SC - An observation on Trimaris & the SCA

[James L. Matterer]

Hello everyone,

I've been reading with great interest and dismay, these past several
days, the current Trimarian thread(s) on this list, and wanted to
finally throw in my 2 cents, along with a regretfully-concluded
observation.

Several weeks ago I received a letter from a mundane living in Florida,
who had discovered Medieval cooking through my website, A Boke of Gode
Cookery. He was intrigued and fascinated, and wrote me asking how he
could move from being an arm-chair observer of our art to a
fully-functioning Medieval cook. My first and immediate response was to
find out where he lived, then recommend that he join the nearest SCA
group to him, as the Society, IMHO, has always been THE best place to
begin such an endeavor.

I know, unfortunately, feel that I have given this gentlemen bad advice
and must write back to him, explaining the current situation in Trimaris
and recommending that, while he should still join the SCA, he should now
find another outlet for his Medieval cooking interests.

I feel it is a damn shame that after 21 years in the Society, I am now
advising a potential period cook to go somewhere else and play.

I wonder if Her Highness in Trimaris realizes that her words, now matter
how well-intended on Her part, have had this sort of impact on the
Society? This is not just a Trimarian situation or problem; it is
something that affects every active member in the Society, and I'm sorry
to finally see the day when authenticity in the SCA has degraded to the
point where our representatives can actually encourage the practice of
non-period presentations during our official events.

In AEthelmearc and the East Kingdom, we have always had a sensible way
of dealing with people who don't want to pay for food they do not like:
we offer both on-board and off-board spaces so that those who don't wish
to eat Medieval can still sit in the feast hall and enjoy the event, but
instead dine on food they've brought themselves. The off-board price is
always considerably lower than on-board, so no one can be forced into
paying for food they do not want, which seems to be the primary concern
of Their Highnesses in Trimaris.

My gut instinct is that just because some of the population doesn't want
to eat period food shouldn't mean that everyone atending an event should
be forced into eating essentially a mundane dinner with a Medieval
theme. Give those who wish to live up to the ideals of the Society a
chance to enjoy a truly glorious re-created feast at our events, and
encourage those who have food allergies and problems, or an aversion to
"the real thing" to simply bring their own prefered foods with them.

Master Huen Damebrigge of Wychwood

A Boke of Gode Cookery http://www.godecookery.com