Backtracking: Sunday - I had totally forgotten one wonderful moment on Sunday. Since I had so much fun playing my flute for the dancing on Saturday night, I brought my flute to the event on Sunday. I sometimes forget to spend time with my (new) home Barony, since I'm either hanging out with my household, or catching up with my home shire since I don't see them very often.

I decided on Sunday afternoon that I really ought to spend time hanging out with the Barony, and that maybe I could bring my flute and just improv a bit for people. When I got there, Thomas (the incoming Baron) got out his guitar and he just went into song after song. He played and sang, and I just harmonized on the flute. It was *amazingly* fun to do, and we'll have to do this more often. I know that he'll be very busy as the Baron later, and is quite busy already now as the Reeve (colloquial meaning "about to be Baron next"), but he's a FINE musician in his own right. So it'll be good to find ways to give him musical opportunities as often as possible.

I'm the baronial bard, a position that goes for one full calendar year. I stepped into the position just around Halloween, which means I'll have the honor of being the Bard for both Baroness Eowyn and then when the Reevess steps up, I'll be Baroness Angelina's Bard. But I think of myself as the Bard to all four of them (Jamal and Eowyn, plus Thomas and Angelina), which just astonishes me sometimes, since I like all four of them so much and for so many different reasons. I truly am lucky and blessed. (And thinking about the next Bard of Caid competition. Aren't I silly?)

Backtracking: Tuesday - I also forgot that Tuesday I took my Festiva in to the car guys for another battery of tune-ups and things. Oil changed, air filter, check the brakes, replace the brakes that were 80%+ gone, check the funny shimmy at 50+ mph, replace the rear bearings that were making the shimmy and noise. Ah. *sigh* But she's running beautifully again. True, I do not have car payments. No, I have car tune-ups. But I've certainly gotten more than my money's worth from my darling 'Zuli (her name, of course).

I really want to go to Minnesota for July 4th week (actually for post-July-4th-weekend) to enjoy a quiet out-of-kingdom hang-with-friends camping SCA event. I'm sorely tempted to drive out with my stuff, except that it would be a 2-day drive, maybe 3-days. It would be easy to do on the front end, but murder on the far end after camping and needing to get back to work again. So I'll probably fly out, spend the weekend camping at "Dub-Dub" (WW, short for Warriors and Warlords) with Rigo and Teffan, then fly back. No court. No duties. No schedules. No stuff to schlep. Just me, friends, and the very very green lands of the midwest. I need to balance all my checkbook & bills again, just to double-check that I can afford this afterall, and I hope I can report back successfully that I've booked a flight. Sometimes a gypsy girl has just got to hop on a plane for a few days, hmm?

See my notes on being a crazy quilt at heart.

Wed Jun 7 - I stopped by Caterina's briefly, just to pick up Mateo's cloak to continue/finish the embroidery. Lot wore the cloak at Potrero, so now I could work on it again. I picked up a coffee on my way, and while we were just sitting and chatting, I accidentally sloshed some coffee down the front of my pastel green blouse. So of course I rinsed the shirt out right away, but this left me with a completely wet shirt. We had to laugh that it was a good thing I was picking up the cloak (which is constructed very much like a trench coat without sleeves), so that I had something to wear to my car. Good thing, too, since three cars were driving into the parking lot as I made my way to my car.

Thu Jun 8 - I was a little bit too tired to really clean much at home when I finally got there last night, so this morning I spent about an hour picking up and putting things away. My bed is finally made neatly, the floor is vacuumed, the ironing board is folded up, the clean clothes are hung up, my laundry is bundled up and in my car so I can wash it tonight or tomorrow morning, my toolbox is put away, the dishes are washed, the trash and recycling have been taken out, the trash can inside lid is bleached clean again, all my SCA jewelry is put away, my most current hand-sewing projects are gathered up and next to the television (as a reminder!), all the miscellaneous bits that needed to go back into my car are put away.... and I even sorted all the miscellaneous papers in my backpack and filed them in their correct folders again. *whew* I love when everything is tidied and neat!

I also ran some errands over my lunch hour, which got me thinking about the supplies and projects that I store in my car. Any one or two of these items might be normal for someone to keep in their car. But the entire list? That's completely unusual.

I typically keep in my car: (1) an elaborately stocked first aid kit, (2) a shower supplies / overnight bag, (3) a toolkit (hammer, screwdriver, pliers, etc.), (4) a car toolkit (not like *I* would ever use it, but if someone else needed something, it's there), (5) car emergency supplies (like jumper cables, flares, flashing lights), (6) emergency food and water supplies, (7) several books I'm reading currently, (8) a few handicrafts (like braiding or cord-making), (9) some stationery (for when I need to leave a thank you note for staying with someone overnight), (10) a blanket and pillow, (11) an extra jacket to stay warm, a shawl, some fuzzy scarves, my arm-warmers, (12) re-usable grocery bags, (13) laundry supplies (since I do my wash at the laundramat weekly), (14) an extra pair of tennies.... and it dawned on me that I'm missing (15) a change of clothes and some pajamas.

I'm completely a weirdo. *giggle*

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Today's Blessing That I'm Thankful For: Lynn, for the musical challenges she inspires me to achieve.