29th Occasional Pasadena Doo Dah Parade rocks
By Princess Naughty Mickie  notymickie@earthlink.net

You may rise. Oh, weren't you kneeling in the presence of my royal attitude? You should have been, after all I was a real princess when I went down the route of the 29th Occasional Pasadena Doo Dah Parade on the Sunday before Thanksgiving. But perhaps, I should start at the beginning.

I have been involved with Doo Dah for five years now and on the royal court for the past four. For the uninitiated, the Doo Dah Parade is one of the weirdest, wackiest events to hit the streets. Entries range from marching drum corps to ferret fanciers and most anything in between.

But all this fun is not in folly, proceeds from the parade entries benefit the Light Bringer Project, which provides art programs for children and the community, including a mental health art therapy program.

Auditions for queen were held a week before the parade. I donned a pink and silver evening gown with an iridescent scarf wrapped around my waist to create a peplum of sorts, glittery pink pumps, pink mitts and glittery jewelry.

Travel Channel was on site, as they are filming a new series on parades and festivals hosted by Fred Willard. They cornered me for an interview and wished me luck.

When it was my turn to show my talent, I sang "Fever" with Horses on Astroturf, the in-house band for the event. The guys were so good, that I was tempted to listen rather than vocalize! During the break in the song, I danced with my swords, just to splash things up.

Next came the questions from the panel of judges. They weren't too harsh this year, for a change, but one judge asked me if I could really use my sword. I promptly challenged the emcee, Duke of Doo Dah Prince Andrew, who was in armor, to a duel. I think I won, but he contends that he was easy on me because he was in armor and I was in an evening gown. I came away with second runner-up-- not too shabby!

On parade day, I was invited by Don the King of Candy to ride in his black Corvette down the route. I had my "entourage," Valerie Liebe, with me, who had dressed up for the occasion and she joined me in the car.

I balanced a sword on my head as we traveled along and we both waved to the crowd. Don had strains of "The Candyman" blowing through his speakers and walked the route tossing candy to children and adults alike. This was definitely the best Doo Dah Parade I had been in!

After the parade, the revelers took the party from the streets down to the Old Town Pub and McMurphy's, where the beer and music flowed. We danced, mingled, partied and had a blast.

Asked if I planned to try out for queen again, I said, "You bet. Who wouldn't want to be part of the biggest party in Pasadena?"

For more on the parade, visit www.pasadenadoodahparade.com and watch for the Travel Channel's new series in January or March.