[Sca-cooks] Puritans, was: Canadian Friends

[Laura C. Minnick]

XvLoverCrimvX at aol.com wrote:
>
> In a message dated 10/5/01 11:48:41 PM Eastern Daylight Time, lcm at efn.org
> writes:
>
> > A challenge for you Misha- go to the library, and do some reading.
<snip>
> Well, from what I know of my English and History class the Puritans were
<snip>

Pretty good, Misha! You even got Jonathan Edwards!

One of the things to remember- things such as the Witch Trials and the
fire & brimstone preaching, the _Scarlet Letter_, etc.- those are
examples of the outside fringe elements of the Puritans. Like any group,
the rest of the folks were sitting in the middle, running their farms,
loving their spouses and raising families, with no suspicions of the
widow next door who grew herbs for doctorin' and served as the town
midwife. They were very strict morally, but tended to be happy, healthy,
and prosperous. They also liked bawdy songs, and practiced 'bundling'
(see if you can find that in your books!).

The idea of a Puritan persona could be kinda cool, though I can see two
drawbacks: do you really want to wear very simple unrelieved black and
white for your SCA career? And how important is it to you to find a
date? Mind you, a persona so far afield from your own avowed preferences
would quickly either become impossible to keep authentically, or would
become a farce. It is to think about...

Good work so far, Misha- you get a gold star!

'Lainie