Nigel

Avast, me hearties!!! International Talk Like a Pirate Day (Sept. 19) - the perfect date for the Sunken Bones Society "Buccaneer Bash 2009," Held at Red & Jerry's in Denver. Our MC was the ever-entertaining Cap'n Jack of the Pirates of Ill Repute. The place was awash in scoundrels, rogues, rascals, ne'er-do-wells, 'really bad eggs,' and villains. There was lively music, costume contests, a "Talk Like a Pirate" competition (of course,) lots of swag and shiny objects for sale, and - of course - a full bar with lots o' RUM!!! I made an appearance, to plunder, toss back some rum, and draw caricatures. I met new friends, reconnected with old friends (some lost at sea for decades!) and everyone had a swash-buckling good time. Alas, no one heard my dulcit tones regaling comrades with "Bein' a Pirate is All Fun & Games..." Perhaps next time. Location: Denver, CO The band Mondragon performs nautical - and naughty - songs for the crowd. Not all went quietly into the jail. Many of the attendees found themselves behind bars, including Cap'n Jack, leader of the notorious "Pirates of Ill Repute" (is there any better kind of pirates?) "Complications arose, ensued, and were overcome..." The feared Davy Jones and crew were in attendance. "So he wasn't always so... tentacley?" Cap'n Jack and his first mate paused to get their caricature drawn - and quartered! Coming soon to a post office near you! Did someone say "draw???" Cap'n Jack and Nigel square off. Jack looks doubtful of Nigel's marksmanship... A failed attempt at the infamous Will Turner ploy... "He can't die... but I can!" ... Or perhaps "If I can't hit that target, then I can most assuredly hit this one!!!" Bearing an uncanny resemblance to "Blazing Saddles" "He's just crazy enough to do it!!!" Lesson learned: never use the barrel of your pistol to scratch your head. The term "dragged, kicking and screaming..." doesn't even begin to tell the tale. The infamous Madame Rackham and the notorious Roger Rackham with their caricature. (with a name like that, watch out for her boots!) "Wanted"... indeed! Keep a lookout for nefarious upstarts, scoundrels and rogues.

I'd like to join in the fun!

ARRGGGHHHH! I'm landlocked and snowbound! BTW, Capitan and Diosa, I am making good use of your (mocK) going away present - the ski gloves!!! We got our first snow this week. BBBRRRRRR!!!! I remember this time last year! http://bp2.blogger.com/_4iEj8EzENO0/R19d6c...IMAG0119x25.JPG Ahh.... Now THAT'S the way to spend the early part of December! My regards to the crewe... Have fun (duh) and raise a pint o' the best rum fer ME!!!! Nige(l)

Sounds like '03... That time at the "one eyed Pirate Party" when a lovely female pirate was showing me her brand new hat, and the wind picked it up and carried it away into the ocean. We all took our hats off and held them over our hearts in a mock memorial. I remember your statement: "That hat is going to make some little cuban boy VERY happy." I miss you guys - but my aim is getting better!

How about this: http://bp2.blogger.com/_4iEj8EzENO0/R19d6c...IMAG0119x25.JPG I used a fleece sleeping bag and a light blanket, never a problem. ...why on earth are you camping in Colorado at this time of year? Crazy pirate.

btw, the shipwreck sequence is awesome! I see some good material in there for a painting, if'n ye have no objections.

That is me #4 from the right, next to Mary, center row; in the blue bandana.

Wow. The photos are awesome. Brilliant work, mates.

Aye Studley mate, it was great to see ye again. And I doubt I could be stranger, so there you have it. I plan to be a bit more active in the near future than I have been in the recent past.

Any time, my friend. As much fun as it is to play, I would much prefer to hear it with the lyrics done beautifully as only Diosa can do them...

While in Ket West, I was fortunate to get a recommendation to visit the book shop on Fleming St, where if found the book "Nelson's Ships - A History of the Vessels In Which He Served" with details of more than 25 ships, including blueprints. SCORE!

I am excited to see the 'Pyracy Pub Forum' photos that were set up and shot on Sunday night next to the pub. Anyone have an ETA?

Brilliant! Proof that this year's event was a BLAST! In fact, that should be the nickname for this year's event: "BLAST 07!"

One additional, thing, I missed playing music with POTC. Next year, for sure, mates!

PiP 07 correspondence Ahoy mates! I have finally returned to port after a most magnificent time at Pirates in Paradise. I had the luxury of time and the good fortune to run into a couple of ‘friends’ from past PiP events and spent a couple extra days in Key West. It was nice to kick back, visit, eat some normal food, and take my time returning to ‘civilization.’ In addition, I made some good contacts with galleries and even with some wildlife organizations in the keys. Sweet! My hat is off to the entire staff and crews who made this year’s event such a success. This being my third PiP, I would have to say it outshone the others by far. Of course, each of the previous festivals had their own wonderful memories and some left their scars… Hey, a pirate festival in Key West is going to be outstanding no matter what, but this one was over the top. My stars it was good to see old friends, and even better to make new ones! And I even got to see some faces to attach to names on the pub. Outstanding! The only thing that seemed to be missing for me was pillaging the town, raiding the pubs, and interacting with the people in town. Of course, I did have a booth to man this year. All said and done, it was much better to have things centrally located and not be running hither and thither the whole time. Nevertheless, next year I would like to plan at least one pillage… My only regret is that I was so busy at the booth that I did not have time to see the festival, check out the other booths, and meet everyone. Also, I don’t feel that I was able to give potential customers enough of my attention, as I had my attention on drawing. I need more ‘face time’ with potential customers, so that I can learn more about their needs, wants, expectations and limitations. I viewed this year as a learning experience. Next year, I shall press gang a small crew of my own to help out with my booth. This will leave me more time for talking to customers, mingling, reference photos, etc. I am thinking that I will place more focus on selling my artwork, and also have available items that are a smaller dollar cost (i.e. small prints, cards, etc.) in addition to the larger paintings. I will also set up to take commissions for custom work. I am open to any input regarding my booth, the setup, prices, items for sale, what they would like to see next year, etc. All in all, it was a most remarkable and enjoyable experience. Plus, I got an excellent photo for this year’s Xmas card! Nigel

Is there sufficient trees to string up a hammock? I just happened upon one as I was packing.

How late can we check in? I may be coming down tonight, as long as I can get into the fort.

Making last minute preparations and getting the artwork matted and supplies ready for transport. Can't wait to get there. See y'all soon. Nigel

Awesome! Vacation has begun! Leaving for KW soon - see you all there! Nigel

Awesome. I will check these out. Thanks.

ACK!! OUCH!!! OH my eyes... oops eye!!!! Let's be careful out there. You could put an eye out and we're running out of patches.

Ahoy mates. I be “in the market, as it were,” for blueprints of ships from the age of Piracy; specifically, a Spanish Galleon, Brigantine, Sloop or Schooner, and possibly a Ketch or Pinnace. While reviewing a book on Geoff Hunt’s phenomenal maritime paintings, I ran across several examples of projecting a three-view of a ship from the blueprints. This is right down my alley, with my background as a technical illustrator. These could be of actual ships that existed in history, or of contemporary replicas, or even ships from Hollywood movies (not limited to POTC.) For each type of ship, I would need a plan view (eye level) and an overhead view, with a front- or rear-view of the hull. These need to be of high enough resolution and size (around 8.5” x 11”) to plot a three-view drawing of a decent size to be used in finished drawings and/or paintings. Any sources or information on where to find such blueprints or drawings would be greatly appreciated.

Ah, that's good stuff mate. I like that Captain P.U. fella. Made me laugh right out loud.

This sounds like fun. We did a similar thing with a bunch of artist friends. We took a sketchbook and started randomly filling in pages. The only rule was that in the end it had to be a comic book with a continuous story line. It was interesting to see how it all cmae together. At first it was doubtful it would ever work. In the end however, we had monkeys, a ninja sqirrel, Nazis, and More. It was interesting how the story line grew out of nothing and tied random elements together. It would be interesting to see what the Pyrate Sketchbooks look like in the end. Keep me in mind for Round Three.