[Ansteorra] The Stepchildren--again (was Re: Court length)

[Elaine Crittenden]

(Slight panic in the voice) Would someone please let this lowly scribe know
how and when your scribes' services of writing out awards are to be
accomplished, since the suggestion has been made that the awards should be
given the minute a competition is over?

We scribes need to have time to carefully letter names which will probably
go up on someone's wall for a very long time. Each and every award needs to
have filled in on the day of its accomplishment (if it is to be awarded
then) the name of the competition (some are invented that day!) and the date
(some are postponed) and the name of the winner (who is not known until the
competition is over, of course).

Competitions are being held all over the place. That's why we scribes try to
have a central area in which to work. Even runners don't always get to us in
time,though we have had the winner's name brought to us via horseback, and
we have had our preparation lettering time cut by as much as three hours
when the presenters decided to leave the site early because of the weather
they might encounter enroute home. We were scribing while court was in
session and runners delivering awards on completion, as a result!

I, personally, have lettered by lamplight on a rickety table in the street
outside my tent in order to have the awards ready for presentation time,
because I had been ousted from the hall at its closing time of 6 pm.
(Hopefully, my lettering was good enough even then that the recipients never
knew under what circumstances their information was lettered!)

I know of a scribe who stayed until the Bardic Competition was over at 1 am
or so, and worked in virtual darkness so the winner could have the award at
that competition's end. Little was said to her of her heroics, but she did
her job, anyway. So it usually is, for us who serve alone and unnoticed.

Awards are special reminders of important accomplishments and wonderful
memories, and we, your Ansteorran and Steppes scribes, want to do our very
best for you to make them beautiful pieces of artwork to be cherished and
admired. Good handlettering takes planning and designing, making it take
longer than ordinary cursive writing. Most people do not understand just
what is involved and how long it takes in order to do it well.

I appeal to you, good Gentles, to think also of us and our time constraints
in your deliberations at this time.

(Continuing with apprehension and slight panic, but still in service to the
Dream)
Lete Bithespring

----------
>From: "R. Smith" <russ at randomgang.com>
>To: "Kingdom of Ansteorra - SCA,  Inc." <ansteorra at ansteorra.org>
>Subject: Re: Court length was (RE: [Ansteorra] Sound Systems in Court (was Just
aQuestion))
>Date: Wed, Jul2, 2003, 1:59 PM
>

> JP said:
>> Is it absolutely necessary for court time
>> to be taken up to bring up every person who won every competition?
>
> Actually, this is an interesting idea, if what you mean is "why not award
> winners at the actual competitions?"  Certainly this is plausible for the
> fighting tournaments (I mean, that's basically how Crown works, after a
> fashion) and for other cases I would think arrangements could be made for
> interested parties to gather and get the results (of A&S, for a somewhat
> awkward example.)
>
> Of course, I'm biased; the only competition I won was held (as JP will
> remember, in fact) on Sunday and no nobility were left on site, so no court
> was convened -- I was just recognized and given the passdowns and on we
> went. :)
>
> Or, here's a middle ground: since court isn't required to award competition
> results, there could be scheduled two schedule items -- an Awards for
> Competitions session that isn't a Court as such, and a Court at whatever
> juncture to do the things that must be done there.
>
> It seems to me these kinds of possibilities are worth discussing.  You know,
> nobody got chatty during the ten minute evening Court I once attended... :)
>
> Chandra
>
> --
> Lord Chandranath <russ{at}randomgang.com>
> "Per pale sable and gules, a decrescent argent."
> mka Russ Smith (http://www.randomgang.com/~russ/)
>
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