Sometimes it is really wonderful to daytrip an event. Makes for a long day but you wake up in your own bed and get the whole day to feel like you still had a weekend with your family.

So this weekend was Hidden Mountain Baronial Birthday. Been a while since I did an event Best and Worst so here you go:

Worst:

Getting up at 0600 to daytrip...yuck.

McDonald's drive throughs that serve uncooked food. Yep, I got breakfast burritos that were uncooked. Fortunately after going back to reorder our food we still made it to site in good time.

Court on the field in the South Carolina sun. One of these days I will remember sunscreen!

Packing Christie's sandals instead of mine...no we do not wear the same size so I ended up going to dinner in tennis shoes when I just wanted to cool off in flippy sandals and a tee-shirt.

Best:

A trip with Les. Patience and support personified. Daytripping allowed the girls to be home for their own pursuits while he and I got to have our own SCA. He came to MOL (I think there were as many MOLs on site as any other office!) so he had a great time.

Bringing our own pavilion. I love having a spot to call my own where you can return to and keep your "stuff." This time, having a bit of shade for myself and others was wonderful. The day was unhealthy sunny so it was good to be able to offer hospitality. Made for quite a crowd in a 12 x 12.

Laughter. When a crowd gathers in the SCA there is always laughter. We had lovely visits with a bunch of folks and it was wonderful touching base with folks for a chat or two.

The hall. The hall was rounded with set wall depictions of building walls and really was striking when you walked in. Gorgeous.

Rhiannon heralding again. She looked so happy and efficient all day. Nice to see.

Great C&I efforts. Both Baroness Julianna and Baroness Rowen are wonderful C&I artists. So they rocked out some phenomenal work before the event so the scrolls given out were truly beautiful. Eldred sent a few for some folks from our Barony who received well deserved service awards.

Our Baronage. William and Julien have settled in to the roles with style and grace. We are blessed to have them represent us all "on the road." They have style, intelligence, humor and warmth. They are supportive, hard working and appreciative. I am proud to know them as friends.

The Waterbearers from Raven's Cove. Came for other things, saw a need and made it happen. I was so impressed. They made the difference in people being able to continue the day's activities after court.

Our Crowns. Relaxed, efficient, confident. Love to watch them in court and enjoy their company and humor in conversation.

Help dropping the pavilion. We bring it often and often have someone come by to help raise it but when it comes time to break down...Poof...nobody is there. Don't get me wrong. I offer shade because I can't relax watching someone else uncomfortable in the heat. Still, when we went to break down we had a ton of people there to break down and it was in the car before I knew it. Wow!

Which brings me to Nia and Neal. What dear friends. We seldom get to an event anymore where one or more of us have no assigned tasks. We got to laugh and talk and remember old times with all who came by. It was great. Then we went to a relaxed quiet dinner in Cheraw (midway between Raleigh and Columbia). Made my day. Thank you.

Next week Crown! I am excited. So many wonderful people competing.