Secret Solstice

Oh reverse-engineered alien Technology, you are the blogger's friend. Saturday was not the Solstice, but don't tell our friends on the West Coast that.

I would think the fact that the Solstice was on a Sunday would be irresistible, but it might also have terrified any remaining Sun worshippers of the officially-sanctioned variety in the environs out of their wits. As if the sight of tens of thousands of folks on the street dancing and carousing and carrying on in ways indistinguishable from ancient Solar cults would not. Note: if you look closely you can see a suspiciously Lovecraftian cephalopod there.

Speaking of ancient Solar cults, Gus Grissom made an inexplicable appearance in Santa Barbara...

Fremont's parade suffered in comparison to Santa Barbara's, since the feeble Washington sun is no match for its Californian cousin, not to mention all of the lithe, Pilates-addicted California girls. But they made up for the deficit with their elaborate, pseudo-Aztec costumery. 

As far as I know, there weren't any hearts ripped out of chests at the parade's end and offered up to the Sun to delay the Earth's final destruction.

Well, in place of that, we had the nudist bicyclists providing the horror...

Our English friends gathered around Stonehenge for their Solstice blowout, apparently a record turnout. I guess it helps when the head of your state church is himself a Druid. Not sure what connection congas have to ancient Celtic culture, but everyone looks suitably inebriated.

 I was in Phila(e)delphia yesterday and saw posters for their own Solstice festival, but the idea still seems pretty isolated to hippie/boho enclaves. It's all good fun but I'm not sure I see these kinds of festivals piercing the Heartland. Too much of a hippie, weirdo tinge to it all. 

Americans still prefer their Sun worship rituals to be dressed in more familiar religious garb. Which we'll look at in great detail here on the September Equinox....

UPDATE II: Stargurl gives us this scoop- the theme of the Fremont parade was "Phoenix Rising," and "Also Sprach Zarathustra" was the musical overture. Check out her amazing post on Phoenix syncs here.