Great Lakes Medieval Faire!

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So yesterday I went for the first weekend in ages. Although it's not out of my home range or anything like that, it IS a different experience. So here's my day. The Great Lakes Medieval Faire. It's a roaring good time for all and much love is to be had there. If you've never been and have the opportunity to go to ANY Medieval/Renaissance Faire, GO. Don't ask, just get a costume and go. Even if your faire is far away. Mine is an hour and a half drive. I still go.
Now, I am an old hand at this particular faire, since I've worked there for years (not the past 2) since I was 15. I've done cast, vending and fencing show. It's lots of fun when you have a job there if you're doing fencing because you get downtime to wander and make friends. Cast training...that's a bitch. I've had training out the wazoo that would make theatre majors weep. They train you in at least 3 period dialects, including Shakespeare (although I would NEVER try to act it, it's not my strong suit at all), manners and deportment for all the classes such as serf up to the nobility, as well as mythological creatures, and training in staying in character for essentially 11 hours straight, whether you're eating, walking, parading, or even (I am so not kidding) going to the bathroom. Basically when you're cast and it's a faire day, you act like you are ALWAYS being watched. So, having that history with the Faire, I have to go back every year. It's got a part of my soul.
I've managed to make friends with quite a few performers and vendors as well as guests over the years, so I like to go back and check up on them. It's nice to know that Johnny Phoenix did get married and that Mike's daughter Enniveh is doing well. Now, I have a crapload of costumes to wear as well, even after I'd cleaned out a lot of them. Yesterday, I decided I would go as a gypsy. I wore my gypsy skirt and an off the shoulders top and about 6 pounds of accessories in total. It's all about the bling. I ended up wearing a huge bronze bracelet on one hand (I have bruises today!) and a coil with bells on the other. I had huge dangly earrings and an ear cuff that always kills when I take it off. I had 2 runes (for those who care, they were the Solomon runes Sallos and Ronove) plus a necklace with bells and charms and a hip scarf with 3 rows of the jingly coins. Then I had my green sash and a leather belt off of which I had my money pouch (also leather) and an 18 ounce glass bottle in a holster. That was the really heavy part, especially when it was full. I put on loads of eyeliner and was good to go. Because of all the stuff, my hips felt bigger than they actually were and that made walking interesting until I got the hang of it.
The Faire opened at 10 am, so we left here around 8:30 am and drove up to Geneva-on-the-lake. On the way, we listened to Faire-like music including Capercaillie, Heather Alexander filk and Loreena McKennitt. We got there around 10 minutes til 10, and there was already a crowd waiting to get in. I was all about getting tickets, since it was 2-for-1 on admission this weekend. We stood around until one of the cast (a gypsy) came up to me and invited me to stop by the gypsy camp later and we talked in Roma accents for a while. My mom looked surprised which was funny. Then before they opened, a skit was put on by Prince John and Robin Hood. Then...BOOM, cannon goes off and we all get in.
We get maybe 15 feet in and I run into Mike, so I talked with him for a while then keep going on my merry way. Mostly at the faires, you see vendors of all sorts. So my mama and I wandered in and out of shops, me buying omiyage for host family goodness and her buying an ear cuff and a rune. I'll convert her yet. A lot of the vendors remembered me which was lots of fun. I still have a problem at faires and that is that all the guys who hit on me think I'm underage so they ask how old I am first. It's nice that they don't want to break the law, but still, I wish I managed to look like I was out of high school one day in my life. I'll be grateful for it later, I suppose. (As a side note, this is the exact reason when I worked at the faires and was underage, I introduced myself like this: "Hi, I'm Theresa and I'm illegal.") Of course, once they knew I was a-ok concerning the law, all bets were off. Older men, younger men, it was all good. Usually you'd call the kind of hitting on they do "flirting" except they don't always expect it to end at the end of the conversation. And for some people, it doesn't. But with me, they get kisses and the phrase "you're sweet" and I send them on their way. This happened throughout the day.
Mama wanted to see some shows, so we wandered towards one of the stages and I ran into my old fencing coach, Tom. I talked to him for a while and we were hawked at by one of the Tortuga Twins who told us the show was the most kid-friendly. I asked which was the least, he told me and vacillated about what to call it, I said just call it raunchy. Here's the conversation:
Raphael: *pseudo-shocked* How old are you?
Me: 20.
Raphael: *considering* ...Spankings will commence.

It looked like I found my buddy for the day (meaning I'd talk to him more than once and he doesn't creep me out). So we sat through their show, which was really funny. A random audience man who was a yuppie got to be Robin Hood, an audience woman Maid Marion and another audience guy (buff!) was the Sheriff of Nottingham. Poor Sheriff. His butt was grabbed by all three Tortuga Twins and they made the yuppie man, who looked to be about 55, touch it too. I really wanted to go touch it after the show, everyone shared the opinion that it was quite firm. It was a good show, they did the typical "give us money, buy our stuff because this is, in fact, how we make our living. If you donate $5 or more, you get a free Tortuga Twins bumper sticker, yay!" Well, after the show I went up to Raphael to tell him I enjoyed the show and he gave me a bumper sticker, saying "Here, because you're gorgeous." Oh, HELL yes that gets a kiss. So I thanked him and kissed him, while noting the silver hairs at his temples. As I walked away I was pissed that he wasn't younger; he was cute now (yes, I know, he's 43, shush. He can still be cute.) so he was probably really cute 20 years ago. Dammit. He had a nice bum too. Which was shown off well by the performance that had lots of hip wiggling in it. I applaud any straight man who can shake his hips like a sassy little girl.
Well, after that, we wandered around a bit more, stopped by the gypsy camp for some singing and dancing (dancing only for me; as Casey will tell anyone, I have a terrible voice because it's never on-key when I sing) and then went to get food. We did have drinks already but I never seem to eat at these faires so I had a few bites of a sandwich and that was it. We went and looked at the elephant, took pictures, saw the parade, during which I had beads thrown at my bosom by a strange man, and watched the dulcimer players for a while. Then we got an eclair (well, Mama did - I watched her eat it). While we were sitting doing that, we watched some bellydancers who were good but not my style of dancing. Then it happened. Two things, actually. First Raphael walked by so he said hello and I got a kiss, then a bit later, I felt something on my arm. A skeletal puppet was stroking my arm and purring at me. Yes, it was the talented Ded Bob. My darling Sarah (not Kyo-To, different Sarah) is jealous that I was hit on by Ded Bob. I guess it's an accomplishment except not, since Bob is a notorious wencher?? ^^;;
We then went to go see Johnny Phoenix, one of the best fire acts I've ever seen. He does escape, fire eating, breathing and walking, which are not easy to do. His wife is delightful. In the act we saw, he put two other men in red satin bras, wore one himself, with a straight jacket and 15 feet of chain that was wrapped around him, starting in the middle (if you wrap it from one end to the other, there's slack, making escape easier). He escaped in 53 seconds. His show is good but more advanced in terms of humor than a lot of them.
We went to see the Mudskippers. Who doesn't love mud shows? They're a good time, but their act this year didn't involve as much dirt as it usually does. Ah well.
After that and more shopping, we wandered back to catch another, more bawdy Tortuga Twins show. Afterwards I had my picture taken with Raphael because I always get pictures with my buddies. It was then that groping ensued. He has quite the firm set of buttocks. I appreciate this and I love the fact that there's a picture of it. He was amusing when taking the picture:
"Are you sure that's a good one? We can take more." All said while grabbing my thigh. Yes, I'm sure you culd take more. I went to get a tail and did. It's a coyote tail. No, I'm serious. It's a tail, with fur. A REAL tail.
But by then it was ending time of the faire, at 7 pm. The ending is really something to see; there's more fun with the cannon and a sing-out. Basically all the cast that have good voices stand at the exit and sing songs as the guests leave.
The cast throughout this time was wandering around the faire, being in character and whatnot. Prince John was the funniest in my opinion because he had the perfect bored tone of voice and he kept saying "God save me. God save me. Hail me." Perfect for his character and it was done so deadpan and entitled that it was funny.

And yes, this is me with a much older man. So what.

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Comments

[Ear Art]

an Ear Cuff that won't "Kill"
My Dear Lady, Next time you grace Avaloch, please tread down Fairy Dust Lane and visit my Shoppe. The Ear Art Shoppe is located between Celestial Circus and the Black Ox - and my specialty is Ear Cuffs. Let's see if a properly fitted ear cuff for M'lady will feel better comming off too! Glad to hear you and your Mum had an enjoyable experience at the Shire. I'm very excited because for the last 6 weeks I have been in a land far away called Lindenshire (Medieval Majesty - Williamsport, Pa), while my Queen, Lady Ginny, has been minding the Shoppe at our home Shire of Avaloch. This 3rd week of GLMF will be my first back home and like you, I'm looking forward to re-kindling old friendships! I do hope you will make the journey to Avaloch again this year. Should you do so, please stop by 'n say hi! Best Regards, Lord Mike of Ear Art P.S. Now that we're back from Lindenshire, Be Ware of the Beat'in Path, for Lord Keith the Spankenator will again be assisting me at Ear Art...