My Pennsic 2006 Diary

The Pennsic of an amateur bard and shameless flirt

Two years later, but it's the same great event and (hopefully) the same great me. As with previous years (2003 and 2004), I'm including an abridged version of my diary for you, my readers. I say "abridged," because some things that go on at Pennsic, stay at Pennsic. You know the drill.

As in past years, I'm including my spending, because this is, first and foremost, a page about budgeting. I had much less money this time than previous years: about $800 for the full two weeks. I didn't spend it all, and I even managed to get about $250 of shopping money in there, so it can be done, my good readers! Fear not: I would not lead you astray!

I ask only that you be a bit patient with my writing. This was all written on-site. Sometimes I was tired, sometimes I was cranky, sometimes I was elated. Just take things in stride, and we'll all be fine. The only thing you need to know about the format is that often I'll write about the previous night's events in my morning post. This is because I was generally too tired at night (and it was too dark out) to write properly.

That said, read and enjoy! If you can comments, please feel free to email me!

The days in this diary:

Saturday, August 5

CAD 5.25 -- breakfast
6.00 -- lunch
15.00 -- supper
109.89 -- hotel
= CAD $5.25; US $120.89

9 pm -- Holiday Inn, Batavia, NY (between Rochester and Buffalo)

I've got a rolling headache at the moment, so we'll see how much I can actually get written tonight. In truth, there isn't much to tell: the day consisted mostly of travelling.

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Sunday, August 6

120.89 +
11.00 -- breakfast
6.00 -- fudge
4.23 -- lunch
10.00 -- camp stuff
63.55 -- gas
30.00 -- troll
5.25 -- supper
= $250.92

8:40 am

Okay, apparently the answer to last night's question (ie: how much could I write) is, "not much." The headache stayed with me for another two hours, until I took my own meds and that finally stopped it. I don't know what caused it, probably a combination of too much driving, too little water, foreign water, the sun in my eyes for an hour, too much sewing in the car, rapid changes in pressure and humidity, and wearing my glasses too long. All I can say is that I've rarely had headaches that bad.

So... yesterday in a nutshell:

So... the plan for today is to hit a winery on the way to Pennsic. It's currently 9:55 am (I've stopped for breakfast in the middle of writing). I don't expect to actually reach Pennsic before 4 pm. More updates as they occur.

12:30 pm -- exit 35, I90, Pennsylvania

I have fudge. Specifically, I have chocolate-raspberry-Chardonay fudge. It may be a splurge, but it looks very tasty.

We're now in Pennsylvania, which means we are getting increasingly closer to Pennsic. But we're not there yet. We may be stopping at a Walmart along the way, and we still haven't had lunch. If we were going straight, I guess we'd have less than 2 hours of driving (putting us at Pennsic by 2:30). Given the stops, my estimate of 4 pm still stands. Ah well. It's not like anything is open at Pennsic anyway.

1:30 am -- Pennsic

Back at camp. Awesome night. I'll write more tomorrow when I'm not dead tot the world.

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Monday, August 7

250.92 +
7.00 -- breakfast
6.50 -- supper
2.00 -- ice cream
4.00 -- Vagabond
= $270.42

morning, around 8 am

Right. So when last I wrote anything substantial, I wasn't even on-site yet. We arrived around 4:15, and check-in was very easy. It was quite hot and humid, and despite Thorson and Eleanor's help, I was still setting up 3 hours later. Stupid heat. On the other hand, I made many friends at Sharkpit. Yay for new friends!

By about 8:30, we established the kitchen tent was not being set up, so Freya and I wandered down to the (thankfully open) food court. There, I found Unnr, Charles, and Lynette, so I went with them to the dance tent and chilled there for a while. Alas, there weren't many dancers out, so eventually I left to wander back to camp.

Some time later, Thorson asked if I wanted to go wandering. Since I wasn't doing anything else, I said, "sure." So off I wandered (yes, there was a lot of wandering) with Thorson, Svava, Fergus, Eleanor, and others. We hit the coffee merchant, Deitrich's, Ajax's, Ravenspittle, and Vlad's. I made new friends at Ajax's (yay new friends!) and felt typically overdressed at Vlad's, but I had a great time. Got back to camp around 1:30 am.

Night-time was damp. Very damp. Ugh. Woke up at 6:30 -- not hot. Stayed in bed until 7:45 -- still not hot, but very humid. I'm hoping the humidity breaks at some point. My neck hurts -- I must have slept on it funny. On the other hand, Freya's air mattress died, so she's going into town to buy another one. The corollary to this is there is no Freya-breakfast, so I'll have to go to the food court at some point. After that, I'll take the time to read through the Pennsic books, which I didn't get to do yesterday.

So that's it for now. TTFN!

early afternoon -- Sharkpit

The morning has been fairly chill so far. Ishi joined me for breakfast, and we talked about his experiences in Regia Anglorum, and my experiences in Europe and doing my M.A.

The rest of the morning was spent wandering around, chatting, and relaxing. Liam and Alethea arrived, yay! No one is at A&S point for me to check in. Also, I may have just volunteered to do back-heralding for Alethea: she's now sure what's going on, and neither am I.

I'm keeping myself very well hydrated. The down-side is that I need to use the washroom every 15 minutes. I'm not wearing sunscreen, which is stupid of me, but at least I'm staying in the shade.

Also this morning I sewed up my cloak. All it's missing is trim and clasp.

I believe I'm fitting in well with Sharkpit. They're fun people. And now there are many more people around than when I started, so I'll put this down.

mid-afternoon -- still at Sharkpit

It's gotten hot again. Stupid sun. It might be time for an afternoon nap.

after supper

Napping didn't really happen, but at least I lay down in chairs for an hour. After that I hung out with Thorson, Eleanor, and Mellisandre and did some bardic. (Yay bardic!) Liam showed up and I followed him back to his camp (Mcguire's Marauders) to say hi to Alethea.

Still having not had dinner, I went to the food court and had a "pulled chicken" sandwich. At the food court, I found both Riccardo of Ravenspittle and Lorelei. I realize I am slowly becoming the sort of person who has "annual" friends, seen only at War.

As I was finishing dinner, I discovered Lyanna, Griffith, Igraine, and Ivan, who were all going out for ice cream. I invited myself along. It was (surprisingly) decent-priced for large portions. I was pleased. We chatted about heraldry and border crossings (not in conjunction, thankfully), and then they showed me where they're camped. On the way back to Sharkpit, I saw the Gothic cathedral I'd heard about. It's not all set up yet, but very impressive regardless. They've got flying buttresses -- how cool is that!

I feel mildly guilty using so much of Sharkpit's water, but on the other hand, I know that I'd be terribly dehydrated if I didn't.

For the second night in a row, it's threatening to rain but, so far, hasn't. Fingers are crossed.

I don't know what I'm doing tonight. I think I'll go see Liam and Alethea and find out what they're doing. TTFN!

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Tuesday, August 8

270.42 +
3.50 -- breakfast
3.50 -- cobbler
5.00 -- Vagabond
= $282.42

morning, after breakfast

I did indeed see Liam and Alethea last night. Together with Nikki (who I discovered, to my surprise, is Liam's daughter), we wandered around Pennsic and finally found ourselves at Your Inner Vagabond. I had never been there before, but I was quite impressed: wonderful ambience, wonderful coffee and tea, delightful baklavah. When I have money to splurge, Alethea and I will go back for a baklavah plate. Yum!

Then we went to Security Point (less Nikki) to visit Ajax and Alethea's squire-brother, Phillip. We sat, we chatted, we had fun. Ajax gave me a stellar head-and-neck massage: he is very good. I offered him a night of eternal gratitude in recompense, but he only wanted a thank-you and a kiss, which I happily provided. Somewhere after midnight, I walked back to camp with Ishi and went to bed.

The traditional, "it's early Pennsic, 5 am, and I need to pee" struck this morning. Hopefully it won't last too many more days. On the other hand, I slept wonderfully. Mmmmm....

And now, I have no idea what I'm doing today. The bank will hopefully be open, merchants (some of them) are open, A&S Point will hopefully be open... we shall see. That's it for now!

12:40 pm -- A&S Point

So, a little window-shopping later, and I've found myself at A&S Point, helping out. I'm checking in occasional teachers and chatting with the staff. The teachers' medallions, pewter-cast stars, are very, very pretty. I are pleased.

It's a gorgeous day out. After I'm done here, I'll probably try to find Liam and then go shower. And I should probably eat at some point.

mid-afternoon -- Mcguire's Marauders

So far this afternoon, I confirmed that there will not be an Enchanted Ground bardic tonight and then accidentally stumbled in on a Pennsic Independent staff meeting I hadn't known was happening. The people seem nice, though I'm a bit worried about how much time it will take up next week. We shall see.

Then I took a shower and felt nearly human. The water started cold but actually became moderately warm. Yay!

Then I went with Alethea to the food court and had my first peach cobbler of the War.

Now we're going off window-shopping on merchants' row. TTFN!

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Wednesday, August 9

282.42 +
4.00 -- lunch
1.00 -- class handout
3.75 -- smoothie
= $291.17

early morning

What a fantastic evening. Alethea and I did in fact go shopping, and then we went over to Your Inner Vagabond, whereupon we met Michael and Lorelei. So of course we stuck around and sang with them for a while. Alethea introduced us to the ultimate "my throat is sore and broken" drink: silk road milk sharbat. Yum...

As we were sitting and drinking, Ajax arrived, coming back from the battlefield. He invited us over to his place and we accepted. But first... more shopping! It continually amazes me how many people Alethea knows. We also said hi to Eleanor and Menkin, who had just arrived.

Thence, onwards to Ajax's. We arrived to find him bathing, in a tub at the edge of the lake, surrounded by beautiful women, being fed peeled grapes by his girlfriend. His quote about the situation: "my life is aggressively failing to suck." It was highly amusing.

We stepped out for a second to visit Jules. I performed "Serious Steel" and now have a standing invitation to go back and sing for my supper. Yay!

Back to Ajax's. He fed us. I was happy. Then he lit up the shisha and I relaxed with yet more newfound friends and listened to yet more Ajax stories.

Somewhere around 10-ish, I decided to check out the Northshield bardic circle. I came at the end of one story, stayed for the beginning of the next, and decided the circle wasn't to my tastes. So I came back to Sharkpit to catch the tail end of the Mexican party. Ishi gave me a very good back massage. I like feeling competent on occasion, and apparently I still give good head massages.

I missed Freya-breakfast, so it's back to the food court with me this morning. Also, I realize I left my brush and deodorant at Alethea's after my shower and need to pick them up. Other plans for the day: two classes look interesting, I need to cash a traveller's check, and the PI staff meeting. I'm dining with Liam and Alethea, going to Haakon's circle, and then maybe coming back here for another circle I've just been invited to, with a pre-1600 theme. And, of course, anything else I'm invited to today.

And now I've just been offered chai tea. Some gifts are not refused. Now, to enjoy...

mid-afternoon -- Sharkpit

The morning started slowly. By the time I reached downtown Pennsic, it was almost time for lunch and a half-hour until my noon class. I changed a traveller's check to cash (yay cash), grabbed some lunch, and headed over. Both that class (Brainstorming Organizing Solutions for SCA Households) and the one at two (A Cure for What Ails You -- about humoural theory and food) were very good. Between them, I spent more time at A&S point. It was mostly dead, so I just relaxed.

On the way back to Sharkpit, I met Charles, Erwillian, and Riccardo. I am fully of the opinion that Pennsics are cumulative: it takes a few Wars before you start randomly encountering people in the street, but once you do, the effect just multiplies. I've heard of one woman who tried to walk from the barn to the north gate; it took her three and a half hours.

I think my plan now is to relax a bit, hit the merchants (and maybe the food courts), and finally head over to the PI meeting. Lucian's bardic moved to tomorrow night, so at the moment I'm only single-booked.

That's it for now!

late afternoon -- PI offices

The afternoon, like the morning, has been chill. Some window-shopping, mostly uneventful. A pouch-merchant flirted with me, and I had a chance encounter with Ajax. A green tea smoothie later, and I find myself a half-hour early for the PI staff meeting.

So here I am, chilling with Calvert, Hierusalem, and Gwen. Life is good.

about 2 am -- Sharkpit

Normally I'd wait until tomorrow to journal, but I want to make sure I remember everything about tonight.

After the PI meeting (wherein I was given some work for tomorrow morning -- 8 pages of ads to proof and an article to write), I wandered up to Mcguire's Marauders (Alethea's camp). On the way, I met Michael, who'd apparently been looking for me, and invited him along. He'd already had dinner, but that didn't stop him from having the stellar perogies Seraphina made... and seconds after that. While waiting for dessert, he gave me a lovely back massage. (I love Pennsic!)

After dining with Michael, Liam, John Mcguire, and some others, Michael and I took a brief stroll. I showed him my camp; he showed me his. We also met Lorelei and filled her in on the plans for the evening.

On the way to the circle (Haakon's, at Aethelmark), we stopped in at Howling Mouse for Michael to perform a few songs I didn't know, but one (Of Cabbages) I desperately want to learn.

The circle itself varied. There were some mediocre performers and some masterful ones, including Gaared of Ealdormere and Fiana of Clare. Michael and Lorelei performed "Lament for Ogun," and I was persuaded to perform as well. I did "The Boreal Army Muster." I was well-received, despite my voice cracking on the high notes. Michael said I have good stage presence.

Then Michael, Lorelei, and I headed down into the Bog. All the venues Michael wanted to play were dead or horrifically noisy, so we wandered further afield. We played two venues. The first was unremarkable other than my realization that our audience considered me part of the group instead of my more proper place as groupie. Consequently I was actually expected to sound, y'know, good. With them. I tried, truly I did. I didn't always work.

Our second venue was "Chez Argent," encampment of Amalric, king of An Tir. No pressure there. So there I was, trying to pretend I knew songs I didn't and not to mess up the ones I did. It worked out all right in the end. I lip-synched some of the songs while smiling at the audience, followed Lorelei's hand gestures, and tried not to get in the way too much. In any event, the camp was pretty drunk when we started, which forgave us (me) many of our (my) mistakes. Line of the night, by Amalric: "I'm not in trouble: we're the king!"

At about 1:30 I decided to leave. I'm sure everyone wanted me to stay longer, but I need to work in the morning (even if it is my vacation). On my way out, Amalric handed me a coin. I turns out this was, in fact, his coin, minted for his reign. Way cool. He also asked for volunteers to escort me up to my camp. Two of the group, Ellen and Michael (a different Michael), agreed to walk me and insisted on walking me all the way back to Sharkpit. No one was awake when we got here, and their booze is unfortunately not mine to offer. I was saddened I couldn't offer them hospitality, but they didn't seem to mind.

And now I'm back. I still feel very self-conscious, both for having performed at the Aethelmark circle and with Michael and Lorelei. I'll have to find them at some point and see what they think.

Oh, and it looks like I'll be performing at the Chiurgeon's Benefit Concert on Saturday night -- "Boreal Army Muster" and "The Not at Pennsic Blues." Lorelei's running it; it seemed like the thing to do.

So. Tomorrow I'm going to work in the morning. Beyond that, I don't know. I'm sure there will be classes during the day and bardic at night. As always, I shall keep you updated. G'night!

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Thursday, August 10

291.17 +
35.00 -- pouch
12.00 -- mug
4.00 -- Vagabond
= $342.17

early evening -- Sharkpit

My, my! Has it really been a full day without an entry? How remiss of me! Well, I suppose I'll start now.

This morning began (after Freya-breakfast) with work at the Pennsic Independent. I spent an hour or so editing nine pages of ads, and another hour or so writing an articles called "Beyond the Battlefield." It wound up being about a page. Calvert seemed to like it, and so did Liam. Despite my jitters, things seem to be going well.

After that, I decided I needed a break from writing, so I wandered over to the Marauders to see if I could find Liam or Alethea. I didn't, but instead found a few other interesting people. A short conversation later, I hooked up with some Sharkpit people and went down to the merchants.

Ishi and I met a Lochacian named Amon, for whom this is his first Pennsic. He's a fun guy. I dragged them both over to the Vagabond, where we passed an enjoyable (and hilarious) few hours. Thence back to the merchants. I realize I'm starting to develop my own "Pennsic shuffle" (wherein it takes longer to go anywhere because of the random encounters with friends). We met, among others, Liam, who named Amon "Thursday." Sad but true: you can apparently name days after who I've spent most time with.

I bought a new pouch (and serenaded the very flirtatious pouch merchant in the process) and a new mug. Yay for new things!

At Smoke and Fire, the very nice merchant showed me how to make fire using flint and steel. Way cool. I love Pennsic.

During the first-starting lesson, I ran into Lorelei, who was on her way to the Vagabond. Though I'd already spent time there, I decided to join her, because I wanted to talk. And talk we did -- for over an hour. The Vagabond is good for that.

And then, with only a brief stop by the Marauders to see Alethea, I made my way back to Sharkpit. Duke Randal is here and officially on my hug list. Yay! Liam was also here and mentioned he liked my article. Can you say, "ego boost"?

I'm still not sure what I'm doing tonight. I think I will visit the Enchanted Ground circle. There are also Lucian's circle in Carolingia and a circle at Northshield. I suppose I should also eat at some point. It won't be too late a night since Calvert wants me at the Independent offices at 9. Ideally, I'll also find Michael tonight, who has been scarce most of the day. Lorelei says he's at a "captains' dinner," which means absolutely nothing to me.

Oh. I also got a piece of Bardicci silver today from Erwilliam, apparently the first he's given out this War. I take an odd pride in this. I also met an alter-persona of Dunstable's and Guiseppi, the "heir" to the Bardicci house -- I'm sure there's a story back there somewhere.

So that's it for now. Camp has begun exploding again, which means there will be many more people to meet. For now, the sun is low on the horizon, and that means it's time for food and song. TTFN.

late night -- Sharkpit

Tonight was filled with somewhat higher caliber bardic than normal. After dinner at the Mauraders' (and a back massage from John Mcguire), I went down to Enchanted Ground. Other than me, the four participants were:

  1. Duke Cariadoc
  2. Mistress Anne
  3. Mistress Fiana
  4. Brion

So... four master storytellers and 'lil ol' me. It was fun. I did a story I'd originally heard at a storytelling in Montreal; it seemed to go over well. After that, I just sat back and listened contentedly.

Then all the participants but Cardiadoc took our leave and chatted for a while. I listened to pearls of wisdom from people more experienced than myself and tried to absorb as much as I could.

Then Brion and I walked over to the Northshield circle. Ishi was there, arrived mere moments after me. I didn't stay long, just long enough to perform "Serious Steel" and listen to a few more. Now I'm back in Sharkpit. There's stuff happening here, but I think I'll go to bed. The PI wants me at 9, I'm teaching at 11, there's a PI staff meeting at 5, and a Wolgemut concert at 9 pm. Somewhere in there, I'll probably be editing and possibly writing for the PI. So... busy day. I highly suspect I will not work for the PI again. But, at least for this year, I am.

Now... to bed.

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Friday, August 11

342.17 +
6.00 -- dinner at Sharkpit
+1.00 -- class notes
8.00 -- Vagabond
= $355.17

morning -- Quatrefoil

I don't know why every morning my pillow is damp and my feet are cold. I am un-pleased. I tossed another blanket on the foot of the bed to deal with the latter problem, but I don't know what to do about the former. On the other hand, I managed to perfectly inflate my bed last night. Yay!

Okay, breakfast time.

early afternoon -- Sharkpit

They didn't have anything for me at the Independent this morning, so I went back to Shark for a while until a 10 am class on garden folklore. The teacher more or less read from a handout, but it gave me the chance to reread my own notes before my class.

My own class went fantastically. I had about twice as many people as I expected: 35-40 people. I used up all my handouts and will need to photocopy more for next week (oh woes. Let me find the world's smallest violin). It seemed very well received and my timing was good, so all is well. I are pleased.

I checked in at the Independent afterwards. Nicolaa (the editor-in-chief) arrived but is on a town run, so there was still nothing for me to do. Calvert wants me back around 2-3 pm. I think the Independent is rapidly turning into the type of time-organization I hate, when I don't know when I'll be working. I highly suspect I will not be working there again.

So, I meandered my way back to camp, after visiting Eleanor and Menkin and Freya. I also ran into Lorelei, though not Michael.

That's it for now, then. I'll stay in camp and bit, then head back downtown. Still not sure what I'm doing tonight, beyond dinner with the Sharks. TTFN.

about 4 pm -- Inner Vagabond

In my wandering back downtown, I found Lorelei busking and followed her while she bought lunch. There, we met Guiseppi Bardicci, heir to the house of Bardicci and the man Liam has named "Friday." I also met an extraordinarily hot performer named Samuel, part of the Tinker's Clan. Really, really hot.

They didn't have anything for me at the Independent, though I did get a chance to chat with Nicolaa. She assured me that things do fall into a rhythm, once things get rolling. Also, it seems like we'll be picking our stories the night before, which means no more early morning runs to the "office."

I wandered down to Michael's camp to see if he was around, but the consensus seemed to be that he'd just come back and gone to his tent, maybe for a nap. Alas. At least on the way I met Honzo and Chiara, both newly arrived on site. I left a message with one of Michael's campmates and made my way back to the Vagabond. Lorelei wasn't there anymore, replaced by a more middle-eastern-sounding group, so I sat down alone. With a bit of luck, someone will come by to flirt or chat with me for an hour.

Now to try my food -- a Perfumed Garden milk and a sweet called "majoun."

On a completely different note, I think it is a physical impossibility to have clean feet at Pennsic.

about 5 pm -- PI offices

So. I wound up attracting two men. The first, the middle eastern musician, was.... erm... a bit socially inept: lots of long awkward pauses. The second was a decent conversation partner, even if he wasn't of the caliber of some of the men I've met at War.

And now I'm here waiting for the staff meeting to start. Blargh.

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Saturday, August 12

355.17 +
4.00 -- Vagabond
4.00 -- cobbler
= $363.17

morning -- Sharkpit

A highly eventful evening and night. I left the PI offices in a foul mood. The staff meeting I thought was at 5 turned out to be at 6 instead, so (after finding this out at 5:30), I decided to just go back to Sharkpit for dinner. I met Lorelei on the way back, who told me I'd just missed Michael... again. I also met Dunstable and Alethea, who told me that someone from her camp had bought me a CD because she knew I wanted one of the songs on it. Yet, despite all these good things, I was still in a foul mood.

On the other hand, dinner (steak) was great. And, while I was relaxing after dinner, Michael showed up. Yay! We sat together and watched as some Shark women did belly-dancing.

After what seemed far too short a time (probably about an hour, though), we made our way back downtown. I went to the Independent editing session and he went to Chalkman, where he was performing in the bardic competition.

After about two hours at the Independent proof-reading ads, I realized there was only one or two fully laid-out pages, out of 11. It was 10:30 at night, and I didn't want to stay. I asked to leave, they said sure, and off I went to Chalkman's.

I eventually found Lorelei and Michael behind the pub in the musicians' "green room." In the end, they won the "Best Musical Quality" award and we hopped across the road to Howling Mouse. Lorelei went off with Luccia while Michael and I stayed behind.

Michael and I performed some songs until the circle broke up. We actually were complimented on our harmony, which I found very pleasing. We stayed until about 3:30 am. He invited me back to his camp and I agreed. There was a circle going on there. Dear gods, they're good. I felt hopelessly outclassed. I sang along anyway (my curse: I must sing along if I know the song) and proceeded to get very tired.

At about 9, way too early, I woke up and staggered over to the Independent offices. I got my assignment, staggered to camp, ate breakfast, and took a shower (thank you for letting me use your hot-water shower, Sharkpit!). I'm still considering staggering back to bed for a few more hours of sleep, but it probably won't happen. Stupid Independent...

I think I'll have to talk to the people at the Independent. I hadn't realized how much of my time it would eat. The only thing keeping me there is sheer stubbornness not to break my word. Ideally, I could just stop working there. Failing that, I'd like to seriously cut back: no early-morning call-ins, no late-night editing sessions. I'll do my assignment today, then talk to them. Maybe I'll find Liam and get his opinion first. I don't want to be bitter on my vacation, but I don't want to leave them hanging. We'll see.

Anyway. I still haven't read through today's Independent. I'll do that, then head out, I think. I'm still very, very tired. Something's gotta give somewhere.

noon -- Inner Vagabond

So I'm a little sleep-deprived. I've broken down crying twice since last I wrote, and it's been less than two hours. But, and this is the important thing, the situation is being resolved. I spoke to Liam, and he reassured me that the paper will go on without me. He's going to speak to them after lunch on my behalf, which is very sweet of him. I'll do the one last article, and that will mostly be that. For the moment I'm getting some caffein (chai) and sitting down to write out some interview questions. I'm so sleep-deprived. Mmm.... chai.

Oh, and I finally found out who bought me the CD, a particular one of the Marauders. She knew I was on a budget, knew I liked the song ("Roland"), and knew she couldn't perform it. So she bought a CD for me. So cool! I need to figure out something to do to thank her.

After I write the article, I may make my way back to Michael's camp. Other than the Chiurgeon's Benefit Concert and Midrealm bardic, I have no firm plans for the rest of the day. (Unlike tomorrow night, when I'm already quintuple-booked.)

late afternoon -- Sharkpit

This has been a spectacularly fantastic afternoon for flirting. My ego is give miles high and still climbing. As I was going to Chiurgeon's Point (to write the article), I met Guiseppi. We chatted a bit, but I needed to leave. He insisted I meet him after the interview. So, when it was over, I found him behind Erwillian's booth. He said he had something for me, and sorted through a pile of Bardicci silver. As he picked one out for me, he frowned and said, "you don't really want that." "I don't?" I asked. "Well," he said, "you could either have that... or this." And he pulled from behind him a red rose, and draped around it, a piece of Bardicci gold. Needless to say, that started off the afternoon on a stellar foot. He told me that the gold was insurance that I come to the low party, and I promised him I'd be there.

Then I went, wrote my article, and decided to see who was awake in the Bog. I somehow got myself completely lost, but in the end found Bardicci. Guiseppi (whom I'd come to see) wasn't there, but Seamus was. I serenaded him and a new Bardicci with a few songs ("Maid on the Shore" and "Lady Isabelle and the Elf-Knight") and then took my leave up Hangover Hill. Michael had just woken up, so I hung around for an hour or so chatting with him and his campmates. Life was good. Eventually I headed up the hill while he headed down. I stopped in at Havre des Glaces and Howling Mouse for... wait for it... more flirting!

As I hit the top of the hill, I ran into Kathen (in charge of Pennsic University). Then, at the Vagabond, I met Lorelei and Alethea, who told me that Liam had told Master Drix of Calontir Trim that I needed to perform "Boreal Army Muster" for him. (Yes, the SCA is the world's biggest game of broken telephone.) So I went over, introduced myself, and performed.

Thence, back to camp, stopping to say hi to Erwillian. Yay more flirting. And now I'm back at camp with all the Sharks. Yay camp. Liam was here and told me there were no problems at the Independent with my resignation. Yay.

Now I'm looking for Chiara to make sure it's okay for me to sing the Muster at the concert tonight. I also need to refresh myself on the lyrics to "The Not at Pennsic Blues." I may try to catch a nap as well.

So that's it for now. TTFN.

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Sunday, August 13

363.17 +
1.00 -- photocopies
4.00 -- lunch
9.00 -- PI subscription
6.00 -- supper
= $383.17

10:50 -- AS4

Last night was lots of fun. My first-ever show (as opposed to competition or exhibition) went moderately well. I did two solo pieces -- "The Not at Pennsic Blues" and the "Boreal Army Muster." The first went well, the second (late in the night and somewhat impromptu) went less well. I learned 4 or 5 songs while I was onstage performing them. It was a learning experience.

Then I joined up with Michael at Hedgehog and Regnesfolke and watched him perform for a while. It was a good night.

Now I must teach. TTFN.

early afternoon -- Sharkpit

So. Class went well. I used up all my handouts and had even more students who didn't get any. I estimate I had over 30 students, which surprises me mightily. I will have to make extra handouts for any future Pennsic classes.

After class, I ran into Guiseppi and dragged him over to the Marauders for lunch. There, I found out that apparently the Mayor has completely abolished the chiurgeonate. Given that my article on the new EMS service came out today, I find the timing highly ironic.

And now I'm relaxing. My voice is a bit shot from my class and I think I might be a touch dehydrated. So I'm just sitting around now. At some point I should probably buy some cloak clasps, but it might not be today. I may nap.

Tonight won't be a heavy bardic night, I don't think. They only bardic venue I'm attending is Brion's circle, and even that would only be one song.

Damn my restlessness. I know I should just sit and relax, but I want to move and do stuff. Le sigh. This sort of thing only happens at Pennsic. I love Pennsic.

mid-afternoon -- Sharkpit

One mid-afternoon meander later, and I'm back at Sharkpit. I went down past Enchanted Ground, stopped in at Ajax's, and made my way to Bardicci. I saw Guiseppi and met Leonardo, who has offered me his services as a masseur. I love Pennsic. Guiseppi gave me a tour around the Casa. I told him I'd be at the Casa before midnight tonight.

Then I hit the Sea Chameleon to see Michael. He was there but sleeping and I didn't want to wake him, so I kept on going.

I stopped in to say hi to Fiana and found out the Enchanted Ground expedition will be at o'dark. I therefore might miss the Effenwealt concert. We'll see.

That's it for now. I think I may take a nap. TTFN.

To see Week Two, click here.

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