Plymouth Report

As always, the annual Battle of Plymouth Living History Weekend was a fun time. Someone put it very well when they said that Plymouth is kind of a like a family reunion for the reenacting community in eastern NC. You always see lots of folks that you know and some that you haven't seen in a while. I always enjoy Plymouth because we get to work on the boats, something that we don't get to do often. I participated in two of the three battle scenarios on Saturday. We also took part in the torch light tours on Saturday night. I had a much easier part this year than I've had in the past. I was basically able to go to sleep beside a campfire and portray a sleeping soldier. How hard can that be!? The memorial service on Sunday morning was nice, and I decided to leave a bit early rather than stick around for the Sunday battle. I understand that was a good decision as the rain came in just about the time the battle began. At any rate, it was a fun event and we'll look forward to it again next year.

Weekly Quote

From the Mariner's Book of Days:

Father Neptune has no patience with those who do not respect him. ~L. Frances Herreshoff

Plymouth Event This Weekend

I would encourage anyone who reads this blog to jump over to my buddy Chris Grimes' blog Albemarle Soundings and check out his latest post. Its sort of a brief history of how our group, the Carolina Living History Guild got its start. At least that's where it ends up. The main point of the post is that the annual living history and reenactment at Plymouth, NC is slated for this weekend. We always have fun playing Union Navy and working on the full-size reproduction of a period steam launch. In the evenings (if we manage to escape getting drafted to help with the torchlight tour) we get to sit around camp, socialize, and enjoy some cigars and/or pipes and our favorite libations. Hopefully this year will be as much fun as in the past.

Weekly Quote

Our weekly quote from the Mariner's Book of Days:

He who lets the sea lull him into a false sense of security is in very grave danger. ~Hammond Innes

So Busy I Almost Forgot

Its Stanley Cup Time!!!

Quick Update

Talked to mom last night and dad came through the second surgery just fine. A few days in the ICU and they'll move him to a regular room on the neuro floor. Apparently the reason they didn't get everything done the first time is that they didn't know how strong the old geezer was and weren't sure how much he could handle. Once they saw how strong he still is they determined to go back and get the rest. At 70, my dad has already outlived all of his brothers (except for the ones that are still living, of course) so yeah, he's pretty strong alright. Hopefully I can kick this sinus infection and go see him sometime soon.

One Thing or Another

Well, I had a good trip to Asheville (sort of). I always enjoy going there and it really is one of my favorite places in North Carolina. Trouble is, this time I came down with what has turned out to be a sinus infection. Not so bad if you don't have to travel seven hours home with it. Thankfully the boss was understanding and drove the whole way home while I tried to sleep. Got some killer antibiotics today and am hoping they kick in soon!

I also found out in a roundabout way that my dad is having a second surgery today. Mom called at 10:30 last night and I was so out of it she talked to Lori. I have no details at this point, other than they were going back in to remove more clotting. I'm wondering why they didn't get it all the first time. Waiting to hear something from mom.....

Weekly Quote

Our weekly quote from the Mariner's Book of Days is short, but sweet:

A night on the sea in an open boat is a long night. ~Stephen Crane

Long Weekend

This weekend turned out to be a long one for a number of reasons. Our living history group participated in the annual Halifax Day celebration at Historic Halifax, NC. I was there most of the day on Friday and all day Saturday. Crowds were good (about 400 by our estimate), but the rain came in Saturday afternoon and left everything at least a little damp. I dare say every reenactor out there hates to take wet canvas home and I am no exception. In order to keep mold and mildew away you've got spread it out somewhere and let it dry. Luckily I have plenty of empty space in my office building in which to do this.

On the personal front, my dad had emergency surgery on Friday afternoon to flush a blood clot off of his brain. The surgery went well and the doctors and nurses are satisfied with his recovery to this point. Lori and I went to see him today and he's getting very restless. He's always been that way, but having to lie flat with a bunch of stuff hooked up to him isn't sitting very well with him. He continually removes things like EKG monitors and his pulse monitor on his finger. The nurse said he even ripped his catheter out, which I can't even imagine. Best of all is his attitude. When I told him he needed to calm down and behave like a good patient his response was "No I don't damn it!" After asking for a drink of water the nurse entered the room and he said "Where's my f-ing water?" Anyway, he's cantakerous at best and I wonder how much longer he'll have to stay in the hospital. He'll only get harder to deal with the longer he stays there. He is a prime case for restraint and/or sedation. God bless my mother. One day I'll be like that - its scary. At least Lori is getting a taste of it now with my dad.

It promises to be a long week ahead with site visits to Bennett Place and Duke Homestead on Monday then a trip to Vance Birthplace on Tuesday and Wednesday. There are also some other activities that I'll mention later. Should be a busy one!

One More Thing Off My List

I wrote the review for Wolf of the Deep today and submitted it to Military Collector and Historian Magazine. I'm waiting for a reply from the editor. At any rate, that's one more thing I can check off my "To Do" list. Now I'm on to working on a couple of encyclopedia entries on War of 1812 subjects, Otway Burns and Johnston Blakeley. The fun never ends!

Weekly Quote

From the Mariner's Book of Days:

Serve God only, preserve your victuals, beware of fire, and keep good company. ~advice for the 16th century sailor from Sir John Hawkins

Decisions

As you may have picked up on from reading this blog, our living history group's membership and scope of interpretation has increased tremendously over the past year or so. Whereas we started out doing Civil War Navy and Marine Corps exclusively, we have now branched out to include naval impressions from the 1770s and 1812, as well as adding a Continental Line impression for the 1770s. If you want to see it all you can go to our unit's website, the Carolina Living History Guild. What this leads to is a wonderful diversity of programs throughout the year, but it also leads to tough decisions about which programs to attend and which to cut. Obviously we can't do every program that comes our way due to our lives outside the hobby. This year we have no fewer than 20 events on our schedule, and I will personally do 30 or more because of my line of work.

We have just hit our biggest logjam of the year, with two programs in April and two more in May. Its a good problem to have, but on the weekend of May 3-4 we had to pick from three events. All three events have their pros and cons, and all are within a 90-minute drive of each other. We talked about splitting our crew and covering two of the three (knowing there's no possible way to do them all). In the end we chose one and made it a maximum effort event. Like I said, its nice to have these problems, but we do miss out on some good programs in the process. As for the May 3 program, you'll have to wait until I blog about it to find out more.