Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

Honey Bucket

The emcee announces Laurie the winner.
The emcee announces Laurie the winner.

The carpet was just being rolled out between the birds-of-paradise planters when my roommate Eli and I arrived at Ray Street Studio in North Park for the Oscars Spaghetti Social party. Paintings adorned the walls of the industrial art space as Swarmius, an eclectic jazz quartet, played in front of a screen airing pre-award ceremony commercials.

“It’s basically a modern spin on ancient Babylonian rites,” Eli theorized. “People compete to prove their essential human worth and the winners are given golden idols.”

Every conceivable appetizer was represented in one corner next to a table of pastas, which our hostess, Cynthia, had been preparing since five in the morning. Cynthia has been organizing a Spaghetti Social potluck every few months at various venues around town for the past four years.

Our hostess Cynthia with a friend

The online invite encouraged a theme of Holly/Bollywood chic with prizes for the best costumes. As such, the crowd was interspersed with black swans, belly dancers, a swami in an orange turban and sunglasses, and Bono, who I later learned was actually a professional Bono impersonator.

Sponsored
Sponsored

A woman with feathers in her hair and black, sharply defined bangs asked, “Have you seen a pretty girl around here in a kind of bohemian outfit?” I could point out a few. The party included an affable and somewhat eccentric collection of artists, musicians, socialites, gallery owners, promoters, and photographers, all milling around with cocktails, making light conversation and nibbling from snack platters.

I ended up talking with a friend, Bonnie, and her buddy Sam about music festivals, hot climates, and the simultaneous appreciation and loathing for portable toilets at places such as Coachella and Burning Man.

“I hate them,” Sam said.

“I know what you mean,” I related. “At some point you’re just sweating bullets in a 115-degree Honey Bucket. It’s never pleasant.”

Bonnie found the term “Honey Bucket” (a memorable brand of port-a-loo) amusing, and promptly threatened to make it my nickname. Luckily, I pawned the moniker off on the beverage I had just mixed — an atrocity involving too much vodka, no ice, and açaí berry jungle juice. I tossed back the concoction and mixed something more palatable as the costume contest began.

The prize for best celebrity look-alike went to a compelling Benicio Del Toro in squinty eyes and raised eyebrows. The procession of red-carpet ladies included Dolly Parton, Catherine Zeta Jones, Hilary Swank, and Marilyn Monroe, but the prized Trader Joe’s gift card went to a woman in an extravagant pink dress who identified herself only as Laurie.

“Give me your Bollywood name and strike a pose,” the emcee instructed the final contestants. A woman in burning red hair bent over backward and the emcee marveled, “Very bendable, indeed! Ah, and we have something very authentic looking here.” A dude in an unassuming Indian outfit stepped forward and exclaimed, “I’m just an onion farmer!”

The swami is in.

The swami went next, shuffling his feet in Indian slippers with upturned toe-caps, twisting one hand in the air. “Aha!” the emcee cried. “The screwing-in-a-lightbulb dance!” The applause of the audience ultimately decided the winner. “I’m sorry, but I think the lady calls it!” the emcee declared, indicating a girl in classic Bollywood attire and Princess Jasmine braids.

Like all good parties, the Spaghetti Social drew to an end with ecstatic dance. Out front, an artist sold his work from the hood of a car. He called his style “post 9/11 modern expressionism.” Why? “Because I started painting in 2002. It’s no longer modern.”

Which almost makes sense when you’re several cocktails, a shot of tequila, and a Honey Bucket deep. ■


Crash your party? Call 619-235-3000 x421 and leave an invitation for Chad Deal.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Seals hook up with Beaver

Salty’s Escape is a Mexican-Style cerveza brewed with corn and puffed Jasmine rice
Next Article

San Diego Reader 2024 Music & Arts Issue

Favorite fakers: Baby Bushka, Fleetwood Max, Electric Waste Band, Oceans, Geezer – plus upcoming tribute schedule
The emcee announces Laurie the winner.
The emcee announces Laurie the winner.

The carpet was just being rolled out between the birds-of-paradise planters when my roommate Eli and I arrived at Ray Street Studio in North Park for the Oscars Spaghetti Social party. Paintings adorned the walls of the industrial art space as Swarmius, an eclectic jazz quartet, played in front of a screen airing pre-award ceremony commercials.

“It’s basically a modern spin on ancient Babylonian rites,” Eli theorized. “People compete to prove their essential human worth and the winners are given golden idols.”

Every conceivable appetizer was represented in one corner next to a table of pastas, which our hostess, Cynthia, had been preparing since five in the morning. Cynthia has been organizing a Spaghetti Social potluck every few months at various venues around town for the past four years.

Our hostess Cynthia with a friend

The online invite encouraged a theme of Holly/Bollywood chic with prizes for the best costumes. As such, the crowd was interspersed with black swans, belly dancers, a swami in an orange turban and sunglasses, and Bono, who I later learned was actually a professional Bono impersonator.

Sponsored
Sponsored

A woman with feathers in her hair and black, sharply defined bangs asked, “Have you seen a pretty girl around here in a kind of bohemian outfit?” I could point out a few. The party included an affable and somewhat eccentric collection of artists, musicians, socialites, gallery owners, promoters, and photographers, all milling around with cocktails, making light conversation and nibbling from snack platters.

I ended up talking with a friend, Bonnie, and her buddy Sam about music festivals, hot climates, and the simultaneous appreciation and loathing for portable toilets at places such as Coachella and Burning Man.

“I hate them,” Sam said.

“I know what you mean,” I related. “At some point you’re just sweating bullets in a 115-degree Honey Bucket. It’s never pleasant.”

Bonnie found the term “Honey Bucket” (a memorable brand of port-a-loo) amusing, and promptly threatened to make it my nickname. Luckily, I pawned the moniker off on the beverage I had just mixed — an atrocity involving too much vodka, no ice, and açaí berry jungle juice. I tossed back the concoction and mixed something more palatable as the costume contest began.

The prize for best celebrity look-alike went to a compelling Benicio Del Toro in squinty eyes and raised eyebrows. The procession of red-carpet ladies included Dolly Parton, Catherine Zeta Jones, Hilary Swank, and Marilyn Monroe, but the prized Trader Joe’s gift card went to a woman in an extravagant pink dress who identified herself only as Laurie.

“Give me your Bollywood name and strike a pose,” the emcee instructed the final contestants. A woman in burning red hair bent over backward and the emcee marveled, “Very bendable, indeed! Ah, and we have something very authentic looking here.” A dude in an unassuming Indian outfit stepped forward and exclaimed, “I’m just an onion farmer!”

The swami is in.

The swami went next, shuffling his feet in Indian slippers with upturned toe-caps, twisting one hand in the air. “Aha!” the emcee cried. “The screwing-in-a-lightbulb dance!” The applause of the audience ultimately decided the winner. “I’m sorry, but I think the lady calls it!” the emcee declared, indicating a girl in classic Bollywood attire and Princess Jasmine braids.

Like all good parties, the Spaghetti Social drew to an end with ecstatic dance. Out front, an artist sold his work from the hood of a car. He called his style “post 9/11 modern expressionism.” Why? “Because I started painting in 2002. It’s no longer modern.”

Which almost makes sense when you’re several cocktails, a shot of tequila, and a Honey Bucket deep. ■


Crash your party? Call 619-235-3000 x421 and leave an invitation for Chad Deal.

Comments
Sponsored
Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Didja know I did the first American feature on Jimi Hendrix?

Richard Meltzer goes through the Germs, Blue Oyster Cult, Ray Charles, Elvis, Lavender Hill Mob
Next Article

Summit Fellowship wants to be a home of belonging

Unitarian Universalism allows you to be exactly who you are in the moment
Comments
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.