Glamourbombing is the art of doing weird things for no reason other than to make the world a weirder place. Also known as poetic terrorism, most practitioners of glamourbombing hope to make people question reality, stop taking normal for granted, encourage imagination, and encourage creativity. It is a variety of public performance art.
Glamourbombing takes many forms, from the simple to the complex. People who engage in it can do so either overtly or covertly; many forms of glamourbombing lend themselves to one or the other.
A popular, and surprisingly effective, method of glamourbombing is simply dressing extremely oddly. Popular for this purpose are wings of any form, antennae of any form, bizarre patterns of bright colors (much more effective if on a male), costumes of any form, and outfits composed primarily of reflective vinyl. The advantage to this strategy is that it is easy to do, and it can be very rewarding to get strange looks in public. However, a person choosing this method must be prepared to endure sarcastic remarks in public, accept the fact that xe's going to look silly (which is pretty much the entire point), and have the rebel nature to an extent that the practitioner feels no humiliation for wearing whatever is being worn.
Another popular method, suitable especially for business environments, is the placing of bizarre signs and labels. Sidewalk chalk on well-traveled footpaths is also good for this. Post-it notes also work perfectly, and have the advantage that they require very little time to plan and execute. Some suitable text for signs that I have used:
- BOOGA BOOGA BOOGA
- DO NOT LICK
- (on a drinking fountain) "Danger: Snorking hazard. Do not attempt to drink water through nose.
- VOTE Zaphod BEEBLEBROX for GALACTIC PRESIDENT 2400
- Tip of the day: When in doubt, poking a llama with a frozen banana is unlikely to produce a useful effect
- (in fine print, in the middle of a whole bunch of large arrows pointing to it)made you look!
- Question Reality
- Well, why not?
Clearly, nearly anything unexpected does its job of spreading humor and weirdness with great effect. The above list is only suggestions; I'm certain that somebody using this node as a practical guide could come up with some much better alternatives. (Please node about them.) The advantage to sign-based glamourbombing is that it's a lot of fun to think up the signs, one does not directly encounter ridicule while executing such an evil plot, it is very easy to do, it is fun to hear others attempt to figure out who did it, and it can be done in a business environment. It can be difficult, however, to avoid telling others of your exploits; this is one mode of glamourbombing that is much more effective when people have no idea who did it. It requires stealth to place a sign in a busy location without getting caught.
In a similar vein, leaving strange objects on tables is good, as long as it cannot be mistaken for a bomb. This is somewhat more involved than a sign. One of the best objects to leave is a glamourbombing kit, complete with instructions on how best to use it. (A copy of this node would not be a bad idea.) Sidewalk chalk, an antenna headband, mismatched socks, and a pad of post-it notes would be appropriate for such a kit. It is best left labeled FREE TO WHOEVER WANTS IT and open, so it is not mistaken for something likely to explode. This is more difficult to do, but it is extremely rewarding to set it and then discover that whoever took it is putting it to good use.
Glamourbombing is all about creativity, imagination, and weirdness, so inventing new and different things to do towards that end is strongly encouraged. This node should be considered only a starting point, a small and insufficient list of suggestions for those who would commit the art.
Glamourbombing is an extremely popular activity among Otherkin.