Face Down In The Gutter, Won’t Admit Defeat

Greetings all, I just posted one entry on War College. I still owe you all for the Quest for the Grail and Lilies. I’ll get those in the next few days.

I got back from Lilies and went to the Vans Warped Tour, though, and I want to chat about that.

I went to the Tour because of the Dropkick Murphys. I have been a major fan and pusher for them for 4-5 years now. The Vans Warped Tour is aimed at a younger generation who are into extreme sports. The Tour was much more than a series of concerts, rather it was like a convention for punk bands. It was really really cool, actually.

I got there just in time to buy 2 more Murphys shirts and then get in line for the Murphys signing. I didn’t know that they were going to have any kind of signing and I did not bring anything to sign, but Tuesday was the day that the new Murphys album, the Warrior’s Code, was released. They came around while we were in line selling the new album for $10, so I bought one, and got it signed by 4 of the band members. I also had a bit of a conversation with Ken Casey, the band’s bassist and one of the singers, and he said that they were planning on headlining a tour in the fall.

This is really great news, as what they did at the Vans Warped Tour was like an appetizer. I got all the way up to the front, stage right at the fence, outside of the mosh pit but still right there.

3 of their first 4 songs were from the new album. The highlight here was Captain Kelly’s Kitchen, their version of Courtin’ in the Kitchen. As I came to the Murphys from my love of Celtic music as opposed to the punk side, I was one of the few there that knew the song. I’m really rocking to it, enough so that Al Barr, the lead singer noticed, which was lots of fun.

They did something really really cool. They are getting someone out of the audience to sing Barroom Hero, the first song that they ever wrote. The deal is that whomever is chosen gets to hang with the band for the rest of the day if they do well, or get thrown back to the crowd if he sucks. The kid they got did very well actually, except he had no idea how to do anything extemporaneous, which Barroom Hero has a section for shout outs. Anyway, it’s a really cool thing from a band that isn’t forgetting their fans as they get bigger.

Again, the only problem was their set was short, only 35 minutes. They didn’t play Dirty Glass, Rocky Road to Dublin, Spicey McHaggis Jig, Blackout, Good Rats or a host of other great songs. I’m so waiting for their tour.

On the way home, though, I got to hear the new album. I love Blackout, but it took a little for that to happen. Most albums are like that, I require a certain amount of familiarity to properly appreciate them.

I didn’t need that for Warrior’s Code. Yeah, I’d heard a few of the songs at the concert, but there’s no doubt Captain Kelly’s Kitchen rocks, or that Shipping Off to Boston is great, and so on. But… I am a Wicked Sensitive Bitch (at least Liam should get this). I have never wept upon the first hearing of a song before, but I did upon hearing The Green Fields of France.

Did they play the drums slowly
Did they play the pipes lowly
Did they sound the death march
As they lowered you down
Did the band play the Last Post and Chorus
Did the pipes play the Flowers in Forest

It’s not period, but I guarantee I’ll have it ready to sing by Pennsic.

War College

This was an event I was really looking forward to as I have always enjoyed it. I again enjoyed it, though my timing seemed to be a little off-kilter all day. This, however, is no fault of the hosts, the Shire of Amleth Moor. There was actually no site or lunch fee, it was a free event and Her Majesty’s local group did very well.

I think the primary reason I was so off was that I had closed on my house Friday.

I got there way early so I waited for everything to start. The classes were scheduled to start at 10, but I got there around 8 to in case Her Majesty needed help.

The first class I took was Clef’s sergeanting class. I followed that up with Duncan MacTorquill’s polearm in a shieldwall class. Both were useful classes, but they were aimed at less experienced fighters than I.

Following that was lunch, which was provided by the Shire. Following this was the active fighting. I helped with a variety of authorizations and then the War Maneuvers began. That went well, but I had to leave a little early to get ready for court.

After court, Ferd, Rebecca, Faramach and I went and terrorized the Outback. We then went out to the post-revel at Katrine and Eric’s house. They had a huge bonfire, fireworks, and Ferd, so you know there was weirdness. The highlight for me was mentioning to Pavel that a friend of mine who is fairly new was curious about broccoli. At about this time, the skies opened up and we had to hear the story inside, but the look on her face at the end of the story was priceless.

Songs

OK, so I’m not big on memes but I like this one. Here are the instructions.

“List five songs that you are currently digging … it doesn’t matter what genre they are from, whether they have words or even if they’re any good but they must be songs you’re really enjoying right now. Post these instructions, the artist and the song in your blog along with your five songs. Then tag five other people to see what they’re listening to.”

1. Dropkick Murphys – Spicey McHaggis Jig
2. Flogging Molly – Another Bag of Bricks
3. System of a Down – Old Time Hollywood
4. Rush – Xanadu
5. Dropkick Murphys – Rocky Road to Dublin

Wouldn’t guess I’m gearing up for the Murphys in St. Louis a week from Tuesday, huh?

OK, so here are my tags.
Medb
Liamstliam
Hereward
Fineum
Holme

St. George and the Dragon

St. George and the Dragon is the traditional event of Oakheart, the shire in Springfield, Missouri. I was in the midst of house hunting so I spent Friday in Columbia and just figured I’d get a hotel room in Springfield instead of camping.

Unfortunately, I forgot that Southwest Missouri State might have graduation at some point and I had a heck of a time finding a hotel room. Nevertheless, I got to St. George well ahead of Their Majesties.

I had had a major pain in the back, and I decided not to push things and fight that day. I also don’t particularly care for any of the forms of bushkazi, which was the primary entertainment. Again, I spent some of the day marshaling, but I wasn’t the only one not really into fighting and there were a ton of marshals so I spent the day mostly hanging out. Unfortunately, I didn’t hang out with Katrine enough and she got bored and I got chastised.

The day was very lazy and laid back. After the fighting we did court, which went well, although I did have to maneuver around a new obstacle, His Highness on his throne. Always they increase the difficulty factor. After court they did an auction and I bid on a couple of items, but was cruelly overbid.

The feast was very tasty, but somewhat uncomfortable, given the seating arrangement and the fact that it was outside. It was good, though, and that makes up for a lot. The only real problem was the person who was announcing the courses, he set off my creep meter, sang horribly, and interrupted the dancing that was going on between removes.

Next was a torchlight tourney, which I helped marshal. Aaron beat Kilian to become Shire Champion and after that was the sitting around and singing, which went on until around 2.

At that point, I wasn’t tired nor had I drunk much so I just decided to get on the road. I was headed back to Wichita so I drove towards that way looking for a convenient hotel. I didn’t find one so I slept in my car for a little, proceeded on until I got tired again, napped again, and finally made it back to Wichita around 9am. At that point, I went to bed for serious sleep.

Update

Greetings all, it’s been a while since I last posted so I have lots to catch up on.

First of all, I am typing this from my very own house. I’ve had it for about three weeks and been working like mad to get it arranged. It’s big and comfortable and I really lucked out in getting it for the price that I did. So, if you’re ever in Columbia, contact me for crash space.

It is very odd for me after basically three years of sliding by and being a vagabond to now have such powerful roots. A house, a bed, a couch, a TV, lots of other furniture, these are things I haven’t had to deal with in quite some time. The good news is that I’m finally getting to arrange some stuff that hasn’t been touched in years.

I’m finding all sorts of treasures, such as my scrolls which I have had framed and get to go pick up today.