Dopamine Party in Tights.

I spent my childhood summers traveling with my Dad on the Ringling Bros. Circus. Naturally I wanted to grow up and be The Queen of the Rings.

photo credit: circusanonymous.blogspot.com

Or the Queen of Trapeze.

photo credit: www.flickriver.com — photo credit: http://www.flickriver.com

But my dad said no. It’s too dangerous and he wanted me to “go to high school and have a normal life.”

So I grew up and became the Queen of Finance instead.

Taking a break from the money office. — Yawn.

But check this shit out, y’all – there’s a trapeze school in Athens, GA!

I took a class.

Best day EVER.

I still want to run away and join the circus.

Who did you want to grow up and be?

She’ll teach you the flying trapeze (philly.com)

39 responses to “Dopamine Party in Tights.”

mary ann

Oct 4, 2013 at 11:56 am

I wanted to be, in this order: A go-go dancer a cage on the TV show Laugh In, That Girl )aka Marlo Thomas), one of Dean Martin’s Gold Diggers. What a life!

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CB

Oct 4, 2013 at 11:56 am

I wanted to grow up and be one of the fly girls on In Living Color. 🙂

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1. mollytopia
  
  Oct 4, 2013 at 11:57 am
  
  Oh hell yes. Were there girls who didn’t???
  
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donofalltrades

Oct 4, 2013 at 11:56 am

You’d have been an excellent Queen of Trapeze, just as you’d be good at anything you put your mind to. Good for your for taking that class!

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1. mollytopia
  
  Oct 4, 2013 at 2:52 pm
  
  Thanks Don. I’d like to be a yachting sun-bather. I think I’d be great at that. What did you want to be? You’re a policeman – that’s every boy’s dream right?!
  
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Miss Bliss

Oct 4, 2013 at 12:38 pm

So cool you got video of it! How fun. Mostly I wanted to be a race car driver or a forest ranger. Race driver requires lots of money and mostly being in possession of your own penis. Forest Ranger it turns out is a miserable job that involves dodging gun fire from drunk idiots in national parks, cleaning up trash and trying to keep stupid people from getting too close to the wild animals that will obviously kill them. So instead…I went into the arts which in truth I have never regretted except when I was tired of being broke or not having health insurance.

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1. mollytopia
  
  Oct 4, 2013 at 2:56 pm
  
  In possession of your own penis hahaha. I would like to be a race car driver also. But not so much the park ranger. TV production is as close as I’m getting to the arts, but I have health insurance and paid vacations so there’s that : ) Thanks for chiming in. I’m missing you on your blog. Write something please!
  
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onechicklette

Oct 4, 2013 at 12:51 pm

You were made for the trapeze! How wonderful.

I wanted to be a waitress. A doctor. An actress. A teacher. Eventually I wanted to manage rock bands. That’s the closest thing to what I actually do in some ways so it makes a little sense.

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1. mollytopia
  
  Oct 4, 2013 at 2:58 pm
  
  I totally missed my calling, eh? But the classes sure are fun : ) You are super close to managing rock bands – well done, you!
  
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Cheryl (@CherylO45190742)

Oct 4, 2013 at 1:49 pm

That is so cool! I wanted to be an actress or a professional dancer…Instead I grew up to be a math teacher! LOL

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1. mollytopia
  
  Oct 4, 2013 at 3:12 pm
  
  Oh my gahhhd seriously I know so many creative people who ended up in finance/math/accounting. Que en el mundo? I bet you’re a great teacher though, because you’ll make learning fun. What grade do you teach?
  
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Escaping Elegance

Oct 4, 2013 at 1:56 pm

At the moment, i think I want to be you!

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1. mollytopia
  
  Oct 4, 2013 at 3:23 pm
  
  And I want you to finish that book, and say more stuff like: “Just keep writing, you can shave the crazy off late.” – hahaha – love it!
  
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Karen

Oct 4, 2013 at 2:21 pm

I love that you pursued your childhood dream. The video is so great!

When I was a kid, I wanted to be Dorothy Hamill, a nun, or a writer.

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1. mollytopia
  
  Oct 4, 2013 at 3:34 pm
  
  You’re a writer AND a boxer – well done Karen!
  
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Baddest Mother Ever

Oct 4, 2013 at 2:57 pm

I had two career possibilities: ballerina or Mrs. Donny Osmond. Alas, neither has come to fruition.

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1. mollytopia
  
  Oct 4, 2013 at 3:43 pm
  
  Oh hell yes Mrs. Donny Osmond. I wanted to be a ballerina also. Until I realized I’d probably be poor and my career would be over at 27. But I love to watch them. I’m glad you chose to be a writer instead – yay you! Just One Feather is a great post – very well done as usual : )
  
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  1. Baddest Mother Ever
    
    Oct 4, 2013 at 4:02 pm
    
    Thanks! There’s plenty of Osmonds to go around. Maybe we’ll be sisters-in-law one day.
Jennie Saia

Oct 4, 2013 at 3:04 pm

You are such a stellar human being. Dude. It’s just astounding!

I want to grow up to be half Caitlin Moran, half Pink!, and half Arwen. (Notice I did not list a female mathematician.)

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1. mollytopia
  
  Oct 4, 2013 at 5:51 pm
  
  Damn girl, thanks! Half Pink sounds like a party in a can. So are you seriously a mathematician??? Also? Awesome post today on the monkeys and love. Sad, interesting and uplifting at the same time.
  
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bensbitterblog

Oct 5, 2013 at 5:35 pm

I wanted to grow up to be a comedian.

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1. mollytopia
  
  Oct 5, 2013 at 5:44 pm
  
  Hey and you are – well done!
  
  Reply
  1. bensbitterblog
    
    Oct 6, 2013 at 12:53 pm
    
    It would be nice to get paid for it someday, but this suffices for now.
Is Everyone an Idiot but Me?

Oct 5, 2013 at 5:40 pm

That is awesome, do you wish your dad had let you grow up and join the circus ever?

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1. mollytopia
  
  Oct 5, 2013 at 5:46 pm
  
  Sometimes yes, but mostly no because now he’s gone. Without him there all the magic would be lost for me. What did you want to be?
  
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  1. Is Everyone an Idiot but Me?
    
    Oct 6, 2013 at 8:52 am
    
    That makes sense. I always wanted to be a marine biologist, but that never happened
Blogdramedy

Oct 5, 2013 at 6:00 pm

Super cool and just imagine the outfits you could wear. And the shoes!

I always wanted to be a forensic pathologist. The only slicing and dicing I do now is on my blog. *wink*

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marieltan

Oct 6, 2013 at 4:37 am

Oooh I want to try the trapeze one day!

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1. mollytopia
  
  Oct 6, 2013 at 3:08 pm
  
  Do it! The class is only $60 and they tell you exactly what to do : )
  
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soapsnstilettos

Oct 6, 2013 at 4:00 pm

My dreams are so lame! My list consisted of circus clown or a DJ! So what do I do? I’m a nurse! But I have been told I have a great voice for radio and I do act like a fool on occasion!

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PinotNinja

Oct 8, 2013 at 11:03 pm

That was so kick ass! Did you see your pike? And you’re effortlessly pointed toes? You’ve totally got the trapeze down. Bring on the sparkles and bright lights!

I still hold out hope that I am going to magically become a professional dancer. Except for that I have no skills or training. And I might be way past the age of the average dancer. But I do have A LOT of enthusiasm.

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1. mollytopia
  
  Oct 8, 2013 at 11:23 pm
  
  Let’s run away together-we could put together an amazing trapeze dancing duo act. And I can totally make costumes. Are you IN!?!
  
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  1. PinotNinja
    
    Oct 8, 2013 at 11:39 pm
    
    If there’s glitter, I’m there.
franhunne4u

Oct 10, 2013 at 12:38 pm

I wanted to be a MD. But then I found out I hate needle-work.

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john chmielewski

Dec 22, 2014 at 7:22 am

I wanted to be the guy who pumped gas or an astronaut. My mother wanted me to be a Priest or a President. I became a taxi driver. Like the show, it was timed honer tradition.

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1. mollytopia
  
  Dec 22, 2014 at 12:56 pm
  
  I think taxi driver is much better than president or priest : ). Nicely done!
  
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Rick Lloyd

Mar 5, 2015 at 4:48 pm

I just realized that when you said you were raised by circus performers, drug smugglers, and hippies, what you actually meant was, you were raised by circus performers, drug smugglers, and hippies.

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1. mollytopia
  
  Mar 6, 2015 at 7:32 pm
  
  Word, my friend. True story.
  
  Reply
Making Mrs. Miller

Aug 18, 2015 at 11:37 am

I take aerial silk classes and secretly want to run away with the circus as well ;). Looking forward to reading more of your posts!
J

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