My weekend, so far

Ok, so, it's been a busy weekend for me!

Starting Friday, I came home after work and finished both Jamie's and my Ren Faire costumes.

Sadly, the decision was made on Saturday that Jamie would not wear her dress, because of the threat of rain (which would have ruined the dress).

So, Saturday morning, Jamie met me at my apartment to get ready for the Faire together. She ended up wearing a pretty off-white dress (sadly, I don't have any pics of her). We got to the Faire around 10. As this was the first nice day (i.e. no hard rains) the Faire had seen, there was already a crowd gathered.

Jamie and I spent some time looking around before I got a call from Reg that he, Stevie, and Jen had made it down to the Faire. We went to meet them, and then ended up splitting up - Jamie, Jen, and myself wandered around while the guys went off to amuse themselves. After a time, Reg, Stevie, and Jen left the Faire to find some bike shops. Jamie and I continued wondering around. We ended up taking in the Birds of Prey show and the Jousting match. We talked to many vendors (including a charming guy that accused us of stealing his heart every time we walked by) and saw many interesting people. Jamie ended up buying a couple of daggers for her and her guy. I found 2 rings - a poison ring and a band of twisted silver very similar to one that was lost to me years ago. We left just before the Faire closed for the day. It was a very fun day.

I ended up going back by myself this morning, and what a day I had! I am so glad I went! I won't bore anyone with all the details, but I did want to write out some of it.
I got there a bit before open, and got to see most (if not all) of the cast; they gathered around the entry walk-way. I began walking around the Faire, and saw many of the vendors before they started into their acts (how strange to see 2 guys dress in Ren Faire garb talking computers). I took in a show or two before getting in line (near the front!) to go tour the castle. Two gentlemen and a little boy sat on a bench across from me in the waiting area, then behind me (the little boy with me) on the bus. I started talking to them and found out that one of the guys and the little boy (Louis and Nick, his son) were there with his wife (Margret) and several other cast members from the Louisiana Ren Festival and the other guy (Ryleh) is a friend of theirs out of Arkansas who travels around visiting as many other fairs as he can, when he can. They walked with me on the castle tour then afterwards around the grounds. When we got back to the Faire itself, I met the wife and several of the LA Ren Faire cast. We all parted with promises to look for each other! Later, Ryleh found me sitting and watching all the people. He sat down and we had about an hour-long discussion about everything from other faires he'd visited to religion. We had several opportunities to interact with the cast, as well as patrons. He left to go get a few things, but we met up again with another Jennifer (from the LA Ren Faire cast) for the Pub Sing. They walked me out afterwards.

It may not sound like much, but it was very interesting to hear about the other faires and get some of the "insider info" about this faire and it's cast. I also really enjoyed just sitting and watching everyone go by, as well as listening to cast members and patrons. It was a very pleasant way to spend the day! I'm muddy, tired, and sore (gravel and hills are a pain when you're wearing shoes with very little soles), but I *really* enjoyed this day!