PENNSIC ADVICE COMPILATION Deudone d'Oxon or Y'honatan ben Simcha mka Jonathan Baker 360 4th St., Brooklyn, NY 11215 (718) 499-0439 baker@robocop.nyu.edu Not Copyright by Me Contents May Be Copyright By the Contributors I. INTRODUCTION AND DISCLAIMER This is a compilation of the accumulated wisdom of the Rialto regarding long camping events, particularly the Pennsic War. Contributors include: Joshua ibn-Eleazar ha-Shalib (Stephen Bloch) Ellisif Flakkingskvinne (Monica Cellio) Donallain o'f Galaru Glais (Kevin William Ryan) Dur of Hidden Mountain, Baron of Grey Matter (Dale E. Walter) Simon of the Beautiful Waters (Dave Aronson) Caitrin o'r Rhyd For (Kathryn Gandek) Yaakov HaMizrachi (Harold J. Feld) Alasdair mac Donnchaidh (Craig Robertson) Justin du Coeur (Mark Waks) Arastorm the Golden (Virginia Taylor) Countess Genevieve du Vent Argent, OP (Mary Knettel) Duke Sir Cariadoc of the Bow (David Friedman) Lady Madeleine (Mindy Miriam Rheingold) Julitta (Ms. Shicoff) Ilaine de Cameron (Liz Stokes) and of course, dhe yonge compileur, Deudone d'Oxneforda (Jonathan Baker) Contributions are attributed at the end of each section. They were culled from a collection of postings read by myself about a year ago (for the most part). Unfortunately, I do not have the full SCA and mundane names of some of the contributors, for which I most humbly apologize -- I mean no slight. Many sections of this compilation begin with a long excerpt from Bart the Bewildered's "Campaigner's Notes", more commonly known as "Bart's Pennsic Thingy." These sections are covered by the following copyright notice: Copyright Paul S. Kay, 1988, 1989, 1990. This document may be freely reproduced as long as the author's name and this copyright notice are included. Other than that, copyrights to the rest of the compilation revert to the various authors, from whom I received permission to repost and archive their respective postings. II. PLANNING (( CHAPTER FIVE FROM BART'S CAMPAIGNER'S NOTES )) 5. WHAT TO TAKE This is the real reason I started writing this, to give a basic checklist. For ease of reference, the list is broken into two Sections: that which you need and that which might come in handy. 5.1 Necessities The following should not be left at home. If you have limited room, the items on this list can all fit in one duffel bag or two medium sized bags. * Enough of any medication that you need for the length of your stay. It can ruin your trip if you run out, and convincing a local Doctor to write a new prescription can be difficult, if not impossible. * Sleeping bag and pad. You can always bum a place to sleep, but you ought to have something to sleep in, even if it is just a couple of blankets. This area can get down into the 50's on warm nights. This is no joke. The pad can just be something to keep you off of the cold ground; a thicker pad adds to comfort immensely. * Rain gear. Rain coat or poncho, boots for mucking about, wool socks, plastic tarps. While a heavy, somber toned poncho most resembles an oil skin cloak (period rain wear), use what you have. Better safe than soaked; I have found mundanity is accepted when it is bucketing rain and you are holding down a tent (especially someone else's tent). * Hat. This gets a separate item because it is important. A hat keeps the rain off, cuts body heat loss in the cold or at night, and keeps the sun from boiling your brain as quickly. Sun stroke and sun burn can be a drag. The hat should be mediaeval looking, but that leaves a lot of leeway. All oriental hats, many straw hats, and some leather cowboy hats look right. A note on hat etiquette: remove your hat in buildings, tents, or even shade. As well as being polite, wearing a hat out of the sun is almost bad for you as no hat in the sun. * A warm cloak (or a friend that has one) or a plain blanket that can be worn as one and can be sat on. Again, the nights get cold and the dew falls heavily even (especially) after the hottest days. * Garb. This is an S.C.A. event, and some attempt should be made to dress in period as much of the time as possible. Mundane costumes are fine for under armour or for going into town (but you might get complaints even then). The following should suffice: - Two to four simple tunics or dresses in some light colored solid, with trousers or skirts to match, if desired. These should be a natural fiber that breaths well (e.g. cotton, linen, et cetera), as light as possible, while preserving modesty. - A warm piece of garb, or an over-tunic to pull on over a light tunic (layering is very effective), for cold nights or days. A solid colored cheap velour or heavy trigger work well for this as both have a high polyester content and do not breath much. - One good or semi-good outfit for court, going to the taverns, or visiting the campsite of someone you wish to impress. If the piece in item 2 is well made, it will do admirably. - Light shoes or sandals, unless you want to slop around bare foot. Be warned, the gravel on the roads is sharp. - Heavy shoes or boots if you plan to go into the woods. - Accessories. A belt with a pouch and knife are good things to have around. * Change of other clothes for the time spent plus two that is wrapped in plastic to keep dry. If you do not have extra socks, you will need them, and there is nothing worse than getting clean and then having to climb back into dirty, sweaty clothes. While washers are available, it is best not to rely on them, unless you like hanging out in laundry-mats. It is a good idea to have at least one change of mundanes in your vehicle in case all of your clothes on site get soaked. * Portable light sources, both for camp and the port-a- castle. Authentic if possible, but a hand flash is sometimes more convenient. If you use propane lanterns, be aware that they are bright. They can hurt the eyes of those of us who adjust well to the dark and provide quite a show if used as out-house illumination in a plastic port-a-castle. * Toiletries. The usual stuff (soap, towel, toothbrush, etc.), and do not forget the shower gear. * Money to buy fresh food, fire wood, drink, trinkets, instruments, garb, armour, art, or whatever else you cannot live without. * Sun screen. This is new, but only because I over looked it. If you are typical, this is the most sun you will see all year. Getting severe sunburn can take a lot of the fun out of the War; armor chafes in new places, tunics rub, and you feel crummy. If you are fair skinned and/or do not get much sun, take precautions. * A bottle opener, can opener, and/or cork screw. I have seen people offered peerages for these things. 5.2 Et Cetera What follows is a list of things that are handy but may be left out if you do not want (or cannot afford) to overburden yourself. * Armour. This is not mandatory, unless you want to fight or scout. There is still lots to do without fighting. I know a couple of knights who have just left their harness at home and relaxed at a War (O.K., so one marshalled a couple of times and the other was doing his thing as a Laurel). * Instruments. Whether to just use at bardic circles or for more serious music, instruments can add to the fun. If you are a serious musician, or would like to be, this is about the best place you will find for S.C.A. jam sessions. * Song books. Bardic circles, or a large tent during a storm, are a great place to sing old favorites and learn new songs. * Eating utensils. What type depends on how you plan to eat. If you are taking care of yourself, you will also need cooking and clean up gear. * Grill, spit, tripod, camps stove, or some other way to tame fire and hold cooking pots. Which of these you use depends on preference, experience, and level of authenticity. * Swim suit and towel. Many folks skinny-dip at the swimming hole but a) I am not skinny, b) the water is better at the state park down the road, and c) I am shy. * A tent or tents. An extra tent allows more room for storage and hospitality. While pavilions are nice, modern tents are acceptable. * Coolers are always welcome. They also can be packed with gear during travel. * Plastic jugs of any size for water and mixed soft drinks. Canned and bottled drinks are good, but powdered GatorAid and Kool-Aid are cheaper and easier to pack. * Extra and/or fancy garb. * Camp lights. Kerosene torches, candles with chimneys, hurricane lamps, or what ever. They give a campsite a nice look and keep people from literally tripping around. * Hand Fan. It may not be 100 degrees in the shade, but a fan is still "a good thing." * Books and games in case things get slow (or hot). * Bandanas, Band-aids, bug spray (Avon Skin-So-Soft bath oil is an effective and pleasant smelling substitute), hatchet, jack knife, matches (or flint and steel), rope, string, sewing kit, safety pins, and anything else that is handy in camp. (( END OF CHAPTER FIVE FROM BART'S CAMPAIGNER'S NOTES )) ------------------------------------------------------------------ Look at the Knowne Worlde Handbook for articles on SCA Camping particularly that by Countess Arastorm the Golden. Her packing list has been republished many times on the Rialto. Unfortunately, she has lost her access as of this writing (July 1992). (ed.) The Pennsic War is held on the third weekend of August (16-18 this 1992). The Cooper's Lake campground is reserved for two weeks prior prior to this, and you may come earlier than that if you pay the Coopers' regular rates. However, there won't be many SCA campers before then, as most normal campground customers don't really want to be awakened in the middle of the night by revellers. (Paraphrased from Winifred de Schyppewallebotham, who I was unable to contact for copyright permission) Make a list. Simple to say, but remember it. Plan a menu for the week for yourself, including what you will buy there and who you plan to beg dinner from during the week. Check off your list as you load so that you don't forget anything. And bring a can opener - everyone forgets that. (Donallain o'f Galaru Glais) Add a second list which includes all the equipment that everyone else has. You don't need 3 stoves but extra coolers, lanterns, tables and chairs are almost always handy. You really don't need 3 or more dining flys (unless they are to cover a tent). If you're a group than share the use of just a couple that everyone can make use of. This not only saves space on site (it will be appreciated by your neighbors) but it gives some folks extra room in their vehicle. Add a third list: Camp chores. With 4 or 40, there are certain chores (like getting rid of garbage or cooking) that have to be done. If you schedule it out long before you ever arrive - everyone knows what's expected of them, the work is shared and hard feelings are avoided. For groups of 8 or more the following items are handy (I believe essential): A GOOD First Aid Kit to which you've added aspirin (or similar product), an anti-itch product, an instant ice and an instant heat pack, antacid (of some type), a mild laxative (I recommend Castoria) and something for upset stomachs (over the counter) and someone who knows what to do with it; a garden shovel; a wood axe or saw; a claw hammer; at least one lantern or large reliable flashlight; a pair of scissors (put a sheath over the point); 100' of clothes line; a water bucket; a bag of sand or cat litter (for smothering those fires that should have water put on them and useful for getting a car out of the mud); 2 large wash basins; a single burner stove for making hot water or coffee first thing in the morning when you really don't want to wait for your cook fire to be ready - or - a 3 burner stove if it is your primary source for cooking. (Alasdair mac Donnchaidh) If you are like the rest of us, you will find your car filling fast with camping necessities and SCA luxuries. I find it is best to just bring enough food for the first day or two, and plan a shopping trip into town. Ice in the cooler melts, and you can't keep meat more than a couple days safely. Bring things like teabags, instant oatmeal, and spices from your kitchen cabinet (and pack them in ziplocks) and plan to buy perishables on site. You can buy a small charcoal grill for under $10, it is versatile because you can put pots on it or grill directly over it, put a pot of water on it as soon as you take the food off, and it will be hot for dish-washing by the time you finish eating at no extra cost in fuel. Boiling water is trickier, you might beg or borrow one of those one-burner stoves for morning tea. (Ilaine) Recommended supplies: one or two coolers, your own band-aids and aspirin, any prescription medication you might need for the entire time, extra socks, dry clothes (to leave in your car), sun block, a dry tent, a warm sleeping bag or other bedding, more than one can opener. (Ethan Dicks) III. DRESS Which brings up clothing. As Dur put it, bring clothing appropriate to the conditions, and remember that the conditions can change very quickly. Hats Are Good Things: when it's cold, they reduce the "chimney" effect whereby you lose most of your body heat through your head, and when it's hot, they keep the sun off your head and face, and (depending on design) can double as fans. Keep most of your body covered most of the time: if it's cold, wear several layers of naturalfiber fabrics, and if it's hot, wear light fabrics of natural fibers, which will keep out the sun but allow you to sweat-cool. This is not only comfortable but period-looking (there is NO documentation for the use of bunny-fur bikinis is medieval Europe, but skin cancer is indisputably period). (Joshua ibn-Eleazar ha-Shalib) Simple but often forgotten: bring something warm and bring something cool. A good cloak is an excellent asset. Bring clothing (t-shirts, sweats, long underwear even) for putting on _under_ your garb if you get too cold. I can't count the times I've seen some poor person shivering because all they brought were flimsy shifts and t-tunics. BRING A HAT! It keeps you warm at night and more importantly in my view it keeps you from getting sunstroke and a lobster tan in the day. Bring enough (or plan on hitting the laundrymat) to wear clean stuff every day. Bring more socks and underwear than you think you need, and one or two towels (one of them will inevitably get soaked by rain or something when you need it). Be CERTAIN that you have a protected set of clothing: double bagged or stored in your car. If you get soaked in some terrible flood you want something DRY to change into. (Donallain) Bring a hat, long-sleeved but cool garb (yes this is possible, esp. w/ wide sleeves), and sunscreen. The layered approach to clothes for changing weather condition works very well. Too hot? Take off a layer. (No more layers? Jump in the tub!) Too cold? Put on another layer. (No more layers? Snuggle up with someone!) If the weather is likely to turn nasty (eg, heavy rains and high winds, enough to knock over a flimsy tent) make sure your tent is very stable! Also leave a complete set of clothes (preferably one of garb AND one mundane) in your chariot, or at least in something absolutely waterproof. (Pickle buckets work well.) Find out IN ADVANCE what the usual weather conditions are. (Simon of the Beautiful Waters) Heat beater - On the hottest days I wear a very long cotton veil aligned on my head so that the long parts are pointed towards my shoulders. It is wrapped around my neck, drapes down my body and is held in place by a circlet or hat. Most importantly, it is soaking wet. This does wonders for my body temperature and at night, when it's dry, I wear it as bug repellent (cause the bugs can't reach my neck!). (Caitrin o'r Rhyd For) Keep your feet dry, & your head covered. Take more dry footwear (extra socks!) than you can possibly go through. Take waterproof footwear. Take a hat, or buy one there, but wear one. Don't forget your part (hairline) with the sunblock, either. Take several towels. Leave most of your dry stuff locked in your car (safe from torrential downpours). Take a cloak, extra tunics (look closely, you'd be surprised how cheap you can find raw silk, sometimes) remember to wear natural fibers next to your skin (you'll be more comfortable, they breathe), extra undershirts/underdresses, (Julitta) IV. TENTS/SLEEPING Sleeping. I was brought up camping and backpacking, so I see nothing wrong with sleeping on an insulating pad on my tent floor, but I understand many people aren't used to that, or have back problems, or whatever. I've seen people bring futons and handmade, collapsible Viking beds, sleep in/on/between sheets and blankets, down comforters, patchwork quilts, Dacron sleeping bags, and cloaks (my Cloak From Hell, by itself, approximates a three-season sleeping bag in warmth. And I can walk in it with a lady under each arm, all three of us covered :-) (Joshua ibn Eleazar) Best ideas for tents are decent big tents without floors (note that you should not camp in an erosion gully if you do this, but that dirt drains quite well). This requires that your bed be protected from the floor. If you have a cheap tent or a standard enclosed tent BRING A TARP and put it _inside_ the tent to keep water from seeping through the floors. If you place it outside the tent under the floor you may have the 'waterbed' problem with water on the tarp and under your tent. A tarp that acts as a sunshade on the tent is also an excellent idea, and will keep things cooler. A good big tarp can shade several small tents. Bring enough warm bedding (and/or bed clothing) to survive 30-degree weather. I'm not kidding. It can get that cold. Make sure you are insulated from the ground with a pad, a cot, or whatever. Otherwise the ground will suck the heat out of you. Bring the padding you think you will need. If you aren't familiar with real camping, ask someone who is, and _follow their advice_ about minimums. (Donallain) TENTS: Long before the camping event find out from everyone who will be camping with you, the SET-UP size of their tent. This is the amount of space they actually need which often differs from the floor size of the tent. Also find out where the entry is located and whether or not they will be putting a fly/tarp over their tent. Once you've got this info. you can actually lay out the camp on paper - before you even arrive. At Pennsic the last couple of years they've asked for such info. If you are a safe camper with regards to fire you can place most tents within 3' of each other. Just make sure to leave fire lanes between each row of such tents and it is a good idea to have each set of rows set up so that the exits face each other. A really big tent w/o a floor makes a great kitchen/dining pavillion and keeps the number of dining flys down to a minimum. If you've never slept in a tent - do so before a major camping event. That's the only way you'll know how much padding YOU require underneath you. Finding out at Pennsic after a 6-16 hour trip to get there will make you very unhappy. (Alasdair) A PLACE TO SLEEP THAT IS WATERPROOF! It will torrentially downpour AT LEAST 1 night at the war. Put a warm sleeping bag inside that waterproof place, on top of a foam pad (it is amazing how lumpy that apparently flat place can be). Take a clear trash bag to put your dirty clothes in (It is so sad to hear about someone who put their dirty garb in a regular trashbag, & well, someone was helping clean up.....). (Julitta) V. FOOD/COOKING (( CHAPTER THREE FROM BART'S CAMPAIGNER'S NOTES )) 3. HYGIENE For many folks, Pennsic is their first and/or only camping experience. When camping, the standard rules of hygiene apply. There are also other, camping related, practices to be aware of that help make camping safer and more fun. It does not take much to turn camping from fun into a nightmare. Many of the of the causes for discomfort can be linked to disregarding some sensible rules. 3.1 General Hygiene This topic is an old one. I had it from my parents, in the Boy Scouts, and in High School Gym class, but it is still important. If these precautions seem trivial and unnecessary, think again. The heralds have cried these through the camp for the last two Pennsics. These include: * Wash your hands after using the privy. * Wash your hands before handling food, especially if you are preparing it for more than yourself. * Use clean surfaces for food preparation. * Store food correctly. This means meats and milk products in a cooler, bread in plastic in the shade, et cetera. All meat should be kept in a cool place, even sausages. Sausages with a high fat content, even if smoked, can go rancid. * Cover or close your garbage container. This makes it harder for flies to spread diseases. 3.2 Camp Hygiene Camping also requires some special provisions for hygiene beyond those above. Looking through my Scout manuals reminds me of several that were so ingrained I take them for granted. I was also reminded of some safety and courtesy rules that make camping more pleasant. Some of these are: * Keep your cooler(s) closed tightly. The ice lasts longer, the food stays cooler, and the chances of an insect invasion go way down. Another good thought is to keep drinks in a separate cooler than food. * Check yourself occasionally for ticks and rashes. Poison ivy is no fun, but can be contained if you catch it early, as can Lymes Disease (which has been reported in the area). * Wash dishes completely and carefully. Get them clean! - Wipe off excess food before you start. - At least use a basin of soapy water and a hot rinse. Use a final rinse with a sanitizing solution if you can, especially if someone in your camp is sick. - Change the water (especially the rinse water) if it starts getting dirty. - Air dry dishes on a clean surface. This may seem odd, but it is less likely to spread disease than using a towel. * Dispose of waste water carefully. Under normal circumstances, this means keep it away from the fresh water supply, but it also applies to not dumping dirty water around the spigots. After a day or so, the area around the water spigots becomes a quagmire from people washing dishes and performing their personal ablutions there. Put the water in a bucket and do your washing elsewhere, please. * Use a sump hole or grease pit to dispose of waste water and liquid waste (e.g grease). This is your home for a while; would you pour out dish water on the kitchen floor? This hole can be sited either near the fire pit or in some area that will not be used as a walk way. Mark it to keep people from stepping in it in the dark. * Use a fire pit. Cut away (and save) the sod and dig a pit larger than your fire and surround the outer edge with stones. This reduces the chance of grass fires. * Never leave a fire untended. If you are leaving the area for a while, or going to bed, bank the fire carefully. If you do not know how to bank a fire, put it out. (Actually, Security will probably put it out any way and, considering the way some encampments were set up, I don't blame them.) * Do not throw refuse in the fire. Most common plastics release toxic fumes when burned, glass bottles can shatter (explode), and cans will still need to be disposed of after the fire is out. * Leave the campsite cleaner than you found it. Clean up as you go (this really makes the whole trip more pleasant). When you are leaving, cover your fire pit and refill any other holes you have dug (replacing the sod is a nice touch). (( END OF CHAPTER 3 FROM BART'S CAMPAIGNER'S NOTES )) (( CHAPTER 4 FROM BART'S CAMPAIGNER'S NOTES )) 4. FOOD Eating during the War is a problem with several solutions. If the weather is typical (hot), you may not feel like eating much. Do not give in to this! Drink lots of fluids and force yourself to eat fruits and easy to digest protein during the day. This way, when it cools off at night, you will have enough energy to eat carbohydrates and other difficult to digest foods that you need. 4.1 Supply Yourself Bring some or most of the food you need. It can either be preprepared and frozen or brought as ingredients if they are not perishable. Perishables (vegetables, ice, and such) can be purchased at Cooper's Camp Store (which has gotten quite large) or from a store in town. Butler is 15 miles east on 422 and New Castle is 10 miles west. There are grocery stores, state stores (liquor and wines), and beer distributors in both cities. There are also department stores in case you need something else, like a new tent. (Mine blew up in a storm one year. That is right, not down, up. The front blew right off. I have witnesses.) 4.2 Join or Form a Food Plan There may be taverns on site that charge a set price to feed you for the week, however, many groups do their cooking together. For information on how the local group or your household is doing things, ask at local meetings. If you do pool resources, set it up before hand. I advise cash in advance and an agreed upon work schedule. People resent someone who appears to be free-loading. 4.3 Catch as Catch Can The taverns open for general business after the folks who have prepaid (if any) have eaten. There are sometimes people wandering around selling food ("Bagels and cream cheese!" "Here, over here, my good man."). There are even some folks willing to feed a waif who wanders by at meal time. The latter may be the most expensive choice of this most expensive method. (You could wind up doing dishes for the rest of the War!) (( END OF CHAPTER 4 FROM BART'S CAMPAIGNER'S NOTES )) ----------------------------------------------------------- At Pennsic XVII (and previous) I stayed perhaps four days, and kept my perishable food in a medium-sized Coleman cooler with ice. At Pennsic XVIII I lengthened my stay to eight days, kept all my perishables in a small Coleman cooler, a bit larger than a six-pack, and didn't actually buy any ice in the course of the War, although I left the house with some. At Pennsic XIX I lengthened my stay to fifteen days, used the same cooler, but left my house nine days before THAT, leaving my car parked for most of those nine days, so there was never anything RESEMBLING ice in it. It was an insulated box. (The above figures are for one person, cooking and camping largely alone. Your mileage may vary.) How? You can buy most perishables at either the Cooper's Store or the grocery store down the road in quantities that you can use up before they spoil. Fresh, unbroken eggs should last at least a week, even in Pennsic heat, unrefrigerated, and if you don't trust that you can oxygen- seal them first by putting them in boiling water for five seconds. Milk is hard to buy less than a quart at a time, but that should be no trouble if you have more than one person; even with one, my milk has only soured once, and that time I made an incredibly good batch of Irish soda bread out of it (a period solution). Or you can cheat and use powdered milk (which I keep as a backup). Butter doesn't spoil in heat. (Margarine does, I think.) You can leave a stick of butter in a kitchen cabinet for weeks (in a bowl, in case it melts) and eat it without fear. I haven't figured out a good way to keep bread, except either to eat it quickly or to make it onsite. Most of the food I cook at Wars is nonperishable, at least under sanitary conditions I can live with at all: lots of grains, dried beans, dried fruit, nuts, honey, flour, fresh fruit and veggies from either the Coopers or the grocery. Lots of sekanjabin syrup and its relatives (lemon, rhubarb, pomegranate, etc.) And there's always PB&J. Oh, were you going to eat meat? OK, jerky is easily made, stored, and transported; you can either chew it out of hand or cut it into boiling water for a stew. I have used the "Lord's Salt" recipe in Cariadoc's "Miscellany" to preserve cooked chicken; if you use it in a recipe that was going to contain vinegar anyway, and don't mind the cinnamon, it tastes fine. The various kinds of sausage were invented to store meat without refrigeration, and they do it quite well. I find the biggest problems with storing food at War to be insects and dust, both of which can be dealt with by using Tupperware or (slightly less jarring) glass jars leftover from storebought jelly, applesauce, etc. Neither is a period solution. Nor is the flypaper the Coopers sell, but I use it anyway. Now... cooking all that yummy stuff. A cookfire is hard to maintain safely without a good-sized encampment sharing the work, and there are mornings when you NEED SOMETHING HOT NOW, so I take a Coleman stove for those purposes. But if you can do a cookfire, it adds immensely to the ambience, and doubles as a sitting-around-chatting-staying-warm fire (you can't do that with a Coleman). There are merchants at Pennsic who sell all sorts of iron tripods and pot-hooks, and others who will deliver firewood to your encampment. A merchant at Estrella last year sold at least a dozen different sizes and shapes of Dutch ovens. Fire extinguishers should need no discussion: you need them. By the way, if you happen to be a morning person, you can become either very unpopular (by being wide-awake when others emerge from their tents uncertain which way is up) or very popular (by handing them a mug of coffee, tea, hot sekanjabin, or whatever when they emerge from their tents uncertain which way is up). (Joshua ibn Eleazar) If you're going to bring perishables, an ordinary 18"x18"x36" cooler will stay cold on about one block of ice every two days, if you keep it out of the sun. This is enough room for perishables for several people. Use block ice, not cubes - it will last a little longer. Keep everything in the cooler in garbage bags: this will keep them dry _and_ quite naturally lend itself to cleaning up at the end of the War. Check the ice block and drain the cooler regularly. I normally bring two or three frozen one-gallon containers of water for myself that serve as my ice for the first three-five days and then double as clean water supply. (If you do this, freeze them with an inch or two of water taken out, so they don't split.) Smaller coolers will require less ice, but keep them out of the sun and out of enclosed tents (the worlds most annoying ovens). Buy extremely perishable items like fruit, juice, milk, et cetera at the Coopers store or in town, and only buy enough at a time to use before it goes bad. Sealable freezer bags of various sizes are light and will keep bugs out. Hard boiled eggs keep quite well for a week or so. Yogurt (Mongols take note) is already fermented milk - it takes a lot to destroy it. I've had no problems with yogurt going bad in a weeks time if kept out of boiling hot tents. Bread lovers, I have a product endorsement: Kings Hawaiian Bread (sp?) which keeps without refrigeration for weeks. Tasty, too. I sometimes get breakfast with it by wandering into an encampment and saying "Anyone want some bread?" Non-perishables: jerky, sausage, nuts (good for keeping up your food level without having to take the time to cook something), dried fruit and such. Non-period stuff includes (eek) PopTarts, which give a quick 200 calories when you have a fighter or someone else who hasn't been eating enough. Take some one-a-day style vitamins - we all know that you won't eat properly. Cooking is best handled as a group activity. Work with a group, bring enough or buy enough to make up your contribution. Stews are easy, rice is _easy_ and can have nuts/spices/greens thrown in as well. If you get desperate, hit Sades or one of the other food merchants. Splitting cooking among a group means that everyone may only have to cook one meal that week, and you can certainly manage that. It's not period, but a few cans of stew or chili can hold you for dinner if you need to resort to that. Bring Gatorade. You will need it, or something like it. If it tastes good, you need to drink more. (Donallain) Jerky and dried fruit - This year (via someone's suggestion on the Rialto) we purchased "The Happy Hiker's Guide to Good Cooking". One of the best books of it's kind I've ever seen. After building a dehydrator out of about $20 worth of supplies (from the directions in the book), we started drying everything in sight! We were much happier with the taste and contents of homemade as compared to store bought. We also had the delightful ability to leave the tent in the morning with a cloth napkin filled with jerky, fruit and bread--tastes great for lunch, travels well and feels absolutely delightful to be able to do. Bread - The above mentioned cookbook has many recipes for breads designed to be tasty and able to travel for a week with a hiker. I make a couple of loafs of her soda bread and rye bread (and blueberry cake :-), then froze them. None of them went bad on me. It also felt great to be able to pull out a loaf of home baked bread--without having to bake it at Pennsic. I have to confess that I'm rarely in the mood to take the time to do serious baking at a camping event. The more I can do at home, the happier I am. Frozen other meals - Most people probably thought of this option already, but here goes. I cook stew and a curry at home, freeze it, use it as ice in the cooler and eat it at Pennsic. (Caitrin) Indian food keeps real well. I've had curries and yogurt that lasted several days of Pennsic heat. Ditto marinades in vinegar. One rice salad with onions, tomatoes and bits of meat/chicken lasted a looong time. Stir fry is a good way to make yummy, satisfying, easy-to- cook meals with what's available at the Coopers. Planned for this year: (1991) We are going to try to have a 24 hour stew pot over the cook fire. As volume gets lower, we just add more stuff. Let you know how this works out. Kumis is a good way to keep milk from spoiling! :) (Yaakov) Figure out a meal plan that's simple and unless you're planning something very unusual, buy your groceries locally. (More space saved in the vehicle.) A short distance from Pennsic are some good (large) markets. One of them will even take your out of state personal checks. In fact they got so sick and tired of having to key in my 14 digit acct. number and my NYS driver's license no. that they issued me a check cashing card. They might do the same for you. Also when you go shopping, bring a cooler with you for the perishable stuff. Ice is cheaper at the market and the food gets back to camp without spoilage. [It also gives you the option of doing some other shopping or doing laundry in a large laundromat while in town.] YES - keep coolers out of the sun. A great cover for them which helps keep them insulated can be made from those inflatable air mattresses that have sprung one leak too many. Some of them even come in great colors. [When dumping the excess fluid, be sure to do so away from tents, water supply, power lines and the road.] YES - block ice does last longer but having some cubes around is also handy. Keeping a small cooler for just cubes keeps ice available for chilling drinks and saves cooler space. Those soda/juice/other beverage cans & bottles can be stacked elsewhere. Doing this also helps to convince people to always make use of period looking drinking vessels instead of drinking out of the can/bottle. Milk in pints & quart sizes are now available in shelf storage containers in many areas. Such milk locally comes in 'Skim', 2%, Whole and 2% Chocolate. Shelf life (not refrigerated until opened) is about 6 months. That's an item worth toting to war as I've never seen it in the stores down there and the small sizes are real handy. "Sealable freezer bags of various sizes are light and will keep bugs out. " This is useful but 'tupper-ware type containers have more uses and keep the water from your cooler out of your food better. Fresh eggs need not be refrigerated - just kept in the shade and they will last for a week. (Make sure there are no cracks or pin holes by sinking them in water. Cracked eggs should be thrown away - NOT eaten.) You also might want to consider pickled eggs - they last for months. Most commercial Yogurts must be refrigerated under Pennsic conditions - check with any doctor and likely he/she will confirm this. " Bread lovers, I have a product endorsement: Kings Hawaiian Bread (sp?) which keeps without refrigeration for weeks." I second that endorsement. Black breads also tend to last much longer than white breads, hard breads longer than soft - unless you're eating the kinds with all the additives. The Food Arena (Lyndora), my favorite market for Pennsic offer rye and pumpernickel rolls as well as oat and whole wheat and these individual sizes offer greater variety and keep well. "Cooking is best handled as a group activity." My experience has been that having one or two reliable cooks for a group works out better than sharing this chore. Of course those who cook have no other work to do and those who cook, or the chief cook the one that does all the shopping. If you are camping alone or with one or two others, instead of spending money at the inns, you might ask around at some of the bigger encampments and find out if they'll let you partake of their meal plan. "Bring Gatorade. You will need it, or something like it. If it tastes good, you need to drink more." There are beverages similar to 'Gatorade" on the market that are far less harmful to your health; the best of them are specifically geared for children. Children should not be drinking a lot of undiluted 'Gatorade' - ask a pediatrician. For that matter - most of us shouldn't be. If the camp water bothers your system and you don't want the hassle of bottled water simply boil up a large batch of water first thing every morning and keep a cover over it. Boiled water rarely upsets anyones system if you take the water out by dipping since you've boiled off many of the chemicals and many minerals will settle to the bottom of the pot. Cooking/feast gear: Bring enough (collectively) for your encampment and the unexpected guest but no more; and, LABEL everything. Cooking over an open fire? Soaping the bottoms and sides of your pots/pans really does work but it works best with real soap - not detergents. (Alasdair) What this is is an adaptation of a couple of recipes for corned beef and pastrami. For the first, the only seasoning is the garlic, and you leave the meat in it- refrigerated- for three weeks, for the other, you add the seasonings and vinegar, and smoke after marination. I also leave out the saltpeter because it makes some of my guests nervous. It's an anti-botulism ingredient and you may feel nervous *without* it. I generally put the cauldron on as soon as we can get a fire started and add such of the ingredients as I can put my hands on. (those of you who have seen my kitchen know what this means). Basically I let it boil until I am sure that all the sugar and salt are dissolved. Then I pour it over the meat in a large container. I use pre-cured meat: corned beef, pastrami, and ham. I have used a wooden bucket (clean and well pre-swollen), and a stoneware crock. We first lined the wooden crock with a plastic bag, but found later that the bag leaked and the barrel didn't so now we dispense with it. Frankly, because all the meat is in one pickle, by the end of the war it does begin to taste similar, so if you can find separate crocks and season each piece of meat individually, I think that might be preferable. In that case I'd season the ham brine with mustard seeds and maybe a few cloves, the corned beef with garlic and pepper, and the pastrami with the spices, and the vinegar. Don't forget that you can make your own jerky- which also does not need refrigeration, and is a great hit with the fighters around lunch, and serve commercially prepared salt beef, or even salt cod. None of which needs a cooler. The most important thing about this is that the meat MUST stay under the brine. Put a plate or a wooden disc on top of the meat and weight it down with a clean rock or brick. We have a lid on our crock as well. We have been using this system since at least Pennsic 12 and have had NO problems with the meat going bad, or anyone getting sick. For me, coolers are to keep your fresh chicken on ice for the one day between buying and eating. I suggest a fresh meat one day, a marinated meat or sausages the next (say shish-kabob) then something from the salt crock, then something dried- then you go to the market again. Or you can eat boiled salt meat all war, but I prefer variation. Boil 2 gallons of water (may be partially replaced with red wine vinegar) 1 pound of sugar 2 pounds of salt 4 cloves garlic 1 tbsp. ginger 1 tbsp coriander 1 tbsp. paprika 1 tbsp. pepper (Arastorm the Golden) Take a big enough ice chest (this will be larger than you will believe), esp. if you are staying 1-2 weeks. Most of what you take as food should be frozen hard before you leave. It will thaw out over time, add to the coldth of the ice chest, & keep longer. as it thaws, you will add ice to it, replacing the volume of what you have used. Make sure your (very large) ice chest has a drain plug at one end. Learn how to use it, & do so, keeping the contents from getting soggy. Zip-lock bags are a wonderful invention. I particularly commend to your attention the 1/2 gal. size, with the pleated bottom. They hold more, & stand up better. zip lock bags are the most efficient way to pack food in a cooler, & get the items from getting soggy or diluted. I strongly recommend a bag full of boiled, peeled eggs. It is my experience that normal human beings get more carnivorous at the war, & that carnivorous people..... well, are best fed often. Pickles are a GOOD thing. Vinegar of any kind is, & people will eat pickles. The salt is good for those sweating a lot, too. LOTS of non-alcoholic, non-dairy (not that I have anything against dairy products, on the contrary, but they are ridiculously (& artificially) low-priced in PA, & they are cheaper to buy at the campstore, than to bring in with you. Also, weight over mileage = money, if you're coming from any distance. Bring something you LIKE to drink. A case/person is not unreasonable (of quart bottles) for a little over a week. It is too easy to forget to drink at the War. If you've brought something you LIKE the taste of, you're more apt to remember. You don't have to bring cooking gear, if you do it right. Take already-cooked sausages (frozen), like kielbasa, or smoked sausage, or whatever, skewers, & some of those mini French bread loaves, about 6" long. All you need is a friendly fire to heat them over. Are there any friendly fires at Pennsic? Naaa....:-). Take zip lock bags of your favorite stew, made ahead. DON'T TAKE anything you haven't tried before. Might I suggest beef & barley, or mutton & barley stew? If you MUST have potatoes in your stew, & are asked about them, pretend that they are turnips (which are seen in period stews). Take extra stew. Some one will be willing to heat yours up, if they can have some, too. Take a bag of individually frozen steaks (chuck steaks actually grill quite nicely, & aren't too expensive). Follow the recipe above for getting them cooked. Take bags of ready-to-eat frozen fruit---my favorite grocery store here used to carry frozen black sweet pitted cherries-- sigh, it was SO decadent! DO TAKE a plate, bowl & spoon, your knife (of course!), & a cup/mug/goblet. If you take cheese, put it both in a zip-lock bag & in a tray in the top of your ice chest. Slimey cheese (from moisture) is very unappetizing. Don't give the bread valuable space in your ice chest. It will neither profit from the experience, nor appreciate it. All it wants is to be away from the air. Speaking of bread. If you want hot bread at the War, (don't laugh, some things seem SO decadent, after a week of camping) take bags of frozen bread dough, in their very own styrofoam cooler. They will thaw out over the course of the war. Use whoever is ready that day. If no one volunteers, take one bag out, & leave it (sealed) out. It will thaw & rise (the bag will make room) in it's own clean bag. Take a wok with you, a slotted metal spoon, & a bucket of lard/fat/oil. Some one will lend you their Coleman, 'cause they'd love some hot bread, too. Heat whatever fat in the wok, shape & flatten pieces of dough no larger than 3x5x1/2", & cook in the hot fat, turning to brown the other side. Very good. Better if you brought some sugar-and-cinnamon. There is a very yummy journey-bread that is period, called Prince Biskit (well, the recipe was published not long after 1600). Scotch eggs are also good. Post me if you need recipes for stew, Scotch eggs, or Prince Biskit (I make it with a Cuisinart). I suspect that one can make one's own orange-banana juice, freeze it & carry it to the war more cheaply than one can buy it. In any form, potassium is a GOOD THING. It is one of the 2 reasons people drink Gatorade. I was summoned to Oliewood last war, because Duke Olaf had a TERRIBLE leg cramp. "So", I says, "Had any bananas lately?" "I HATE bananas!" groaned Olaf, from behind gritted teeth. "What about Gatorade?" "Gatorade's yucky." "I see. What about oysters?" "What about oysters? I love 'em!" "Ah, will you eat some, if I fix them?" "Sure!" Let me commend to you the lowly oyster, that confused mollusk that can't remember which sex it is, but which is one of the highest known sources of potassium, & which also live quite happily in cans (which need no refrigeration), as well as in shells. A casserole of oysters would make a decadent part of breakfast (better to be ahead on potassium, than play catch-up) for heavy fighters, & others who sweat a lot. (Julitta) >Ice in the cooler melts, and you can't keep meat more than a couple days >safely. This I have to disagree about. At Beltane last year, we were quite successful at packing meat for a 10 day event. I ordered the meat in advance from our butcher and had him freeze it--he being able to freeze it more quickly and colder than I could. We took one ice-chest with the frozen meat packed with dry ice. It was only necessary to open that chest once a day--to take out the meat to be thawed for use that day (and--it helped keep the food that was only on ice chilled as well). It was only the last couple of days of this event that meat was already thawed--and that is within the limits you gave for keeping meat under camp conditions. Net result: We lost no meat to spoilage. (Hal Ravn) VI. SANITATION Bringing your own little roll of toilet paper is a good idea for when the Porta-Castles run out. If you won't have any facilities in your camp for washing up, you can get by with a) a large bucket filled with water and some bleach, which you wash your hands in before cooking or eating, or b) a good set of Handi-Wipes or baby wipes. Wash your utensils and self after eating; it keeps the bugs to a minimum. Get rid of your wash water in approved fashion, which is to say AWAY FROM THE WATER SUPPLY!! Ask your more experienced people where to rid yourself of wash water properly. Period or not, sanitation is something you cannot let slide. (Donallain) It's work but very worthwhile to dig a drainage pit in your encampment. Don't forget to remove the sod and save it for when you refill the pit. Adding a capful of bleach to the pit everyday keeps germs and bugs at bay; especially if you DON'T scrape your dishes into the pit. Bringing a small trash can with a lid might not look good but it makes the camp smell better. I also suggest adding a few drops of bleach to both the wash water and the rinse water for all cooking/eating equipment. Wipe up all spills when they happen and if food has fallen to the ground, pick it up and dispose of it in the garbage. If liquids, other than water, spill on the ground, rinse the area off with water. Sweet liquids attract bugs, especially bees and other liquids may not all soak into the ground and may sour - causing a disagreeable odor in your encampment (and attracting bugs). No one in our encampment has ever come down with any of the Pennsic Flus or a case of the 'trots' and I think that keeping things clean is the main reason. Part of sanitation is making sure that food prep. and eating surfaces (tables) are also clean. Table cloths can be picked up cheaply at garage & rummage sales or can be made out of old bed sheets. Anyway, they look nicer than a bare table. Next to keeping things clean, the most important thing is to keep food properly stored. If you want to leave a bowl of fruit out - fine - but put screening over it. ANY food left out attracts bugs - often bees (which many find dangerous to their health) and flies which can be dangerous to everyone's health. (Alasdair) VII. SAFETY ...Keep the Campfires Burning... By Baron Dur At Pennsic XVIII, I wandered the War discussing fire safety with the assembled folk in the guise of the "Pennsic Fire Marshall". When Pennsic XIX occurred this year, there was no such beast to haunt the lands (by command of the Autocrat). Nobody died. To my knowledge, nobody burned down a tent, got seriously burned, or was thrown off the site for "playing with fire". However... Let me start this story with what happened months before Pennsic XIX. The report written about exploits of the Pennsic XVII Fire Marshal was published in _Pikestaff_, the East kingdom newsletter in the June edition, in all its gory details. Then, word reached me that the Autocrat for the War didn't want a Fire Marshal for the war, me in particular. While the second part of the message didn't bother me, the first part did. But, it was her assets and therefore her problem. Some good-hearted soul who read the article in the news letter was apparently so impressed with the urgency of fire safety that they called me in the wee hours one day. He said he had a line on a fire truck, and he wanted to know what to do with it. So I told him. Call the autocrat. Fearing that this would continue, and possibly undermine the office of the autocrat, I contacted the East Kingdom Chronicler. "Would you please publish a short announcement to the effect that I am NOT the Fire Marshal for this Pennsic War, and that people should instead go to the Autocrat?" The announcement appeared in the following _Pikestaff_ (July). However, the news never got to any outside of the East Kingdom. When I arrived at the War this year, people were comming to me with questions on fire safety, and asking if I was still patroling the site. Arval was enlisted to spread the news to ensure that people would not seek me, but go to the Security Force with their concerns. "Baron Dur is NOT the Fire Marshal" was cried to the camp. (Later, Arnoff had them change the cry to "..is STILL not the Fire Marshal. He is Smokey the Baron!") Even after all that, people STILL wanted to know who the Fire Marshal was. I told them to ask the autocrat. That was her problem, not mine. Arnoff later recruited me to the Chirurgeon General Staff as the Combustible Consultant. Everybody then waited for me to burst into flames, I guess. This is what you get for practicing safety without a licence, a silly title and more paperwork. The job is to observe, evaluate, and report on fire safety issues within the SCA. This War, only four issues were noted as significant, and are summarized hereafter. Torches: Four separate incidents were either observed or told to me. First: Someone was walking through the campsites with a torch canister on top of a long pole, held high above their head. The pole was waving back and forth as the gentle weaved his way down the road. The distance between the observer and the culprit was large enough that the observer was not able to catch up to him and advise him of the consequences of his actions. Second: The short (two feet long) canister tiki torches are appearantly being labeled by the manufacturer as "hand held" these days. On three separate instances, young men were observed carrying these around the camp. They were accosted, and asked to extinguish them, which they did. I happened to follow one pair of gents back to Trimaris encampment, which seemed to be their home. In another incident, the gentle identified himself as one of Baldar's squires (Trimaris). Third: The placement, care, and feeding of torches was still a problem this year. I observed several cases where torches were placed under dining flys, or where they would fall on tents if knocked over. Several torches were overfilled, or the wicks were loaded up with soot, causing fire to spit and spark from the top of the torches. Fourth: At a large gathering, a gentle tripped over a tent rope, and knocked a torch canister off the top of its pole. The canister broke open, and covered the ground with burning fuel, all of this adjacent to one of the rental pavillions (Grimms Tents). He got up and tried to stamp out the fire, but the pool of fuel was too large for him to be effective (about three feet across). The rest of the story is almost comical, if it wasn't for the situation. The crowd drew back from the fire, as the gentle continued valiantly to stamp away at the fire. Many of the camp occupants rushed away to find their fire extinguishers, while my protege started hollering "Fire!". I got up, and was walking over to the fire to smother it with my large jacket, when one of the "camp firefighters" slammed me in the chest with the warning, "Get Back! We're waiting for the Fire Extinguishers!" I stepped back, as I could see someone arriving with a thirty-pound CO2 extinguisher. With three blasts, they dealt the fire a mortal blow. A great cheer went up from the crowd at the completion of the evolution. As the excitement died down, the party returned to normal. I thought the incident was closed, until the chirurgeons later complained to me about the number of injuries resulting from the fire. Seems that the responders had been so zealous in running to get their firefighting equipment, that they had tripped and fallen and hurt themselves trying to save the camp. Awareness and Misdemeanors: Many cases were observed of both preparedness and carelessness. Several folk who remembered the discussions from the previous year were eager to show me how well they addressed the issue of fire safety in their camp. My kudos goes to those who took this to heart. But, for every good deed, it shall not go un-punished. There were an equal number of occasions where the danger of fire was increased through plain carelessness. I observed numerous cases of liquid fuels stored next to fire sources, tents staked too close to fire pits, fires burning in unattended, crowded campsites, and yes, open flame sources in tents. I interviewed several of the security teams to determine what, if any, briefing they had received on fire safety enforcement. Less than half of them had been instructed, and less than one in ten had any idea what to do if they came apon a fire situation, other than call it in on the radio. As a side note, one of the PA Volunteer Fireman on site had brought his personal turn-out gear (fire-fighting clothing and helmet), and had it stored readily available at his camp. I'm glad it was not needed. Felonious Firebugs: At least this year the firebugs waited until the War was over. Sunday night's Calontir Bonfire was again the scene of the "Burn everything on site" fire fest, with the usual stupid Peer pouring flammable liquids on a roaring blaze. I hope he still can grow hair on his arms. Offical Preparation and Regulation: Pennsic XIX was atypical in that information was widely available and clearly defined well in advance of the event. My compliments to the appropriate members of the staff. The regulations for Pennsic XIX concerning fire safety (listed in various publications) were adequate from a legal standpoint. The issue of structure proximity (tent spacing) and equipage (amounts and placement of fire fighting gear) were the best thus far of any war. However, promulgation of this information assumes that people will "read and heed". The fact that there were multiple violations of these strictures indicates either wanton misbehavior or ignorance of the rules. Worse yet, some of the rules are misinterpreted and further increase the dangers of the incident. People will respond better to a personal visit by a designated advocate than to an impersonal edict from on high. An example of misinterpretation would be the "Fire Extingusher" requirements. Most of those brought to the War were inappropriate for the situation. They were either under-rated, or were not rated at all. The most likely of fires would have burned out of control while three and even four of these units were discharged. In the case of the torch fire mentioned above, the extinguisher was improperly employed, requiring multiple attacks to douse the fire. This lack of training is too common to make any of the "required" equipment even marginally functional (see the report on last year's tent fire for example). Obviously, the situation, while improved, is not resolved. However, some are working towards a possible solution. Two of the large household camps at the War instituted their own fire safety advocacy, superior to that provided by the Pennsic staff. This idea has great merit. Therefore, I propose that _every_ camp have a fire-safety advocate. This designated person must report for daily training, and is responsible to conduct training at their camp. The indoctrination and training of the advocates should be a responsibility of the Pennsic _Safety_ and Security staff. Historically, the Roman's response to fire was to create a nightwatch called the Vigilants. Their responsibilities were to raise the alarm in the event of fire, and then combat the fire with the citizens. As the War continues to become more civilized (citified), those who attend (its citizens) need be more vigilant. Remember the outrage of Rome when the "Christians" were blamed for causing the fire? Be outraged at those who through ignorance or misbehavior endanger you, your kin, and your friends! Dur the Nasty, Baron of Grey Matter PS As a fireman, I've "bagged and tagged" enough strangers. I don't want to do that to my friends too. (Dur of Hidden Mountain) ---------------------------------------------------------------------- (( CHAPTER TWO FROM BART'S CAMPAIGNER'S NOTES )) 2. WARNINGS There are possibilities for danger in any camping trip, knowing what they are and how to deal with them can be the difference between a little excitement and a disaster. Included here are some of the things to be aware of, and have plans for, when you go to Pennsic. This is by no means a complete coverage of dangers, but it hits the points that cause the most trouble to most folks. 2.1 Storms I would like to emphasize a climatological fact. The area the War is held in is part of the Great Plains weather pattern. This means the area is subject to disturbances at the leading edge of a cold front (a 15 to 40 degree temperature drop). Friends from the East (and West) Kingdom have variously referred to these as monsoons, typhoons and Storms_of_Great_Ferocity_and_Note. Those of us who grew up in the Midwest call them thunder showers, except for some folks I know from Kansas who call it mild rain (no twister and it did not flatten the crops). These storm cells are 15 minutes to three hours of high winds (50 plus knots), heavy rain, and spectacular lightning. A storm may be followed by several hours of rain. The fronts seem to roll through every six to nine days in August. I advise all to expect at least one storm. The people who grew up with the weather do not ignore the storms, these folks respect and plan for the weather. It is unpleasant, but need not be a disaster. Some things to remember: * Do not panic. If you are truly terrified, tell someone so they can keep an eye on you, keep busy so you will not have time to panic until the camp is secured, and then find company and cuddle or sing or give back rubs or whatever it takes to get through the storm (this can make storms fun). * Storms usually come from the west. Avoid setting up your tent with the door facing due west. A slight cant to the north or south will keep things drier and lessen the chance of having the tent blow down or tear. * Make sure that your tent is set up with all of its pegs and tie downs (dome tents may need extra guy lines; once they start rolling, they are hard to catch). If you do this in the first place, you will spend less time in the rain doing it after the storm hits. * If you are camped on an incline (probable), then you might consider a small drainage ditch on the uphill side of the tent. This channels water around rather than through your tent. * Do not use heroic measures to save a dining fly or awning. Some things were not meant to stand high winds. A flapping piece of plastic with a pole attached to it can do a lot of damage, both to people and to property. If the wind gets high and the fly starts to take off, drop it down over what you want covered and weight the edges. 2.2 Temperature Extremes A more subtle climatological fact is that the average temperature and humidity in August is horrendous during the day, while the nights can be down right cold. (Can you say frost? I knew you could.) Either of these extremes can lead to health problems that have one symptom in common: the affected person gets stupid. As someone who has suffered from these medical conditions, I can think of no better description. The mental processes slow (or shut) down and you are in a walking stupor. The sufferer stops listening to reasonable advice and will do things that will seem stupid to them when they have recovered. Many other injuries at the War are probably related to these conditions. Watch your friends and yourself. 2.2.1 Heat Daytime high temperatures average in the high 90's with humidity to match. If you are not used to this, or are not in prime condition, take_it_easy. More people, fighters and spectators, are lost to heat than all other types of injuries. Folks who are used to desert heat are as likely to drop as any. The high humidity, which they are not used to, slows heat loss via sweating. If the temperature and humidity get high, drink lots of water, stay in the shade, eat fruit (especially bananas)-, and occasionally taste metabolite replacement drinks (drinks that replace minerals that the body sweats out). While Gator-Aid is not the best, __________ - If you are not used to eating lots of fruit, you may experience some intestinal changes. Some fruits can cause constipation, others make you watery. Heat illnesses and water change can have similar effects, especially diarrhea. Just another warning. it is easy to get (too high a concentration of mineral salts and too much sugar; dilute with water for best effect). If Gator-Aid does not taste bad, drink up until it does, you are in trouble. (How is that for rough and ready sports medicine?) Go easy on the alcoholic beverages. An occasional beer or wine cooler is a relief, but alcohol speeds dehydration by replacing water in the body and then using more to be metabolized, so, in quantity, it is a very bad thing. Other symptoms of heat disorders include flushed and dry skin, lethargy, no sweat, and, as I said, acting stupid. 2.2.2 Cold The large difference between daytime and nighttime temperatures (night temperatures range from mid 30s to the 50s, e.g. chilly) common to the area can also lead to another problem encountered at the War, hypothermia. This is a drop of the core temperature of the body, which can lead to coma and death if not treated. Treatment is to warm the person up as quickly as possible. It is easier to avoid hypothermia by changing out of wet clothes, drying off, and getting warm. If a friend is wet (say after being out in the rain) and getting cold (since the temperature dropped 30 degrees in the last hour) help them out. Get them into dry clothes and get them warm. Strong drink (liquor) is not advised if they are still wet or cold. While they may seem to feel warmer, drinking alcohol speeds heat loss, which is what you are trying to avoid. 2.3 Fire The next point I will touch on moves from cold back to hot, i.e. fire. This wonderful tool is like any other, it will turn and bite you if you mishandle it. The Chirurgeonate would like to mandate a minimum of 10 feet between open flames and tents. I wish them luck since common sense is hardly common. The rule of thumb I use is far enough away so that the fire cannot be knocked into the tent. Never have an open flame in a tent. Lanterns in tents are an issue I will not address except to point out I use battery lamps in tents. Most modern fabrics melt too fast and too hot for me to want to take chances. In case of tent fires (Heaven forfend!), the Autocrat has demanded 3.5 feet between tent walls, hoping this will keep a fire from spreading if and when. If this seems like a lot, look at the guy lines from a properly set 3-person Aframe tent and you will find that two of them will end up having their walls three to four feet apart. If they use that much (my pavillion uses more), I find this request reasonable. As for campfires, if you are not good friends with Prometheus, be very careful. Amateurs make me nervous. There are very few people in the world (let alone at Pennsic) who are good at treating amateur fire gods who become burn victims. 2.4 Invertebrates (Bugs) If you have never been camping, you are about to find out one of the less thrilling things about nature; God must love insects, he sure made a lot of them. Something for folks from the left coast to remember is that there are a lot more insects, both type and number, on this side of the Rockies. I never saw a tent with zip-out netting until I helped Duke Paul set his up at a Pennsic. They just are not sold in the Midwest or East. Bring mosquito netting and bug spray and remember to keep garbage, coolers and tent netting closed. If you are allergic to bee stings, bring your medication! Some types of note: o House flies - That friend you thought you left at home is here at the war, too. Just like at home, he never wipes his feet before landing on your table (or food), no matter where he was last. Keep food and garbage covered and clean food preparation areas, just like at home. o Horse and deer flies - While you can go the whole war without seeing them, these beauties are not uncommon in the area. They both bite and leave a welt. Horse flies are slightly larger than house flies. Deer flies are dark with white "eyes" on the wing and are slightly smaller than house flies. They are both easily discouraged by using insect repellent. o Ticks - Both Woods and Deer Tick are indigenous to the region, each can vector for some nasty diseases. Insect repellent works, but a "tick check" twice a day is still a good idea. o Mosquitos - While not in the same class as the ones in Alaska or Minnesota ("It is awe inspiring to watch as the mosquitos majestically flap their wings as they carry off sheep and small children."), mosquitos are a pest in the wooded and low areas. Insect repellent makes the evenings more pleasant (and pungent). o Ground Hornets and Wasps - There are usually several nests in the woods. If you find one, mark the area and walk away passively. Do_not disturb the nest. Contact site security about it, if it is in a high traffic area they will probably bomb it. There are other bugs out there -- ants will find any open food, given time, and a cricket is not an ideal tent companion -- but they are not threats to health or comfort. Some are downright good companions. A Cranefly (Mosquito hawk), for instance, looks like a mosquito, but eats several times its weight in mosquitos a day. Spiders are also on your side, unless you rile them. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- (( END OF CHAPTER TWO FROM BART'S CAMPAIGNER'S NOTES )) DRINK ENOUGH WATER!!! Doctors usually recommend at least half a gallon a day for adults, under NORMAL conditions. More for Pennsic. I dunno just how much (I try for a full gallon), nor what to do about kids. Drink extra water (and, at night, wear warmer clothes) whenever you drink alcohol; this will help prevent hangovers too! (Which reminds me, do NOT drink alcohol if you're on antihistamines!!!) (Simon) Keep Aloe or burn cream in an easily accessible place very close to the fire. Make sure everyone knows where it is. I treated--I think--three burned hands at my campfire last year. (Our medical set up was: 1 massive medkit containing everything we could think of, including air-splints. I am a Chirurgeon and my lady is a Pharmacist. We sat down and went through every possible accident and what we could do about it. As you might imagine, we missed one that happened. 2. My "portable" medkit to take on duty. Pretty much what was in 1) but not as much of it. 3. The "fireside" medkit. A plastic bag full of Aloe, alcohol wipes, first-aid cream, and band-aids. 4. My "pocket" medkit. A small pouch I carry at all times with alchohol swabs, first-aid cream, and band-aids. We went through a lot of bandaids. Oh yeah, don't forget insect repellent and caladryl, for bites.) (Yaakov) SAFETY: Establish fire safety rules and stick to them. Don't forget the fire extinguishers. 1 for the firepit (if you're going to have one), 1 for the cooking area, 1 for every three or 4 tents. Keep them highly visible, let everyone in the encampment know where they are and how and when to use them (ABC variety is best). Drive stakes as deep into the ground as possible and put reflective tape on the tops as well as on tent lines. If you have smokers, use ashtrays not the ground, drainage pit or fire pit. Do not burn garbage. If you must use tiki torches or similar lamps make sure wicks are in good condition and that the torches can't be knocked over. It goes without saying that they should never be within striking distance of any tent/pavillion/tarp/etc. and should NEVER be inside. Keep fuels out of the sun and away from flames. (Alasdair) TICK...TICK...TICK PENNSIC TERRORISTS As a regular warrior of the Wars and a hunting master of these same woods, I often engage the menaces which lurk beside the trails. As yet, they have not brought me down for I am wary of their ways. However, I fear many of the campfollowers and un- seasoned warriors may be ensnared unwittingly. Furthermore, without proper training in the combat of these dangers places them and those who aid them at greater risk. The terrorists of which I speak are three in number, and are present along all wooded paths of these forests. Their names: Brown, American Dog, and Deer (Tick). These highway men match the peak of their activity coincident with the months of battle. Of the three, the most likely to attack man is American Dog, and he may be found on any pet anywhere. Some characteristics of these terrorists are as follows: All are attracted by the carbon dioxide of the victims breath. Sensing this, they will move from the bush or branch from where they rest towards its source. Once aboard the victim, they may mate and the female will lay her eggs before feeding. Then, they will penetrate the skin with their mouth parts, which the victim never feels. Next, a cement is secreted which bonds the mouth parts to the skin ("stuck like a tick"). The feeding tick uses an enzyme to break down the blood, and if the tick is diseased, this enzyme can transmit the disease to the host. (It is uncommon for dogs to be infected with these diseases.) These include such maladies as Rocky Mountain spotted fever and Lyme disease (common in the East Kingdom, by moving into Atlantia and the Middle as well.) Rare, but still included are tick paralysis and tularemia though uncommon in humans. Removal of these pests is hazarduous, because of the disease bearing enzymes and secretions. Tweezers should be used to hold and gently pull the tick off the victim. this will hopefully remove the embedded mouthparts as well. If tweezers are not available, tissue paper or disposable gloves may be used instead. Extreme care should be observed when removing ticks bloated with blood, so as not to squash the beastie and spread diseases contained in its (or yours) bodily fluids. Once the tick is removed, the area must be washed with soap and covered with antiseptic. If the bite becomes infected or the victim ill, a doctor should be notified immediately. Prevention (and education) is the best medicine that can be proscribed to combat these fiends. As they tend to concentrate along paths frequented by potential hosts, appropriate attire is the first line of defence. Long sleeves, trousers, boots, and a hat are strongly recommended. Ticks initially crawl into a person's clothes and not the skin. It will then search for an exposed area on the victims body. It takes a tick about two hours to get oriented on the victim. Then, it will generally move to head, underarms, waist or groin as feeding sites. Repellents applied to the skin will discourage them from attaching themselves. From experience, some repellents will cause feeding ticks to detach, and they may simply be washed off. Man is not a natural host for these villains. However, children tend to be at risk, as they like to play in areas generally inhabited by these pests. Parents would be wise to regularly and often inspect their kinder so that they may not suffer overlong. On a more factual note, ticks are not insects. They are more closely related to mites and spiders. Adult ticks have eight legs, not six as do insects. Those persons who use period "straw ticks" for their rope beds are not subject to attacks by ticks, but by mites. I'm aware that some herbs are natural repellents to these buggers, but I'm not sure which ones, You could add these herbs as well as other sweet smelling ones to the mix of straw and have a truly fine "bower" for a bed. (Dur) Sunblock! A very good thing, for fighters as well as wenches with off-the-shoulder blouses. I have seen some pretty badly burned nose & eye areas )all that the sun could get to, thru the helm, but it did double duty there. 23 or higher, no paba, is my preference. (Julitta) VIII. HISTORY AND PHILOSOPHY Oscad writes: >Another Pennsic myth(?) is that the idea for Pennsic was put forth by >Cariadoc when he was King of the Midrealm; The war took place when he >was King of the Eastrealm. Thus becoming the first king to declare >war on *himself*... and lose. Well, it's a myth, but it's not *that* far from the truth. Cariadoc may not have declared the War, but he was in large part responsible for inciting it. As the story goes, on one of his many back-and-forth trips between the East and Middle, he brought word back to the Midrealm King that, while the East had many valiant fighters, the Middle could take them in combat; then, on a later trip, he brought the War Arrow before the King of the East, who then broke it, accepting the challenge. Never underestimate the influence of ambassadors on history... (Of course, Cariadoc himself tells the story beautifully, and in vastly more detail; it's well worth hearing, if you can catch him at a campfire sometime...) (Justin du Coeur mka Mark Waks) I have been playing around with a certain idea lately and decided to share it with you. Those who know me, and many who don't, but have heard of me, think of me as an expert on SCA camping- the lady who wrote a booklet on it, whose packing list is in the Known Worlde Handbook, who has the *BIGGEST* viking tent at Pennsic, etc. But, really, what I do isn't camping. Camping is roughing it. Camping is taking as little as you can, simplifying, doing without... None of that is what I do. I sleep in a bed (and if you have never slept on feather bed, you must try it!); I eat sitting down at a table, but I cook and wash my dishes standing up, and when I have done, I put them away in cupboards. This year I will be sleeping within four wooden walls, with my children upstairs- albeit the roof will be cloth. When I raise and bake yeast bread in a dome oven, this is not a simplification. What it is is a celebration. I celebrate the life of the Dark Ages- I do it because it is a joy. I am not at the war because it is the only place I can fight with 2000 other fighters at once, or sell to a captive audience of 7000, or go to workshops that are not available elsewhere (although these are perfectly valid reasons for going to the war and are probably the main reasons for many other people who go). I go because it is a place where I can be in a medieval village (or city?) of 7000+ for two weeks- where I can *BE*, without distraction, my persona for long enough so that when I wake up, it isn't a shock to look around and see nothing modern. Sure, I must, as everyone else at the War, see selectively, I ignore the coke cans and popsicles, the buttons, and tapes and T shirts. As anyone who wishes to be negative can tell you, we do a unique culture, but it isn't medieval- but I can feel as medieval as I want to in it. Why am I mentioning this? Because I am just exploring the concept and would welcome new perspectives. I have always wondered why anyone would go to the War- or any camping event- and eat corn on the cob or chili. I *think* I may have figured it out- they ARE camping. They are living in tents because they can't afford (one way or another) a hotel room. The main reason for being there is not to live medieval life, but to fight, or talk to other artists, or sell, or whatever. Food is just fuel and shelter is just protection. To those of you who already knew that I must seem rather dimwitted, but it is still sinking in.... Wow! there are some people who aren't doing this for the opportunity to be medieval. Probably Lady Tudor Glitz could have told me this a while ago- but I might not have been able to hear it- I wonder if I'm getting it right even now. And, of course, this is the basis of conflicts over how the war should be organised. Without the basic understanding that there are large bodies of people, often within the same campsite who have different reasons for being there, you can't consider their different needs. Wow. I will be happy to hear from anyone on this subject. Thanks. (Arastorm) Those bored with Pennsic discussions -- please skip this message. I agree with Countess Arastorm's theory of why Pennsic is so special. There is a distinct "Brigadoon-like" quality to the event. Every August this village springs up, with the "houses" and shops in about the same place every year. Mentally, I too experience the "yesterday" or "last week" phenomena, when it seems that I'd just taken a short, one-week vacation and come back home to my camp at Pennsic. Of course, that "week" was 50 or so mundane weeks, but it all seems to vanish once I get the car unpacked, the camp set up, and get garbed and head for the barn to see whether Merowald and Thrym are still "holding court" on the steps of the Cooper's store, to see who's dancing in the barn, and to see whether any of my other friends have come "home" yet. Perhaps this is why people's "no-shit" stories tend to blend wars together -- they really can't remember which particular war it was as they all blend into one experience. My first war was PW-9, so I've been used to the larger wars, not having experienced the early days of 500 people. But after two or three wars, I started to notice this phenomenon, especially after being involved on the staff of the "Pennsic Progress" -- the first newspaper at the Pennsic Wars, published PW-11 through 14. Even though we are no longer involved in the newspaper business, the ex-staff and friends still camp together as a loose collection of households. For almost 10 years we camped across from where the Sated Tyger used to be. It still gives me the feeling of "home" when I go to visit the Cooper's in the fall or spring, and take a walk around the lake, cutting through to the place where "our" camp usually sets up -- even though the site is empty in the offseason. Last year we camped in the boats. It was weird, but actually was a better site. This year, who knows? I like the idea of "traditional" camping sites. You can easily find everyone. It gives the feeling of "home". You can refer to your camping spot or someone else's as being "next to Ostgardr" or "across from Horde hill" (or "Dagan's Hill" if you still remember it as such), or down by the Tuchux, or next to the Runestone field, or whatever, and have a good idea of just *where* that is! The other interesting thing is that Pennsic provides a microcosm of the whole Known Worlde. You can visit Indiana and Ealdormere and Calontir -- all in the same day! It's my annual "end-of-the-year" celebration. My personal new year begins when I get home from Pennsic, dazed and confused. It's a wonderful experience -- worth dealing with all of the hassles and details that we must to put on such an event. A lady in my group came up with an interesting idea -- If everyone who attended Pennsic (or any other large event or war) donated 2 hours of service *anywhere* -- troll, security, chirurgeon's point, scribes, guard duty, cleanup, -- there wouldn't be enough jobs to go around, and everything would be taken care of. Two hours is a very short period of time when you are spending two weeks at an event. Think about how you can best donate two hours of service at Pennsic XX. (Or at the event of your choice.) (Countess Genevieve du Vent Argent, OP) I realize that those on the coast sinistre can't go to Pennsic, and this is not going to be another suggestion to just skip any item that doesn't interest you- it *is* frustrating to go to the net and find that there are 50 items of which only 5 are something you want to read. However, I hope I can explain at least a bit WHY Pennsic looms so large in the right coast SCA experience. Obviously, it isn't just camping talk that bothers you- I expect that advice on camping with kids, or camping where no ground fires are allowed, or making your camp look more period doesn't bother you, because it would be just as applicable anywhere in the SCA. (Personally, I would love to hear about camping in the snow in Wintersgate, or what is different about camping in Lothac.) So it must be Pennsic alone that bothers you. I must start by mentioning in our defense that we *do* camp out a lot (I assume this is true in the Middle, Calontir and Atlantia as much as the East.) Looking at the May Pikestaff- the East Kingdom newsletter- let me run down the next few weekends (leaving out Drachenwald); first number: camping events, second number: non-camping events: 5:2, 3:0, 4:1, 2:1, 9:1, 4:1, 5:1, 5:2. *If* one camps seems to be as much a personal/lifestyle choice as *how* one camps. (For us, the more complex I have made it, the less we seem to actually make the events- we used to go every weekend, and now try for two a month- and miss some of those. But I also blame it on our having four kids who are getting to the ages that they have other conflicting commitments.) But even when we do camp other places- 3 to four days running, Pennsic is special. Now, when those kids are old enough to leave behind, I would love to go to Estrella, or Burro Creek, or some of the other long-large events in other parts of the Known world. But there is a phenomenon many of us experience which makes it special. And simply that is when we get to Pennsic, we are *HOME*. (Dorothy hugs her dog and her eyes mist up: "Home, Toto!" The audience sighs, collectively.) After your camp is set up the intervening 50 weeks disappear. Yes, the configuration of tents is a little different, but the land is the same, the people are the same, the roads are the same, the market is the same. It is hard to remember that this is not just a continuation of last year- and the year before that. My husband remarked the first day, as he pulled the cart up the the Great Middle Highway,: "This hill seemed so much easier yesterday!" Many, many people who we have spoken to experience the same thing. We may have a mortgage, more time elapsed, etc. on our white clapboard house in New England, but for whatever reason, Pennsic is far more home than this is. It may be that it *is* because it is the same site, and one can say "the Great Middle Highway", "Horde Hill", "the Marketplace", "Runestone Point", and 7000 other people will know where you mean. If so, changing sites, might be disastrous, even if it got us more space and services. It may be because we know more people well at Pennsic than we do in our "mundane" neighborhoods- we share common attitudes, as the perhaps mythological neighborhoods of the fifties did. It may be that we have in those two weeks more "quality time" than we do in the 50 with our "mundane" neighbors. But for whatever reason, I have found that about half the people I have spoken to have experienced it. And more important to the discussion of why we right coasters bore you with discussions of land allotment and other specifically Pennsic problems, last year the magic didn't happen to me. It is an awful thing to admit, because I set up the same camp, the same tents I've used for seven years; but I never felt the feeling of home. It *shouldn't* have mattered that Our barony was forced to park in the parking lot, I've camped in at least seven completely different places at Cooper's lake, and I know other people have been stuck walking around parked cars and boats at Pennsic before. But it did. (Maybe those are the people who don't get the feeling of home.) For me, last year's Pennsic was just another camping event.- and I want and expect Pennsic to be home. If you only got home two weeks a year, you would want it too. That's WHY we talk Pennsic to death. That's why it is so important to us to try to develop a system of real estate planning that will allow people to experience the special something that Pennsic offers. Does Estrella do that for you out west? I hope so. I hope you can have that experience. On the other hand, I have heard that many out west think of the trip to Pennsic as the medieval English thought of the pilgrimage to Jerusalem. It is something that you do once in your life, at great expense in money and disruption to your normal life, for which the rewards are largely spiritual. As a concept, that works. Sorry that this was so long, but I hope it helps you understand. (Arastorm) IX. THE ENCHANTED GROUND This has probably already been said, but -- don't be afraid to go into the enchanted ground. Duke Cariadoc is a gentleman who would always welcome visitors- just leave the future behind. Of course, since this won't have reassured you at all, let me suggest that you sneak in under the cover of dark. In my experience, this is the Best Time to make acquaintance with the enchanted ground. It's dark. All you can see is the dim shape of tents from the glow of a campfire. Before you are black shapes directly in front of a blazing fire- some one adds a log and sparks fly off into the stars. Behind the fire you can see faces. You approach. There is a voice singing or speaking. Slide in around where the people are the thickest. His Grace is a short dark man in a turban and eastern clothes. If he hasn't missed your coming, he will smile and nod- no one interupts the story teller or bard who is performing- but he may not see you. Sit down and listen. There will be marvelous entertainment. If you are carrying a musical instrument, or if you seem to be trying to catch his eye, his Grace will ask you if you would care to share some bit of music or history with the crowd- a simple shake of the head is all it takes to decline. Stay and be wrapped in magic. Slip away when you must (I have never managed to stay up to the end, parenting has cut into partying a bit), it is better to not thank your host than to interrupt the current performer. See how simple it is? If you stay outside the golden ribbon you will not be able to hear enough. Go in! There isn't any test. No one frisks you at the gate to find out if you've hand stiched all your seams (or even secreted a flashlight you used to get to the gate under your cape). Actually, in my experience, if you go by the enchanted ground during the light, you may well find no one there. His Grace is often at workshops or in the market from early in the day until just before dark. I do solicit correction if I am wrong, Cariadoc. And I expect that by the time this reaches the Rialto it will have been preceded by several other similar messages. However, I feel that I may have contributed to Enchantedgroundophobia a bit, so I did want to help combat it. (Arastorm) ------------------------------------------------------------------ From His Grace, Duke Sir Cariadoc of the Bow: The Enchanted Ground: An Invitation As many of you know, I regularly run an in-persona encampment at Pennsic. The purpose of this note is to invite people to camp with us and to visit. Many people seem to assume that our requirements are much more difficult than they actually are. We do not generally speak in Latin or Arabic, we do not spend our time talking about what is happening in January of 1103 A.D., we do not care whether you used a sewing machine to make your garb. What we do care about is whether we are talking and acting in a way that makes it unnecessarily obvious that we are in the twentieth century. In the case of the bardic circle, for instance, I do not mind if the song someone sings was actually written in 1660, provided there is nothing in it that makes that fact obvious (i.e. it does not mention dates or prominent events). I object very much to an introduction apologizing for the fact that the song was written in 1660, since the introduction, unlike the song, is obviously out of period. Similarly, we normally light our fires with matches (unless Aelfwyne happens to be around), but we do not talk about matches. If you want to visit, the only requirement is that you are willing to behave appropriately--to talk about things as your persona, not as you talking about your persona. If you want to camp with us, there is the additional requirement that your equipment not be obviously and unnecessarily out of period. Obviously means ripstop nylon, poptents, coleman stoves and lanterns and the like. An example of something that is permitted because it is too hard for some people to do without, although it is obviously out of period, is a modern pair of glasses. We just don't notice them. Our restrictions do not apply inside your tent, where nobody else can see you. If you are interested in camping with us, or have questions, get in touch by EMail, phone, or letter as soon as practical, since we will be making our plans in the next few weeks. Arastorm, in her recent posting, mentioned that the encampment is often empty during the day. That was true a few years ago. As a way of dealing with the problem (and for other reasons) we started the Academy. It consists of in persona classes and conversations, and is held after lunch in the encampment; in persona classes are classes where teacher and students are speaking as their personas. Anyone is welcome. If you want to teach a class or lead a discussion, get in touch with Madeleine (Rhe6@Midway.Chicago.Edu); she is in charge of the Academy. Come on in, the water's fine. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- From Lady Madeleine: +-----------------------------------------------------------------------+ | NOTE FROM THE AUTHOR: This is an outdated version of material that | | I give to people who will be in the Enchanted Ground. I am currently | | preparing an updated version. | +-----------------------------------------------------------------------+ Visit the scenic Enchanted Ground! Attend the colorful and stimulating Academy! See the Majestic Duke! (My boyfriend was squired by a Duke once. No, really...) The Enchanted Ground really is great fun. If you are uncertain what to expect or have heard dubious rumors about us, let me try to give you an idea of what to expect and not to expect should you decide to honour us with your company. We will welcome you, introduce ourselves, ask your name, and invite you to join the Academy or the Bardic Circle if either is going on. We will offer you refreshment. If I am there, I will set wafers and spiced wine before you (Cariadoc will frown but I will not care) and be utterly charming to you, even you are English. If there is not an Academy or Bardic Circle going on, I will speak to you about various and sundry. If you are a lady, perhaps I will talk about Christine de Pisan's latest book, gossip about how handsome Sir Whosits looks in his armor, or ask you where you got that charming gown. If you are a gentleman, perhaps I will flirt ever so decorously with you and then Cariadoc will ask you if you want to marry me (Pay him no mind. He does this all the time, poor deluded soul. Seems to think it's part of his guardian duties or somesuch) If Rebecca, Cariadoc and Elizabeth's daughter, is about, then all attention will be focused on her and we will all exclaim over how adorable she is and ask her what the cat says so that she will say "Meow." WHAT WE WILL NOT DO: Contrary to contrary opinion we are not the Authenticity Police. To be Authenticity Police is both tedious and un-medieval and we are neither. Medieval people did not go around lighting threads on other people's clothing and talking about polyester and we are pretending to be medieval people. I, for one, don't care if you are wearing a Swatch or purple leather underwear as long as you don't show them or tell me about them. Nor will ask you what century you are from or whether that Italian Renaissance gown is proper for a Scots bard. Since we are pretending to be medieval people we can not comprehend that there can be anyone from any other time than our own wandering around. This attitude neatly eliminates any need for any mention of centuries, or, for that matter, of the Middle Ages. We are pretending to be medieval people and medieval people didn't know that they were medieval (Can you imagine what ghastly epitaphs they're going to put on US in 500 years? I'd rather not even think about it.) We will not give you persona history quizzes. We may ask you how the weather in Venice is, but that's about the extent of it. Most of us in the Enchanted Ground don't know lots about our own persona's period, let alone anyone else's, and even if we did, we wouldn't grill you on them. We want to make you feel welcome, not uncomfortable. We also won't talk about specifically SCA related things, like whether or not the Laurel Herald passed SoandSo's badge or the outrageous things that were passed at the last BOD meeting, or how Lord Whatsis has just completely ruined the baronial newsletter. What we at the Enchanted Ground want to do most of all is to have fun pretending to be medieval people. If that sounds good to you, please come and join us. All right, Madeleine, you say, so you've told us what to expect should we venture into the Enchanted Ground. Now, what's the catch? What do WE have to do? Well you don't HAVE to do anything really, except die and pay taxes, and, if you have your own religion, not even that. But here are some guidelines anyway. What you DO NOT need to visit the Enchanted Ground: 1. A history degree 2. A full and detailed persona history 3. A Laurel 4. Meticulously researched and handsewn garb 5. Skill in fancy, high-blown language 6. 1001 poems, tales, or songs (If you have any or all of the above, you are still welcome. Just don't make a big deal about the history degree) What we DO ask of our gentle guests: 1. Courtesy. This just means be polite to folks. 2. Appropriate behavior. this consists of: A) Pretending you are a medieval person living in the Middle Ages, who has no knowledge of or contact with the modern world. B) Not talking about non-medieval things and not talking about medieval things as if you were a modern person. 3. Appropriate attire. This consists of : A) A reasonable attempt at medieval clothes. This does not mean fancy or hand-sewed, though we certainly make no objections to your looking decorative. B) Not wearing, not showing, and not mentioning non-medieval items. What this boils down to in practical terms is: please don't carry a Coke can in the encampment, keep your watch hidden, and don't apologize for or mention your glasses or your crutches. We are certainly not asking you to forgo items that are necessary for your health and safety, but it is easier for us to ignore them if you don't mention them. I myself will probably be wearing a wrist splint (carpal tunnel, doncha know), but will cover it with a white cloth bandage and tell all inquirers that I sprained it while hunting. If no one inquires, I won't mention it. 4. A desire to have fun. This is indispensible. Oh, and about the Academy. There is still room for a few more classes. Please let me know if you'd like to teach. You can email me at: rhe6@midway.uchicago.edu or phone me at (312)363-8271 or smail me at: Mindy Miriam Rheingold 5322 1/2 S. Drexel Avenue #3B Chicago, IL 60615 Any sort of appropriate subject matter is welcome, and anything on Philosophy, Poetry, or Theology would be most appreciated. {{and later -ed}} Okay, Madeleine, you say, so maybe I don't need a history degree and an authentically made cote-hardie to visit the Enchanted Ground, but I know next to nothing about my persona's history, or even the Middle Ages in general! And I'm not an actor or even very much at ease socially. I'm the sort of person who gibbers helplessly at cocktail parties! I mean, I'd really like to visit the Enchanted Ground, but I don't know what to say and I don't want to look stupid or unmedieval. You go to cocktail parties?! Just relax. You don't have to say much. You don't even have to say anything. There are plenty of us able and willing to natter on endlessly in pseudomedieval fashion, and you can just sit there smiling and we'll think you're merely the strong, silent type or the shy, modest type. Once you've been around us and listened to us a bit, you'll get an idea of what to talk about. But I just hate sitting there and not saying anything. Alright, alright. I will now give you Madeleine's Two Golden Rules of Social Interaction (Medieval or otherwise) 1. Compliment 2. Ask questions. We will, no doubt, be plying you with food and drink. You can talk about them. Say how good the wafers taste. Ask me what spices are in the wine. You have now consumed a modest, though substantial quantity of wafers and wine and are feeling somewhat more at ease. you become less reticent. You tell Griffin how pretty her gown is. You ask if the French ever drink beer. You wonder why Cariadoc tells every marginally eligible male that he has a ward he is trying to marry off. You ask about my dowry. You smile winningly at me and say that no doubt I am a very accomplished young lady. I talk about my skill with philters and herbs and mention the Italian branch of my family, smiling sweetly all the while. I offer you more wine. You hastily decline and wax eloquent about remaining single. You discuss armor with Cariadoc and say how adorable Cariadoc's daughter is. Cariadoc offers to tell a tale. You listen. You eat more wafers, say thank you and go back to your camp for dinner. See how easy? Madeleine X. MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS AND SOME FILKS bloch@mandrill.ucsd.edu (Steve Bloch) writes: >Now: does anybody have brilliant ideas on how to store and carry >multiple musical instruments, safe both from dampness and from >Authenticity Police? Well, it's hard to say without knowing what instruments are involved, but here are some suggestions. Brilliance, I don't claim, but this works for me. Every year I take my hammer dulcimer and my bodhran to Pennsic. The dulcimer is quite valuable and would be expensive to replace if it were damaged. It's also nearly 4 feet long in its longest dimension, so it's a bit on the awkward side. :-) The bodhran has a skin head (rather than the cheap plastic ones you see sometimes). So, both instruments require care, though there are certainly more fragile instruments out there. Your main concerns are heat, moisture, and transportation (bangs and such). I was very worried about the heat until I bought a pavillion to replace my nylon tent; the only reason I brought instruments at all during those years is that I live less than an hour from Cooper's Lake and knew I could take them home at the first sign of trouble. If you don't have this option and have more than one of a particular instrument, you might want to leave the good one at home and bring a secondary one. (I say this, but I was *not* willing to go back to the old dulcimer once I had the good one, so take this with a grain of salt.) Anyway, getting a pavillion solved the heat problem, as it is considerably cooler inside than any nylon tent. If you must keep wooden instruments in a nylon tent, keep all the doors and windows open all day (and be prepared to run *quickly* back to camp at the first sign of rain). The moisture problem can be mainly dealt with by using an appropriate case for your instruments. My bodhran lives in a heavily Scotch-guarded bag (also somewhat thick fabric). My first dulcimer had a large quilted bag, also scotch-guarded inside and out. My current one has a wooden case instead (for other reasons; the cloth bag was more convenient to haul around, but the wooden case provides better protection and doubles as a stand); while there is nothing in the construction that would seem to especially guard against water getting in (like overlapping "lips" at the closures), I haven't had a problem yet. I, of course, thoroughly checked my tent (and later pavillion) for waterproofing, and I carefully consider where inside it my instruments will live. If you have a pavillion and can build a little platform for them (or put them on a table), you're much better off in case you get flooded. A local harper who does not have a pavillion adds a layer of plastic (garbage bags work well) to his harps when they're in his tent (at night or on cool days only, I presume). The last problem is protecting your instruments when you carry them around the war. Mostly this just requires that you pay attention to what you're doing: consider how close to the fire you want to get, whether you'll have to negotiate any tricky areas with a large unwieldy object, and in general whether you'll be able to protect your instruments to your satisfaction, before you head out with them. Some people with large or numerous instruments build carts for them. I carry the bodhran slung over one shoulder and the dulcimer over the other (each strap goes across my back and chest; I don't mean *just* over the shoulder), which makes it easy for me to keep track of both without sacrificing both hands all the time. (The dulcimer in its case weighs 35 pounds; I don't *just* use the shoulder strap. :-) ) If you have guitars/lutes/etc, then you might want to consider replacing the standard hard case with a good cloth bag so you can sling it across your back without exposing the instrument itself. If you have small woodwinds, you can sew a quilted bag that holds each in its own compartment, put a strap on it, and have them all out of your way at once. I hope some of this helps. (Ellisif Flakkingskvinne) Well, since everyone else seems to be posting their filksongs, and since I just typed this one in for someone, I might as well pass it along. Cooked up one flaky afternoon a couple of years ago. Not to be sung at any time when authenticity is a concern... Bound for Pennsic (To the tune of "Banned From Argo") by Justin du Coeur Oh, we pulled into Cooper's Lake, a-lookin' for the War, Then searched 'round for a camping space for sixteen tents or more; So we went to the autocrat, who looked up with a smile, "Okay," she said, "set them right there, in a fifty-foot-tall pile!" And we're bound for Pennsic, everyone; Yes, we're bound for Pennsic, just to have us a little fun. We're gonna have a battle there, for just three days or four, At Cooper's Lake, at the great Pennsic War. We had a mighty fighter, who was powerful indeed; He lacked only one skill: he never learned quite how to read. He died amongst the leeches from a tragical mistake; His tombstone reads: "Here lies a knight, consumed by Cooper's Lake". Our brewer loves to party; he's a gallivanter true, But he vanished Friday night, and we don't know what we should do: The Midrealm's claiming we're unfair at how we win our fights, With bottles flying out of trees and knocking out their knights! Now, Art went to the swimming hole, to cool off in the shade; A maid rose from the waters, and she gave to him a blade. So Arthur took the sword from her, but hasn't fought again -- He's scared to be seen duelling with a weapon named "Smurfbane"... Our banner-bearer Bob's a loyal soldier, there's no doubt, But when he's in the woods, he doesn't know his North from South; We told him, "Guard the banner", but we didn't know the cost -- We sent in in on Friday; it's now Sunday -- he's still lost. We are the finest in the East, a fighting band elite; Our knights are strong, our ladies fair, our scouts are fleet of feet; But now we're missing fourteen men, and nearly half our gear; Not bad, I guess -- we'll see if it's more interesting next year! It's the sort of song that just cries out for more verses; if you come up with any, please send them along... (Justin) XI. MISCELLANEOUS ADVICE (( CONCLUSION FROM BART'S CAMPAIGNER'S NOTES )) 6. CONCLUSION This is not a complete list, nor should it be taken as one. It is a start based on more than 10 years of War experience and more general camping experience. I still tend to use my old Boy Scout manual checklist, I just substitute "garb" for "uniform" and go. If you forget, or do not have an item, you can probably obtain it on site or near by. The main thing to remember is to have fun. See you there! (( END OF CONCLUSION FROM BART'S CAMPAIGNER'S NOTES )) --------------------------------------------------------------------- Bandaids, sunblock (strong), extra cup, knife, some extra rope (always useful), soap, and enough $$$ for emergencies and that ever necessary Diet Coke when you're running out of energy. Blister pads if you're susceptible or your boots are new. Aspirin or equivalent. Be careful in your boozing: camping requires some reserves of health, and if you overdo things you run yourself into the ground. Drink fluids, drink fluids, drink fluids, drink fluids, drink fluids. Dehydration is one of the worst problems at the war. (Donallain) Make sure that any rug rats in the immediate vicinity, especially your own, are properly supervised at all times. Marion Greenleaf posted a msg chock-full of excellent advice on handling rug rats at Pennsic a couple years ago. If you don't have rug rats of your own, it's still worth looking at for advice to give to irresponsible parents "next door". (Simon) Dur mentions bringing a tub. I ass-u-me he means a rubber or waterproofed cloth tub with a collapsible wooden frame. Excellent idea for cooling down, easy to pack, etc. It strikes me as the sort of thing that *may* even be period. Anybody know? Be very very careful (we'we hunting wed dwagons, heheheheheheh) with fire. Dur posted some general advice on the topic many moons ago. Sadly, it looks like locking up valuables is starting to be necessary at Pennsic and, I would assume, other large camping events. I have yet to be burgled (at least, of anything I noticed!), but there was a rash of thefts at Pennsic the year before last. Haven't heard about this year. You may want to camp in a group that will always have at least one person in camp. Don't leave the lamp on when you and your mate are, shall we say, romantically entangled in a tent at night - unless you like providing x-rated shadow plays. Make the most of your time there. For instance, I haven't had the pleasure of witnessing this, but rumor has it that Cariadoc tells stories while waiting in line for showers. And above all, BE CONSIDERATE! If everyone within earshot isn't also partying loudly at 3 AM, keep yours quiet.... > Also, Ideas for Projects for Medieval Campsites. There is of course the Enchanted Grounds; extensions may be to have Grounds of a specific place and era, or with showings of some particular craft that requires "physical plant" such as a smithy or glass-oven. Someone usually brings a Gypsy wagon (an early form of "mobile home") to Pennsic, tho I don't quite know how period that is (does anybody?). (Simon) Washing water - This idea I got from Malice who got it from Countess Mara. Keep a pitcher with water, soap and a bowl available on a table. It's: a)Handy - I rarely wait in line for a sink at the bath house. Most anything requiring a sink can be done there b)Healthy - I wash my hands many more times when preparing food than I normally would be able to--which can sometimes be a very good thing! Hand carried sources of light - I haven't found something that is comfortable to carry, "looks right" (i.e. period) and is *safe*. Any ideas? (Caitrin) *** Baron Dur's (Period) Pennsic Weather Predictor (Whether it's cold or whether it's hot, we shall have weather, whether or not!) Talk of the weather is nought but folly; When it rains on the hill, it suns on the valley. When the stars begin to huddle the earth will soon begin to puddle. Pale moon doth rain, red moon doth blow, white moon doth neither rain nor snow. Clear moon, frost soon. The moon and weather may change together, but change of the moon does not change the weather. South wind brings wet weather; north wind, cold and wet together; west wind always brings the rain... the east wind blows it back again. Yellow streaks in a sunset sky, wind and day-long rain is nigh. Evening red and morning grey speed the traveler on his way. Evening grey and morning red brings down rain upon his head. It rains as long as it takes the rain to come. The sharper the blast, the sooner it's past. No weather is ill if the wind is still. When dew is on the grass, rain will never come to pass. >From twelve 'till two tells what the day will do. Rain before seven, quit by eleven. Rainbow at noon, more rain soon. Rainbow in the east, sailors at peace; rainbow in the west, sailors' distress. Rainbow in morning, shepherds take warning; rainbow at night, shepherds' delight. (These words of weather lore have been tested at each Pennsic, and have accurately predicted the conditions each time. Now, if only there was an equivalent augury for the battles....) (Dur) *** Matches vs. Flint and Steel It's true, we haven't bothered to carry matches to camping events for a few years (Aelfwine and I). I used to think, along with everyone else, that flint and steel must have been a true pain to get fires started with, but since we've been using them, it has not turned out to be so. I have actually seen Aelfwine pull out his tinder-box and have a flame for a gentles (sigh) cigarette ready before the next gentle could "flic his bic". The keys are 1) Practice and 2) Dry Tinder. When your children become old enough that you are willing to risk your flints and their tender knuckles- this may be just before or about the same time that you institute blade training (oh, I'm sorry- adults can take it up anytime they are ready to invest the time and flints)- you let them practice making fires with flint and steel. It will take time, like sewing a straight seam, or throwing a straight spear. Luckily, there is in the soul of most folk- especially children- a burning desire to master new and useful skills. We buy our flints from Ewan, but I'm sure that there are many other sources. Ask your peddlar to show you how to strike the flint. Then practice. There will be a LOOONG time between the excitement of that first spark, and the assurance that you can make it in a reasonable time. It seems to be all in the angle of strike, and I can't teach you that in this medium. However. That spark must fall into a nurturing bosom. Your tinder-box should be suitable to create char-cloth. Char-cloth is like charcoal. To make it, you put pieces (we generally use about 3 or 4 inch squares) of pure cotton (it MUST not have synthetic fibers in it) in an airtight, fireproof box. If you can't buy one you can use an old (cleaned) shoe polish tin, throat lozenge or candy tins, any fairly tight metal box. Put in a dozen or so layers of clothdepending upon how big your tinderbox is. Throw this in the campfire, stick it in the back of your wood stove, I guess you could leave it at the back of your oven while you make a cake. As you heat it, the volatiles in the cloth burn off, leaving char-cloth behind. Fish it out of the ashes, let it cool, and check. If it now looks like black cloth, you're set. If not, stick it in a while longer. It will be a bit crispy, and will smudge your fingers, but cleans up with your handkerchief alright. Leave the charcloth in the tinderbox, and when you carry it around, the tinderbox will also hold the flint and steel.(These are removed while charring the cloth.) We have to replace the tinderbox every year or so, as the fire weakens the metal of the box; this would be very dependant upon the box itself. When you want to make a fire, set the kindling and other fuel ready, set the tinder ready also (see below on birch bark). Then wrap a bit of this charcloth (half a square) around your flint. This insures that the spark WILL fall onto the charcloth. Charcloth starts very easily, and this is good. What you are looking for is a little red spot on the charcloth. Blow on it gently. It will jump into flame. Now take this flame and put it to your tinder. We have the best luck with birch bark. Birch bark will burn even when wet, so you don't need to protect it, just keep a few curls with your tinder box. I suppose that for some city folk, it could be harder to get than excelsior, but prowl the outskirts of the camp at camping events. Where there are birch trees, one can usually find some spare birch bark without pulling it off live trees. I try to keep a small sack of it in the camp kitchen. With it I can kindle the fire without the flint from the coals in the ashes nine out of ten mornings. Our children have found that a pack of birchbark is a welcome gift on father's or mother's day, since it represents a useful item that takes work/time that we may not have, and we appreciate their donating. Do make sure that you have the bark ready when you are striking the spark. When the birch bark is lighted, you can use it to light your cookfire, lantern or pipe. (Do have the kindling etc. ready.) {as to Master Dickens, I have never tried to light a fire in Londinium, but I have heard that there is fog there every day, and it is a city. He probably had no birch bark, and continual fog would make it very hard to keep one's tinder dry}. I hope I did make it clear- I would plan and expect to use up/ ruin 3 or 4 flints in the process of learning to use one easily. (I am still not as good at it as Aelfwine, because I generally use the banked coals, and haven't put in the required practice.) Please take this advice as intended. You may certainly choose not to invest the time in learning how to do this, however, I think you need to know that once the skill is attained, it is no big deal to get your fires going with flint and steel. We have found that as with many other things (for example: wool keeps you warm, even if you are wet; a linen undershirt keeps you cooler; salt meat in brine requires no ice) using the period solution to a problem we run into in the SCA is often the MOST convenient solution. We don't have to worry about matches. We need only keep our tinder box dry. (and since it is in a leather pouch at one's side, unless one takes a prolonged dunking, it will be fine. (oh, if your charcloth does get damp- throw the tinder box back in the fire to dry it out.) I'll be only to happy to share the recipe for meat brine. It is more than I care to deal with to worry if the meat is good at hot events. Aren't you tired of continually bailing your ice- chest? (Arastorm) *** Driving Directions There is a shuttle service of some sort from the Pittsburgh Airport, I am told. It's run by Lenz Travel. I don't have a phone number to hand. If you're driving: from Pittsburgh Airport, take 60 East (follow sign for Pittsburgh when leaving the airport) to I-79 North. Take I-79 to Exit 29, Butler/Newcastle. Turn left onto Rt. 422, go about half to three quarters of a mile, and turn right on the first road, labelled "Cooper's Lake" with a small blue sign and probably marked by a big SCA sign if you're not beating everyone there. More generally, I-76 (the Pennsylvania Turnpike) intersects I-79 south of Cooper's Lake (Exit 25 on I-79, I *think* Exit 3 on I-76). I-80 intersects I-79 north of Cooper's Lake (Exit 32 on I-79, unnumbered exit on I-80). I-90 intersects I-79 near Erie, about an hour and a half north of Cooper's Lake. (Ellisif)