[Ansteorra] Candlemas Lost and Found

Mon Feb 4 12:07:43 PST 2013

Greetings Isabeau,

Many of the folks in the SCA, perhaps a fact surprising to many, are introverts. Some times you just have to be the one to initiate contact. The SCA does help in this respect. There are often interesting things going on or people doing interesting crafts that give you an opening for lots of questions. 

As to how and where to camp at Gulf Wars, this often depends upon your local group. My own group, the Barony of Bryn Gwlad, an hour and a half north of you in Austin has changed over the years. At the early GWs, if you asked where the Barony of Bryn Gwlad was, I would say "over there" and "over there" and "others in the cabins over there and over there and there". Then the Barony started making an effort to camp together six or eight years later. Some camps are very loose associations. Others are more tightly organized and may even have organized food plans.

Unfortunately, as the population of people attending Gulf Wars has grown from 500 to 3500? cabin and hotel space on the site has become non-existent. You may be able to borrow a tent or pavilion from someone who is not going.

I run a website called Stefan's Florilegium which has a fair amount of info on SCA camping in the SCA-CAMPING section. The address for the site is at the bottom of my message. I would first recommend that you take a look some of the files in the NEWCOMERS section. If you find that you've seen all that stuff before, well there are about 2300 files on other subjects that you can explore there as well.

This article in the NEWCOMERS section might be of use:
How-2-get-2do-art (12K) 4/23/11 "How to get to do things in the SCA" by Duchess Willow de Wisp, OL, OP, OR.

or these. 
Houses-Guilds-art (8K) 6/19/12 "On Households, Guilds etc in the SCA" by Lord Ian the Green.
SCA-Housholds-art (10K) 8/31/09 "Introduction to SCA Households" by Maistor Justinos Tekton called Justin.

I know that part of what you may be looking for is a group of folks that you can share doing things with. Sometimes this is your local official SCA group, sometimes it is group of friends, often in the SCA formed into a household, which is an unofficial group that often team up to do things together such as setting up camp as a group. Often a household is formed out of people that share a common interest which might be fighting, arts and sciences, archery or sometimes even service.

I can't tell from your message whether you are trying to talk to people at official events or whether you mean things like a monthly populace meeting or fighter practice. Or even a local guild meeting. At events, especially if your group is putting on the event, a lot of people may simply not have much time to talk since they may be preoccupied with putting on the event itself, especially if your local group is the one putting it on.

Going to more informal events such as a local business meeting, fighter practice or guild meeting is often a better time to get to know folks when the happening is more informal and people may have more time.

SCA camping isn't RVing, although some people will use them and it isn't backpacking either. One of the expressions I've heard, and kidnapped, is "Some people's idea of camping involves a backpack. Mine involves a U-Haul truck". And more than a few do use U-Haul trucks and trailers to haul their pavilions, four-poster beds, rugs, tables and chairs along. Not to mention all the armor that some people lug along. Why?, when there is some much to do at Gulf Wars besides hitting other people with wooden sticks. :-)

On the other hand, I seem to remember going to Gulf Wars I with four people packed into my Toyota Corolla pulling a small cargo trailer.

You are likely to find it much less stressful, especially since you say you haven't been camping before, to try camping at a local event or one that is put on by another group nearby, before attempting Gulf Wars. 

The SCA-CAMPING section in the Florilegium does include some general files such as:
camp-showers-msg (30K) 6/22/09 Camp shower ideas for outside SCA events.
Care-o-Prvies-art (5K) 11/10/02 On the Care and Feeding of the Wild Porta-Privy" by Lord Iain mac Caradoc.
cmp-courteses-art (6K) 8/23/02 "Camping Courtesies" by Baroness Dana Mac an Ghabhann.

While I have yet to create a file on how to camp at Gulf Wars (Yes, yes, lazy Stefan), I do have a section on ideas and comments about camping at Pennsic. Pennsic is an even bigger event held in August a bit north of Pittsburg with about 12,000 people instead of just 3 or 4 thousand.  This info is in the PENNSIC section. While the two vary in various aspects, much of the stuff on how to camp at Pennsic applies to Gulf Wars. Such files include:

Fire-Book-art (739K) 12/28/00 Baron Durr's Guide to Safe Fire Use.
http://www.florilegium.org/files/PENNSIC/Fire-Book/Fire-Book-art.html
    A very good article on camp fire safety, illustrated by the late William Blackfox, a noted SCA cartoon artist.

BPThingie-art (38K) 9/30/94 Bart's Pennsic guidebook w. Estrella addm.
http://www.florilegium.org/files/PENNSIC/BPThingie-art.html

New-2-Pennsic-msg (56K) 7/15/11 Information for those new to Pennsic.
http://www.florilegium.org/files/PENNSIC/New-2-Pennsic-msg.html

Pennsic-Prep-art (12K) 8/22/02 "A Newcomer's Guide for Pre-Pennsic Prep"
by Lady Meliora Leuedai de Ardescote.
http://www.florilegium.org/files/PENNSIC/Pennsic-Prep-art.html

What-s-Pensic-art (8K) 11/13/11 "What is Pennsic?" by THLady Hrefna
Ulfvarinnsdottir.
http://www.florilegium.org/files/PENNSIC/What-s-Pensic-art.html

I hope this helps. Please feel free to email me with more specific questions and information and I will be happy to help you as I can.

Stefan

On Feb 1, 2013, at 8:53 PM, Jennifer Kroyer <jennifer.kroyer1 at gmail.com> wrote:

> I am new to the SCA and have a few comments in regarding to my newbie
> status.It  Is not for my lack of trying to become involved, But I feel that
> the older SCA members who have been involved for many years do not embrace
> the new members,  I essentially  have tried to delve myself into many
> different activities and found more of cold shoulder type of attitude then
> a welcoming one, this pattern has pretty much turned me off of the SCA
> where I am located at. I have read many of your comments and concerns about
> retention and gaining of new members though what I have experienced, is any
> indication of the way things are the SCA will never be able to gain or
> retain new members. Granted this is just my personal experience, And many
> others may have a more positive experience. With Gulf Wars  coming up
> I  will not attend, I have not been formed at how it works and with this
> being my first Gulf Wars I have no clue as to what to do, how to set up a
> camp ( which I dont have a tent anyway), and no one really has given me any
> direction in that process. I have attempted to get and gain as much
> information as possible in reference to the Gulf Wars but there seems to be
> a lack of communication in my Barony. Every time I attempt to attend an
> event locally or to assist in some manner with preparation I am pretty much
> received with a cold shoulder and ignored this is completely leading me out
> of the SCA before I haven't even really began, I truly think this is a
> great organization but there is some serious flaws in it.
> 
> Very Respectfully,
> 
> Isabeau DeSchamps

--------
THLord Stefan li Rous    Barony of Bryn Gwlad    Kingdom of Ansteorra
   Mark S. Harris           Austin, Texas          StefanliRous at austin.rr.com
http://www.linkedin.com/in/marksharris
**** See Stefan's Florilegium files at:  http://www.florilegium.org ****