| Published monthly, or whenever I get around to it. Any opinions contained herein are strictly my own, unless they're someone else's, as are any typographical errors. Entire contents copyright 1999 by Paula Peterka, unless otherwise noted or authored. Yeah, like you'd WANT to steal anything out of here! |
| Volume 6 | Issue 2 |
May 11, 1999 | |
The next unit meeting will be held on Sunday, June 6, from 7:00 to 9:00 pm, at the Peterka's house. Agenda items will include acceptance of new members and membership promotions, upcoming events, the Maryland Renaissance Festival contract, unit trips to educational places Philadelphia Museum of Art, Higgins Armory, etc), unit improvements and group goals, the unit budget and upcoming purchases, and setting the unit schedule for the rest of the year. Your participation is needed to decide our unit's direction, whether you are a probationary or a full member, your ideas count! Please plan to attend.
We have once again been offered a contract to perform at the Maryland Renaissance Festival, as guards for King Henry VIII and /or Emperor Charles V. The contract offer requires us to supply two guards per day for the court. In return for this, we are being offered a salary of $3650.00 (that's a hair over $192.00 per day), up from last year's $3420.00. Carolyn Spedden, the entertainment director at the festival, has invited us to set up a living history encampment if we wish.
Because time is rather critical, and a meeting could not easily be scheduled before we need to give them an answer, at the last Board meeting it was decided to send a ballot to all members to determine whether we will accept the contract. This ballot includes a sign up sheet for each of the festival weekends. If we don't get coverage of at least two guards per weekend, then we cannot accept the contract, even if the voting approves it's acceptance. Please be realistic, and sign up only for the days you know you can work. It does us no good to accept the contract, set up a camp, and then have to forfeit a day's pay because only one guard showed up. This ballot also contains questions on the disposition of the money earned, and whether or not to set up an encampment. The ballot is included in this newsletter; please fill it out and return it as soon as possible.
This year's festival begins August 28, and runs through October 24. The festival year is 1526, Henry is actively pursing a new love interest, but no-one is certain who the "mystery Mistress" is. Charles V has come to England for negotiations surrounding an impending betrothal between himself and Princess Mary. By the end of they day, Anne Boleyn will be revealed as the next name on Henry's "to conquer" list, but Katherine and the rest of her court are not inordinately concerned, after all, this new mistress will undoubtedly go the way off all the others, including her sister Mary Boleyn. Revel Grove's Harvest Celebrations will be once more be interrupted by the return of a Tiddington delegation, still intent on causing mischief and promoting their own village at the expense of Revel Grove.
Set aside the first two weekends in June for making personal wooden boxes and unit canvas bags. Larry and Drew will teach a three-day box making workshop on Sunday, June 6, Saturday, June 12, and Sunday, June 13. For those whose tastes run more to fabric than wood, Paula will be holding a bag making workshop Saturday, June 12, and Sunday, June 13, for both personal and unit bags and covers.
If you are interested in making a box, you must be at the Peterka's house by 8:00 am on June 6, for a materials purchasing trip, and then box design, layout, and cutting. Assembly and finishing will take place on June 12 & 13, from 9:00 - 5:00. Shop fees for the project will be $15.00, plus the cost of wood and other materials. The class is limited to 8 people, so please call Larry to sign up.
If you are interested in making a carrying sack or pack, or in helping to make sacks, straw bale covers, or tent bags for the unit, please be at the Peterka's at 9:00 am on June 12. The unit will provide off-white canvas duck for $4.00 per yard, or you may provide your own fabric. Please contact Paula if you would like to attend.
Unit dues were officially late as of May 1. To all those who have paid your dues already, "Thank You". To all those of you who have not, "Ahem". If you have not paid your dues for 1999, a very reasonable $20.00 for individuals and $30.00 for families, with newsletter subscriptions only costing $5.00, then you will be receiving a notice from Drew shortly. If your dues are still in arrears by June 1, you will be dropped from the membership rolls, and this will be the last newsletter you receive. We will miss you horribly, you will miss us horribly, and you will kick yourself for not paying timely when you have to reapply and go through your probationary period all over again. Avoid this tragedy, pay your dues now! (Newsletter subscriptions only are on a slightly different schedule - check your mailing label for expiration date).
Come learn how to beat the heat at a Landsknecht Campout on July 17 & 18. We will be setting up a Summer Encampment on the grounds of Marietta Mansion, beginning at 7:00 pm on Friday, July 16. This event, as requested by many group members, is designed to teach you how to camp comfortably and safely in warm weather conditions, and provide a "shakedown" of your warm weather gear before the start of Maryland Rehearsals.
The site is located near the junction of State Routes 450 and 193, in Bowie, Maryland. The event will be open to the public from 11:00 am to 5:00 pm on Saturday, and from 11:00 am to 3:00 pm on Sunday. There is one portable toilet on the site, behind the mansion. We will use what firewood remains on the site from other events, but will have to provide our own drinking, cooking, and washing water. There will be a $3.00 fee if you want straw.
Everyone should have already started acquiring/assembling their own camping gear, personal dishes and other accouterment, as well as warm weather gear. Everyone should bring their own camping gear, personal dishes and cup. Everyone should also bring 2-3 gallons of water.
There will be no meal plan for this event. Plan to bring your own period food for breakfast and lunch both days, and Saturday night's dinner. Members are encouraged to form co-operative cooking groups, or you can just rely on "potluck". The kitchen will provide some staples, such as flour, oil, honey, ground almonds and spices. Contact Paula or Kim for help in finding period recipes, and contact Drew to sign up for the event.
The unit is looking for a few people with good ideas to join the new Tent Design Committee. The committee will research and plan the layout and patterns to be painted on the unit tents, beginning with the cooks' tent. Committee members need not have professional design experience, or even taste, just a willingness to meet, make plans, and see them through. We are hoping to have the cook's tent completed by the Maryland Festival. Please contact one of the Board Members at or before the June 6 meeting if you are interested.
Landsknecht Thursdays Change Format
The Peterka's House will continue to be open every Thursday, but the format will be changing. Beginning May 20, landsknechting will begin promptly at 7:00 pm, and end at 9:00 pm. Topics, such as unit history, social studies, costuming, character work, and other various history discussions, will be scheduled in advance, so that members will be better able to plan their schedules.
Sodas will be available, snacks may or may not be available, depending on the nature of the topic covered, and dinner will not be served, since it takes too much time away from the discussions. Contributions of drinks or munchies are always appreciated, but not required.
These changes were made based on feedback from attendees, and in light of recent attendance drop off. Hopefully, these modifications will make Open House Thursdays more enjoyable and more productive for everyone. Please come by!
The SCA Shire of Eisenthal and Der Sonnen Von Krieg have invited us to return for "a weekend of irreverent fun and mayhem" at their fifith Landsknecht Musterung on June18, 19 & 20, 1999.
The Müsterung will be held at the Ukrainian Homestead in Lehighton, Pennsylvania. This event will include a rattan tournament, codpiece competition, merchant's area, children's activities, archery, and a swimming pool on site.
Müsterung is primarily an SCA event, but they enjoy having us set up our camp as an example of "the next step" towards more authenticity. They have asked us to come teach again, so we will be holding classes in Landsknecht Clothing, Battle Strategy and Tactics, and Pike Drill, and either German Camp Cooking or Body-Looting/Water Bearing, depending on who is available to teach. Der Sonnen Von Krieg will teach classes on Artillery and Small Arms of the period.
The site opens at 2:00 PM Thursday, and closes at 3:00 PM Sunday. The food plan includes a buffet breakfast and a lunch sideboard Saturday, a feast Saturday evening, and a hot breakfast Sunday morning, all provided by the Shire of Eisenthal. The fee for this event is $10.00 for us, since we are teaching classes. Their feast is limited to 125 people, and all alcohol consumed in the hall must be purchased from the bar on site.
This event is always a lot of fun, and generally includes singing circles both nights, very interesting individual combats during the day, and a fabulous feast in the evening, and the open swimming pool certainly makes the heat bearable!
Our unit's reservations will be sent in as a group, so if you are planning to attend, please let Paula know and by June 6. If you are interested in helping teach any of the above mentioned classes, please indicate that as well.
Schedule of Upcoming Events (at least the ones we know about already)
| May 20 | Landsknechting, Peterka's. | Topic: Character Development |
| May 27 | Landsknechting, Peterka's. | Topic: Open Sewing |
| June 3 | Landsknechting, Peterka's. | Topic: Unit History |
| June 6 | Box Making Class, part 1. 8:00 am - 5:00 pm, Peterka's | |
| June 6 | Unit Business Meeting 7:00 -9:00 pm, Peterka's | |
| June 6 | Money in to Paula for Musterung | |
| June 10 | Landsknechting, Peterka's. | Topic: German Language |
| June 12 & 13 | Box Making Class, part 2 & 3. 9:00 am - 5:00 pm, Peterka's | |
| June 12 & 13 | Bag Making Workshop. 9:00 am - 5:00 pm, Peterka's | |
| June 17 | Landsknechting, Peterka's. | Topic: Open Sewing |
| June 19 - 20 | Musterung, Lehighton, PA - 2:00 pm Thurs, 3:00 pm Sun | |
| June 24 | Landsknechting, Peterka's. | Topic: Manners and Customs |
| July 1 | Landsknechting, Peterka's. | Topic: Open Sewing |
| July | Takoma Park Parade | |
| July 16 - 18 | Summer Campaign, Marietta - Noon Fri - 3:00 pm Sun | |
| Aug. 28 - Oct. 24 | Maryland Renaissance Festival |
To the Peterka's House: Call (410) 923-4034.
To Marietta Mansion: Take 495 to 450 East, and get into the left lanes. Continue on 450, and turn left at route 193. Turn left at the first available turn, just past the brown Historic Marker, onto Bell Station Road. Turn left into the first driveway, and park/unload where indicated. Call 301-464-5291 if you get lost, or for site information.
If you are eligible to work at the Maryland Renaissance Festival, you will find a ballot included with this newsletter. (Or you can use the electronic ballot below.) Please complete and return it ASAP, even if you are not a full member. We have included a name line for scheduling purposes, and to determine whether we have enough coverage to accept the contract, since we don't generally have secret ballots anyway. The Board will tally the votes and the make the determination no later than June 6.