SC - Nerve Bisquits???

[Lady Di]

Having worked and contributed to the Calontir Soup Kitchen over several
foreign wars, and learned something of how it started:

Many of our fighters in Calontir tend to travel to foreign wars sans their
normal support crew (ie: significant others).  It started out as one
individual (Jenna) being concerned about the condition some of these
fighters were in when they came back from the day's fighting.  Dehydrated,
practically fainting from hunger, and all revv'ed up from the fighting. 
Giving the fighters something to drink that had salt (ie: sodium) in it,
helped the fighters to rehydrate - hence the soup.  The fighters come back
from the fight en masse.  They pause to drink a cup, perhaps two of the
soup, then drink the water or other non-dehydrating beverages available,
before continuing on to drop their armor and go take a shower.  Some of
them hang around for more than a few minutes after dropping their armor to
cool down before running off to clean up.  The very act of pausing to drink
this soup, and perhaps munch on a fighter biscuit, helps the fighter to
calm down, regain their senses from the high of a good battle.

The soup kitchen is also something that helps to make the Calontir fighters
come together as cohesive army.  Our fighters are not divided up into
Houses, or Families.  They are an Army - a battelion entire onto itself. 
And this one thing raises envy in the breasts of non-Calontir fighters.  I
know, because I have seen and heard it.

The Calontir soup kitchen is meant to help our fighters recover from the
strain of fighting in a fairly safe, fast manner.  It is not meant as a
substitute for meal.  It is not even, properly speaking, a snack. 
Sometimes there is real food there, but usually not.  The jerky is usually
fed to the fighters before they go out to fight. And if there is some left
over, our waterbearers go out with the rest to hand out to those fighters
they think are sweating way too much and need the extra salt. There is
seldom any jerky left to distribute when they return from fighting.  

Jenna uses pre-packaged soup because she is not a chef.  She has been know
to state that she can boil water however.  And, pre-packaged soup packs
down a lot better than pre-made soup.  She also doesn't have to worry about
the temps either, as in cooler space.  The jerky is something extra, for
which she is much praised and appreciated (Justly so in my opinion).  Jenna
also does not receive any monies from the kingdom to help run this service.
 All the funds and goods are privately donated.

The Calontir Soup Kitchen is not an Estrella thing.  It goes to all the
foreign wars where our fighters are partcipating in force. It does not go
to Lilies War, which is a Calontir thing and therefore, local in nature,
with the resulting increase in the extended SCA family support personnel in
place to help take care of the fighters.

The fighter biscuits are something a little extra, but require
refrigeration.  The last several wars may not have seen fighter biscuits
there - as there is some concern about people providing proper
refrigeration for them over several days.  And, as Calontir begins to
attend more and more foreign wars in force, there are fewer and fewer
support people traveling with them.  Especially while school is in session.
 Safe and Healthy is a very large concern of the Soup Kitchen Helpers. 
This may explain the rise in amount of Jerky, which can be stored longer
term under less stringent requirements than the fighter biscuits require
for safe and healthy eating.

While I have seen the term Estrella Soup Kitchen, this is in fact a
misnomer.  It is the Calontir Soup Kitchen. And, it will be at Estrella to
provide for Calontir's fighters after the major battles.  

And, I will probably be helping, as the Soup Kitchen helpers will probably
in turn, help me with the Calontir Hospitality party.

Trying not to sound too pompous or strident and probably failing miserbly.

Kateryn de Develyn
(who is a cook - and serving period finger foods at Calontir's Hospitality
party at Estrella)

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