Eugene Weekly : Cover Story : 8.26.2010

 

Eugene Celebration 2010

Stylish Pets Take the Stage Raise the woof, meow and bray at the Pet Stroll 

Local, National, International Film mania, plus zombies, at the EC Film Fest

Yoga Slugs and Friends in France SLUG Queen Slugasana takes over the EW

Ready to Raise Some Heck, I Mean Roofs? Eugene Celebration music round-up  

Village People Habitat volunteers to build a shed

Regress, Relax, Unwind Health and Wellness Celebration

Speedy Celebration For runners, the parade happens in the afterglow

Undeath Will Not Them Part The Celebration gets its first zombie wedding

 

Yoga Slugs and Friends in France
SLUG Queen Slugasana takes over the EW
by Suzi Steffen

When a troupe of colorful princesses and princes bound through the halls of the EW, we know it’s time for the photo shoot of new SLUG Queen Slugasana. Her balloon-aided tail under wraps for the first part of the interview, and with court members continually helping with the designer-made costume, Slugasana (Jerril Nilson in everyday parlance, owner of JLN Design and graphic designer for many of Eugene’s largest arts groups) answered a few questions for us.

So … do you bring your retainers everywhere?

Yes, my minions, the Slugasana court, do come with me to many places. 

Tell me about your hair. It’s so … colorful and coil-y.

It’s reused telephone wire. I’ve been saving it up for years!

And your costume?

It’s made by Sarah Rose Moroney, a professional costume designer who lives in France and who was here on vacation. [Moroney’s website is http://therosesthimble.free.fr/, and if you can read French or use Google to translate, you can learn a lot more about her philosophy.]

How did this idea come about?

We were in a yoga class, and we had an idea, and we went from there.

How much time have you spent on this so far?

[Much laughter from the queen and the court; cries of “Oh, the amount of time!”  “This is all volunteer!” “Out of pocket” and other incoherent calls of SLUG intensity waft around the room.]

So, why did you want to be the SLUG Queen?

Because I can! Because I was a Rickie for 20 years, and I need to do something fun again. It’s either this or mayor!

What’s your favorite thing about Eugene?

Yoga classes! And family and friends. I’ve been here for 36 years.

Anyone you want to thank?

The Eugene Ballet! [One court member is Ballet dancer Ben Goodman.] They lent us a large snail costume so Ben, Monsieur SUV Cargot, could escort us to the stage! And my charity for this year is Slow Food Eugene and especially its school garden project.

Find out much more about Queen Slugasana at her Facebook page, http://wkly.ws/qb or www.slugqueen.com, and see her in the Celebration Parade starting at 10 am Saturday — or walk with her in the parade. The only requirement is that walkers wear green ­ preferably slug and not kelly, green.