Clann Tartan at Charles City
This was a lot of work. We had only seven people on Friday, and six on Saturday. Setting up and tearing down camp for colgaffneyis involves a certain fixed amount of work no matter how many people show. So if only a few people show, a heavier burden falls on them. I have tried to argue for a lighter kit for lightly attended shows, but other members like the visual impression of all that shitstuff. That visual impression is burning us out, particularly since it is the same few members who do these shows.
The weather was bad. Heavy rain all Thursday night. Our tent did not leak, but it was not peaceful and we did not sleep well. Friday night was worse. No rain, but very cold with high winds. It found every gap in the canvas (mia_mcdavid discovered the next morning that we had not tied down everything on the windward side), and when we could bury ourself deep enough in our multiple blankets, we were still awake wondering if our tent, or one of the large corporate tents, would be blown down. No sleep at all.
Charles City is a "time-line" event: There are groups reenacting multiple historical periods, from the middle ages on. Our period is c. 1630. All of our tents stayed up through the high winds Friday night. So did all of the tents from the SCA (Middle Ages) group. But a big tent belonging to some World War II re-enactors was blown down. It isn't the technology, it is your ability to use it :-)>
Daytime was not so bad. We did have some fun, and if the workers were few, they were hardy and good-natured. We ate well. I was able to recognize the WWII German and Russian re-enactors by the uniforms, and greeted them in the appropriate languages. I was pleased that they responded in kind, and one of the "Russians" gave my memory of the language a serious workout.
Driving down in the rain I noticed a couple wind turbine farms. In the clear late afternoon drive home yesterday I saw several more. After Friday night I can appreciate their presence: It is a natural cash crop in northern Iowa :-)>
The weather was bad. Heavy rain all Thursday night. Our tent did not leak, but it was not peaceful and we did not sleep well. Friday night was worse. No rain, but very cold with high winds. It found every gap in the canvas (mia_mcdavid discovered the next morning that we had not tied down everything on the windward side), and when we could bury ourself deep enough in our multiple blankets, we were still awake wondering if our tent, or one of the large corporate tents, would be blown down. No sleep at all.
Charles City is a "time-line" event: There are groups reenacting multiple historical periods, from the middle ages on. Our period is c. 1630. All of our tents stayed up through the high winds Friday night. So did all of the tents from the SCA (Middle Ages) group. But a big tent belonging to some World War II re-enactors was blown down. It isn't the technology, it is your ability to use it :-)>
Daytime was not so bad. We did have some fun, and if the workers were few, they were hardy and good-natured. We ate well. I was able to recognize the WWII German and Russian re-enactors by the uniforms, and greeted them in the appropriate languages. I was pleased that they responded in kind, and one of the "Russians" gave my memory of the language a serious workout.
Driving down in the rain I noticed a couple wind turbine farms. In the clear late afternoon drive home yesterday I saw several more. After Friday night I can appreciate their presence: It is a natural cash crop in northern Iowa :-)>