buyer beware

Note to self: if you hire entertainment for your child's birthday party, be sure to ask for a photo of the talent ahead of time. Otherwise, you may think you are going to have a reasonable impersonation of lovely Ariel from the Little Mermaid at your kid's party and be sent someone who looks like another sort of entertainment worker in another industry, way, way, off the strip of a certain city in Nevada.

When she showed up at this party Erin attented on friday, most of the kids were visibly surprised, and not in a good way. Erin wouldn't go near her for a good half hour. The kids didn't really join in with the songs she sang for quite a while either. They mostly stared. They were perplexed, not only about whether she was really Ariel, but also about whether Ariel was a she or a he. But this Ariel proved to be multi-talented: mermaid impersonation and face painting, which, eventually, was an irresistible combo.