Sartorial silliness

People used to call Episcopalians "the frozen chosen." They had obviously never seen the folks at this 2009 General Convention. I've spent the last few days in the enormous House of Deputies, enjoying the antic outfits that many chose to sport, perhaps in order to temper the seriousness of the deliberations.

First, a note of explanation about these photos. Most are images of big screen projections, 300 feet away from the camera, that showed the people on the podium or at microphones. And many include some portion of this bucking bronco.



Some deputations attach "mascots" to the pillars next to their seating. This animated plastic horse bounced around all day directly between my vantage point and the screens. You've been advised: that shiny brown object in some of these shots is a horse's hindquarters.


The President of the House of Deputies, Dr. Bonnie Anderson, is one of the more subdued figures on the podium, presiding in full (and earned) academicals.


The parliamentarian at her left however, dresses the part, as you'll see in this sequence.


The sartorial tone is ultimately set by the inimitable Gregory Straub, Executive Officer and Secretary of General Convention. This is actually a subdued Straub outfit.


Here's a shot found on the web of Mr. Straub at the 2006 General Convention.


The Rev. Thomas Brown, Integrity's (LGBT advocacy organization) floor manager, fit right in.


And this young deputy also adopted the style (having borrowed the coat).


Lest anyone think the sartorial silliness was a masculine affliction, note that Deputy Mickey Mouse spoke repeatedly (and sensibly) here in Anaheim.


There was also the Hawaiian shirt variant as illustrated by the estimable Deputy the Rev. Canon Michael Barlowe.


None of these folks quite equaled the splendor of this gent seen wandering the exhibit hall.

And yes, these folks accomplished many good things, for news of which I'll refer the reader to Integrity's web page.