Leaving the bar of dark chocolate with crushed coffee beans out where the preschooler could reach it.

Sweet Hubby is at work until 5.

It’s going to be a long day.

What a weekend!

As you are aware, the band and I were in Maryland this past weekend, performing at the Maryland Renaissance Festival.  This is the parent festival of our beautiful, but now defunct little Ontario Renaissance Festival.  My bandmate, Les, put it very well.  Visiting Maryland isn’t quite like going home.  Even though we’ve been several time now, the visits have been too few and too far between for quite that level of familiarity.  It’s more like visiting your older, cooler sister. 

I first visited Maryland after our inaugural year in Ontario in 1996.  It was the first long car trip with the nice guy that I had met at our faire, (we’ve been married 9.5 years now) and my first experience with an established faire.  I was utterly charmed by the entire “village” and in complete awe of established acts like the Pyrates Royale, who I have been a big fan of ever since.  They all seemed so professional compared to us.  It was a little daunting at the time.  Now, 12 years later, it’s still a thrill to be performing on the same stages as some of these acts, for the same fans, and, according the the feedback we got from both acts and fans alike, holding our own.  The same bands that both impressed and intimidated the heck out of me back then were nothing but friendly and welcoming, and it was a real pleasure to be visiting a big, well-established faire.  The fans were enthusiastic and generous as well, and CD sales weren’t bad at all for an act no one had ever heard of.  Several fans followed us from show to show over both days, and most of the “resident” performers made a point of stopping to hear at least part of a set.  The kindness of the Hooligans, the Interpreters, Gypsophelia and of course, the Pyrates went a long way towards dispelling the away game jitters.  I hope to see everyone again next year!  Shows that far away aren’t exactly big moneymakers for us, but this one is good for the soul.  It’s nice to re-establish the connection to the larger Faire community, and an opportunity to meet so many truly amazing, like minded people.  Even the heat couldn’t dampen the experience this weekend, although it certainly made a noble effort.  While the weekend ended far too quickly, it was a relief to be back home and in sweater weather on Monday night.  Of special note, my kind hosts for the weekend were my former boss and dear friend from our faire, and his lovely and knowledgeable wife.  It’s been a couple of years since I’ve seen them, and the experience was like visiting my big brother who’d moved away.  I’ve missed having him at my table in the summer time, and very much enjoyed getting to know his wife a little better.  He’d become a part of our family up here, and I was much reassured to find that neither the fondness nor the familiarity had been lost to time and distance.  ( I admit, I was a touch worried) I’ve had the honour of making some wonderful friends in the Festival community, and we’ve become a lot like a big, if scattered, extended family over the years. 

The only part of the trip that I didn’t thoroughly enjoy was the actual drive.  I took a different route coming and going, and regardless of which route I choose, the entire state of Pennsylvania seems to be consistently under construction, and has been since at least 1996.  At least I had company from another bandmate on the drive home.  Jen observed that the state tree of Pennsylvania appears to be the traffic cone.  We arrived exhausted but happy at about 7:30 Monday night. 

Now I’m off to unpack my suitcase.  After such a hot dusty weekend, it’s a 50/50 chance I’ll have to burn my costume.  Go Borax go!  I hope not, as I have another show on Saturday.  The last of the season, at Royal Medieval Faire in Waterloo Park West.  As much fun as it’s been, I’m looking forward to a little down time as the Festival Season comes to a close for us. 

To everyone who’s come out to a show, bought a CD, or supported us along the way, thank you!  It’s been a privilege performing for you. 

Have a wonderful fall/winter season!

So, as you know, we’re performing in Maryland this weekend. Yes Mom, I made it here safely.

The only bad thing I have to say about Maryland is that you have to drive through Pennsylvania to get here. Specifically through the mountains. I like mountains. The drive through the mountains is quite pretty when you’re a passenger. It’s a hell of a drive, however, when you’re alone, and driving a little Korean car that clearly wasn’t designed for mountain climbing. The trip worked out to about 11 hours with a brief stop in DC, and another half hour lost, in Southwest DC, trying to find my way back to the beltway. Eventually a gang of very nice Egyptian guys looked at my map and actually LED me back to the highway. I’ve heard horror stories about the people in this area, and while a little intimidating at first, were so kind, and generous with their time that I was blown away.

Still, by the time I got here I was exhausted. Like arms shaking, and not even sure I would be able to walk up the stairs to the bedroom my host has so graciously offered. All night long, every time I closed my eyes, all I could see was road.

Today, however, was worth the trip. After three visits here, I’ve finally gotten a chance to see the area surrounding the Renaissance Festival here, as opposed to just the road in between the house and the faire.

Annapolis has to be one of the loveliest cities ANYWHERE. Much of it was built in the late 1600’s and many of the original buildings are still standing. There are narrow cobblestoned streets, and, in spite of being the state capitol, it really doesn’t feel like a major urban center. You could point your camera in any direction, and the resulting shot would be postcard beautiful. Today the sun is out and the breeze is off the bay, so it was a perfect afternoon for a little exploring. Annapolis is officially “dog friendly” and there are water dishes and little doggy hitches all through the downtown. The other thing I’ve noticed is that the people here are as much a part of the local flavour as the buildings themselves, right down to the one eyed waitress at Chick and Ruth’s “delly”. This is a shabby orange plastic restaurant jammed into one of the narrow downtown storefronts. The place is not much to look at, but it’s a local favourite with literally every food you can imagine on the menu somewhere. For the record, they make a “super colossal Rueben that’s bigger than my head. No kidding. The high point of the day was the afternoon harbour cruise. It was a perfect day for sailing, and there’s a very interesting history to the area, and the cruise on the bay offers a unique vantage point of the city and the Naval Academey, as well as the surrounding harbour. I’ll post pictures when I get home. If you’re a history buff, this town was meant for you. Bring walking shoes though, as parking is scarce, and the driving can be hairy. Plan to spend the afternoon if you can, and come hungry. From fine dining to dingy little dives serving fresh crab cake sandwiches, to fudge shops and a little stand that sells hot, fresh made doughnuts that you can dip in just about any substance you can imagine, you could spend a month just eating your way around the waterfront without repeating. I’ve already sampled crab dip TWICE and it’s been two very different versions of the same dish. Must remember to track down a can of the Old Bay spice rub to bring home. It’s too bad the sulfasalazine I’m on now makes me so nauseous that I can’t eat much. I suppose, as weight loss programs go, it’s a good one, but it seems like such a waste… Sulfasalazine is like having a terrible hangover all the time, without the fun of drinking first.  The afternoon wrapped, after browsing the downtown shops for a souvenir for Hurricane Owen, with frozen dutch ice (think fresh squeezed lemonade slushy) and a trip to the site to pick up camping passes for the rest of the group arriving tomorrow.

It’s sunny and warm and the company is great. I’m staying with a dear friend that I’ve missed terribly since our faire closed, and his wonderfully outgoing and incredibly knowledgable wife. He works for the company that runs the themed harbour cruises, and she provides costumed, interactive historical performances, so I’m feeling incredibly spoiled having my own personal tour guides! 

I’m having a wonderful time, and we still have another day before the actual Festival, which will be something else entirely.  I’ve wanted to perform here since I first saw it in 1996, so I’m very excited, and a little nervous, as we are booked onto the same stages with some of our Rennfest HEROES.  It’s an honour to be here and I’m psyched.

Now a little much needed down time, as the drive and the activity thus far have reminded me just how much stamina I’ve lost being sick the last couple of years. A little frustrating, because there’s so much to see.

Overall, Having a wonderful time, wish you were here,

G O’Malley 

Ok, so summer has kind of gotten away from me this year.

It hasn’t been too bad a summer, all things considered. I’m still getting sick a lot, more on that later.

We took Hurricane Owen Camping with my parents at Rock Point Provincial Park for a week in August. While the surf was too rough for him to swim in pretty much the whole week, he DID get to drive grandma’s scooter, so it was all good. Good enough, even to make up for a week that was largely hot and rainy, except when it was cold and rainy. There was ONE perfect day, though, right in the middle. Owen still had a terrific time, and it really matters to me that he has some really great memories of special time spent with his grandparents.

Otherwise, it has mostly been a summer of trying to balance work and illness. About a month ago now, my specialist and I decided that I was *this* close to being in remission, and, as Sweet Hubby and I have been talking about wanting another baby before I’m 40, and I would need to be off all meds 6-8 months before we can even consider such things, that we would try going med free for a while, and see what happened.

Then he went on vacation.

I got two good weeks.

Now back on prednisone as of this morning to try to get bleeding and joints under control before I leave for the US on Wednesday.

We have our biggest show of the year next weekend at the Maryland Renaissance Festival- http://www.rennfest.com – and I’m the sickest I’ve been this year. Stairs are causing problems, which has me slightly dreading the hilly terrain at the faire, and back pain is making me a little nervous about making the 8-10 hour drive alone.

Nonetheless, I wouldn’t miss this show for the world. As my bandmate said, visiting Maryland isn’t QUITE like going home for us. It’s the same company that we worked for here in Ontario for nine years, but on a MUCH larger scale. It’s more like visiting your older, much cooler sister. There are dear friends that I can’t wait to see, and the idea that my health is going to slow me down even SLIGHTLY is pissing me off greatly.

I still have one more ten hour workday to get through tomorrow, then should be on the road by 8am on Wed. I’m going to miss Sweet Hubby and Hurricane Owen, but schedules this year are a tad hectic.

We perform Saturday and Sunday, I drive the 8-10 hours back on Monday, then am back at my desk for a 10 hour workday on Tuesday. The following Saturday we’re performing in Waterloo at Royal Medieval Faire in Waterloo Park West, then the weekend after that, Sweet Hubby is off to Chatham without me to perform at their “Heritage Days” festival.

Our next free weekend is the fourth weekend in October, so if you’ve been wondering why I never post anything here anymore, that’s why. I will post a Maryland Redux when we get home.

Wish us luck!