Autumn Solstice
2019-Sep-27, Friday 11:31![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
texxgadgetI grew up in a Lutheran household.
As time progresses, the evangelicals are actually pushing me away from the christian religions and toward
the pagan world.
The autumn solstice has just passed.
This week, I emptied the last of the storage in Santa Clara, that Id had since fall of 2002 when I moved back
up to north bay.
Id been planning to do this for some time, and it’s been slow going.
With all the work Id been putting in at Willits, I earned some help, use of a truck & trailer.
The assistance has been going on evenings since arount the start of Ren Faire build.
Now I can pop by evenings and start sorting.
This years Dr Who has an episode “KERBLAM”
I cannot recommend it enough.
Even if you are not a Dr Who fans, you MUST see this episode.
For years, RenFaire Tea With The Queen has been using base we printed for Cuthberts Tea at Dickens Faire.
The only problem is handing out bags in 1600 that say “Since 1753”
We have been plotting to do special “Tea With The Queen” bags for years.
We did it. Don made a plate with the logo of St Cuthberts Guild and we ran 500 bags Labor Day weekend.
At faire, St Cuthberts does parades and pageants.
The logo has an ancient version of a shoe at the top,
with the gauntlet squeezing blood from a turnip below it.
There is the shield and at the bottom, our legend
“Sinister, dexter, sinister, dexter”
After all, our guild is on its feet all day.
Of course when a bad joke is cracked (aren’t they all?) the hand goes back and forth
“Come closer… sinister, dexter, sinister, dexter….”
Our Guild Mistress arrived in the dark for opening weekend.
In the dark, 2 of us were holding cases of “Tea With The Queen” and, in unison “You have a package from
KERBLAM!”
Alas, Sue hasn’t seen the episode and didn’t get the joke.
Last year, I was rolling out a sleeping bag each night on a hay bale, but this year I went the tent route.
It’s about 7ft square.
Im using a moving blanket as a carpet, I can sit on a milk crate to dress and use a storage tote as a desk.
Another packing blanket folded in 3rds is my sleeping pad.
Ive gotten rave reviews about how comfy it looks.
If I roll back the rain fly in the daytime, it ventilates and doesn’t get too hot.
Im religious about no shoes in the tent and that has kept things remarkably clean, especially for faire.
I have a lawn chair In front for afternoon reading and due to superior placement, I have a weak shot at the wifi
from the Casa De Fruta RV park.
Next year, Ill try out a more low slung chair I got from Coleen & Steve and I might add lawn flamingos.
I wonder if they make light up flamingos?
Build, workshops and opening weekends were oppressively hot.
Sharon is used to seeing me running around in overalls with a weedwhacker at close to 100.
The second time they needed to stuff my head in an ice chest, she noticed.
I have not been handling heat well.
Starting 2nd weekend, the temps have been coming down (Solstice weekend?)
This weekend, it will be downright cold with temps after dark in mid 40s.
This weekend is weekend 3 of Ren Faire.
The cooling system on the car let loose all at once clobbering the engine on the way to orientation weekend
the weekend before Labor Day.
This week I was finally able to afford to get the car back.
Drove one day to work, noticed the sound of a slipping belt.
That night, on the way to Santa Clara to load the final load in Dons truck, I noticed a faint flickering of the
temp light.
Diving a mile, letting it rest, continuing, we got it back up to the mechanic.
Turns out idler pulley bearing failed part way into work.
I dropped the car off Thursday am and took BART to work.
The parts house shipped the wrong part so it will be ready over the weekend after Ive already left for RenFaire.
Tonight 4 of us will cram into a Nissan compact pickup for the trip.
It gets REAL friendly.
There are moments in life that are not scripted, for there simply is no way to script these moments.
You just CANT WRITE THIS STUFF!
During build weekend, John, the Cuthberts new cook started some stuff with the washer well women
about who had the best well in Willingtown.
The hose bib in the Cuthberts yard got a makeover to look like a cute little well.
I also gashed a calf on it in the dark opening weekend and almost burnt the cursed thing to the ground,
but that’s another story.
A small 4ft tall trebuchet has been “organized” for the run of faire.
The plan is to haul it down to the washer swoons camp and pelt them with stuff.
They simply don’t understand WHO has the BEST well in Willingtown, and MUST be taught a lesson!!!
I note that they DID show up last Sunday with a load of filthy laundry which they insisted on washing at
OUR well.
Oh, well...
2nd Sat of faire, we were tuning the weight in the trebuchet.
We were launching stale marshmallows.
Tea with the Queen had begun and her royal majesty was intrigued with our efforts.
We were thrilled to oblige.
The Guild of St Lukes is the next guild up the hill from us.
Molly, the entertainment director, was decked out in her finery and visiting St Lukes.
She rose from her seat at the table just as the pin was pulled on the trebuchet.
It was a one in a hundred million shot.
Over the roof of the pavilion and right into her cleavage.
Sunday morning we were out again with the trebuchet.
I don’t know where she found them, but Marni from
Cuthberts produced case of Brussels sprouts about the size of softballs.
We dont mention marshmallows at the moment.
As I said, you just can’t write this stuff.
I miss Devon Black.
It would be so cool to still have her here not that Ive returned.
I do have Jeanie and Fred.
Jeanie is a third of her formerself.
Everything worked out great; new joints, bariatric surgery etc.
Fred tripped in the dark a few weeks ago, so his arm in a sling.
As time progresses, the evangelicals are actually pushing me away from the christian religions and toward
the pagan world.
The autumn solstice has just passed.
This week, I emptied the last of the storage in Santa Clara, that Id had since fall of 2002 when I moved back
up to north bay.
Id been planning to do this for some time, and it’s been slow going.
With all the work Id been putting in at Willits, I earned some help, use of a truck & trailer.
The assistance has been going on evenings since arount the start of Ren Faire build.
Now I can pop by evenings and start sorting.
This years Dr Who has an episode “KERBLAM”
I cannot recommend it enough.
Even if you are not a Dr Who fans, you MUST see this episode.
For years, RenFaire Tea With The Queen has been using base we printed for Cuthberts Tea at Dickens Faire.
The only problem is handing out bags in 1600 that say “Since 1753”
We have been plotting to do special “Tea With The Queen” bags for years.
We did it. Don made a plate with the logo of St Cuthberts Guild and we ran 500 bags Labor Day weekend.
At faire, St Cuthberts does parades and pageants.
The logo has an ancient version of a shoe at the top,
with the gauntlet squeezing blood from a turnip below it.
There is the shield and at the bottom, our legend
“Sinister, dexter, sinister, dexter”
After all, our guild is on its feet all day.
Of course when a bad joke is cracked (aren’t they all?) the hand goes back and forth
“Come closer… sinister, dexter, sinister, dexter….”
Our Guild Mistress arrived in the dark for opening weekend.
In the dark, 2 of us were holding cases of “Tea With The Queen” and, in unison “You have a package from
KERBLAM!”
Alas, Sue hasn’t seen the episode and didn’t get the joke.
Last year, I was rolling out a sleeping bag each night on a hay bale, but this year I went the tent route.
It’s about 7ft square.
Im using a moving blanket as a carpet, I can sit on a milk crate to dress and use a storage tote as a desk.
Another packing blanket folded in 3rds is my sleeping pad.
Ive gotten rave reviews about how comfy it looks.
If I roll back the rain fly in the daytime, it ventilates and doesn’t get too hot.
Im religious about no shoes in the tent and that has kept things remarkably clean, especially for faire.
I have a lawn chair In front for afternoon reading and due to superior placement, I have a weak shot at the wifi
from the Casa De Fruta RV park.
Next year, Ill try out a more low slung chair I got from Coleen & Steve and I might add lawn flamingos.
I wonder if they make light up flamingos?
Build, workshops and opening weekends were oppressively hot.
Sharon is used to seeing me running around in overalls with a weedwhacker at close to 100.
The second time they needed to stuff my head in an ice chest, she noticed.
I have not been handling heat well.
Starting 2nd weekend, the temps have been coming down (Solstice weekend?)
This weekend, it will be downright cold with temps after dark in mid 40s.
This weekend is weekend 3 of Ren Faire.
The cooling system on the car let loose all at once clobbering the engine on the way to orientation weekend
the weekend before Labor Day.
This week I was finally able to afford to get the car back.
Drove one day to work, noticed the sound of a slipping belt.
That night, on the way to Santa Clara to load the final load in Dons truck, I noticed a faint flickering of the
temp light.
Diving a mile, letting it rest, continuing, we got it back up to the mechanic.
Turns out idler pulley bearing failed part way into work.
I dropped the car off Thursday am and took BART to work.
The parts house shipped the wrong part so it will be ready over the weekend after Ive already left for RenFaire.
Tonight 4 of us will cram into a Nissan compact pickup for the trip.
It gets REAL friendly.
There are moments in life that are not scripted, for there simply is no way to script these moments.
You just CANT WRITE THIS STUFF!
During build weekend, John, the Cuthberts new cook started some stuff with the washer well women
about who had the best well in Willingtown.
The hose bib in the Cuthberts yard got a makeover to look like a cute little well.
I also gashed a calf on it in the dark opening weekend and almost burnt the cursed thing to the ground,
but that’s another story.
A small 4ft tall trebuchet has been “organized” for the run of faire.
The plan is to haul it down to the washer swoons camp and pelt them with stuff.
They simply don’t understand WHO has the BEST well in Willingtown, and MUST be taught a lesson!!!
I note that they DID show up last Sunday with a load of filthy laundry which they insisted on washing at
OUR well.
Oh, well...
2nd Sat of faire, we were tuning the weight in the trebuchet.
We were launching stale marshmallows.
Tea with the Queen had begun and her royal majesty was intrigued with our efforts.
We were thrilled to oblige.
The Guild of St Lukes is the next guild up the hill from us.
Molly, the entertainment director, was decked out in her finery and visiting St Lukes.
She rose from her seat at the table just as the pin was pulled on the trebuchet.
It was a one in a hundred million shot.
Over the roof of the pavilion and right into her cleavage.
Sunday morning we were out again with the trebuchet.
I don’t know where she found them, but Marni from
Cuthberts produced case of Brussels sprouts about the size of softballs.
We dont mention marshmallows at the moment.
As I said, you just can’t write this stuff.
I miss Devon Black.
It would be so cool to still have her here not that Ive returned.
I do have Jeanie and Fred.
Jeanie is a third of her formerself.
Everything worked out great; new joints, bariatric surgery etc.
Fred tripped in the dark a few weeks ago, so his arm in a sling.
