[Sca-cooks] Requirements for a Laurel

[lilinah at earthlink.net]

Gunthar wrote:
>I had an interesting conversation with the Crown and a Laurel the
>other night and we got to talking about what is required for
>consideration. I was told flat out that I would not ever be eligible
>because I don't enter competitions.

Whoa! Here in the West Kingdom, entering competitions is not a 
necessity to Laurelhood. Heck, our competitions are anonymous, so 
only the Officer running it knows who is whom, not the judges. And 
while the winner is announced publicly, the other entrants are not 
and no one will know other than said Officer who was just one point 
off from tying with the winner.

Definitely doesn't put one on any particular track, unless one is 
often a winner. And i've seen some folks win who, well, in my NSHO, 
made rather unauthentic stuff - like the very beautiful, but tiny 
wooden "trenchers" which documentation showed to be Elizabethan - 
although they should have been larger - and which were painted with 
pictures from the Bayeux "tapestry" (!!!), not what any Elizabethan 
would have on their dinnerware - while the picture perfect and period 
glazed ceramic pitcher didn't win, but it was rather ugly, just like 
the original... but, then,  most folks don't like ugly stuff...

>I have to admit that I was a bit shocked to hear that.

Yeah, i agree...

>But they
>insisted that the only way you can get recognized is if you either
>are apprenticed to a Laurel who pushes you constantly or you
>enter competitions so your work can be judged.

And while Apprenticing appears to be having something of a revival 
out here, that, too, is no necessity for a Laurel, as long as enough 
Laurels who go to Laurels meetings are aware of what one is doing so 
they can discuss one.

>Um....cooking feasts for 400 and handing out documentation
>for each dish isn't? Teaching and cooking for 20 years isn't enough?
>Being a judge for kingdom A&S competitions and counselling competitors
>in presentation isn't enough?

Dude! What is wrong with the people in your kingdom?

Sorry, i guess i just failed the Inter-Kingdom Anthropology test...

Anahita
who rarely enters competitions, but is both Principality Arts 
Minister and Deputy Silver Spoon (cooking competitions), so gets to 
run them...