking TOO silly.

Ushanka!

[emo-snal.livejournal.com]

Specifically I just saw a button for "top selling items" on the site and this one is listed -- it first of all looked exactly like mine (which is not shitty), and it is worth way more than the $11.50 they have it listed at!

Strategery

[emo-snal.livejournal.com]

Yeah I'm fascinated by the extraordinary circumstances people get put in in such situations. Where whatever decision you make is going to result in people dying. Its some serious shit!

Have you read Stalingrad by Anthony Beevor? Its an entirely nonfiction book about the Battle of Stalingrad but its put together so well it reads like a novel. I've never read what is essentially a documentry that was so readable and interesting before, regardless of my interest in the subject.

Re: Strategery

[emo-snal.livejournal.com]

Oh I definitely have. And then I loaned it to someone else and never got it back I think. Been thinking about buying it again because its definitely a book I wouldn't mind having around. For that matter you might find some of the other books on my bookshelf interesting. I was an International Relations major with an emphasis on Peace & Security ... so I basically studied war. =D A really interesting book on strategy is The Causes of War by Geoffrey Blainey.

Re: Ushanka!

[scarlettfan84.livejournal.com]

thank you, thank you! ^________________^

Re: Ushankas!

[scarlettfan84.livejournal.com]

the furry hat? oops! i was talking about the "s.s solider" hat. :P

Re: Ushanka!

[emo-snal.livejournal.com]

No problem! (= If you end up getting that ushanka let me know how it turns out! If it really is at least as good as mine for that price I seriously might just buy like two more. I could always probably sell them to someone else at a profit for reals ;D Or have spares if I lose one or.. I don't know. at $11.50 you can't go wrong! =D


Also, is your twin as awesome as you are? (=

Re: Strategery

[emo-snal.livejournal.com]

Yeah I found that book totally awesome. The way its not just speculation or whatever but rather everything he writes is backed up with statistics. Neat!

Lets see, yeah looking at my bookshelf there's a lot of really interesting books on the subject.

I'm hoping to get into the State Department as a Political Officer at an embassy. They're supposed to get back to me this month as to if I move up to an oral interview, I'm crossing all my fingers.

Re: Ushankas!

[emo-snal.livejournal.com]

Ah. Well those things can be found as well. Do a search for "visor-cap", thats what they seem to be called. They usually go for around $24 I think.

My green one is Soviet border guards. Most militaries use them but I think the soviet ones are particularly badass because (A) its fricken the Evil Empire! and (B) I think they actually have a wider rim on the top than other places, so as to be ridiculously badass. =D

Re: Strategery

[emo-snal.livejournal.com]

Yeah I've never gotten past the written test before, yet this time the cut off was apparently 154 points and I knocked it out of the park at 174. Since then (that was like June!) they've been manually going through and looking at the apps and so this month I'll find out if I passed their manual eyeballing. If so its oral exam time, background check, and.... if I'm STILL in the running I get put in a queue! d=

[bitsofmymind.livejournal.com]

You're kind of cute. Wanna make out a little?

[emo-snal.livejournal.com]

Ahahahahahhaha. Yes, yes I do. =D

[yummymummy88.livejournal.com]

hahaha those are brilliant! I love photoshop!

[nirvanaqween.livejournal.com]

Awesome, costume!

I added you as a contact on flickr too!

[aumonae.livejournal.com]

I used to own an authentic Soviet Communist flag like the one in the background of your picture. I also had a Russian Sailor Hat and Dickie of the same era.

In the moving around I have done I lost them... I used to have a huge interest in Russian items. My younger brother even speaks a little Russian.....

Just thought I would share....