The last thing anybody wants to read on Thanksgiving is another column about what the writer is thankful for. So to save everyone the strain of excessive eye-rolling, let's talk about costumes.
Yes, it's almost a month past All Hallows Eve, but Chattanoogans seemingly will seek out any excuse to put on a mask when they go out, regardless of the date.
Sure, there are the obvious occasions for dressing up -- fandom conventions, midnight movie premieres and themed dance parties -- but the masks also come out when they're least expected.
During this morning's Grateful Gobbler walk, for example, there will be a contest for best turkey suit. And last weekend, I saw people in chainmail dueling with foam weapons in the bargain-fiction aisle at McKay Used Books. (Yes, seriously.)
Disregarding the field day psychiatrists would have diagnosing people wanting to put on masks all the time, at least one local band saw an opportunity in this love of costuming.
Funky jazz sextet The Smooth Dialects became one of my new local favorites a few weeks ago thanks to a super-tight, in-costume set for the Halloween Double Feature show at Rhythm & Brews.
Friday at 10 p.m., the Dialects will return to the venue with Deep Fried Five for the Cowboys vs. Aliens Party, named after Daniel Craig's 2011 "I've got an American accent" summer blockbuster.
Costume lovers can dress in spurs and chaps, tentacles and antennae or some combination thereof and receive discounted admission for $5. Everyone else will pay $7.
Lead singer Maria Sable said the band didn't feel ready to de-mask after the success of the "Pulp Fiction" show and as the co-hosts of Sept. 8's sold-out 50 Shades of Purple Party at JJ's Bohemia.
"I feel like everyone doesn't want to let go of the costume yet," she said. "We're trying to cater to the love of dressing up and being weird and acting the fool. That's what our fans love to do."
Even better, Sable said, the band soon will be heading to Nashville to work on its debut studio album, the material from which will likely find its way into the set Friday.
What better way to celebrate surviving the Black Friday shopping blitz than funky jazz music and a little role-playing? A costume isn't required to attend the event, but who are we kidding? You'll probably wear one anyway.
Contact Casey Phillips at cphillips@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6205. Follow him on Twitter at @Phillips CTFP.