Last Chance/Weekend wrapup
Friday
Got on site about 4pm, and got the RV more-or-less leveled (the area sloped steeply - in two directions) with Ralg's help. Despite some confusion over pavilion requirements prior to the event, the autocrat came through with the covered space we needed.
Thangbrand could not stay for dinner or to finish helping up as originally planned, so Gabrielle and I ended up eating at the BBQ place in Port Gamble, hitting Wally World for a battery powered lantern, then went back and finished setting up the cooking pavilion.
While at Wally World, I decided that cookies and milk sounded like a hell of a bedtime snack - so I picked up some chocolate chip cookies. I took a stack to the gate, where they were much appreciated, and then had a few myself before hitting the hay. I went to bed pretty early as the alarm was going to go off early - and because a visit from the insomnia fairy Thursday night and a long day of packing and set up made for one tired Theodoric.
Saturday
At some point in the night, I woke up and it sounded like someone was playing a fire hose on the RV... I thought to myself that if it was raining like that when I got up, it would be sorely tempting to just put the key in the ignition and go the heck home. Here in An Tir we're used to the rain... but even we have our limits.
When the alarm did go off, I got up to mostly clear skies and no rain - and the horrid sight of one of the cooking pavilions collapsed under the weight of the rain. Fortunately it collapsed around the stack of bags of charcoal and they remained dry. Mattusez brought a pavilion from home to replace it, and by 9 we had it up and the pork on the grills.
I spent most of the day not too far from the grills as they required constant attention. I did get to see some of the tourney, but the highlight of the day was a a hour or so of photo geekery with Andras and Marcus.
Happily the cooking pavilions were adjacent to the Baronial pavilion so I got to see much of Their Excellencies final court as Baron and Baroness of Dragon's Laire - they'll be much missed when they step down in November. However, I do wish someone had remembered to fetch me so I could have seen all of My Lady being called up and awarded the Bumblebee (our first level A&S award for those not from around here) rather than just the tail end.
The feast was a stunning success, Thangbrand and I were mightily and muchly congratulated on the meat. (For those not from around here, the feast was served 'table potluck' style - the Barony provided the meat, and you and your friends provided your own sides.) The Culinary Guild table rocked because we'd coordinated our sides beforehand. Rhyceza's fruit sauce was the perfect accompaniment to the roast pork.
I loved Her Excellency's comment: "the only reason I didn't try the chicken was because I couldn't stop eating the pork". :) :) At one of the encampments we visited later that night, they were furiously debating whether we'd used a secret ingredient or not in the spices and what it might be. :) :)
After the feast and clean up we ended up wandering with Their Excellencies just a little bit and then hanging out with the Roving Irishmen for a bit before heading to bed.
Sunday
Sunday dawned clear and cool... So the general consensus was to get tear down started before the predicted storm hit. We got site broke down and the RV packed and were home by noon.
All an all, an excellent end to tourney season.