DAVID ADAMS writes about the odder side of life..
• CatConLA, the world’s first convention for cats, was held in Los Angeles last weekend. Described as being “like Comic Con…but for cat people”, the two day convention provided a showcase of products for cats as well as a host of cat-themed furniture, art, toys and clothing and the chance to hear from such cat world luminaries as Eli Omidi, creator of Cats of Instagram, Ben Huh, founder of the meme website Cheezburger, and Mike Bridavsky, “best friend” of Lil Bub, described on her website as the “most amazing cat on the planet” and a noted champion of the ‘undercat’. Can’t wait to hear what Grumpy Cat has to say about it!
• The “moss men” went on parade in the Spanish town of Bejar earlier this month in what is a tradition that has its origins back in the 12th century. The parade – known in Spanish as the procession of the “Hombres de Musgo” – apparently started owing to a legend which tells of how a group of Christians reconquered the town, which had been occupied by Moorish forces, by disguising themselves with moss and sneaking past the guards one night. The modern-day procession reportedly ends at a church where a flag representing the Moors who governed the town is surrendered.
• Military re-enactments have been with us for a long time – the Romans were known for carrying out their elaborate re-enactments of their great victories in the Colosseum. But now comes a new twist – that of re-enacting battles from the realm of fantasy. Hundreds of elaborately-dressed enthusiasts gathered near the town of Doksy in the Czech Republic recently to re-enact the Battle of the Five Armies from JRR Tolkien’s book The Hobbit (and recently featured in the third part of the Hobbit trilogy of films). Dressed as men, elves, orcs, and dwarves, the armies battled it out in a forest about 80 kilometres outside Prague. You can see a gallery of images here.
