Arontius of Bygelswade

.....My brain is on super churn mode at the moment. So I'm taking a few moments to think about other things in the hopes it'll calm down and move in just one direction for a while. :-)

.....We packed up our boxes for Ursulmas on Thursday and dropped them off with Madrun on Friday to put in her van. This proved to be a good idea as when we were up and dressed on Saturday, we were ready to go with minimal stress. Note to self: Good approach, use in future. :-) Although getting up at 4AM and leaving at 5:30 or so-ish may not have been the best plan in the first place. :-) Tsuruko and Madrun were both punctual and seemed alltogether with-it though when they showed up. I was impressed. :-)

.....TBT and I missed having our Chief Caretaker, Gwen, with us. But Madrun and Tsuruko more than fulfilled the role and were real troopers over the day. No complaints from them whatsoever, even after we made them stay on site far longer than any of us really wanted to be. We have good retinue and need to always remember and appreciate that fact.

.....We were on the road by 6-ish, with a small detour at Starbuck (HUZZAH!) and another to help a stranded SCA motorist who'd run out of gas on Bond Road. Not the best place for that to happen. But we made sure they got out of there as fast as we could. THL Kassandra stopped in the meantime and made sure they were O.K. as well. I like the fact that we look out for each other here in Dragon's Laire.

.....We did manage to make the 7:05 ferry out of Kingston and it was smooth sailing all the way up to the Fairgrounds in Monroe. I drove Madrun's van there and back and enjoyed the drive. Made me think longingly of a new car. :-)

.....The line at gate was relatively short and we hustled all of our stuff into the arena at a fast clip. HE Brighid had grabbed us space for a Baronial enclave right next to Madrone. I wished we had had more opportunity to speak with Their Excellencies of Madrone, but we were all always on the go it seemed and an opportunity just never came up.

.....Note for future reference on space: Our mats were spread out, but it always helps to have a body on that space to actually safeguard the territory. Our mats were moved at some point into more of an 'L' shape. This kind of reduced our territory and we were a little tightly packed.

.....We had a good showing of the populace to take up space in the enclave. Several people mentioned how much they appreciated having the space and being sincerely invited to share in that space. TBT and I are working hard to keep building that sense of community in Dragon's Laire. That sense of family is important in having a good time and getting things done. We're not as outgoing as Cedric and Brighid were, so we need to make sure to play to whatever strengths we can nurture. Which is mainly the one-on-one interactions with as many people as possible so that they understand how important we know they are in their part of the Barony.

.....Our need to be on site so early was dictated by the delivery of largesse we had to pass on to Her Grace Miranda. There was some talk of a presentation at morning court which did not happen. We were a little dismayed to think that there was no need for us to be on site as early as we were. But I'm not fussed in retrospect. I liked being there early and setting up our 'area' in preparation for the day. It did make for a long day, but was still worth it in my opinion.

.....To keep the dust down to a minimum and in preparation for Ignition's fire performance in the evening, the ventilation blowers were on inside the building all-day-long. I think that added to the exhaustion level to a degree. It was harder to hear people. You had to pay attention more. And it made another level of 'stuff' happening in the background. I think it is one of the reasons I was tired by 4PM.

.....After morning Court, TBT and I made the rounds to deliver tokens to those from the Barony who were competing in the tournaments. I didn't say much (TBT did most of the talking). But I felt it important to be present. It is the presence of these people in these tournaments that spreads the word-fame of the Barony and also fosters a sense of community spirit. So it is very important that these participants, and all others who compete, display, teach, etc., be recognized by the Coronets. Some people may end up with the ability to make armor out of the number of tokens they receive. :-) But I still think it makes a good impression.

.....We also gave tokens to a couple of people who've made a difference in the Barony and don't necessarily live here, like Don Sebastian, Dame Melusine, and Sir Raoukinn. They also need to know they are appreciated.

.....TBT and I made the rounds of the Marketplace, speaking to many people we recognized.

.....We spoke to Her Grace Miranda at the largesse table. The Dragon's Laire populace came through on a good assortment of largesse.

.....Spoke with Dame Eleanor in the cooking area. Fell in love with their brick over. In addition to cooking, I bet it would make a nice forge and kiln with very little effort. :-) Again made me wish that there were fourty-eight hours in a day to do everything I would really like to do. :-)

.....Ran out to see the archers and met Master Andras and Liesl. They were having fun, as were the rest of the archery community.

.....At 1PM we went to the Regional Calendar meeting and had an interesting discussion. Thankfully, the new calendar policy has been postponed for the year. There weren't a lot of details on the '3-Event-Policy' at Twelfth Night, so I was really looking forward to those details. But at least for this year, we can shape the calendar as needed and worry about next year, next year. Which means we can have our weekend 'Summer Bardic' as planned in August.

.....We talked about 'Regionally Combined' events, and event dates. Like having everyone's Sarjeantry Trials be on the same date on the Calendar. This doesn't necessarily mean a combined event (as most programs are very different), but having them all be on the same day would save Kingdom Calendar space. Which is a good idea.

.....Also discussed a 'Regional Yule'. TBT and I were thinking that the President's Hall at the Fairgrounds might serve as a good location. I still need the Fairgrounds to let me know if either of our December dates are open for that. This is my reminder to get that done.

.....After the Calendar meeting, TBT and I made another round of the Hall and ran into Sir Brendan and Mistress Aryanna. Such great people! Lots of good insight and genuinely nice. I hope we see more of them at Dragon's Laire gatherings.

.....After this is was getting close to evening Court and I was starting to drag. I had originally intended on staying for all of Court, but I finally modified that to be until the Pelican's were done. Thankfully, we were almost first on the agenda. We were called up and Their Majesties called up THL Gwenlian Catharne and placed her on vigil for a Pelican.

.....Although most of what was said couldn't be heard over the ventilation! But Gwenlian's ceremony later on is the more important. And we'll finally have an active Pelican in Glymm Mere. Yeah!

.....After that, we were DONE. We broke encampment in record time and packed the van. We wanted to stop at Red Lobster for dinner, but it was crowded. So we went on to a favorite hole-in-the-wall Chinese restaurant on HWY 99 and had dinner. It was EXCELLENT! We were all full and the price was awesome. I keep forgetting about that place, T&T Seafood.

.....By the time we made it back to Kingston I was getting TIRED. I kept nagging at the Ladies to 'keep talking' so I would stay awake. :-) But we made it home safe and I was dead asleep about 20-minutes later. :-)

.....It was a good day all around actually. I don't exactly feel like a Baron yet, but I'm starting to get my sea-legs. I need to stop worrying about it and just keep doing it, I guess. That's the secret.

.....On to Holly-And-Ivy, and then Candlemas. Going to be a busy month.

.....Aaron / Arontius.

.....I've had my current job for nearly four years now, and will be married for four years this summer, and still have not quite adjusted to the radical change in routine in my life. As I think back to 'life before' there was a procedure for keeping the house at least relatively neat and tidy. The cat box was regularly cleaned. The driveway swept. The plants watered. These days I can't seem to manage to stay on top of the dishes to save my life! :-)

.....This morning the new disappointment was the houseplants. It was the routine to water the plants every Sunday, every Sunday and Wednesday during the summer. This morning I happened to notice the wilting leaves on the Avocado and was dismayed to find that the Avocado and one of the coffee trees were completely dried out and dead. The other coffee was dried out and wilted hard. It may survive. But I was sad as I've had these for a while. When I started thinking about it I realized that it had been over four weeks since I had watered the plants last. Damn!

.....I'd been thinking lately that maybe a small dog, or even a bird might be a fun addition to the household. But now I'm having a hard time convincing myself that I have the ability to care for another animal if I can't seem to take care of the houseplants. :-) That's a long term muse though. The cat-tastrophe we are currently living will probably be around for quite a while. :-)

.....I would NOT change anything I have right now. I like being married. TBT is an incredibly important part of my life now. But I need to figure out some way to get some routine again in my life. Nothing I've tried to date has helped a whole lot. Time to try some other techniques. Just not quite sure what yet.

.....I mentioned last night to someone that we had a retinue meeting scheduled for this weekend and they were puzzled as to why we had so many of them. I had to think about that a while. I can honestly say that it is entirely for my benefit. It has been amazing how chaotic everything has been. The hardest part about being part of this Coronet Team is in moving the process forward and herding all the cats in a single direction. :-) I like the meetings as they help me to focus my thoughts and organize the schedule of things that need to be done. It helps me to have a logical and as sensible a plan as possible that I can follow to help ensure we cover all the needs.

.....Plus, I like discussing ideas with others. It helps me to see things from different perspectives and ensure that we're making the best decisions possible. That we're not forgetting important things and people. Multiple brains are better than single brains as far as I'm concerned.

.....And, really, I just like our retinue personally. They've all been wonderful people with whom to work. Intelligent and industrious. Caring and considerate. All fantastic personalites. I enjoy their company and conversation. I do need to keep reminding myself to ask them to speak up when they've had enough of meetings. No need to overindulge my ego. Although, considering everyone who's been involved, I really can't think of any of them who would hesitate to speak up if they think they've had enough. :-) I know that TBT can take them or leave them, so we'll see.

.....Regional Pelican meeting tonight. One of the big things is to set the meetings for the Spring, Summer and Fall Quarters of 2011. The Laurels have been doing this for a while. I thought that we might as well try this approach and see how it works. We all have such diverse and busy schedules that there is never a good day and time to meet, so we might as well throw 'something' out there to plan around. Not everyone is going to make it, but enough generally will to make a quorum.

.....Plus a stop at Harbor Freight Tools along the way! That thought alone was enough to make TBT consider driving Ralph and I to Tacoma so she could partake. I'll have to remember that for future reference. :-)

.....On the horizon, let's see. Next weekend is the Sunday Fight Practice at Manchester Fuel Depot. If we're lucky Sir Brendan might be there. That would be way cool.

.....Then the following weekend is Ursulmas. We put out a call for the Barony to gather around the Erics to cheer on Dragon's Laire fighters competing in the Tournaments. I hope we get a good turnout. The Ursulmas Autocrat responded to the post right away with offers of helping to organize space for us, which I thought was very considerate of them. I think it will be a good day.

.....We also have a silk banner making workshop coming up. I'm really looking forward to it. THL Anne is setting it up. I've wanted to get banners done for TBT and I for a while now. I'm excited at the prospect of possibly having them for May Crown and June Faire. YES! :-)

.....Must get started with the day. I'm looking forward to a three-day weekend. One more reason to be happy with Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., as if there wasn't enough already. :-) May be the last free weekend for a while though.

.....Aaron / Arontius.