Blackbead

Ahoy, Ransom! Ahoy to all in the house! Well, I have been taking some time off because there's too much OTHER stuff to do! Now, with the season about to start again, I've been dabbling with chain and pendants (for something quick), trying to get my hand used to wire again (for something that sells quick!), trying to get back into practice with polymer clay, and coming up with The Booty Bracelet! I've opened a Funky Finds shop (see it here) and am keeping it full up with new stuff all the time! I vended at The Texas Pirate Festival (and will be there again this year!) and Billy Bowlegs (and will never go back again) and am now getting ready for the Granbury Pirate Invasion, Middlefaire, the Pirate Days of Texas, the Magical, Medieval Fantasy Faire in November, and several book signings, two at the Texas Renaissance Festival. The Booty Bracelet is like a pirate charm bracelet except each link is a stone or bead from a prize taken. When I send you the bracelet, you also get a "history" of each bead! Or, and this is what I really expect from my imaginative pirate friends, you make up your own! Imagine the tales you can tell as you sit around the campfire, counting your beads! I was re-inspired when me lovely wife and I found a GREAT new shop in Fort Worth that sells fantastic beads at VERY low prices! I can actually compete with some of the big box stores now! I got magnesite skulls for really cheap, some great red coral nuggets for the best price I've ever paid, and the metal findings are phenomenal! We've also been doing a lot of "garage sailing" and I've been buying some great raw material and meeting some new friends that way! Check out me store and let me know what ye think, Ransom! How are you doing on Etsy? Blackbead

HAPPY BIRTHDAY! Make some salmagundi instead of a cake! Blackbead

Aye; the film rights were bought even before the book went on sale. Spielberg has even been mentioned. We'll see . . .

Well done, Cap'n Bob!

And I'm already beginning to plan for it . . . anyone have any suggestions for a female pirate captain who has everything??

Welcome home! And after my Billy Bowlegs jaunt, next year . . . what sort of provisions do they have for out of town vendors at Gasparilla? Blackbead

I thank ye, mate! But I "pirated" this one! Blackbead

No worries, my friend! Thank you for the kind words about me rhymes and scribbles. Now, how about a jack of bumbo? Blackbead

No, they did NOT get sick from the sweets - after all that rum there's no way a little candy can make you ill!

Thank ye for the comment, me lad, but the name is "BlackBEAD"; not "BlackBEARD." As the Captain often says, I be the pirate "without the rrrrrrr!" Blackbead

Aye, mate! Well, it might have been me or it might have been Tyger Lee. We were both there but I don't think that either of us will go back. If I go back, it will be to have fun, not to try and make any money. It was a "county fair" crowd that were more interested in the beer and corny dogs. As an example, a woman came up with three kids and wanted to buy eyepatches. We had 'em for a dollar a piece. She wanted to know what kind of deal we would give her if she bought three. People wanted flea market prices and I paid an art show booth fee. Quite a few of the vendors had never vended at this event before, including me. Of the nine that I spoke with on Saturday while we were waiting for the torrential rains to stop (they never did, I wound up loading the car in heavy rain) none of them are planning on going back. I at least made a few bucks (>$200). Some of the people lost money and the poor girls next to us packed up Friday night after losing ~$2,000 in materials. If I am there next year, look for me to be wandering the event, mug in hand, enjoying the show. But, since I can do that 45 minutes away from the house, at a real pirate festival, I'm not sure why I'd go 12 hours to get to Billy Bowlegs. Blackbead

The crew is loading Adventure in preparation for sailing for Fort Walton Beach to take part in the 55TH Billy Bowlegs Pirate Festival! Excitement is running high as we all dream of the trip we are about to embark upon! Shall we see you there???

This be an excellent thread! If we ever get enough, we'll have to take this on the road . . . The Andrew survives on their grog, I hear they keep it in the "head of a hog"! But bumbo's the drink for me! It keeps me happy while I be at sea, And it don't taste like the piss of a dog! Keep 'em coming!

An EXCELLENT idea! It appears that there are more than one minds thinking alike on this one. I agree with Silkie - but if there is anyway humanly possible for me to be there, I will be. Blackbead

The Texas Pirate Festival is born! With tremendous weather (lots of sunny skies and strong, cool winds) the heart of Texas was home this weekend to The Texas Pirate Festival. It was the first year of this event but it was full of pleasant surprises for this vendor/performer and it's one that I hope grows and grows as the years progress. My pirate fort was actually full at times as we had more patrons than I expected, although I am sure that was the result of a large contingent of the cast of Four Winds, a Renfaire over in Tyler, Texas, joining us for the festivities. The French King came in and bought a flintlock. When I asked him why he rattled off something in that Frenchie talk they have but his interpreter told me it was for his protection in the village since it seemed to be full of pirates, privateers, buccaneers and scalawags! The Bilge Pumps, the Ladies of the Salty Kiss, Without a Net, Willy's Wiley Wenches, Brendanna's Dream, and The Iron Hills Vagabonds provided lots and lots of entertainment. Two different belly dancing troupes showed off their . . . skills - Sultan's Dream and Tribal Evolution. And the Blue Moon Boucanniers "fought the good fight" with live, black powder reenactments of a pirate crew claiming the town for the weekend! In addition, there was, on each day, pirate costume contests with Grand Prizes of over $240 in prizes going to the winners! The village was full of vendors and there were several food vendors to feed you. Management still doesn't have their liquor license, yet, so the beer and wine were complimentary. I did my "Devil's Tavern" show on several occasions, and while one of them was attended by only two patrons, another was full and the audience gave me that rare gift of rapt attention as I told them the tale of the Sabre and it's ghost! This was an auspicious beginning to what I believe is going to become a hit! Make you plans to be there next year - the Santa Teresa should be finished, docked at the wharf and ready to take on boarders!

Thank you! This one started as a rhymer but somewhere it wound up as free verse. I lilked the flow of it better than the rhyme.

The Horizon "When you look at the horizon, do you see the waves? Or do you see the sky?" All right, all right! I hear ye, mate! When yer sixty feet or more off the deck, High in the riggin' and a gale's a'blowin' and The ship be heeled over to a fine point and The cold has turned the horses to iron bars and The bos'un has ye dancin' a jig in the wind . . . There ye'll be starin' straight into the face of God! But, listen to what I have to say: When yer sittin above board after a fine mess, With a clean deck to yer backside and A fresh wind coolin' off the fo'c'sle sweat and Weather fittin' and proper for twelve knots and All the doggies and their masters are up on the quarterdeck . . . With the proper bearing, ye'll see Him there, too! Stephen Sanders ©2010

"Thank you for that slight diversion from an otherwise dull and lifeless day." Benjamin Melville

Blackbead Books is proud to announce that one of our poets, Stephen Sanders, won an "Editor's Choice" Award at this year's Canis Latran Writing Competition at Weatherford College. The poem he took this honor with is "It's In Me Blood", an old pirate's reminiscence of a mate named "Ben Hawkins." "It's In Me Blood" was originally published in Echoes From Other Worlds. The Award included a certificate and publication in the annual Weatherford College anthology of poetry and fiction. The poem is also a part of the Brotherhood of the Gulf's stage show entitled "A Night at Devil's Tavern." For more information, and to purchase a copy of the book, catch up with Blackbead Books at The Texas Pirate Festival; Billy Bowleg's; Middlefaire; Pirate Days in The Colony; the Granbury Pirate Invasion; Middlefaire's Fantasy Faire; or the Texas Renaissance Festival.

1. Koenig Ludwig Dunkel 2. Budvar 3. Ugly Pug 4. Guiness 5. Stormcloud Yes, I know; I'm partial to Rahr and Sons but, hey, they make their stuff here in town and they have hellacious party's where you get to drink all the beer you can for $5!

Ashes of the Mind, by Martin Griffin

Happy Birthday, Mate! With many, many happy returns of the day!

And if ye see anything ye like, PLEASE leave a comment or two! I thank thee!

Now, in time for Mother's Day, Blackbead's is having a sale on piratical Mother's Day cards!! Go to http://www.zazzle.com/Blackbead ; look down the left side of the page and find the link to "Pirate Mother's Day Cards"; pick out the card(s) you want; when you check out, use the code ZAZZLEMOMDAY and you'll get 20% off your order!! This sale ends Monday, April 26, 2010, so get your cards now! Your ol' mum will love 'em, and you, to pieces! And, thank you!

Correct, sir! You have seen the light!