what do you do?

[dennis grace]

Hi there. Aquilanne here.

Mst. Clare wrote:
> Off hand I can think of several Laurels who defy being categorized into
>any one subject. Branwyn O'Brallaghan easily comes to mind.  I also
>personally don't like being stuck in one slot.  The Laurel I worked the
>most with was a "jack of all trades".  I tended to go that route myself.
>It's natural to me in this area -- you know doing calligraphy, wonder about
>paper -- learn about making paper -- think about books -- learn to make
>books -- wonder about vellum -- learn to make vellum -- think about thread
>holding the vellum -- learn to spin, yada yada yada.  Someone comes along
>and says what'd you get yers for and whammo what do you say.  I usually say
>curiosity.
>
>I agree, Aquilanne,  but the best way I find out who does what is I ask
>another Laurel what is it that so- and -so does.  They always know more
>about others than themselves.....>


& Afrena O'Dunlaing wrote:
I agree.  The laurel I'm apprentice to is also a jack of all trades and not
laureled for just one area of expertise.  She sings, writes songs, does
costuming, and also did metal craft and needlework.  I still don't know all
her skills, but it's great finding out and learning.


OK,OK. Field, fields--singular, plural, vestigial, perpeptual, whatever.
*Most* folk have some idea of where their talent(s) lie(s).

My Mistress was also a jack-of-all-trades--calligraphy, costuming, weaving,
dyeing, brewing, cooking, etc. It's one of the reasons I wanted to
apprentice to her, because I'm a jack-of-all-trades too. But despite the
fact I have many interests, have a BFA that includes training in such things
as ceramics, metalworking, photography (yeah, yeah, not period :>) weaving,
life drawing, sculpture, etc., and once won a kingdom competition requiring
high scores in eight categories (I entered such things as soap-making,
pigment making, costuming, leatherworking, research writing, and accessories
along with my scriveners arts), I still know where my *strong* areas are.
Sure, during my Laureling ceremony, a string of Laurels filed up to the
throne carrying all sorts of things I had done and yes, though I can do a
wide variety of stuff, and usually do most of it pretty well, I don't for a
minute believe myself to be a virtuoso in them all. I know where my
strengths lay--in scriveners arts--and acknowledging that doesn't seem to me
to be too terribly limiting, considering the collosal range of skills that
category (like most categories) encompasses.

When I'm asked what I do, I say "scriveners' arts & other stuff." The idea
of asking one Laurel what another Laurel does (unless it just happens to
come up in conversation) is just plain silly, and possibly bespeaks a group
of artists not too strong in the area of self-critique and self-reflection.
And frankly, I think I have a better idea of what I do and when I might be
helpful to someone and when I'd feel more comfortable making a referral to
someone with more expertise in an area than I. 

There is a small point I mean to make with all the above stuff other than
blowing my own horn. Laurels need to be open about who and what they are and
what they do, for one thing--rather than give cryptic replies to people
wanting simple information (like "what did you get your laurel for?"). The
answer, "Well, we don't give Laurels in *this* kingdom for just *one* thing"
sounds awfully snooty and put-offish to me, let alone some poor shmo who's
not played long enough to develop enough hide to handle that kind of
ambiguous non-answer. I gotta tell ya, it's awfully off-putting. It just
sounds too-too snobbish. That's not the kind of image of peerage I believe
we owe the populace. One of the duties of peerage is, supposedly, teaching.
Kinda hard to teach when people are afraid to ask what you do.

So there I go again.

Aquilanne