R.M. Ridley's Blog, page 4

The Bone Carver

Sounds like a great name for a serial killer doesn’t it. Or maybe a D&D, half orc – half human character.

if you know who did this picture – let me know to credit

I’m sorry to say – it’s nothing so lurid or exciting.

I have begun my White Wolf Fian project: Carving a rosary from bone.

this is one of the period examples I’m basing my work from

I still need to make more chisels from tiny screwdrivers, many more. I also still need to cut chunks of bone the right size to make my beads from. I will need to have ten for the rosary, which means I should have fifteen rough pieces cut – incase of screw ups. I have six soaking in the water and three that need to be made a touch smaller by saw.

Let me backtrack a bit. The White Wolf Fian is an order with-in my SCA Kingdom of Ealdormere. It is comprised of people who imposed challenges upon themselves. These challenges are to be completed in a years time, and are meant to push your boundaries. Each project should be something you believe you can finish in a year, but only by seriously applying yourself. Being in the order bestows no rank, it gives no title, or even a badge. It only conveys a sense of accomplishment and pride, as well as the support of your fellow Fian members. Also – to stay in the order – you must re-challenge yourself every three years.

I decided to challenge myself in after my wife also decided too. Listening to her talk about it, made me realize that I should be pushing myself in the same way. The order accepted my challenge, I was presented in court, and the Queen accepted my challenge – thus making it official.

Now, just so you know, I’m a guy who has no small history of carving small pieces, nor am I a stranger to carving bone.The challenge comes in the fact that I have never done these things by hand. I have done the vast majority of my work using a Dremel, and for small stuff, dentist bits. I really can’t recommend dentist bits enough. They carve through everything, with great ease, and yet you don’t have to worry about them cutting your skin – but I digress.

So I have used a coping saw to cut the larger pieces, and a whole leg bone of a cow, down to the rough size I want my beads to be. Usually, I’d use a cutting wheel on a Dremel. Much faster, much easier on the arm muscles… but also crap loads of dust. ( I love the smell but it really isn’t something one should breath in).

I then took those pieces that I cut down and placed them in a mason jar filled  1/3 with water.

Soaking bone makes it easier to carve. It actually softens it up to the consistency of say – hard cheese? Any way, after 24hrs in the water the first 1/16 comes off almost effortlessly, the next 1/16 with more resistance, under that however, it becomes almost as hard as un-soaked bone. Also, once it dries out, it returns to a hardened state.

I tried bullying through the other day. I had a small, sharp, fold out knife and was essentially whittling away the excess bone to bring the shape closer to the bead I want. Instead of stopping once I got passed the easy stuff, I kept carving. As I went, of course, the bone also dried on me. In the end, I would have got more done if I had carved away the easy stuff, dropped that bead back in the water and grabbed the next. I know better now. Hopefully, I won’t make the same mistake, and put my hand through the same abuse, trying to hand carve hard bone.

All this hard, slow, hand work is really barely the beginning. Once I managed to get the bone to a large bead shape, then the real work begins. Each bead will be carved with a face on one side and a ‘deaths head’ or memento mori on the other. I plan on doing a hierarchy with the beads, starting with the King, then Queen, then Prince, Princess, Knight, Pelican, Laurel, Baron, Baroness, and finally – common man. The work doesn’t end there though. I will have a terminal bead – larger than the others – that is also a memento mori.

But topping all of of that, hopefully using all the new skills I’ve learned along the way, I want to put a paternoster on it which will be the greatest challenge of carving. My goal, the final ‘can I do this‘ will be to carve the paternoster in the shape of the St. Mark’s Basilica.

So that’s my one years self-challenge. You’ll be hearing more about it and I’ll be posting pictures as the year goes on.

Filed under: Jewelry, SCA Tagged: bone, bone carving, challenge, D&D, dentist bits, Ealdormere, Hand work, Kingdom, Knight, Laurel, memento mori, one year, Orc, paternoster, Pelican, rosary, SCA, Society for Creative Anachronism, St. Mark Basilica, venice, White Wolf Fian

Zombies and the Dead Head

Last night I was not yet ready for sleep, but I didn’t feel like starting a movie I was going to get too tired to finish, about half way through. I had this radical idea – try writing.

I used to always write from around 11 pm to 1 am – so I figured there was a chance. I also realized that I had been trying to write without music, which can be a big help. So I untangled the cord of the earbuds and opened up the manuscript for my zombie novel.

First issue I came across – the damn thing starts with a dream. I know why…but it is generally considered a huge No-No in the literary world to do so. So I have to figure out a better way to start. I can keep the beginning but it should be inserted later, to unravel a bit of the characters back story.

Second Issue – the ‘nickname’ for the zombies. I don’t know what I was thinking, it just reads awful. So I need to chance that, I inserted the first thing that came to my head, which is only slightly better. While reading it however, the term bothered my sensibilities but not quite bad enough to make me halt and stumble.

Third issue, I have to adjust the zombies. I have a vision of how and what they are, but the actual description and how they operate needs to be coerced into something that follows a more explainable pattern. I need to explain this and give the readers the concept, without ‘telling’ them.

None of these are insurmountable. The first one is, I admit, tricky. I could open with a completely different chapter that then leads to the dream sequence opener.. still not good to open a chapter with a dream though. If I was Stephan King, I could get away with it – in fact I could probably make it rock for all the very reason one shouldn’t do it. I am not he however. So my best chance, if I want to keep it, is actually in the middle of a chapter…. maybe I should just accept the fact it needs to be shot between the eyes and left to rot.[image error]

To move forward with this story, in many ways, I just have to admit I need to start right at the beginning and make it new. There’s only 38 pages, less if I decapitate the dream sequence, so really not much of a loss. But somehow it seems more daunting to start from scratch than to rework what I have. That’s probably completely false – but it is how I feel. This becomes an issue. Do I trust my gut, do I cling to what was done out of some biased loyalty, do I trust my brain?

Between the rereading, the issues, and my brain maybe not being quite up to it yet, I really didn’t get anything done last night… except maybe fan the spark.

Or maybe it would be better to say – spread the contamination.

 

Filed under: Writing Tagged: current work in progress, dream sequence, edits, novel, paranormal, plot, rewrites, world building, writing, zombie

Crazy Cat – Outside is for Dogs

We own one St.Bernard and are owned by four cats.

Yeah, I know my place.

However, I also know it is my place to make sure the cats don’t do things they don’t realize are incredibly stupid .. it’s like being the best man during the Stag night before the Wedding. You have to let the groom have a good time but nothing that will bit him in the ass later in life. He has to face his wife the next day, sober and steady.

So, three of four of our cats are rescue cats.

We found them outside, in rough shape, needing assistance.

Our first, Velcro, was an adult, with a collar who was starving. Now she’s a content fat lump in charge of the entire house.

Our second, Tanit, was a little ball of nerves who we believe was still with her litter in the corn field across the street and ended up under our house, when the corn was taken off. She’s still a tiny thing, and rather on edge, but we love her all the same.

Our third cat, and only male, Storm, was taken home from my mother-in-law. She adopted two cats – one was pregnant. So we took one to slightly reduce the sudden increase in cat in their house. He is our only, non-rescue cat.

The fourth, Yina, we adopted not too many weeks later, when my wife found the grey puff ball sitting behind the tire of our truck. That one wasn’t even close to weaned, but was very friendly. She played with Storm as they grew, which meant less work for us in raising, but always wanted to be like the ‘big cat’. Now she is a short legged, still looks like a kitten, fat ball of grey fur. From the back – very much like the ‘big cat’.

None of our cats are outdoor cats. One of the reasons is that living in farm country, there are too many possible predators; foxes, dogs, coyotes. Another reason is that the street running in front of our place is a dirt road that people zip down – fast. We have lost a number of chicken to cars on this road and trust me… it is probably easier to see a chicken on the road than a cat – well maybe not Velcro, it’s hard to miss that massive backside.

Anyway – to the point. The three rescue have no driving desire to be outside. If we are siting on the back porch, they might slip out and sit in the garden right beside and play ‘jungle cat’ but they really don’t want to be out alone or far. They know outside holds, fear, trauma, danger, and uncertainty.

Storm, on the other hand, never spent time outside. He’s always been an indoor cat and, before Yina came along, the St. Bernard, Hera, was his best friend and play buddy. So, Hera gets to go outside when she want, and outside is where the small flying things are and the mice, and all the smells and ….

Storm WANTS OUT!

Storm wants out so bad he will dart out when the door is opened to feed the chickens. Usually we can dissuade him, block his attempt, or stomp out and bring him back – usually. Sometimes though, we miss him going out; it happens to my wife more than me. This is simply because I’m more of a meanie and Storm knows if I catching going out the door – his nose gets bopped. Still, it may seem like a hard thing to do – miss a cat shooting by, but you are dealing with chickens swarming the door hoping for corn, dog trying to get in, or out, and a bit afraid of the throng of fowl. In all this, it is possible to not see the cat slip out.

Yesterday, at some point probably around six when the dog went out, or in, Storm went out. We didn’t notice. We didn’t notice until eight-thirty, other wise known as ‘Kitty Treat Time!’ We should have noticed. We should have realized the house was too quiet. Storm is the one that gets Tanit to play (which is great) and he’s the one who gets bored.

So we call ‘kitty treats’ and there is no Storm. We check the house, knowing damn well that if he was inside he’d have come already. Having spent formative years being raised adoring a puppy, he learned that you come when your name is called (he also wags his tail when he’s happy). So we know he’s out, but usually when he’s out for a period of time, he wants in and meows at the front door. No cat. We call. No cat. Finally the dog finishes her dinner and I let her outside (as is the routine). Suddenly – cat!Yeah, he was waiting. He knew she’d be coming out and then he could play with her. It’s fun to watch, despite the fact he shouldn’t be outside. A prancing cat and a gallomping St. Bernard playing all over the 1/2 acre yard. Well I let them play for a bit and called the dog back. She came, the cat came…but only so far. He wouldn’t come within five feet of me. I sent Hera out to play with Storm again and waited. My wife came out and we waited, after a while I called Hera back once more. Storm still stayed back, but my wife was able to meander over and scoop him up.

Stupid cat… however, I’m starting to think for both the dog’s fun and the chance to better control when the cat goes out, and have a better chance of getting him in if he does slip out, of just carrying him out and allowing the two of them supervised play for half and hour.

Clearly – I’m crazy. That was, however, probably obvious at the point where I admitted I had one St. Bernard and four cats so….

Filed under: MIscellaneous Tagged: cats, chickens, county road, dog, St. Bernard

Sleep? Meh – Who Needs It?

So I have this theory – you are born with ‘sleep cells’.

They are like fat cells, only they store sleep. The human body only has so many of them however. Now they can be recharged but once they are truly burnt out – unlike fat cels – they are gone. This explains why in our teens, and twenties, we can go, go, go, forever, without sleep – and not really notice. We crash, eventually, recharge and get up and go again. What we don’t know is that when we are doing this, some of the sleep cells have been totally burned out to maintain the sleepless activity. Then, suddenly, in our thirties, we can no longer stay up all night, all weekend, and still function during the week. We keep needing more sleep to function as well as we did only a few years before. This is because the number of sleep storing cells have been radically reduced. And if you’re a parent …. Forget about it!

There are many stages of sleep, but generally they have broken it down to four parts. The ‘just drifting off to sleep’, the ‘in sleep starting to rest’, the ‘deep sleep’, and the most well known REM stage. Now everyone thinks REM is the most important. For a while, it was believed if you didn’t get REM you would go crazy! This isn’t true though, REM is not the most important, nor will not getting it drive you crazy.

Don’t get me wrong – REM sleep is important and it can really effect you life… but we will get back to that.

The most important stage of sleep, actually, is probably the ‘deep sleep’, or the delta sleep. This is when your body and mind are, essentially, shut down. This is the sleep that is hardest to wake someone from and, if you manage it, the sleeper will wake groggy and take time to ‘activate’ – essentially because they were, in fact, shut down and are rebooting the system.

Scientist have discovered that delta sleep is when hormones related to growth are released in children and young adults. It has to do with proteins being broken down during that stage of sleep, and that protein, is what builds and heals the body. So during this time is when you also deal with damage from stress and ultraviolet rays and well, life. Now here is a scary quote from the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke web site,

“Activity in parts of the brain that control emotions, decision-making processes, and social interactions is drastically reduced during deep sleep, suggesting that this type of sleep may help people maintain optimal emotional and social functioning while they are awake.”

So if you don’t get enough delta or ‘deep’ sleep, your ability to have healthy emotional and social function decrease.

Now I’m going to let you guess what kind of sleep I don’t get enough of…

I wake often from REM during the night, I can sleep for 7 or 10 hrs a night, and I still wake exhausted. I don’t ever get that ‘rise feeling rested and content’ crap that others go on about. When people say ‘I had the weirdest dream the other night’ or ‘ my dream felt so real’ sometime I just want to back hand them through a wall.

I ALWAYS have ‘weird’ dreams. There are no other type of night for me but one filled with emotionally wrought, twisted, highly tactile, stress filled, negative, often dangerous, ‘adventures’. Trust me, it isn’t something you want… in fact, when describing them to people, I’m often told that what is considered a nightmare.

So here we are back to REM sleep – see told you. So yeah, REM is important. If your sleep is falling down on it’s job to ‘repair’ you body from stress by not getting enough delta sleep, and then pounds you with stressful REM sleep. The thought of going to bed is not always a pleasant one – often, because you know it will only lead to having to wake up, numerous times, from a hell your own brain cooked up for you.

Now here’s a fun fact – Seroquel, one of the medications I’m on to help stay somewhat sane, is known to cause more vivid, warped, dream states….yay.

About two years ago I had a good dream – first I could remember. I woke from this pleasant, soft bunny kisses, and hugging flowers dream.

First thing I did was curse. WHY? Because of two reasons: One, I now knew what everyone else was getting that I never did, Two, I knew the next nights horrors would only be worse because of the comparison.

Sometimes I think I should just stop calling it sleep, and refer to it as ‘Wes World’

 

Filed under: Mental Health, MIscellaneous Tagged: bipolar, Brain, bunny, crazy, cycle, delta sleep, emotions, medication, Mental Health, REM, Seroquel, sleep, stress, Wes Craven, wierd thoughts

Cover Release – Kingdom City Revolt

 

Ben churns out his prose from his home in Southeast Texas, where he lives with his wife and three children, and works in IT. When he isn’t writing, he’s either thinking about writing, or he’s driving his winfe insane talking about his novel ideas. His work has appeared in two X-anthologies: “Kissed a Snake” in A Dash of Madness: a Thriller Anthology (July 2013), and “Fairykin” in Moments in Millennia: a Fantasy Anthology(January 2014). His first novel, Kingdom City: Resurrection was published in February 2014.

 

 

 

Filed under: Book Release Tagged: A Dash of Madness, Ben Ireland, cover reveal, Kingdom City, Kingdom City Resurrection, Kingdom City Revolt, Moments in Millennia, Texas

Whew – That’s done…Next!

I have one paragraph in Chapter 3 of the next White Dragon Black novel, ‘Bindings & Spines’ to rework – other than that, Chapters 1-10 are ready for proof. Usually little issue arrises in proof, so essentially those chapters are out of my life. I will have to tackle that one paragraph- today. I’ve already reworked and reworded it significantly once…but clearly failed in my job to make what I see in my head appear in my readers head. Sometimes changing it up just clicks and sometimes it doesn’t. It isn’t something to get upset or stressed over. It will get there – it just may take a few tries, and there is nothing wrong with that. If everything I wrote was simply sent on up the line, without issue being taken or corrections asked for – well, I’d be highly suspicious and, in my heart, know my editor wasn’t doing their job.

Being ‘done’ 1-10 means I just sent chapters 11-20 of ‘Bindings & Spines’ on up to my editor for her to start working through them, I should start getting them back in my email rather soon and the cycle rolls on.

I also finished the ‘tongue’ style brooches I was working on. They are for a SCA Arts & Science event coming up in two weeks called ‘
Being the crafter I don’t see the ‘shiny’, I see the ‘flaw’. That’s life, and I’ve taught myself  to accept a certain point as being ‘done’ whether my brain says it isn’t or not. Eventually you have to put the thing down, out of reach, and sight, and move on. I have learned to do that. This isn’t going to be worn by the queen, in foreign lands, as proof of the greatness of the A&S in the Kingdom of Ealdormere – and thus… it’s done.

Although, I have already purchased a great looking horn to inspire me to do further work in the area of repousse. Now that I’ve taught myself the basics, it is time to practice, practice, practice. Before I do that, however, there are other projects waiting …

I can move on to the other projects on the go which I stayed away rom playing with during the last push to finish the QPT project. I have a ‘simple’ rosary of fancy beads to string together; the hold up being I’m making a tiny pomander in the shape of a shell, and I haven’t worked out all the kinks in how it works.

I want to get back to work on a project I have neglected too long – my wife’s toothpick pomander. I have to start cutting glass into tiny gems, so I can then set them in the metal.

But most of all, I want – and need – to get started on the challenge I set myself before their majesties; hand carve a rosary, out of bone, in a year. I need to get started on this pronto if, for no other reason, than to understand the time it is going to take me to carve each bead. I must have a work time line so I can apply myself appropriately. First I must make the tools I will need – tiny, tiny, chisels, hand shaped from very small screwdrivers.

Okay – yes, my crazy is clearly not limited to bipolar disorder… your point?

 

Filed under: Jewelry, SCA, Writing Tagged: A&S, Bindings & Spines, bipolar, bone, bone carving, chapter, chisels, crazy, current work in progress, editor, edits, hand made, Jonathan Alvey, novel, paranormal, paranormal private investigator, pomander, readers, repousse & chasing, rosary, SCA, toothpick, Urban Fantasy, White Dragon Black Series, wife, world building, writing

Tempting Mother Nature

The sky is grey , the wind howling outside my window, and rain is pattering against the glass. So why am I smiling?

No Snow!

I can’t believe we are already at the end of October and have managed not to light the fire in the boiler. Usually trying to hold off until November is an act of masochism, based on nothing but stupid stubbornness … and my own projected distain for having to cut and haul wood in blizzard conditions. So far this year,however, an extra sweater and I’m good to go. I’m always the one who gives in first. Once it gets to a certain temperature and I get a chill – it sets in my bones and I can’t get it out until I’ve soaked in near scalding water for half an hour.

The weather forecast even has the temperature staying in the high fifties to low sixties until mid-November. If they can be trusted, then that means another two weeks of not having to light the fire. Now this year, all the wood for the winter is already in the barn, dry and chopped – because my parents are awesome and bought it for us, so I don’ have to be out in a blizzard cutting wood to stay warm for at least another 24 hours.

Here’s my problem – I don’t trust it. It seems to me this nice weather is ….

There has been a definite shift in the seasons. Even the last few years when October demanded a fire, it wasn’t too bad, nor was November, but winters cruel bite kept gnawing far later than ‘normal’. It didn’t ease up in March and become a memory by mid-April. Instead, we had cold right through until May – colder than normal, more late snow and frost than normal – if normal is based  on five years ago.

So what if this really nice October, stretching into November, means, not a short warm winter, but that I’ll still need to have the furnace going come May? Winter already feels like it lasts for ten months as it is. If it goes well into my planting season…

So yes – I’m loving the current temperature, but I’m terrified Mother Nature is just winding me up to catch my on the flip side.

Filed under: Homesteading, MIscellaneous Tagged: heat, Mother Nature, snow, winter, wood

Money for Nothing and Your….

Okay, now if you didn’t fill in and sing the last of that title, you may not be able to relate to my blog postings.

If you did sing the last of it, you are getting old and congratulations for finding your glasses this morning.

I do actually have a topic that connects to the title, and my life – it has nothing to do with loose woman however, sorry.

The topic has to do with money from book sales. It’s funny how people ask indie authors about their sales. ‘How’s the book selling?’ Well, compared to what? I mean compared to Jim Butcher, I’m a failure so bad it makes the Hindenburg disaster look like a children’s Christmas movie. Compared to the previous quarter, I’ve had a fifty percent increase in sales – I sold six!

The question also confuses me because, quite frankly, I didn’t get published to make money. I never expected to be self supporting from sales of my writing. I am frankly a bit shocked when I find out people have bought it. I’m glad, and hope they enjoy the hell out of it, but still a bit flabbergasted. That’s actually the reason, right there, that I sought out a publisher… to get my story out so people could enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it.

Now some people would say – ‘Well why didn’t you just put it up free on Amazon?’

Frankly because I believe having a publisher lends credit to your work, even a small press. The other reason is that a publishing house gives (or should give) one’s writing a thorough going over. My writing, my stories, are good – after my editor is done working with them, and me, they are damn good! Would I make more money not giving a publishing house a cut of the sales….

There we are back to a question, about sales and money, I can’t answer. I don’t know, because I’ve never gone that route.

Sometimes I want to say, ‘If you’re interested in my book, go read the reviews, if you’re truly interested in my book – go read it! If your interest is only about my sales… go buy one and then you’ll  know I have at least one sale. It’s like somehow because our ‘jobs’ aren’t ‘real jobs’ it’s okay to ask questions you wouldn’t ask lawyers, teachers, or garbage collectors about.

Now I’m not actually, really, honestly, upset by the question.

It is just the way people do small talk with those who are indie anything; ‘So you got a gig coming up?’ ‘Is any of your art in an exhibit? ‘How’s the book selling?” And as I really didn’t get into the whole writing thing to be rich or famous, I am not embarrassed that I’m not selling hundreds of books. I mean it’s not like I’m out, pounding the pavement making sure everyone knows I have books out, for sale, that get good reviews.

Would I be upset to be selling hundreds of copies of my books? No – but mostly because it would mean people liked the tales enough, that they were telling others about the books and telling them with such enthusiasm that these others had to go get their own copies.

So it comes down to this – Go ahead and ask me how my books doing…but be prepared to listen to me ramble on forever about my writing. You just opened the door to my favourite subject, and you better be ready for it!

Filed under: Book Release, Writing Tagged: book sales, exposure, money, publisher

The Muse is Strong – The Brain is Dumb

These past few days I’ve been getting strong signals from my Muse. I have a short story set in my White Dragon Black world that is a good 60% there, which has a strong actual ‘detective’ feel to it. I’ve been hoping for another of those as I’m longing to to submit to the ‘The Strand Magazine’. They are a long running detective magazine that says they take paranormal. I don’t know if I’d get in, but it would be nice to write something that has a firm enough detective vibe to submit. I’m not the sort to wilt under rejection; better a rejection from such a long standing magazine than a ‘never know’.

I am also getting more of the zombie novel I started, and I think it might have to come out of my skull before any further WDB novels do. I even have something I never had before – meat for the ending. There is a travel component to the tale… an almost quest like story of getting to a house. I never knew why before. I knew it was the protagonists parents house, I even knew they had died a bit before the outbreak but I never knew just why my protagonist wanted to go there. They would have to pass a lot of other places that would, in truth, be just as good, or maybe better, than this house he was gunning for. Just the other day, as I was driving (when many a revelation or inspiration hits), my Muse showed me the why. I got the moment in my soul, saw the scene, and understood. It isn’t really surprising to me. I knew that, dotted throughout the story, had to be snippets of his old life, memories and the like. But now I understand, and I love it. It is both sentimental and twisted. It makes you call into question all that happens during the trip, and yet… and yet, if I write it just so, it will touch the heart.

Both of these sound pretty good, right? Two projects to delve into – and I can, in fact, write a short while writing a novel. I should already have aching finger tips, and an extra numb ass!  So why don’t I? Because my brain is dumb!

I’m rearing to go, got the material, got the connection to my muse, and yet… when I open the screen to write, my brain freezes up, pulls in on itself, and stubbornly shakes it’s head.

Stupid brain.

I’m not sure if I should be gentle and slowly try to ease it towards letting words trickle out, hoping the trickle becomes a flood, or if I should bludgeon it with a sledgehammer until it cracks and gets swept aside under the sudden deluge of creativity.

I just have to hope my Muse is patient with me, and understands that it is my fault I’m not writing.

Filed under: Writing Tagged: Brain, Jonathan Alvey, muse, novel, paranormal, paranormal private investigator, plot, protagonist, scene, short story, The Strand Magazine, Urban Fantasy, White Dragon Black Series, world building, writing, zombie

I’m Going to be a Fencer

No – no. I’m not dealing with stolen goods. I’m dealing with long slender blades trying to kill me.

Much better, yes?

I’m not going into Olympic style fencing, what with it’s rules about only traveling in a straight line and the thin oversized metal toothpicks. I’m going in for the rapier stylings found in the SCA. We use a much thicker blade, which doesn’t bend into a U when pressed against something. The fighting technique is based on 16th century fighting manuals – of which there are plenty.Those guys wrote so much on the best way to dual it’s surprising they actually had time to dual.

 

There are many different; schools, techniques, styles and types of attack, defence, posture, and parries as there are apps for your phone.

I’m not going to get into all that, too much. I’m going to learn how to not die in the first five minutes, and then have fun…well, five minutes and thirty seconds worth of fun anyway.

The very first event we went to, I spent the entire time standing, so I could see over peoples heads and watch the fencing – for hours I did this! But I said I wasn’t getting into it – too expensive, too old, too out of shape… I’ve changed my song – and I’ve changed it for the very reasons I said I wasn’t getting into it.

I’m doing this for essentially for two main reasons. The first reason is that I’m no longer a spring chicken, I’m not even a summer chicken… and so I see this as a way to stay in some sort of shape… besides poor. It is good cardio activity, and should help keep my joints – which seem determined to fail me – flexible and strong.

The second reason I’m doing it is because – it’s fun! When we last played in the SCA, I did fencing and enjoyed the hell out of it. I wasn’t even too bad at it. My favourite style to fight was sword and dagger. However, last time I did it, I had no gear of my own – except my cup. It isn’t cheap to get the gear and I didn’t have much extra cash.

The problem with not having my own gear was that I put off being authorized forever (authorizing = testing to make sure one is safe to fight). I missed so many oppurtunies to have fun at events because I wasn’t athuorized. This time around I’m doing it differently. I’m getting my gear and then starting training. So I’m putting off training a for a month, or so, but once I start as soon as people think I’m ready – I can authorize and have fun fighting whenever I want.

My parents and sister are wonderful and always ask what we want for christmas – often this causes confusion as my wife and I stumble about blinking trying to think of what we want. Most times we realize we want the same thing as the year before – a shit ton of reading material. This year, before I was even asked, I declared what I wanted – a sword!

This sword!

I can cover the expense of a mask, and my wife is already planning my garb, which must meet certain safety requirement but also,we all agree, should look good enough I can go straight from fighting to court in front of their majesties if I have to. So I really see no reason why my New Years resolution shouldn’t be able to be carried through on – Authorize in Rapier!

I just have to remember to buy a cup.

Filed under: SCA Tagged: blade, cardio, dual, fencing, fencing manual, garb, health, rapier, Society for Creative Anachronism