Ransom

No worries, you guys. I know with the Pub being down, and the weather being crazy, that stuff got delayed. I just wanted, in a funny way, to touch bases, to see how things were going. Maybe I didn't sound funny enough? LOL

Oh, goodie, a two fer... I'll keep an eye out for um.

Ludo, humming to himself as he prepared the noonday meal, worked about the Rakehell's small galley oblivious of what was going on topside. Mainly because he couldn't understand much English. Thinking that the soup needed more pepper, he moved to the small cupboard at the back of the cramped space, then paused, sniffing. "Ricotta?" He shook his head, puzzled. "Provalone?" He shook his head again, confused. They hadn't had any decent cheese since Havana. Had someone hidden a secret stash? He poked round the galley but couldn't find anything. Disappointed, he went back to the thin soup he'd been stirring. Suddenly the whole galley smelled strongly of a perfectly aged Mortadella sausage. Ludo's mouth watered, and tears ran down his weathered face, and for the first time in years, he thought of the small Italian village where he'd been born, and the wonderful food his mother used to cook.

Africa brought the Rakehell alongside the Relentless, and I stood at the starboard rail shouting for her captain. "Ahoy, Relentless, I need to speak to your Captain. And take those sullen looks off your faces, 'cause I'm not going to go away until he talks to me." I was well aware of Jacky's crew's feelings for me and my ship, since they'd made no bloody attempt at hiding them. But I was used to dealing with sullen sailors, and these were no different. "Tell him to get his bones up here." I received a few ungenerous hand gestures, and black looks, but I also saw someone run off to fetch the captain. "Buncha pains in the butt," I mumbled.

Therefore keep close of thy tongue and of thy hand from the officers and governments of the land; And from other men that they of thy craft nothing know For in witness thereof they will thee hang and draw. Elizabethan ballad (Anon.) Taken from the book Auriel Rising by Elizabeth Redfern.

Sounds good to me. Over time, as crew members come and go, would it be possible for the Mods to update or delete old photo's of people who were no longer members? Crews are always evolving, and some people jump ship from one crew to another, or form spin-off crews of their own. Just wondering. BYW. Stynky, did you get Red-Handed Jill's Mod issues figured out?

Oooo, I LOVE that one! Is that another Ebay find?

Oi! PyrateTradingCo. Where's me October book? **sits at art table drumming my fingers, as the days slip by**

Ummm, it would be easier for me to list the stuff I don't have — like oil paints. I have TONS of stuff, most organized in stacking Rubbermaid storage units with drawers. Walls of them. I should buy stock in Rubbermaid. I love the carpenter's chest Jill posted a pic of, but I'd need a dozen of them, at the very least. Sheesh, I still use paintbrushes I've had since I was in my twenties—and they look it! LOL Partial list: Sharpie pens watercolor pencils watercolor crayons regular color pencils - three different sets oil pastels chalk acrylic paints acrylic gel medium rubber stamps ink pads embossing powder tons of clip art from magazines stickers misc stuff - fake coins, restaurant coasters, feathers, fake gems, etc glitter glitter glue small make-up sponges for applying paint stencils — letters and designs And now my own photographs that I mess around with in Photoshop. Honestly, I'll literally throw anything into a picture if I can get it to stick. (There's probably a joke there, but...) This is just the art stuff. There is also the sewing stuff, and the jewelry stuff! And Lady Cassandra, I am sooooo jealous that you have a whole shop to use as a studio. Let's hope the landlord is successful in getting an art fair going. You'd be sitting pretty for sure!

Now, that sounds like something you should be vaccinated against.

Ummm, well, maybe someone's idea of a dream job would be to get paid for watching DVDs and eating Cheetos. I mean, it could be one of those obscure, scientific experiments where they measure your brainwaves while you watch and eat. Someone probably has a government grant to do just that, trying to prove that Cheetos heighten your audio and visual abilities. Okay, the pay might not be huge, but pay is pay, and if it was your dream job, the small pay wouldn't matter. Personally, even if you paid me, I couldn't stand to sit that long, and I'm not really crazy about Cheetos, but that's just me....so.....

Geez Patt, I don't know how you come up with this stuff, but I hope you keep doing it. I LOVE Friends in Low Places! (I also kinda like the way you worked The Tillerman inta the song. )

Many Happy returns of the day to you, suh! Was nice to meet you, and soak up a little cannon smoke together at Ojai! LOL

By favorite books, I mean the ones you keep as eye candy, or for reference on different techniques and methods. Or even ones that inspire you, which might be something other than a book strictly on art. You might also mention if the book is still in print. So post your favs. I'll start. I believe all of these are still in print. Anything by Nick Bantock, but especially the Griffin and Sabine series, or The Venetians Wife. Artists' Journals & Sketchbooks by Lynne Perrella - Soft cover. al.pha.bet.i.ca An A-Z Creativity Guide for Collage and Book Artists by Lynne Perrella - Soft cover. The last two books have great eye candy, but also great tips on techniques for using different mediums, and also unique ways to transfer images to a page.

Nuh-uhhhh.... Oops!

I had to add this, because I love this picture I took of Oderlesseye. He looked awesome that weekend (Nor Cal back in June). I think this is Pew's book from the second round, so no spoiler here, since that book is already back in home port. Just a fun collage.

"Is that it?" Tunney asked, as most of us stood on the larboard rail. "Must be. That seems to be where the Relentless is heading," I replied, shading my eyes with my hand. "Doesn't look too bad. Let's hope there's fresh water ashore, and maybe some game and fruit." "Les hope we don become da game," Africa intoned. "Enough of the doom and gloom," I snapped. "The men on board the Relentless don't seem to be quaking in their shoes, so how bad could it be?" "She's droppin' canvass, Ma'am," Colard said, pointing at Jacky's ship. "Must be getting close, if she be slowin' down and comin' off the wind." "Let's get within hailing distance again. Then we'll know for sure." Tunny nodded, and Africa went to relieve Goose at the helm.

I know Pew asked for pics a while back, but I've just been lazy about posting any. So here are two. Not telling whose book they are in. And Lady Cassandra, I loved the work you posted under your own thread. Very nice! Okay, here goes.

Gosh, I kinda like what I'm doing now — writing, artwork, and jewelry. But I'm also in agreement with Lady Cassandra. I'd love to do more traveling, especially around the Med.

Yeah, PU is one of my favorites as well. But now I just sooooo want to be a Airship Pyrate Babe! LOL! Patrick, these are classics!

I don't think JT was paying attention. (Sits back and waits for JT to make some smarty-pants retort ) ^ Comfort food? Smashed potatoes, with gravy. Comfort clothes...baggy sweatpants, sweatshirt, and socks. < Deciding whether to fire up the wood burning stove this evening. Seems once you fire it up, you want it on every day. That's another one of my comfort things—nice cheery fire in the ol' stove. V Pass BOTH sections of the question on.

Yikes! I hope he only rents a house and leases his car, so when the insurance bill comes, he won't lose everything. And completely off the subject, is anyone else addicted to the TV show House? I'd never heard of it before. We can't get TV where I live, so I saw a House Marathon while staying at a motel in Ojai. Was hooked. Now I'm renting the series DVDs at Blockbuster. That guy just cracks me up. He says all the stuff we'd like to, but are too polite to actually say. Yeah, he can be painfully insensitive, but sheesh, can he be funny!

I must admit, being affiliated with a group or guild is much more fun. Gate duty is a hoot, and the group I belong to, Tales of the Seven Seas (based in the SF Bay area, but with members kinda all over), is always involved in the Big Battle at Ojai, and at Nor Cal, which is a blast — literally, if you're on the gun crew! We also have a member who is extremely good at educating the public on navigation. He can keep people fascinated, and has a set up to demonstrate how a ship is steered, how to calculate speed (knots), and find your position with a sextant. As for roping off the encampment, it's mainly done, I think, for security reasons. At Nor Cal we had a couple come in thinking we were a merchants booth, and that all of the props we had were for sale. The lady started picking stuff up and walking around with it. We politely explained to them that wasn't the case, and they were fine with it. Also, it's nice to know that you have a relatively secure place to leave your camera's, weapons, etc, if you're off doing something else. Or a place to eat your lunch or take a break, in relative peace and quiet, after you've been out entertaining most of the day. And I agree, the after-the-event-closes time is really special. With respect, R

I've done a few new pieces. These were posted on the Tavern, but I thought I'd post them here as well. Any questions, please, feel free to PM me. Necklace of glass leaves, and beads. Double-strand necklace. Center medallion is a vintage piece made to look like a carved ivory rose.

With me it was kinda the same. I had gotten pretty fed up with the SCA, and dropped out of it right before we moved to Oregon. Up here, we just had too much work to do on our place, so for about ten years, did no type of reenactment at all. After the first POTC movie came out, I was cruising the web for Pirate sites, because I remembered there had been a pirate reenactment group down in So. Calif, and thought there might be others. Stumbled on the Pub by accident/luck, hung out as a lurker for about two months before registering. Since then I've met a lot of really great people, some in person, some just in PMing and posting, and I've learned a lot about a whole period in history that I was not that familiar with. If I had to choose an alternate persona, I think I'd like the whole Highwayman thing. It would give me an excuse to have horses again.