Juju Loves Me

April 12, was a night, a long time in coming, that I won't soon forget.  Jujubee came to Maine.

Now, this may sound foolish, because she's from Boston, so why wouldn't she come to Maine?  She goes everywhere else around the world... But, this was important to me, because Jujubee and Raven were my introduction to RuPaul's Drag Race.

I had seen Raven at Club 313 in Manchester, shortly after Dan and I started dating.  So, seeing Jujubee was on of the things that I felt was a "Must Do" activity.  And, given the fact that she was going to be right in my own back yard (so to speak) it didn't make sense to NOT go.

It was an interesting day, to say the least.  I had to work.  And, I had to ask someone to cover for the last 3 hours of my shift, because I had stupidly forgotten, when I told them my days that I needed to have off for prior commitments, that I was doing this.  So, I got out of work, and had to run to the other job, to pick up a phone charger that I'd forgotten the day before.  Then, it was clear sailing for the rest of the night.

Shaunna Rai was working at Blackstones, doing a Jujubee Pre-Party Happy Hour.  And, my parents came for that.  It was great.  Not nearly as busy as I'd expected it to be.  But, it was a good crowd.  When I got there, my parents had already been there for a little bit.  And my mom was excited that sh
e was going to be able to cross some things off her bucket list.  Namely ordering a "cocktail"  really, just a Shirley Temple.  And, she was going to be "bar-hopping."  And, she was going to be seeing her first Drag Race girl.  Not just seeing, but meeting, as well.  That was a little surprise that I kept right up until just before we went.

Having worked a full day, and having been excited about it for months, I was wearing myself down on the way to Styxx.  Shaunna had had a long day too, so tensions were a little high.  Which, usually can be cut with a drink.  Or three.

Once we got to Styxx, it was a bit of "stand around," and wait for them to open up the back room, where

the show was going to be.  That's where my mom made sure that we knew that she was knocking stuff off her bucket list.  Finally, it was time to go get in to get a place for the show.  And, it was packed.  I haven't seen Styxx that packed since the first time I went there with my ex.  And that was like 8 years ago...

As always happens, during a show, whether Shaunna is performing, or not, the mingling happens.  I stayed with my parents, and tried to get them to a spot where they'd be able to see the show well.  In the meantime, Shaunna met her "fairy godmother".  A woman from Wiscasset, who runs an antiques shop, who thought that she was the most beautiful queen there.  And, randomly, just gave Shaunna some jewelry, because "it's nothing that I'm going to wear, but it would look beautiful on you."

Once I got my parents settled, in what looked like a good place to get pictures, I got a text from Sheneeda Diet, asking if I could come help get stuff out of the car.  Being the person that I am, I said I would.  And, somewhere along the way, I managed to lose my meet and greet ticket.  Which I didn't find out until just
before it was time to "meet and greet."

The show started, and it was a lot of girls that I know from other venues.  Mikayla Loveheart, Jacinda, Sheneeda Diet, Miss Joanne and Cherry Lemonade.  Partway through the show, Jujubee showed up, and people started to get really excited.

During a show, I go into a kind of zone, where I'm just snapping pictures like crazy, because I need to have something good to post afterward.  A way of documenting that I was there.  They were there.  And this is something that needs to be saved.  Because lord knows that there is not a whole lot of drag going on in Maine.  Especially, compared to what there used to be...but that's a subject for another post...

Juju finally came out and took the stage.  In the back of my mind, I was disappointed, because she didn't do
"Dancing on my Own," which was the song that she and Raven did, which was my intro to Drag Race.  On her way off the stage, Sheneeda Diet asked her to stop for a picture, which she did.  And, she talked to Shaunna Rai.  Which shocked my mom.  And, reminded me that, A) Jujubee is a real person. B) Shaunna and Sheneeda have both been friends with her for years.  C) She's a Drag
Race sweetheart.

Before I knew it, the show was over.  Sheneeda, whose alter ego Michael, is my boss, asked for help taking things back out to his car, because he was the on call person, and needed to go to work.  Then came the wait for the meet and greet.  This was a process that I didn't care much for.  The way that it was made to sound initially, was that there would be a photographer there, who would be taking pictures for you, as you did have to pay for the meet and greet. You were responsible for finding your own person to take your own pictures.  As, the
photos were being taken in the front room, instead of the back room, the line was blocking off people from being able to move freely. So, people kept pushing their way through, if and when they weren't trying to get a place closer to the front of the line.  That was when I found that my ticket was gone.

The tension of the night flared.  I got grouchy.  I just wanted to get the stupid pictures out of the way and leave.  My dad, who also had a ticket, and was just tired, gave me his ticket.  "You'll get more out of it, than I will," he said.  While I was standing in line, I kept
looking over at my dad, because he looked tired.  And, I happened to look up just in time to see an older man...older than my dad...was checking my dad out.
 And, that snapped me back to reality, that this is a fun night.  And, I need to get over my bad attitude before I get to the front of the line.

Finally, it was mom's turn with Jujubee.  She went up, and talked with her.  And,
I snapped more pictures than the paparazzi.

And, then it was my turn.  I got a little star struck.  And, had no idea what I was going to say to her.  And then, it just came tumbling out of my mouth that, "I'm excited to be here with you, because you and Raven were my intro to Drag Race." And we were laughing and I was grinning like an idiot. And I

got a kiss on the lips from her.  And then it was time to go.  And, I told her I loved her and she told me she loved me.

Overall, it was a great night.


On the way out to the car, my mom was talking about the show, and how she had had a good time.  And, Shaunna told me that while I was snapping pictures of Juju during the show, my mom had said that she was a little disappointed.  Because Shaunna is more of a performer than Jujubee is, my mom had the expectation that Juju would be a dance-y performer as well.  So, that was a little disappointing for my mom.  But, she had a great time overall.