Scarby 2008 Last Weekend - WILs and thoughts
A hell of a good weekend, and a hell of a good year.
1) Knowing what was to come over the weekend made for a fairly grim start of the day, but the good humor and energy of all the performers helped overcome the darkness and I had a tremendously fun day
2) 3 Royal Guards barreling down the parapet stairs with blood in their eye will create a "Moses effect" on people. Seriously, I've neer seen a crowd part so quickly. Side notes: Noisy Drunken Miscreants (NDMs) are immediately pointed out to us by members of the crowd without any questions needing to be asked, and we apparantly sounded like "a cross between a stampeding herd of elephants and the wroth of God" thundering down the parapet stairs.
3) Being finally authorized to provide the level of security our Royals require is gratifying. Some of my worries about their in-sooth personal safety have now been eliminated.
1) Saying goodbye to a long-time patron Guard who has been my right hand among the Green Sashes really hurt. I wish her well in her future career. Just sad it's taking her away from Dallas.
2) Seeing our own King Henry striding out to do battle with - and vanquishing after one hell of an impressive fight - the evil Sir Roderick in the Joust was glorious. He looked to be about 10 feet tall in all his kingly rage. Good stuff!
3) Being awarded a "Knight in Shining Armor" pin by Her Majesty...priceless
4) I used to be very self-conscious about being the focus of cameras...now I'm much more blase about it...if I even notice them at all.
5) Having Lord Vader from the Imperial Court come to visit makes for one hell of a disturbance during Court Dance.
6) Having Lt. Sir Vincent Montcrieffe come back to the Royal Guard for a day was marvelous.
7) Being able to help out KatjaBee and the musicians clear a space for Parting Glass AND make sure that there are no more NDM episodes is very gratifying.
1) Hearing my name in the company of people who I feel are performance Gods is still confusing to me. I'll take the compliment but I really think my inclusion was a mistake. What was NOT a mistake were the folks who were given the top awards. They truly earned them, each and every one, each and every day. We have an unbelievable pool of talent in SAPA.
2) The downside of any awards ceremony is that there are always folks who I feel deserve recognition, but because of the structure of the awards (or bad timing or any number of variables) never receive one. Instructors and directors cannot be everywhere at once, and I feel they sometimes miss some of the best - or quietest - performances. Perhaps along with the "Director's Choice" award, there could be a "Performer's Choice" where all SAPA members get to pick who they think did the best during a season? Not sure if this is possible or even if it's a good idea, but I'd be interested in what everyone thinks...
3) If I never hear "Chop Chop, the King, the King" again, it'll be too soon
4) Seeing Cmdr Sir Adrian Smythe in his disreputable foul-mouthed glory (and sans beard!) made me want to smile all day. I really regret I only had a few moments to spend with him...miss you Kwin.
5) The Memorial Day March by the Royal Guard is uplifting, glorious and honours all who have fallen and I do not regret a moment of it. It absolutely physically shatters me every year, though. Anything that happens after occurs in a haze of pain, heat and exhaustion
6) Fighting in a white shirt (even in the hot sun) is a blissful experience. Not wearing livery, however, made me feel naked, and I felt I was cheating somehow. On the other hand, I would not have made it through 3 fights on a blistering Memorial Day after a grueling march without stripping down. It was the right decision, but I still felt sad.
7) "Dancing" Karabushka with someone who is as tall as our Queen damn near broke my back and pulled my right arm from it's socket. It really was more of a lumbering, shuffling, ridiculous swirl of chaos. Good fun though...although I'm not sure I can say the same for Her Maj!
8) Watching a repeat of King Henry's fight during the joust - along with Queen Anne throwing a dagger right in a squire's eye - really made my day. Damn, they're good!
9) Helping out in the joust, even if it was just holding a horse's bridle was tremendous fun.
10) Seeing the new officer's emotions as they recieved their Queen's daggers and Lieutenant's rank pins damn near broke me. Watching the officer's rendering Lt. Reginald Sharpe a final salute did.
11) Knowing that it was the last everything made the day's events all that much more sweet
12) I'll take less expensive (but sweet) champagne over the more expensive (but dry) stuff any day
13) "Theres no crying in the Royal Guard!"...except at the final Parting Glass, when there's lots.
All in all, I'm quietly pleased. I felt I earned my badge this year, and am exhausted, but content. Wearing a yellow sash in my father's memory capped off a lovely season - I think he'd be pleased.
And a personal triumph: For 15 years, I've been trying to break the 180lb (from a high of 210) barrier. Tuesday morning, I weighed myself - 178. I'm now starting to feel good about my body again.
Right, that's more than enough right now. I might have more stuff, so I'll post it as it occurs to me - so much happened, it's hard to gather all my thoughts! Regardless - to all my SAPA friends out there: Love you guys. You totally kicked arse this year, and I'm proud of all we accomplished together.
1) Knowing what was to come over the weekend made for a fairly grim start of the day, but the good humor and energy of all the performers helped overcome the darkness and I had a tremendously fun day
2) 3 Royal Guards barreling down the parapet stairs with blood in their eye will create a "Moses effect" on people. Seriously, I've neer seen a crowd part so quickly. Side notes: Noisy Drunken Miscreants (NDMs) are immediately pointed out to us by members of the crowd without any questions needing to be asked, and we apparantly sounded like "a cross between a stampeding herd of elephants and the wroth of God" thundering down the parapet stairs.
3) Being finally authorized to provide the level of security our Royals require is gratifying. Some of my worries about their in-sooth personal safety have now been eliminated.
1) Saying goodbye to a long-time patron Guard who has been my right hand among the Green Sashes really hurt. I wish her well in her future career. Just sad it's taking her away from Dallas.
2) Seeing our own King Henry striding out to do battle with - and vanquishing after one hell of an impressive fight - the evil Sir Roderick in the Joust was glorious. He looked to be about 10 feet tall in all his kingly rage. Good stuff!
3) Being awarded a "Knight in Shining Armor" pin by Her Majesty...priceless
4) I used to be very self-conscious about being the focus of cameras...now I'm much more blase about it...if I even notice them at all.
5) Having Lord Vader from the Imperial Court come to visit makes for one hell of a disturbance during Court Dance.
6) Having Lt. Sir Vincent Montcrieffe come back to the Royal Guard for a day was marvelous.
7) Being able to help out KatjaBee and the musicians clear a space for Parting Glass AND make sure that there are no more NDM episodes is very gratifying.
1) Hearing my name in the company of people who I feel are performance Gods is still confusing to me. I'll take the compliment but I really think my inclusion was a mistake. What was NOT a mistake were the folks who were given the top awards. They truly earned them, each and every one, each and every day. We have an unbelievable pool of talent in SAPA.
2) The downside of any awards ceremony is that there are always folks who I feel deserve recognition, but because of the structure of the awards (or bad timing or any number of variables) never receive one. Instructors and directors cannot be everywhere at once, and I feel they sometimes miss some of the best - or quietest - performances. Perhaps along with the "Director's Choice" award, there could be a "Performer's Choice" where all SAPA members get to pick who they think did the best during a season? Not sure if this is possible or even if it's a good idea, but I'd be interested in what everyone thinks...
3) If I never hear "Chop Chop, the King, the King" again, it'll be too soon
4) Seeing Cmdr Sir Adrian Smythe in his disreputable foul-mouthed glory (and sans beard!) made me want to smile all day. I really regret I only had a few moments to spend with him...miss you Kwin.
5) The Memorial Day March by the Royal Guard is uplifting, glorious and honours all who have fallen and I do not regret a moment of it. It absolutely physically shatters me every year, though. Anything that happens after occurs in a haze of pain, heat and exhaustion
6) Fighting in a white shirt (even in the hot sun) is a blissful experience. Not wearing livery, however, made me feel naked, and I felt I was cheating somehow. On the other hand, I would not have made it through 3 fights on a blistering Memorial Day after a grueling march without stripping down. It was the right decision, but I still felt sad.
7) "Dancing" Karabushka with someone who is as tall as our Queen damn near broke my back and pulled my right arm from it's socket. It really was more of a lumbering, shuffling, ridiculous swirl of chaos. Good fun though...although I'm not sure I can say the same for Her Maj!
8) Watching a repeat of King Henry's fight during the joust - along with Queen Anne throwing a dagger right in a squire's eye - really made my day. Damn, they're good!
9) Helping out in the joust, even if it was just holding a horse's bridle was tremendous fun.
10) Seeing the new officer's emotions as they recieved their Queen's daggers and Lieutenant's rank pins damn near broke me. Watching the officer's rendering Lt. Reginald Sharpe a final salute did.
11) Knowing that it was the last everything made the day's events all that much more sweet
12) I'll take less expensive (but sweet) champagne over the more expensive (but dry) stuff any day
13) "Theres no crying in the Royal Guard!"...except at the final Parting Glass, when there's lots.
All in all, I'm quietly pleased. I felt I earned my badge this year, and am exhausted, but content. Wearing a yellow sash in my father's memory capped off a lovely season - I think he'd be pleased.
And a personal triumph: For 15 years, I've been trying to break the 180lb (from a high of 210) barrier. Tuesday morning, I weighed myself - 178. I'm now starting to feel good about my body again.
Right, that's more than enough right now. I might have more stuff, so I'll post it as it occurs to me - so much happened, it's hard to gather all my thoughts! Regardless - to all my SAPA friends out there: Love you guys. You totally kicked arse this year, and I'm proud of all we accomplished together.