Traveling within the World2024-03-29T08:39:03Zmiyoko canterhttp://travelingwithintheworld.ning.com/profile/miyokocanterhttp://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/2193202972?profile=RESIZE_48X48&width=48&height=48&crop=1%3A1http://travelingwithintheworld.ning.com/group/thevillagepub/forum/topic/listForContributor?user=1qf02fbg1f4kw&feed=yes&xn_auth=noOne of the Blood Sucking Merchant Scum has gone ahead to sell for us. He is missedtag:travelingwithintheworld.ning.com,2014-01-03:2185477:Topic:1928712014-01-03T01:56:56.708Zmiyoko canterhttp://travelingwithintheworld.ning.com/profile/miyokocanter
<p style="text-align: left;"></p>
<p style="text-align: left;"></p>
<p style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://www.castofuneralhome.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/Sayre-Fred-website.jpg"><img alt="Sayre, Fred website" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-1304" height="221" src="http://www.castofuneralhome.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/Sayre-Fred-website.jpg" width="150"></img></a></p>
<p><b> <span style="font-size: small;">Frederick Ray Sayre,</span></b> <span style="font-size: small;">56, of Hurricane, formerly of Cottageville, WV, passed away suddenly January 1, 2014, at CAMC Teays Valley Hospital.</span><br></br> <span style="font-size: small;"> He was born September…</span></p>
<p style="text-align: left;"></p>
<p style="text-align: left;"></p>
<p style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://www.castofuneralhome.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/Sayre-Fred-website.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-1304" alt="Sayre, Fred website" src="http://www.castofuneralhome.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/Sayre-Fred-website.jpg" height="221" width="150"/></a></p>
<p><b> <span style="font-size: small;">Frederick Ray Sayre,</span></b> <span style="font-size: small;">56, of Hurricane, formerly of Cottageville, WV, passed away suddenly January 1, 2014, at CAMC Teays Valley Hospital.</span><br/> <span style="font-size: small;"> He was born September 27, 1957 in Parkersburg, WV, a son of the late Herbert Reuben and Dorothy Virginia (Wheeler) Sayre.</span><br/> <span style="font-size: small;"> Survivors include his wife of 33 years, Kathleen Victoria (Harrison) Sayre; son, Reuben Sayre of Hurricane; daughters, Dorothy E. Bavle and her husband Brandon, of Cottageville, and Melissa Sayre of Huntington; brother, Tim C. and his wife Catherine Sayre of Ravenswood, and a nephew, Michael Sayre.</span><br/> <span style="font-size: small;"> He had an associate’s degree in industrial mechanics from Parkersburg Community College, and earned his bachelor’s degree in history from Marshall University. He was a member and merchant for the Society for Creative Anachronism medieval enactment group, and was the founder, and former owner and operator of F & F Trading in Norfolk, VA, and F & K Trading in Hurricane.</span><br/> <span style="font-size: small;"> Fred had a stern faith in God, was an avid outdoorsman, and enjoyed hunting. He was an expert of historical weaponry, a friend of Bill, and …. he had style.</span><br/> <span style="font-size: small;"> Service will be 7 p.m. Saturday, January 4, 2014, at Casto Funeral Home Chapel, Evans, WV, with Pastor Mark Price officiating. Visitation will be from 5 p.m. until time of service. Committal service will be 10 a.m. Sunday, January 5, at Blaine Memorial Cemetery, Cottageville, WV.</span></p> When you take Drago and use his talents.tag:travelingwithintheworld.ning.com,2011-10-04:2185477:Topic:1518832011-10-04T22:40:24.361Zmiyoko canterhttp://travelingwithintheworld.ning.com/profile/miyokocanter
<p>Many times things have been made. Times things have been asked of him.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>From the offering of building Vardar for people. With the idea of going to their place. And making it with them. With the housing and feeding. With the statement of either 20% over the cost of materiel and items bought at the end of the making. or 14% with tools in hand when leave.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>To the mass working for some one, in a general remodeling. Which housed, fed, internet, laundry, and basic…</p>
<p>Many times things have been made. Times things have been asked of him.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>From the offering of building Vardar for people. With the idea of going to their place. And making it with them. With the housing and feeding. With the statement of either 20% over the cost of materiel and items bought at the end of the making. or 14% with tools in hand when leave.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>To the mass working for some one, in a general remodeling. Which housed, fed, internet, laundry, and basic household items taken care of. Along with one bill presented and paid each week, usally just over $100.oo. With no money being exchanged but more of a trade/barter as the work hours justify the done for him.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Also a time period is set and at the end of it what does he get as an ending payment.</p>
<p>Also sometimes a something for him to use or a person that is available to get him around is well also.</p>
<p>What are goals and targeted to be accomplished.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Many things could be worked into it yet the bottom line at this time is. A placement that will be large enough to bring Her and son back to him. A Truck to try to rebuild what was. THe rebuilding od items that have been lost in the last three years.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>So does one have a placement or idea to use him for? And what exactly will this entail? Will it allow him to attain what is above.</p> What is a Pub anyway?tag:travelingwithintheworld.ning.com,2011-10-02:2185477:Topic:1515822011-10-02T01:02:07.412Zmiyoko canterhttp://travelingwithintheworld.ning.com/profile/miyokocanter
<p><span style="color: #ffffff;">A <b>public house</b>, informally known as a <b>pub</b>, is a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drinking_establishment" title="Drinking establishment">drinking establishment</a> which is part of <a class="mw" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_culture" title="British culture">British</a>,<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-EB_0-0"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_house#cite_note-EB-0">[1]…</a></sup><sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-1"></sup></span></p>
<p><span style="color: #ffffff;">A <b>public house</b>, informally known as a <b>pub</b>, is a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drinking_establishment" title="Drinking establishment">drinking establishment</a> which is part of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_culture" title="British culture" class="mw">British</a>,<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-EB_0-0"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_house#cite_note-EB-0">[1]</a></sup><sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-1"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_house#cite_note-1">[2]</a></sup> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Culture_of_Ireland#Food_and_drink" title="Culture of Ireland">Irish</a>,<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-2"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_house#cite_note-2">[3]</a></sup> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Australian_culture" title="Australian culture" class="mw">Australian</a><sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-3"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_house#cite_note-3">[4]</a></sup> and New Zealand culture. There are approximately 53,500 public houses in the United Kingdom.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-British_Beer_and_Pub_Association_4-0"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_house#cite_note-British_Beer_and_Pub_Association-4">[5]</a></sup> This number has been declining every year, so that nearly half of the smaller villages no longer have a local pub.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-5"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_house#cite_note-5">[6]</a></sup> In many places, especially in villages, a pub can be the focal point of the community. The writings of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samuel_Pepys" title="Samuel Pepys">Samuel Pepys</a> describe the pub as the heart of England.</span></p>
<p><span style="color: #ffffff;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Pub.williams.arp.750pix.jpg" class="image"><img height="157" width="220" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/81/Pub.williams.arp.750pix.jpg/220px-Pub.williams.arp.750pix.jpg" class="thumbimage"/></a></span></p>
<p><span style="color: #ffffff;">Public houses are socially and culturally different from places such as <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caf%C3%A9" title="Café">cafés</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bar_(establishment)" title="Bar (establishment)">bars</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beer_hall" title="Beer hall">bierkellers</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brewpub" title="Brewpub" class="mw">brewpubs</a>. Pubs are social places based on the sale and consumption of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alcoholic_beverage" title="Alcoholic beverage">alcoholic beverages</a>, and most public houses offer a range of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beer" title="Beer">beers</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wine" title="Wine">wines</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liquor" title="Liquor" class="mw">spirits</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alcopops" title="Alcopops" class="mw">alcopops</a> and soft drinks. Many pubs are controlled by breweries, so beer is often better value than wines and spirits, while soft drinks can be almost as expensive. Beer served in a pub may be <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cask_ale" title="Cask ale">cask ale</a> or <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Keg_beer" title="Keg beer" class="mw">keg beer</a>. All pubs also have a range of non-alcoholic beverages available. Traditionally the windows of town pubs are of smoked or frosted glass so that the clientele is obscured from the street. In the last twenty years in the UK and other countries there has been a move away from frosted glass towards clear glass, a trend that fits in with brighter interior décors.</span></p>
<p><span style="color: #ffffff;">The owner, tenant or manager (licensee) of a public house is properly known as the "pub landlord". The term <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Publican" title="Publican">publican</a> (in historical Roman usage a public contractor or <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tax_farming" title="Tax farming" class="mw">tax farmer</a>) has come into use since Victorian times to designate the pub landlord. Each pub generally has "locals" or <i>regulars</i>; people who drink there regularly. The pub that people visit most often is called their <i>local</i>. In many cases, this will be the pub nearest to their home, but some people choose their <i>local</i> for other reasons: proximity to work, a venue for their friends, the availability of a particular cask ale, non-smoking or <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smoking_ban" title="Smoking ban">formerly</a> as a place to smoke freely, or maybe a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Darts" title="Darts">darts</a> team or <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Billiards" title="Billiards" class="mw">pool</a> table. Until the 1970s most of the larger public houses also featured an off-sales counter or attached shop for the sales of beers, wines and spirits for home consumption. In the 1970s the newly built <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Supermarket" title="Supermarket">supermarkets</a> and high street <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chain_store" title="Chain store">chain stores</a> or <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Off-licence" title="Off-licence" class="mw">off-licences</a> undercut the pub prices to such a degree that within ten years all but a handful of pubs had closed their off-sale counters. A society with a particular interest in beers, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stout_(beer)" title="Stout (beer)" class="mw">stouts</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ale" title="Ale">ales</a> produced in the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_and_Irish_Isles" title="British and Irish Isles" class="mw">British and Irish Isles</a>, as well as in the preservation of the integrity of the public house, is the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Campaign_for_Real_Ale" title="Campaign for Real Ale">Campaign for Real Ale</a> (CAMRA).<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-6"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_house#cite_note-6">[7]</a></sup></span></p>
<p><span style="color: #ffffff;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Henry_Singleton_The_Ale-House_Door_c._1790.jpg" class="image"><img height="269" width="220" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/49/Henry_Singleton_The_Ale-House_Door_c._1790.jpg/220px-Henry_Singleton_The_Ale-House_Door_c._1790.jpg" class="thumbimage"/></a></span></p>
<p><span style="color: #ffffff;">The history of pubs can be traced back to Roman <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tavern" title="Tavern">taverns</a>,<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Great_British_Pub_7-0"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_house#cite_note-Great_British_Pub-7">[8]</a></sup> through the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anglo-Saxon" title="Anglo-Saxon" class="mw">Anglo-Saxon</a> alehouse to the development of the modern <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tied_house" title="Tied house">tied house</a> system in the 19th century.</span></p>
<p><span class="mw" id="History" style="color: #ffffff;">History</span></p>
<p><span style="color: #ffffff;">The inhabitants of Great Britain have been drinking ale since the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bronze_Age" title="Bronze Age">Bronze Age</a>, but it was with the arrival of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ancient_Rome" title="Ancient Rome">Romans</a> and the establishment of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roman_road" title="Roman road" class="mw">Roman road</a> network that the first inns called <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taberna" title="Taberna">tabernae</a>,<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Great_British_Pub_7-1"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_house#cite_note-Great_British_Pub-7">[8]</a></sup> in which the traveller could obtain refreshment, began to appear. After the departure of Roman authority and the fall of the Romano-British kingdoms, the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anglo-Saxon" title="Anglo-Saxon" class="mw">Anglo-Saxons</a> established alehouses that grew out of domestic dwellings. The Anglo-Saxon alewife would put a green bush up on a pole to let people know her brew was ready.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-8"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_house#cite_note-8">[9]</a></sup> These alehouses formed meeting houses for the locals to meet and gossip and arrange mutual help within their communities. Here lie the beginnings of the modern pub. They became so commonplace that in 965 <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edgar_of_England" title="Edgar of England" class="mw">King Edgar</a> decreed that there should be no more than one alehouse per village.</span></p>
<p><span style="color: #ffffff;">A traveller in the early <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Middle_Ages" title="Middle Ages">Middle Ages</a> could obtain overnight accommodation in monasteries, but later a demand for hostelries grew with the popularity of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pilgrimage" title="Pilgrimage">pilgrimages</a> and travel. The Hostellers of London were granted <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guild" title="Guild">guild</a> status in 1446 and in 1514 the guild became the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Worshipful_Company_of_Innholders" title="Worshipful Company of Innholders">Worshipful Company of Innholders</a>.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-9"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_house#cite_note-9">[10]</a></sup></span></p>
<p><span style="color: #ffffff;"><span class="mw" id="Inns">Inns</span></span></p>
<p><span style="color: #ffffff;"><b>Inns</b> are generally establishments or buildings where travellers can seek <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lodging" title="Lodging">lodging</a> and, usually, food and drink. They are typically located in the country or along a highway. Found in Europe, they possibly first sprang up when the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ancient_Rome" title="Ancient Rome">Romans</a> built their system of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roman_road" title="Roman road" class="mw">Roman roads</a> two <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Millennia" title="Millennia" class="mw">millennia</a> ago. Some inns in Europe are several <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Century" title="Century">centuries</a> old. In addition to providing for the needs of travellers, inns traditionally acted as <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Community" title="Community">community</a> gathering places.</span></p>
<p><span style="color: #ffffff;">In Europe, it is the provision of accommodation, if anything, that now separates inns from <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tavern" title="Tavern">taverns</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alehouse" title="Alehouse" class="mw">alehouses</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pubs" title="Pubs" class="mw">pubs</a>. The latter tend to supply alcohol (and, in the UK, usually soft drinks and sometimes food), but less commonly accommodation. Inns tend to be grander and more long-lived establishments; historically they provided not only food and lodging, but also <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stable" title="Stable">stabling</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fodder" title="Fodder">fodder</a> for the traveller's horse(s) and fresh horses for the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mail_coach" title="Mail coach">mail coach</a>. Famous London examples of inns include <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_George,_Southwark" title="The George, Southwark" class="mw">the George</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Tabard" title="The Tabard">The Tabard</a>. There is however no longer a formal distinction between an inn and other kinds of establishment. Many pubs use the name "inn", either because they are long established and may have been formerly <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coaching_inn" title="Coaching inn">coaching inns</a>, or to summon up a particular kind of image, or in many cases simply as a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pun" title="Pun">pun</a> on the word "in" such as "The Welcome Inn" the name of many pubs in Scotland.</span></p>
<p><span style="color: #ffffff;">The original functions of an inn are now usually split among separate establishments, such as <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hotel" title="Hotel">hotels</a>, lodges, and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Motel" title="Motel">motels</a>, all of which might provide the traditional functions of an inn but which focus more on lodging customers than on other services; public houses, which are primarily alcohol-serving establishments; and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Restaurant" title="Restaurant">restaurants</a> and taverns, which serve food and drink. (Hotels often contain restaurants and also often serve complimentary breakfast and meals, thus providing all of the functions of traditional inns.) In North America, the lodging aspect of the word "<b>inn</b>" lives on in hotel <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brand" title="Brand">brand</a> names like <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holiday_Inn" title="Holiday Inn">Holiday Inn</a>, and in some state laws that refer to lodging operators as innkeepers.</span></p>
<p><span style="color: #ffffff;">The <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inns_of_Court" title="Inns of Court">Inns of Court</a> in London were originally ordinary inns where <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barrister" title="Barrister">barristers</a> met to do business, but have become institutions of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Legal_profession" title="Legal profession" class="mw">legal profession</a> in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/England_and_Wales" title="England and Wales">England and Wales</a>.</span></p>
<p><span style="color: #ffffff;">Traditional English <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ale" title="Ale">ale</a> was made solely from fermented <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malt" title="Malt">malt</a>. The practice of adding <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hops" title="Hops">hops</a> to produce beer was introduced from the Netherlands in the early 15th century. Alehouses would each brew their own distinctive ale, but independent breweries began to appear in the late 17th century. By the end of the century almost all beer was brewed by commercial breweries.</span></p>
<p><span style="color: #ffffff;">The 18th century saw a huge growth in the number of drinking establishments, primarily due to the introduction of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gin" title="Gin">gin</a>. Gin was brought to England by the Dutch after the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glorious_Revolution" title="Glorious Revolution">Glorious Revolution</a> of 1688 and started to become very popular after the government created a market for grain that was unfit to be used in brewing by allowing unlicensed gin production, whilst imposing a heavy <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duty" title="Duty">duty</a> on all imported spirits. As thousands of gin-shops sprang up all over England, brewers fought back by increasing the number of alehouses. By 1740 the production of gin had increased to six times that of beer and because of its cheapness it became popular with the poor, leading to the so-called <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gin_Craze" title="Gin Craze">Gin Craze</a>. Over half of the 15,000 drinking establishments in London were gin-shops.</span></p>
<p><span style="color: #ffffff;">The drunkenness and lawlessness created by gin was seen to lead to ruination and degradation of the working classes. The distinction was illustrated by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Hogarth" title="William Hogarth">William Hogarth</a> in his engravings <i><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beer_Street" title="Beer Street" class="mw">Beer Street</a></i> and <i><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gin_Lane" title="Gin Lane" class="mw">Gin Lane</a></i>.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-10"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_house#cite_note-10">[11]</a></sup> The <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Gin_Act_1736&action=edit&redlink=1" title="Gin Act 1736 (page does not exist)" class="new">Gin Act</a> (1736) imposed high taxes on retailers but led to riots in the streets. The prohibitive duty was gradually reduced and finally abolished in 1742. The <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gin_Act_1751" title="Gin Act 1751">1751 Gin Act</a> however was more successful. It forced distillers to sell only to licensed retailers and brought gin-shops under the jurisdiction of local magistrates.</span></p>
<p><span class="mw" id="Beer_Houses_and_the_1830_Beer_Act" style="color: #ffffff;">Beer Houses and the 1830 Beer Act</span></p>
<p><span style="color: #ffffff;">By the early 19th century and encouraged by a lowering of duties on gin, the gin houses or "Gin Palaces" had spread from London to most major cities and towns in Britain, with most of the new establishments illegal and unlicensed. These bawdy, loud and unruly drinking dens so often described by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Dickens" title="Charles Dickens">Charles Dickens</a> in his <i><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sketches_by_Boz" title="Sketches by Boz">Sketches by Boz</a></i> (published 1835–6) increasingly came to be held as unbridled cesspits of immorality or crime and the source of much ill-health and alcoholism among the working classes.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-AMLWCH_11-0"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_house#cite_note-AMLWCH-11">[12]</a></sup></span></p>
<p><span style="color: #ffffff;">Under a banner of "reducing public drunkenness" the Beer Act of 1830 introduced a new lower tier of premises permitted to sell alcohol, the <b>Beer Houses</b>. At the time beer was viewed as harmless, nutritious and even healthy. Young children were often given what was described as <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Small_beer" title="Small beer" class="mw">small beer</a>, which was brewed to have a low alcohol content, to drink, as the local water was often unsafe. Even the evangelical church and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Temperance_movement" title="Temperance movement">temperance movements</a> of the day viewed the drinking of beer very much as a secondary evil and a normal accompaniment to a meal. The freely available beer was thus intended to wean the drinkers off the evils of gin, or so the thinking went.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-UK_Hist_12-0"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_house#cite_note-UK_Hist-12">[13]</a></sup></span></p>
<p><span style="color: #ffffff;">Under the 1830 Act any householder who paid rates could apply, with a one-off payment of two <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guinea_(British_coin)" title="Guinea (British coin)">guineas</a> (equal to £158.64 today), to sell beer or <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cider" title="Cider">cider</a> in his home (usually the front parlour) and even brew his own on his premises. The permission did not extend to the sale of spirits and fortified wines and any beer house discovered selling those items was closed down and the owner heavily fined. Beer houses were not permitted to open on Sundays. The beer was usually served in jugs or dispensed directly from tapped wooden barrels lying on a table in the corner of the room. Often profits were so high the owners were able to buy the house next door to live in, turning every room in their former home into bars and lounges for customers.</span></p>
<p><span style="color: #ffffff;">In the first year, four hundred beer houses opened and within eight years there were 46,000<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-13"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_house#cite_note-13">[14]</a></sup> opened across the country, far outnumbering the combined total of long-established taverns, public houses, inns and hotels. Because it was so easy to obtain permission and the profits could be huge compared to the low cost of gaining permission, the number of beer houses was continuing to rise and in some towns nearly every other house in a street could be a beer house. Finally in 1869 the growth had to be checked by magisterial control and new licensing laws were introduced. Only then was the ease by which permission could be obtained reduced and the licensing laws which operate today formulated.</span></p>
<p><span style="color: #ffffff;">Although the new licensing laws prevented any new beer houses from being created, those already in existence were allowed to continue and many did not fully die out until nearly the end of the 19th century. A very small number remained into the 21st century.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-14"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_house#cite_note-14">[15]</a></sup> A vast majority of the beer houses applied for the new licences and became full public houses. These usually small establishments can still be identified in many towns, seemingly oddly located in the middle of otherwise terraced housing part way up a street, unlike purpose-built pubs that are usually found on corners or road junctions. Many of today's respected real ale micro-brewers in the UK started as home based Beer House brewers under the 1830 Act.</span></p>
<p><span style="color: #ffffff;">The beer houses also tended to avoid the traditional public house names like <i>The Crown</i>, <i>The Red Lion</i>, <i>The Royal Oak</i> etc. and, if they did not simply name their place <i>Smith's Beer House</i>, they would apply topical pub names in an effort to reflect the mood of the times.</span></p>
<p><span class="mw" id="Licensing_laws" style="color: #ffffff;">Licensing laws</span></p>
<p><span style="color: #ffffff;">From the middle of the 19th century restrictions were placed on the opening hours of licensed premises in the UK. However licensing was gradually liberalised after the 1960s, until contested licensing applications became very rare, and the remaining administrative function was transferred to Local Authorities in 2005.</span></p>
<p><span style="color: #ffffff;">The Wine and Beerhouse Act 1869 reintroduced the stricter controls of the previous century. The sale of beers, wines or spirits required a licence for the premises from the local <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magistrates" title="Magistrates" class="mw">magistrates</a>. Further provisions regulated gaming, drunkenness, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prostitution" title="Prostitution">prostitution</a> and undesirable conduct on licensed premises, enforceable by prosecution or more effectively by the landlord under threat of forfeiting his licence. Licences were only granted, transferred or renewed at special Licensing Sessions courts, and were limited to respectable individuals. Often these were ex-servicemen or ex-policemen; retiring to run a pub was popular amongst military officers at the end of their service. Licence conditions varied widely, according to local practice. They would specify permitted hours, which might require Sunday closing, or conversely permit all-night opening near a market. Typically they might require opening throughout the permitted hours, and the provision of food or lavatories. Once obtained, licences were jealously protected by the licensees (always persons expected to be generally present, not a remote owner or company), and even "Occasional Licences" to serve drinks at temporary premises such as fêtes would usually be granted only to existing licensees. Objections might be made by the police, rival landlords or anyone else on the grounds of infractions such as serving drunks, disorderly or dirty premises, or ignoring permitted hours.</span></p>
<p><span style="color: #ffffff;">Detailed records were kept on licensing, giving the Public House, its address, owner, licensee and misdemeanours of the licensees for periods often going back for hundreds of years. Many of these records survive and can be viewed, for example, at the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/London_Metropolitan_Archives" title="London Metropolitan Archives">London Metropolitan Archives</a> centre.</span></p>
<p><span style="color: #ffffff;">These culminated in the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Defence_of_the_Realm_Act" title="Defence of the Realm Act" class="mw">Defence of the Realm Act</a><sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-15"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_house#cite_note-15">[16]</a></sup> of August 1914, which, along with the introduction of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rationing" title="Rationing">rationing</a> and the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Censorship" title="Censorship">censorship</a> of the press for wartime purposes, also restricted the opening hours of public houses to 12 noon–2:30 p.m. and 6:30 p.m.–9:30 p.m. Opening for the full licensed hours was compulsory, and closing time was equally firmly enforced by the police; a landlord might lose his licence for infractions. There was a special case established under the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/State_Management_Scheme" title="State Management Scheme">State Management Scheme</a><sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-16"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_house#cite_note-16">[17]</a></sup> where the brewery and licensed premises were bought and run by the state until 1973, most notably in the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/City_of_Carlisle" title="City of Carlisle">Carlisle</a> District. During the 20th century elsewhere, both the licensing laws and enforcement were progressively relaxed, and there were differences between parishes; in the 1960s, at closing time in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kensington" title="Kensington">Kensington</a> at 10:30 p.m., drinkers would rush over the parish boundary to be in good time for "Last Orders" in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Knightsbridge" title="Knightsbridge">Knightsbridge</a> before 11 p.m., a practice observed in many pubs adjoining licensing area boundaries. Some Scottish and Welsh <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parish" title="Parish">parishes</a> remained officially "dry" on Sundays (although often this merely required knocking at the back door of the pub). These restricted opening hours led to the tradition of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_house#Lock-in" title="Public house">lock-ins</a>.</span></p>
<p><span style="color: #ffffff;">However, closing times were increasingly disregarded in the country pubs. In England and Wales by 2000 pubs could legally open from 11 a.m. (12 noon on Sundays) through to 11 p.m. (10:30 p.m. on Sundays). That year was also the first to allow continuous opening for 36 hours from 11 a.m. on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Year%27s_Eve" title="New Year's Eve">New Year's Eve</a> to 11 p.m. on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Year%27s_Day" title="New Year's Day">New Year's Day</a>. In addition, many cities had by-laws to allow some pubs to extend opening hours to midnight or 1 a.m., whilst <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nightclub" title="Nightclub">nightclubs</a> had long been granted late licences to serve alcohol into the morning. Pubs in the immediate vicinity of London's <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smithfield,_London" title="Smithfield, London">Smithfield market</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Billingsgate" title="Billingsgate">Billingsgate</a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fish_market" title="Fish market">fish market</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal_Opera_House" title="Royal Opera House">Covent Garden</a> fruit and flower market were permitted to stay open 24 hours a day since <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Victorian_era" title="Victorian era">Victorian era</a> times to provide a service to the shift working employees of the markets.</span></p>
<p><span style="color: #ffffff;">Scotland's and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Northern_Ireland" title="Northern Ireland">Northern Ireland</a>'s licensing laws have long been more flexible, allowing local authorities to set pub opening and closing times. In Scotland, this stemmed out of a late repeal of the wartime licensing laws, which stayed in force until 1976.</span></p>
<p><span style="color: #ffffff;">The <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Licensing_Act_2003" title="Licensing Act 2003">Licensing Act 2003</a>,<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-17"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_house#cite_note-17">[18]</a></sup> which came into force on 24 November 2005, aimed to consolidate the many laws into a single act. This allowed pubs in England and Wales to apply to the local authority for the opening hours of their choice. Supporters at the time argued that it would end the concentration of violence around half past 11, when people had to leave the pub, making policing easier. In practice, alcohol-related hospital admissions rose following the change in the law, with alcohol involved in 207,800 admissions in 2006/7.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-18"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_house#cite_note-18">[19]</a></sup> Critics claimed that these laws would lead to "24-hour drinking". By the time the law came into effect, 60,326 establishments had applied for longer hours and 1,121 had applied for a licence to sell alcohol 24 hours a day. However, nine months after the act, many pubs had not changed their hours, although there was a tendency for some to be open longer at the weekend but rarely beyond 1:00 a.m..</span></p>
<p><span style="color: #ffffff;">If you like to learn more please follow the link below for the rest of the story on Pubs</span></p>
<p><span style="color: #ffffff;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_house">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_house</a> </span></p> The Healing Placetag:travelingwithintheworld.ning.com,2011-09-09:2185477:Topic:1437892011-09-09T17:41:17.056Zmiyoko canterhttp://travelingwithintheworld.ning.com/profile/miyokocanter
<center><p>Some of us have the gift or talent to express sympathy easily to others. Gestures and words are expertly expressed and people are comforted. Healing thoughts and prayers are a way to express how we feel, please use this area to bring your caring emotion to others.</p>
<p> …</p>
<p><a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/2060051259?profile=original" target="_self"><img class="align-full" src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/2060051259?profile=original" width="545"></img></a></p>
</center>
<center><p>Some of us have the gift or talent to express sympathy easily to others. Gestures and words are expertly expressed and people are comforted. Healing thoughts and prayers are a way to express how we feel, please use this area to bring your caring emotion to others.</p>
<p> </p>
<p><a target="_self" href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/2060051259?profile=original"><img class="align-full" src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/2060051259?profile=original" width="545"/></a></p>
</center> Raquy and the Cavementag:travelingwithintheworld.ning.com,2011-06-25:2185477:Topic:1298602011-06-25T16:06:17.846Zmiyoko canterhttp://travelingwithintheworld.ning.com/profile/miyokocanter
<p>If you have not heard of them, you should definitely give them a listen. Fans of world music and hand drums will definitely dig their stuff.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Check out the latest interview with front woman, Raquy Danziger <a href="http://percussion-net.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=180%3Ainterview-with-raquy-danziger&catid=64%3Ainterviews&Itemid=110" target="_blank">here</a>.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Raquy and the Cavemen have made appearances at…</p>
<p>If you have not heard of them, you should definitely give them a listen. Fans of world music and hand drums will definitely dig their stuff.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Check out the latest interview with front woman, Raquy Danziger <a href="http://percussion-net.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=180%3Ainterview-with-raquy-danziger&catid=64%3Ainterviews&Itemid=110" target="_blank">here</a>.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Raquy and the Cavemen have made appearances at <a href="http://www.pennsicwar.org" target="_blank">Pennsic War</a>, sometimes performing with <a href="http://www.zafiradance.com/" target="_blank">Zafira Dance Company.</a></p>
<p> </p>
<p>Don't forget to stop by their website and take special note of the excellent organization and social media links we talked about in <a href="http://travelingwithintheworld.ning.com/group/fairebusiness" target="_blank">Faire Buisness</a> ;)</p>
<p> </p>
<p><a href="http://raquyandthecavemen.com/home.html">http://raquyandthecavemen.com/home.html</a></p> Summer-Land Retreattag:travelingwithintheworld.ning.com,2011-06-15:2185477:Topic:1285752011-06-15T19:26:02.676Zmiyoko canterhttp://travelingwithintheworld.ning.com/profile/miyokocanter
<span style="font-family: helvetica; color: #993300;">I am trying to create a community for others like myself and your group would fit right in. Would you all like to assist?</span>
<span style="font-family: helvetica; color: #993300;">I am trying to create a community for others like myself and your group would fit right in. Would you all like to assist?</span> Ok I am going put this out to the Ningverse.tag:travelingwithintheworld.ning.com,2011-06-11:2185477:Topic:1283042011-06-11T00:15:39.172Zmiyoko canterhttp://travelingwithintheworld.ning.com/profile/miyokocanter
Ok I am going put this out to the Ningverse. And see what comes to me. Last time I put something out it was to as for a place to be. That failed. O was told not to do so in some places. Many telling of good thoughts. Sending of well wishes and luck, but in this day and age those are words that have little worth within the social structure. And can hardly be spend for the items we need. So in Virginia I am, with items in Ohio and the trailer in Michigan.<br></br> I have been a Renaissance…
Ok I am going put this out to the Ningverse. And see what comes to me. Last time I put something out it was to as for a place to be. That failed. O was told not to do so in some places. Many telling of good thoughts. Sending of well wishes and luck, but in this day and age those are words that have little worth within the social structure. And can hardly be spend for the items we need. So in Virginia I am, with items in Ohio and the trailer in Michigan.<br/> I have been a Renaissance Fare/Medieval Artist/Crafter Vendertainer for over 20 years. In the fall of the 2008 season the truck used lost its engine. In a choice it was decided to abandon it and rent trucks to finish the fall schedule. This took to soon what we had quicker than we figured in resources. With over a month more to look forward to we thought we could sell enough to gain another truck. That roll of the cosmic dice failed. For the shows did not bring to us what they should of.<br/> So now a year later. With out a being able to get a job or true place to be. I have lost most of my company. My Companion of ten years has returned to her family in Missouri with our three year old son. For there is no money to support or purchase a truck and return to the life we had.<br/> So the offering of teaching and showing has been brought forth. A partnership of sorts. I can offer a full rig of Faire and events. Tent, Vardar, and items to sell. As well as the shows I am know to. That can be rebooked. Up to 66 show days I believe I can recoup with out difficultly. There are a little over 100 possible during a year in common shows and 20 to 30 of extended shows.<br/> What I need is a person or persons that can front a 17 foot or up to a 28 foot box truck {U-Haul sells them}. A Canvas has to be had as well that is about 4,000 USD in cost and I have someplace to make it. Our trademark tent canvas was over used to its end and replacement hast to be done. Some supplies need to be had to replace what was used up or replace things that do not survive the storage of the trailer. The 4 tires for it need to be replaced to ensure safe to travel upon after sitting for so long. Then the fuel/gas. And fees for shows.<br/> I spent most of the summer trying for a lone to do this and was shot down many times. For all wanted the data required in ‘their’ forms ‘their’ format and ‘their’ way. I still have most of this typed up some where.<br/> The offer is that if one or many takes this up to do. For a three years period the first year I will be as a Booth/show manager and they the boss. For I will teach them how and what of things. The second year we can run two tents or booths if one wants to start to expand and do one own. By the third year you should be able to run and book you own shows as well. Or we can just continue with the partnership.<br/> Many have good intentions and advice and can tell one of how and what and should do. This I have suffered through for a year. What I need now is one or some to state they will help in the way I need.<br/> Simple Truck, canvas, supplies, fuel and fees. For the Learning of a trade to learn how to make things. To find a style of the old knowledge and ways once again and freedom of the old.<br/> <br/> Many think I should give up. Others just tell me how and what I should do. And when I ask them if they will help they fade or run from the words they just said. But with jobs so scarce. And places that take 45 to 90 days to decide upon someone. Or the fact I have no documents proving the knowledge of things I can do. Socially I am losing faster than I want. So to the populace I place this. And wait of words of hope and willingness to do this. And will see just if the placing this into the cosmic and universe works out. Or if I am truly lost and will never regain what I had once. My ways, my company, the Companion I love and our son.<br/> <br/> Up to you now, I wait for the good of things to come. If you look to my profile you will find the Hearth site the last holding of what I have. Perhaps you or more then one will come and ensure that not all is lost. Some may tell me this is spamm. Some may consider it advertising. I am making a plea for help. Perhaps they will relies that and let it be and the words speak for me. Again other type up attempttag:travelingwithintheworld.ning.com,2011-06-11:2185477:Topic:1282032011-06-11T00:10:14.410Zmiyoko canterhttp://travelingwithintheworld.ning.com/profile/miyokocanter
<p>I am looking for ways to increase the working capital as well as more efficient ways to run the business. Currently represent over 100 artistries through the United States & Canada as well as being multi-venue artist. This allows the representation of many artists within the knowledge & talents known. We can educate in detail how the majority of the items are created from the raw materials to the finished item. The time is taken to ask the customer questions to be sure that the…</p>
<p>I am looking for ways to increase the working capital as well as more efficient ways to run the business. Currently represent over 100 artistries through the United States & Canada as well as being multi-venue artist. This allows the representation of many artists within the knowledge & talents known. We can educate in detail how the majority of the items are created from the raw materials to the finished item. The time is taken to ask the customer questions to be sure that the item in question will fit that person’s requirements. Working with the artisans to learn about their style of creating, likes & dislikes about the items of their trade. Also helping the artists to design new products to meet the requests of the public. Trying to keep the artists inspired so that they want to continue creating new items. The artists are also welcome to join us at any show/event we are participating.<br/> <br/> We like to offer well-crafted items at a price range the every day person can afford to buy - be they a CEO on their day off or the family with three kids, who packed their lunch to come to the show. A good product at a fair price is hard to pass. We are willing to make changes to items at the point of sale, if we have the means to accomplish it. Minor repairs & custom order work can be done on site, usually the same day the order is made.</p>
<div align="center"><hr align="center" size="2" width="100%"/></div>
<p>Name: Edward A. Westleigh ordained as Rev. Allen M. Drago </p>
<p>Mailing address: 15096 Auburn St, Detroit MI <br/> Telephone: 216-298-1549. <br/> E-mail: <a href="mailto:TravelerinBDFSM@hotmail.com">TravelerinBDFSM@hotmail.com</a></p>
<p>Web Site: <a href="../../../../">http://travelingwithintheworld.ning.com/</a></p>
<p>Or Skype IM/Laptop contact: Travelingraggyman</p>
<p>At Renaissance &/or Medieval Faires known as></p>
<p>Patchwork Merchant Mercenaries, a Dept of Ask For IT</p>
<p>____________________________________________________</p>
<p>Hopefully the following information will help you to understand our needs.</p>
<div align="center"><hr align="center" size="2" width="100%"/></div>
<p>We request funds for the following:</p>
<p>Minimum jump start for getting the ‘show on the road”. To get there & have what is basically needed or used.</p>
<p>On an average sales day we project in about $300 to $500. Additional funds from custom orders & repairs being $50 to $200 during a show week. An example event show runs for five weekends with a low possibility of $3,300 for the show run for sales and $250 for custom orders and repairs. As soon as we are on the road we will be booking other shows on our route. We have the possibility of lining up seven other shows during the year. We travel from show to show mid January till the first of November.</p>
<div align="center"><hr align="center" size="2" width="100%"/></div>
<p>Basic needs:</p>
<p>A used 24’ or 26’ box truck with Title & Plates Truck state sales tax , excise tax as per state regulations, application fee & registration, Preventative Maintenance, insurance, Materials to customize, tires will run about $7,000</p>
<div align="center"><hr align="center" size="2" width="100%"/></div>
<p>Equipment: Tent canvas $7,000</p>
<p>Updated Laptop $700</p>
<p>Wood & materials for frame $300 </p>
<p>Tires for trailer $400 {low market price}{ there are four of them}</p>
<p>Propane Tanks $120 to exchange 6 tanks</p>
<div align="center"><hr align="center" size="2" width="100%"/></div>
<p>Insurance for at Events</p>
<p>Specialty $175 Business $350</p>
<div align="center"><hr align="center" size="2" width="100%"/></div>
<p>Miscellaneous<br/> 10% cushion for unforeseen based on the above totals</p>
<div align="center"><hr align="center" size="2" width="100%"/></div>
<p> Financing needed:</p>
<p> </p>
<p> We have below listed assets for a total business cost of _________ already put forth. We need a loan of _______ to cover remaining set up costs for the first show including the needed equipment.</p>
<p>List of collateral. </p>
<p> In addition to the items listed below I have experience of over 20 years in this business. At many of the shows I have a repeating customer base. We also will have an established travel route that has annual shows along it.</p>
<p>Trailer in storage in Michigan $2,000<br/> Tools in storage in Michigan $1,000<br/> Two sets of metal brackets for tents in storage in Michigan $1,500 <br/> Stands for costuming in storage in Michigan $1,200 <br/> Mannequins in storage in Michigan $300 <br/> Personal costuming in storage in Michigan $500 <br/> Personal jewelry in storage in Michigan $500 <br/> Other displays in storage in Michigan $100<br/> Tables in storage in Michigan $300<br/> 20’x20’ Tent canopy, ropes, poles & steaks in storage in Michigan $1,400 </p>
<p>Total $</p>
<p>Below is a listing of shows perspective for a yearly route</p>
<p>May</p>
<p>Mother’s Day weekend till June Father’s day weekend Virginia, Lake Anna Winery 5621 Courthouse Road Spotsylvania, <a href="http://www.varf.org/index.html">www.varf.org/index.html</a></p>
<p>June</p>
<p>Mid month till mid July KY Renaissance Faire</p>
<p>July</p>
<p>Last weekend till 2<sup>nd</sup> weekend of Aug Pennsic XXXVII cooper’s Lake Campground PA <a href="http://www.cooperslake.com/merchant/merchant">http://www.cooperslake.com/merchant/merchant</a></p>
<p>September</p>
<p> Labor Day weekend & following two {3 weekends} Des Moines Renaissance Faire, De Moines Iowa <a href="http://www.dmrenfaire.com/index.shtml">http://www.dmrenfaire.com/index.shtml</a></p>
<p>Last of month Four Kingdom’s Renaissance Faire</p>
<p>Oct</p>
<p>1<sup>st</sup> weekend Fishers Renaissance Faire, Fishers Indiana <a href="http://4.37.65.169/Artisans.htm">http://4.37.65.169/Artisans.htm</a></p>
<p>Columbus Day weekend till All Hollows Eve {3 weekends} Mid-Michigan Renaissance Festival, Tuscola, MI <a href="http://www.midmichiganrenfest/">www.midmichiganrenfest</a>.</p>
<p>January</p>
<p>Mid weekends Kiwanis-Lee County Medieval Faire Ft. Meyers, FL medieval-faire.com</p>
<p>Last weekend of Jan first of Feb {2 weekends} Hoggetowne Medieval Faire Gainesville, FL <a href="http://www.gvlculturalaffairs.org/website/programs_events/HMF/medieval_index">http://www.gvlculturalaffairs.org/website/programs_events/HMF/medie...</a>.</p>
<p>March</p>
<p>First weekend Gulf Coast Renaissance Faire Pensacola FL <a href="http://www.gcrf.net/">www.gcrf.net</a></p>
<p>Week of St Patty’s Day Gulf Wars XVII Lumberton MS <a href="http://www.gulfwars.org/merchant.html">http://www.gulfwars.org/merchant.html</a></p>
<p>April</p>
<p>Mid month Ardmore - Alabama/Tennessee Renaissance Faire, Ardmore TN/AL <a href="http://www.ardmore-renfaire.com/">www.ardmore-renfaire.com</a></p>
<p>Last weekend Ashville Viking Festival, Ashville Ohio, <a href="http://www.ashvillevikingfest.com/">www.ashvillevikingfest.com</a></p>
<div align="center"><hr align="center" size="2" width="100%"/></div>
<p> Ask For IT was created with the idea of keeping handmade arts & trades in our ever-increasing commercially produced world. Why did we want to keep these older trades alive? They are a part of our historical culture. We need to find a way to catch the interest of the younger generation & find those who will want to learn & continue to pass these arts on. Some art forms have entirely died out of physical existence. Knowing one’s past helps to give an appreciation for all the trails & hardships our ancestors came over.</p>
<p> By selling these everyday historically related items to the public, performing demonstrations & making custom orders we encourage the public to ask questions & explore their history or the history of another culture. We encourage the customers to step out of their time & visit a past they may never have otherwise thought about.<br/> <br/> We sell well-made items that our artists/crafters create at reasonable prices. We enjoy designing new products. This makes the public aware that not everything has to come mass-produced from a factory or plant. In many ways the public has forgotten the fact they can find people who make items the way they want. We want to be the choice where people can have what they want created for them.</p>
<p>Our business allows the person who does not want to make items all the time, but still enjoy their hobby - a middle ground. It also works for those who want to create items but are unable to travel far distances. We provide a means to sell those items to the public without putting those individuals where they prefer not to be. An artist is not happy if he or she cannot create, but they have to have a way to be able to support the costs of their art/hobby. We find the shows where customers are likely to buy these items & travel to the shows</p>
<div align="center"><hr align="center" size="2" width="100%"/></div>
<p>We sell mostly handmade items of a medieval or renaissance related nature. Less than ten percent of the entire inventory is imported/commercially produced items. We have costuming, woodwork, pottery, music cds, leatherwork, jewelry, maille, ironwork, weaponry & a few miscellaneous items.</p>
<div align="center"><hr align="center" size="2" width="100%"/></div>
<p><br/> Services<br/> Custom Orders - off site & on site. On site is limited to material & tools on hand.<br/> Alterations at the time of sale<br/> General information about the layout & location of things on the grounds<br/> Craft demonstration<br/> Minor repair work - limited to materials & tools on hand<br/> Items we or our artist/crafters create<br/> Jewelry, Maille, Woodwork, Weaponry, Ironwork, Pottery, Leather work, Period related music, Costuming, Interior & Exterior décor.</p>
<p>Services offered:<br/> <br/> Costuming are outfits made mostly out of fabric that are based on clothing from the age of primitive man to 1600AD.<br/> <br/> Potteries are items made out of clay/stoneware that are finished with a glaze. Items are mostly drinking or eating vessels of some kind or items used for décor.<br/> <br/> Weaponry is handmade items with or without blades. The time range for these items being primitive man to 1600AD. Examples of such weapons are atlatls, bows, war hammers, knives, daggers & swords. One has to be eighteen years old or older to touch or purchase any weapon. An eighteen year old may purchase a blade up to 21 inches long. To purchase a bladed weapon with a blade longer than 21 inches the customer has to be at least 21 years of age.<br/> <br/> Music is mostly sold on cds, with a few cassettes still left in stock. The music is related to if not a direct replica of the sheet music from that era.<br/> <br/> Ironwork items serve mostly functional needs with the occasional item being for décor. Examples of such items in this medium are cooking utensils, hooks of various types, stands nails, tent stakes & candleholders.<br/> <br/> Woodwork items mostly serve as décor of one type or another. Examples would be scrollwork pictures, chairs, tables, beds, tent poles, children toys & cooking utensils.<br/> <br/> Leatherwork items serve both functional & aesthetic needs. Examples being belts, pouches, barrettes, cloaks, floggers, bags & notebook covers.<br/> <br/></p>
<p> Armor items may be used for protection against weaponry or may just look like it could protect one from harm. The majority of all armor is made from a combination of metal & leather. Examples would be breastplate, greaves, coif & helmet.<br/> <br/> The public more commonly knows Maille as “chainmail”. Maille is made by interweaving links, jump rings of various sizes & gauges, into a pattern to produce items. These items can be of a delicate jewelry nature to the far extreme of armor grade shirts & coifs.<br/> <br/></p>
<p> Jewelry items are meant to adorn the human body in some fashion. Jewelry can made out of a wide range of materials such as horn, bone, glass, leather, metal, amber, shells & polished stones. As with most items, we keep to the period of primitive man to 1600AD.<br/> <br/> Alterations to items at the time of purchase - Sometimes a customer likes everything but one small detail or part of the item. We inform the customer that we can change that detail at either no cost or for a small fee. These alterations often take less than two minutes to perform.<br/> <br/> Minor repairs of items while on site - From time to time a customer has an item they purchased several years ago that has suffered some type of malfunction. The customer not knowing who to take their item to locally to have it fixed will bring the item with them hoping to find someone who can fix it. The majority of the items brought to us are easily fixed. Spending ten minutes or less to repair the item in question, we do not ask for a fee. We only ask for a donation for our work. Many time the amount given as a donation exceeds the amount we would have charged for the service. These repairs are limited to our experiences, materials & tools on h&. If we are not able to help the customer, we will try to help the customer find someone who can make the repair.<br/> <br/> Custom orders are orders for items that we do not carry on a regular basis or an order the customer wishes not to have duplicated for anyone else. Some of these orders we can do on site while others have to be sent out to the artists in that venue. We always try to assist the customer with the design of the item to ensure that the look of the item will still meet the functional needs of the item. A custom order on site depends on the time needed to make the item, materials for the item as well as the complexity of the design for the item. The price for this service starts around $10 & going up from there.</p>
<p>We already have experience being a traveling business. We know to deal with unexpected troubles while traveling. We will do that extra needed task to make things easier for the show/event that we are participating in. We offer friendly service & well-made items. We are willing to do that extra little something to make the customer happy.<br/> <br/> Stupid Merchant Tricks 103 are ways to keep the patrons otherwise known as customers & ourselves entertained. Making the customers smile & enjoy their time in one’s tent/booth is a good way to encourage return business & word of mouth advertising. There is no charge for making others smile. Part of the reason why people go to these styles of shows/events is to be entertained & have a good time everywhere they go on the grounds. If a customer has a good time while they shop or browse, they are more likely to come back & tell others how your tent/booth was a fun place to be<br/> <br/> Crafting demonstrations are when we show the public how we make an item that we sell. This helps to educate the public about these trades & maybe even find someone to teach the art to. The more common exchange between merchant & show/event is to have a lower or no cost merchant space for demonstrating one’s craft to the public. The other extreme is for the merchant to be paid for their travel expenses, food costs, & cost of materials, lodging expenses & possibly paid on top of all of that. The exchange of costs can fall anywhere in between the two extremes as well.</p>
<p> The majority of the items we sell out of the tent are done by representation, meaning that the artists who make the items control the prices. We do have one requirement though, that we sell the item in question at the same price that the artist does. This way we are neither gouging the public nor shorting the artist by dropping our prices below that artist’s valued price. After watching the public react to the item & price for three months, we can suggest to the artist to raise or lower the price as well as rotating stock to better meet the public demands. <br/> <br/> Items that we make ourselves are priced by the cost of materials to make said items we or our artist/crafters create & a daily or hourly cost based on how long it takes to create that item.<br/> <br/> For minor repairs done on site & often while the customer waits, a donation is all we ask. This tends to go more towards the idea of tipping for one’s service based upon the customer’s level of satisfaction with the work accomplished. The majority of these repairs take less than 30 minutes from start to finish. Often the donation received is more than the cost of the service.<br/> <br/> Easy alterations to items we or our artist/crafters create at the time of sale are usually done at no extra charge. These are often less than two minutes worth of work. It makes the customer happier & encourages return business. Alterations that take more than ten minutes are charged a small fee based on the amount of work involved usually between $5 & $30.<br/> <br/> Services like Headhunting, security & lying out of the grounds are service we offer to the shows/events that we go to. These services are done in exchange for a lower or cost free merchant space. In cases where the show/event cannot afford to do that, building good will with the show/event staff. Headhunting is searching for a particular type of merchant, entertainer or other needed service. Security is just doing that, helping out with the security of the show/event be it during open hours of business or afterwards. Laying out the grounds means helping to figure out where things are going to be on the show/event site. This often means helping to place others’ tents, setting up the show tents & placing tables.</p>
<p> We are willing to take the time to do the small things to make a customer happy. We try to provide well-made items at a reasonable price. We are friendly & helpful even if the customer is not interested in making a purchase. Often we are asked questions by the patrons (customers) of a show/event about the performance schedule, which booth has good food, closest privy (bathroom), first aid location, who sells X item & directions to that merchant space/stage/joust field. We keep a site map & schedule of performances on the different stages to help answer the common questions. During the hotter months, we offer a community-drinking cooler for those who have a vessel to hold liquids. This helps to reduce the number of heat exhaustion instances with customers & participants alike. We keep a stocked minor first aid kit on h& making general good will & less paper work for the first aid station.</p>
<div align="center"><hr align="center" size="2" width="100%"/></div>
<p><br/> <br/> Our ideal customers are people who like to own something a little different. They should like handmade items from the rough to mid-quality range. (We are more than happy to make higher quality items on a custom order basis.) They should be able to afford spending $100 or more on a day of fun. This $100 should cover fuel, entrance ticket $0 - $25, food & drink while on grounds $30 & leave some money left over to tip entertainers & go shopping among the merchants.<br/> <br/> Our customers tend to not fit within the normal social standards of today. They like things like history, religions not based on the Bible, Victorian Gothic, & live action role-playing (LARP), Punk fashion, well-crafted items & alternative life styles choices.<br/> <br/></p>
<p> A few of our items have age restrictions to be able to purchase them. These items make up close to fifteen percent of the total inventory. These age restrictions either are placed by the law such a sells of weapons or are placed by our moral standing of not selling outfits of a reveling nature to anyone under the age of eighteen without their parent present at the time of purchase. <br/> <br/> The price range for most items falls into the range of $5 - $150. We do carry some items outside of that range but not many. We have carried items that cost as little as $1 & as much as $8,500. The majority of our sales are expected in the $20 - $100 range. We do offer a four-month layaway program for individuals who want to make a purchase of $100 or more but do not have the funds on hand to complete the transaction. </p>
<div align="center"><hr align="center" size="2" width="100%"/></div>
<p><br/> The majority of the shows/events we sell at already attract a slightly different customer base. These shows/events usually have advertising campaigns in place to draw people to the show/event. For many of the shows/events, flyers are a part of their ad campaign. We ask for flyers to pass out while we run errands. Perhaps we can have a stamp made saying ‘Visit us at merchant space #_____’ to help draw more people to our tent/booth while at that show.<br/> <br/> We have a couple of databases of customers, shows/events, artists & businesses. We offer this database to the shows/events so they can mail flyers to the surrounding community. This helps to increase public awareness of the show/event. We have talked about doing something similar for ourselves, but have not been able to afford sending a postcard flyer. If we were to do it, a 100 to 150 mile radius from the site of show/event would be the target mailing area.<br/> <br/> We use business cards with our major points of contact. We encourage customers to write a reminder on the business card as to why they picked it up. We do this knowing how the mind can forget things over time.<br/> <br/> We also have a web site that is still in the works. On the website we will have a calendar giving dates, locations, show/event names & often a link to that show’s/event’s website.<br/> <br/> At most shows merchants can place an advert in the program with the show schedule - cost range $20 - $150. It has been our experience & the experience of others merchants that this does not help to attract customers to your tent/booth.<br/> <br/></p>
<p> Having a unique tent like the Arabian Bedouin we use along with creative use of displays in front of one’s tent/booth is a good way to attract attention.<br/> <br/></p>
<p> During hours of operation hawking, loudly talking to public about ones wares, is allowed with in a certain distance of one’s tent/ booth as long as it does not disrupt your neighbors’ sales or sense of hearing.<br/> <br/> If we are given complementary tickets to the show/event, we give them out to people employed at the local businesses we utilize. We spend some money in the local community while telling them about the show/event creating good will & word of mouth advertising.<br/> <br/> We encourage the staff of the show/event to utilize as many free advertising avenues as possible - most over looked public community calendars in newspapers & on radio stations.<br/> <br/> We have a web site set up with an interactive member site platform. Information of history and being tied into well-known search engines and common public used services, i.e. twitter, facebook, myspace. We have several who are willing to work with us on making this a productive website.</p>
<div align="center"><hr align="center" size="2" width="100%"/></div>
<p> We have to drive to where the customers migrate for the shows/events. It is the show/event that draws the customer. We are a part of the ambience of the show/event. We are a part of how a costumer can take home a memory of show/event or find that unique item that they have been spending three months looking for. At the shows/events, all sales are in person. Customers at the show/event have the option of calling to place a request for a regularly made item or requesting a custom order. We also take orders through the mail. The majority of orders placed are sent through the United States Postal Service. The customer has the option to at a different show/event has picked up the order.<br/> <br/></p>
<div align="center"><hr align="center" size="2" width="100%"/></div>
<p><br/> <br/> In order to find the customers we have to go to where they are likely to be such as a renaissance festival or historical re-enactment event. There are several shows/events we have done over the past several years that we have a semi regular to regular customer base. We look forward to seeing our establish customers as well as welcome new customers every sales day. There is no one great location to open up a storefront at. Those we know who have tried to operate out of a store front have never had long run success due to the lack of regular customers & therefore sales.<br/> <br/> Traveling is not considered a good business practice by most. However, finding an ideal location with the right demographics is not easy. The few places that have come close there was no way we could afford the cost of store front without already having a very well built customer base in that area.</p>
<div align="center"><hr align="center" size="2" width="100%"/></div>
<p><br/> We have & will continue to discuss topics with our fellow merchants & entertainers on the circuit. This helps us to see if other people are seeing the same trends or patterns as we are. It allows us to know if the trend or pattern is regional or happening on a national scale. One of the reasons why we are requesting this service is to learn better ways to run our business. Everyone has weak spots in some business skills. It would be great to have a mentor we could ask questions or see if an idea is worth spending time on.</p>
<div align="center"><hr align="center" size="2" width="100%"/></div>
<p><br/> Edward likes to work with his hands & find new ways to make things. He likes to design new items for both look & functionality. He works in metal, wood, leather, cloth, clay & stone. When he has the time & books of interest he’ll read 6 to 9 books a week.</p>
<p>What technical skills have we learned or developed?<br/> <br/> How to use Excel to help keep track of inventory<br/> Using Excel to build & search through a database<br/> Using Microsoft Publisher to create forms & letterhead<br/> Making wire into link & link into maille items <br/> Communicating better with the artists & patrons (customers) <br/> Driving for long stretches of time Making glass beads<br/> Design consultation Cooking while on circuit<br/> Simple Jewelry Glass beads <br/> Link work Metalwork<br/> Leatherwork Cloth worker</p>
<p>Wire work Wood work</p>
<p>General construction History knowledge<br/> <br/> Keeping track of the paperwork details<br/> Working with the customers<br/> Writing documents</p>
<p>Coming up with ideas & ways to fill custom orders.</p>
<p>Knowledge with tools & items we work in.</p>
<p>Helping the people around us.</p>
<div align="center"><hr align="center" size="2" width="100%"/></div>
<p><br/> <br/> Fourteen hours a day, we have to eat & sleep at some point in time. Seven days a week & forty-eight weeks out of the year. That makes ninety-eight hours a week devoted to working. Right now, that time is being spent researching what goes into making a business plan as well as trying to find financing.</p>
<div align="center"><hr align="center" size="2" width="100%"/></div>
<p><br/> <br/> Many would say that our business in not practical. For many do not understand the what or why of it. We say they lack the courage to try it. The need our company fills is not a large one but it is a link to our past & a way to keep older art forms from dying out of physical existence.</p>
<div align="center"><hr align="center" size="2" width="100%"/></div>
<p><br/> <br/> Commercially mass produced items, mainly imports or mass production houses.<br/> Other circuit merchants at events.<br/> E-Bay & other on-line styled auction houses. This general public does not sell their items for the complete value. Many of the sellers will do only a markup of ten percent over material cost alone. Overall, the sellers on these sites have driven the whole price market down for many of the handmade trades.</p>
<div align="center"><hr align="center" size="2" width="100%"/></div>
<p><br/> Location<br/> In many ways, location for us is based upon the number of customers that go to that show. Being able to have a singular location for the business would be great, however that means having a well established customer base to support the costs of operating the store front. Our experience with others in the same or similar venue has been of short-lived success, usually less than three years of operating time before closing their doors for good. The main reason being unable to draw a regular customer base to the storefront.<br/> <br/> There is a way around the shortage of a regular customer base. The method is not the easiest & considered by many to be an unwise business practice. Instead of having the customers come entirely to one’s store, we bring the store three quarters of the way to the customers. This is accomplished by finding shows/events that will attract the kind of customer base we are looking for. We travel to that show/event to sell our wares. The show/event often draws in customers who live up to one hundred fifty miles away. We can travel from show/event to the next show/event ensuring that there is a chance of having customers at each show/event we participate in. Many shows we participate in are held on an annual basis this helps to ensure repeat business as well as new business.</p>
<div align="center"><hr align="center" size="2" width="100%"/></div>
<p><br/> <br/> Ask For IT was created with the idea of keeping handmade arts & trades in our ever-increasing commercially produced world. Why did we want to keep these older trades alive? They are a part of our historical culture. We need to find a way to catch the interest of the younger generation & find those who will want to learn & continue to pass these arts on. Some art forms have entirely died out of physical existence. Knowing one’s past helps to give an appreciation for all the trails & hardships our ancestors came over.<br/> <br/></p>
<p> By selling these everyday historically related items to the public, performing demonstrations & making custom orders we encourage the public to ask questions & explore their history or the history of another culture. We encourage the customers to step out of their time & visit a past they may never have otherwise thought about.<br/> <br/> We sell well-made items that our artists/crafters create at reasonable prices. We enjoy designing new products. This makes the public aware that not everything has to come mass-produced from a factory or plant. In many ways the public has forgotten the fact they can find people who make items the way they want. We want to be the choice where people can have what they want created for them.<br/> <br/></p>
<p> Our business allows the person who does not want to make items all the time, but still enjoy their hobby - a middle ground. It also works for those who want to create items but are unable to travel far distances. We provide a means to sell those items to the public without putting those individuals where they prefer not to be. An artist is not happy if he or she cannot create, but they have to have a way to be able to support the costs of their art/hobby. We find the shows where customers are likely to buy these items & travel to the shows.<br/> <br/></p>
<div align="center"><hr align="center" size="2" width="100%"/></div>
<p> </p> Our Friend needs our thoughts and prayerstag:travelingwithintheworld.ning.com,2011-05-15:2185477:Topic:1235712011-05-15T18:07:30.863Zmiyoko canterhttp://travelingwithintheworld.ning.com/profile/miyokocanter
<p style="text-align: center;"><span class="font-size-4" style="color: #ffffff;">Our Dear friend AzureGray could use our well wishes our prayers and our thoughts...</span></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span class="font-size-4" style="color: #ffffff;"><a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/2060046946?profile=original" target="_self"><img class="align-center" height="276" src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/2060046946?profile=original" width="271"></img></a></span></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span class="font-size-4" style="color: #ffffff;">Her husband is in ill health…</span></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span class="font-size-4" style="color: #ffffff;">Our Dear friend AzureGray could use our well wishes our prayers and our thoughts...</span></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span class="font-size-4" style="color: #ffffff;"><a target="_self" href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/2060046946?profile=original"><img height="276" width="271" src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/2060046946?profile=original" class="align-center"/></a></span></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span class="font-size-4" style="color: #ffffff;">Her husband is in ill health and not doing well. They have a grandchild on the way who should be able to meet their grandfather before his time comes.</span></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span class="font-size-4" style="color: #ffffff;">Please show some love to a very good friend who could use some positive thoughts.</span></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span class="font-size-4" style="color: #ffffff;">She is a great woman, a wonderful friend, and a valued member of this site...</span></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span class="font-size-4" style="color: #ffffff;">This is the link to her page...</span></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span class="font-size-4" style="color: #ffffff;"><a href="http://travelingwithintheworld.ning.com/profile/AZureGray">http://travelingwithintheworld.ning.com/profile/AZureGray</a></span></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span class="font-size-4" style="color: #ffffff;">Please be there for her as she has been there for so many others.</span></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span class="font-size-4" style="color: #ffffff;">Many Blessings</span></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span class="font-size-4" style="color: #ffffff;">Our thoughts and paryers are with you in this YOUR time of need...</span></p> Beltaine/Samhaintag:travelingwithintheworld.ning.com,2011-05-01:2185477:Topic:1208102011-05-01T03:40:58.643Zmiyoko canterhttp://travelingwithintheworld.ning.com/profile/miyokocanter
<p><span class="font-size-4" style="font-family: georgia,palatino; color: #ffffff;">In the Northern Hemsphere on May 1st, many celebrate the Sabbat of Beltaine, while in the Southern hemisphere on May 1st, many celebrate the Sabbat of Samhain.</span></p>
<p><span class="font-size-4" style="font-family: georgia,palatino; color: #ffffff;">Here is a little info for our members on both sides of the equaltor...…</span></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"></p>
<p><span class="font-size-4" style="font-family: georgia,palatino; color: #ffffff;">In the Northern Hemsphere on May 1st, many celebrate the Sabbat of Beltaine, while in the Southern hemisphere on May 1st, many celebrate the Sabbat of Samhain.</span></p>
<p><span class="font-size-4" style="font-family: georgia,palatino; color: #ffffff;">Here is a little info for our members on both sides of the equaltor...</span></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span class="font-size-4" style="font-family: georgia,palatino; color: #ffffff;">Beltane</span></p>
<p><span class="font-size-4" style="font-family: georgia,palatino; color: #ffffff;"><a target="_self" href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/2060047274?profile=original"><img width="441" src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/2060047274?profile=original" class="align-center"/></a></span></p>
<p><span class="font-size-4" style="font-family: georgia,palatino; color: #ffffff;">Historical background</span></p>
<p> </p>
<p><span class="font-size-4" style="font-family: georgia,palatino; color: #ffffff;">The modern Beltane Fire Festival is inspired by the ancient Gaelic festival of Beltane which began on the evening before May 1 and marked the beginning of summer. The modern festival was started in 1988 by a small group of enthusiasts including the musical collective Test Dept, with academic support from the School of Scottish Studies at the University of Edinburgh. Since then the festival has grown, and as of 2006 involved over 300 voluntary collaborators and performers with the 11500 available tickets selling out.</span></p>
<p><span class="font-size-4" style="font-family: georgia,palatino; color: #ffffff;">It is important to remember that while the festival draws on a variety of historical, mythological and literary influences the organisers do not claim it to be anything other than <i>a modern celebration of Beltane</i>, evolving with its participants.</span></p>
<p> </p>
<p><span class="font-size-4" style="font-family: georgia,palatino; color: #ffffff;">Events of the festival</span></p>
<p><span class="font-size-4" style="font-family: georgia,palatino; color: #ffffff;">The main event of the festival is the procession of performers, starting at the Acropolis (National Monument), who perform a ritual drama based on some aspects of the pre-Christian festival of Beltane, and other mythologies from ancient cultures. The fertility of the land and animals is celebrated and encouraged. Led by one of the Blue Men, the procession's guides and guards, the Green Man (in winter guise) appears through the columns. Next the Neid Fire is made; this is the making of fire by traditional methods, and all fire seen on the night is produced from this first flame. The Torchbearers and Processional Drummers are next over the top of the Acropolis, followed by the White Warrior Women and finally the May Queen. A horn signals the May Queen's birth, and the drums begin. The May Queen and her White Women, four of whom are her Handmaidens, proceed to be born of the Earth, greet the (four) cardinal directions in back bends and bow to the crowd of spectators (in three directions). After they finally acknowledge the Earth and the sky, the Green Man (who has been watching this from the ground) is allowed to approach the May Queen at the very top. She accepts him as her consort and the procession begins, led by the May Queen. The four Handmaidens, White Women bodyguards and Processional Drummers then join the May Queen and Green Man, and all are flanked by Torchbearers and Stewards and guided and protected by four Blue Men onto one of the footpaths running along the top of Calton Hill.</span></p>
<p> </p>
<p><span class="font-size-4" style="font-family: georgia,palatino; color: #ffffff;">The footpath reaches an intersection, and the May Queen spins to decide which direction to turn in, choosing the leftward path which leads to the Fire Arch. Between the intersection and Arch, the Handmaidens and White Women stir the air with their wands, gathering the energies of the Earth, while the Drummers change rhythms to indicate the difference in purpose.</span></p>
<p> </p>
<p><span class="font-size-4" style="font-family: georgia,palatino; color: #ffffff;">Fire Arch</span></p>
<p> </p>
<p><span class="font-size-4" style="font-family: georgia,palatino; color: #ffffff;">At the Fire Arch, the Guardians first greet the May Queen and Green Man, and perform a dance which represents the rituals necessary to open a path into the Underworld. As the procession passes through the Fire Arch, the Handmaidens and White Women begin to keen, mourning the losses of the world over the past year. This continues until the procession reaches the Point of the Element of Air.</span></p>
<p> </p>
<p><span class="font-size-4" style="font-family: georgia,palatino; color: #ffffff;">Elemental Points</span></p>
<p> </p>
<p><span class="font-size-4" style="font-family: georgia,palatino; color: #ffffff;">At the <i>Air Point</i>, performers representing the element of Air put on a display for the May Queen and Green Man and present them with a gift. Having awakened Air, the May Queen leads the procession through the point and around the side of the hill to the <i>Earth Point</i>, which is situated in the midst of a stand of trees on the North-eastern side of Calton Hill. More dancers and acrobats perform for the May Queen and Green Man, and they are presented with a bannock bread before the procession continues again, passing through the point and around to <i>Water Point</i>, on the Northern side of the hill with a view overlooking the Firth of Forth. Again a ritual performance occurs here, including the washing of the May Queen and Green Man's faces in the "dew". After this point's gift is presented the procession heads on to <i>Fire Point</i>.</span></p>
<p> </p>
<p><span class="font-size-4" style="font-family: georgia,palatino; color: #ffffff;">Again, dancers and acrobats perform and offer the May Queen and Green Man a gift. The procession wends its way down the side of the hill to a lower footpath, where the Handmaidens and White Women begin gathering the energies of the awakening Earth and sending them deep into the hill. The procession pauses below the City Observatory to watch the Fire Point display on the hillside above and another gift is presented.</span></p>
<p> </p>
<p><span class="font-size-4" style="font-family: georgia,palatino; color: #ffffff;">Once awakened by the power of the May Queen the Elements do not follow the procession but are drawn towards each other and move from their "points" towards a place where they can gather and unify, thus restoring the natural order.</span></p>
<p> </p>
<p><span class="font-size-4" style="font-family: georgia,palatino; color: #ffffff;">Red Men</span></p>
<p> </p>
<p><span class="font-size-4" style="font-family: georgia,palatino; color: #ffffff;">Having awakened the four elements, the May Queen guides the procession around the Western side of the hill. The first of the Red Men, imps created with the May Queen's appearance at the Monument and representing the forces of Chaos, spot the procession as it passes below and are attracted to the May Queen and her Warriors. As the procession rounds the hill, the Red Men begin to taunt the White Women, and then stage a series of charges as the procession reaches the base of the hill on the South side of the Observatory. This represents the Red Men's interest in capturing the May Queen on behalf of their lord the Green Man. The White Women ward the Red Men off in the end without 'killing' any of them as any unnecessary 'deaths' would lead to a lessening of the energies needed to bring about the change of the seasons from Winter to Summer.</span></p>
<p> </p>
<p><span class="font-size-4" style="font-family: georgia,palatino; color: #ffffff;">The Stage</span></p>
<p> </p>
<p><span class="font-size-4" style="font-family: georgia,palatino; color: #ffffff;">The procession completes a full circle, arriving back at the path intersection, and turns to cross over the top of the hill and down into a valley where a stage has been set up for the final display. The Handmaidens perform a ritual to 'cleanse' the stage while the Torchbearers, Stewards and White Women form a circle around the open space surrounding the stage. The May Queen and Green Man mount the stage and the May Queen begins her ritual to awaken the Earth to summertime.</span></p>
<p> </p>
<p><span class="font-size-4" style="font-family: georgia,palatino; color: #ffffff;">Green Man killed</span></p>
<p> </p>
<p><span class="font-size-4" style="font-family: georgia,palatino; color: #ffffff;">While she and her Handmaidens and the White Women begin to spin and focus the energies they have been gathering throughout the night, the Red Men are allowed to approach the stage and circle it, increasing the power further. Overcome with the May Queen's beauty and goaded by the presence of the Red Men, the Green Man can no longer resist and catches the May Queen. This act is strictly forbidden, and the Green Man is ritually killed by the Handmaidens, lifted and turned anticlockwise, his bulky Winter form stripped away and thrown to the Red Men, he is then turned clockwise and presented to the May Queen.</span></p>
<p> </p>
<p><span class="font-size-4" style="font-family: georgia,palatino; color: #ffffff;">Green Man reborn</span></p>
<p> </p>
<p><span class="font-size-4" style="font-family: georgia,palatino; color: #ffffff;">The May Queen takes pity on the Green Man and brings him back to life, like a young sapling breaking the earth after Winter's hoarfrost is melted away. Overwhelmed by the new life that fills him the Green Man dances presenting himself to the four directions, repeating the actions of the May Queen from the beginning of the procession.</span></p>
<p> </p>
<p><span class="font-size-4" style="font-family: georgia,palatino; color: #ffffff;">The bonfire</span></p>
<p> </p>
<p><span class="font-size-4" style="font-family: georgia,palatino; color: #ffffff;">The May Queen then crowns the Green Man and leads the procession up the hill to the bonfire, on a high Northern point overlooking the valley on the hill and the city of Edinburgh below. The White Women and Red Men surround the bonfire (making an outer and middle layer respectively) with the Handmaidens forming the innermost layer. A set of wax hands are then lit and the May Queen and the Green Man make their way into the very centre of the Reds and Whites. They walk around the bonfire with the lit wax hands three times, on the fourth circuit they light the bonfire with the flaming hands in four places. They then walk thrice more around the bonfire as the Beltane blessing is announced to the gathered people. The lighting of the bonfire signals the end of Winter and the coming of Summer, and the Green Man's Winter form is symbolically cast into the pyre. At the same time the stage is occupied by Fire Point, this symbolises the old tradition where farmers would drive their herds between two bonfires at this time of year to bless them.</span></p>
<p> </p>
<p><span class="font-size-4" style="font-family: georgia,palatino; color: #ffffff;">The Bower</span></p>
<p> </p>
<p><span class="font-size-4" style="font-family: georgia,palatino; color: #ffffff;">Once the bonfire is lit, the procession passes through the crowds to the May Queen's Bower, on the side of the hill below and behind the Acropolis, where the procession can finally relax. The Fire Arch Guardians formally present their gift to the May Queen and Green Man, and Handfastings are held as the couples are blessed and jump together over the Willow-switch withies of the Blue Men, representing a commitment which will last through all trials for a year and a day.</span></p>
<p> </p>
<p><span class="font-size-4" style="font-family: georgia,palatino; color: #ffffff;">After this, the four Elements and other groups (these vary but will usually include "No Point", that entertain spectators without being in a fixed location) formally present their gifts to the May Queen and Green Man, and the Red Men are presented before the Handmaidens and White Women. Symbolically, they seduce/are seduced by the White Women and Handmaidens, representing a union between the White Order and the Red Chaos. The rest of the performers are then invited into the Bower circle to dance and celebrate the arrival of summer, and finally so are the spectators.</span></p>
<p> </p>
<p><span class="font-size-4" style="font-family: georgia,palatino; color: #ffffff;">Links you may enjoy</span></p>
<ul>
<li><span class="font-size-4" style="font-family: georgia,palatino; color: #ffffff;"><a href="http://www.beltane.org/">Beltane Fire Society</a> - The official BFS website</span></li>
<li><span class="font-size-4" style="font-family: georgia,palatino; color: #ffffff;"><a href="http://www.night-watch.net/">Night Watch</a> - The Torchbearers and Stewards of Beltane</span></li>
<li><span class="font-size-4" style="font-family: georgia,palatino; color: #ffffff;"><a href="http://www.azurefeast.com/5215/5236.html/">Azure Feast</a> - A musical suite inspired by the Beltane Fire</span></li>
<li><span class="font-size-4" style="font-family: georgia,palatino; color: #ffffff;"><a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/local/edinburghandeastscotland/hi/people_and_places/arts_and_culture/newsid_8292000/8292893.stm">The Beltane Festival revealed</a> - bbc.co.uk</span></li>
<li><span class="font-size-4" style="font-family: georgia,palatino; color: #ffffff;"><a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/local/edinburghandeastscotland/hi/people_and_places/arts_and_culture/newsid_8650000/8650122.stm">Behind the pomp of Beltane Festival</a> - bbc.co.uk</span></li>
<li><span class="font-size-4" style="font-family: georgia,palatino; color: #ffffff;"><a href="http://www.taracelebrations.org/-_Bealtaine/">Solstice, Equinox & Fire Festival open gatherings</a> Tara Celebrations in Ireland</span></li>
</ul>
<p><span class="font-size-4" style="font-family: georgia,palatino; color: #ffffff;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beltane_Fire_Festival">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beltane_Fire_Festival</a></span></p>
<p> </p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span class="font-size-4" style="font-family: georgia,palatino; color: #ffffff;">Samhain</span></p>
<p><span class="font-size-4" style="font-family: georgia,palatino; color: #ffffff;"><a target="_self" href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/2060047312?profile=original"><img width="300" src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/2060047312?profile=original" class="align-center"/></a></span></p>
<p><span class="font-size-4" style="font-family: georgia,palatino; color: #ffffff;">The medieval Irish festival of Samhain marked the end of the harvest, the end of the "lighter half" of the year and beginning of the "darker half". It was celebrated over the course of several days and had some elements of a Festival of the Dead. Bonfires played a large part in the festivities. People and their livestock would often walk between two bonfires as a cleansing ritual, and the bones of slaughtered livestock were cast into its flames.</span></p>
<p></p>
<p><span class="font-size-4" style="font-family: georgia,palatino; color: #ffffff;"><i>Samain</i> or <i>Samuin</i> was the name of the <i>feis</i> or festival at the beginning of winter observed in medieval Ireland. It is attested in Old Irish literature beginning in the 10th century. The festival marked the end of the season for trade and warfare and was an ideal date for tribal assemblies, where the local kings gathered their people. These gatherings in turn are a popular setting for early Irish tales.</span></p>
<p></p>
<p><span class="font-size-4" style="font-family: georgia,palatino; color: #ffffff;">Samhain is one of the eight annual festivals, often referred to as 'Sabbats', observed as part of the Wiccan Wheel of the Year. It is considered by most Wiccans to be the most important of the four 'greater Sabbats'. It is generally observed on October 31 in the Northern Hemisphere, starting at sundown. Samhain is considered by some Wiccans as a time to celebrate the lives of those who have passed on, and it often involves paying respect to ancestors, family members, elders of the faith, friends, pets and other loved ones who have died. In some rituals the spirits of the departed are invited to attend the festivities. It is seen as a festival of darkness, which is balanced at the opposite point of the wheel by the spring festival of Beltane, which Wiccans celebrate as a festival of light and fertility.</span></p>
<p><span class="font-size-4" style="font-family: georgia,palatino; color: #ffffff;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samhain">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samhain</a></span></p>