[Ansteorra] History

[willowdewisp at juno.com]

I would like to apologize for all of us old people. but I would like to make some points. 
I have been in the SCA for almost  40 years. 20 years ago was not the best. But it was better. I was younger but it wasn't my youth and I wasn't new. 
Here are some things that were different.
People didn't camp with their cars. People made a big point of moving their cars Friday night. 
Steppes Warlord was famous for their parties Friday night. 
Many people wore their costume to set up their camps. 
The fighting was more real because the fighters thought it as studying an Marshal Art not a Sport. 
The fighters fought to show their skill to also to entertain the populace.
Because the fighting was interesting people watched. 
the max number of fields we had were four and they were big enough for fighters to actually fight and not run into the ropes all the time. 
Ladies and Lords would greet each other in courtly manners and tried to keep the obvious Mundane things down. 
Somebody always made a show of dying. Getting best death was important.
We often had Ladies Galleries. Gentlemen made a point of  paying attention to their ladies. I love watching a lady tie a favor on a gentleman's arm and watching her stand by the list field. 
There were more performers and sometimes there were funny or entertaining things done between rounds. Often done by the Marshallet. 
Gentlemen kissed ladies more and showed off their legs. They did elegant bows. I haven't seen anyone do an elegant bow in ages. 
We had things to do at night. Bardic circles {I ran one that have fifty performers and as many watchers.  Middle Eastern dancing, Persona tavern --like the Green Dragon, games like capture the flag. gambling, Lots and Lots of parties many of them sort of persona. Midnight quest, dancing on the green  these are all the things people pay good money to do at Ren fairs and they are getting more popular all the time. 
We did things on Sunday. Usually the Knights taught a little in the morning and sometimes we had Melees. We didn't close up at noon. 
Steppes Warlord usually had a great party Sunday night and it usually had a quest on Monday. 
You compare that to some of the events I have been to lately. Site is dead by 10.PM. Most of the activities are put between 10 AM and 5Pm. Yes, before any one yells at me I know that there are events that are doing some of these things but I only hear about them I haven't been there. 
But most of all someone was always trying some new ideas. Often they were tried out at the Culture camps in Elfsea. But if a group had a new idea they could get a date. Everything wasn't the same old same old.
I joined the SCA to escape the mundane world. I worked for many years to make things happen. I am too sick to make things happen now but I would like to go to events and find people pretending to be in Ansteorra and allow me to escape again and I might be old but I don't want to go to bed at 10 Pm.
Duchess Willow de Wisp 
 
 
 

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