Shenanigans at the Renaissance Fair

I’m a super nerd. This works out well when there’s a Renaissance Fair in town. Scarborough Faire runs from the first weekend in April through Memorial. Despite the fact that Waxahachie is only an hour away, I never went to the fair during my lifetime in Texas. You can’t really go alone, my mother says, “It’s not my thing,” and, at an event that usually lasts between 4-6 hours, I wasn’t about to listen to my brother and sister complain about all the weirdos (they are achingly average sometimes), while Dad looked at all the costumes and said (with hints of condescension) “Well, that’s interesting.”

My first outing to the fair was at the beginning of the month. Read about that one here. See if you can guess which one I am.

I went again yesterday for the final fair day of 2012.

My traveling companions

On the one hand, I think the fair is just an excuse to get drunk in public. This is not a bad thing. Maybe inhibitions need to be a lowered a bit to gnosh on a turkey leg outside the comfort zone of the Thanksgiving table. The people are amazing. I appreciate when someone can give as good as they get. The way the performers deal with hecklers is so smooth, I almost wondered if the hecklers might have been planted. Also, during the parade, I may have started chanting, “Keep Catholics catholic!” at Henry VIII.

Fun facts:

• Scarborough Renaissance Festival is a Renaissance-themed festival based on the year 1533, during the reign of England’s King Henry VIII
• Scarborough Festival is a 35 acre ‘village’ (larger than most area shopping malls) within a 167 acre site
• The festival employs more than 2,000 performers, artisans, food service people, grounds crew, and retail staff during the course of a season
• The festival is a privately held company owned by the same two families since its inception.
• Annual Attendance:  200,000

We arrived around 12:30pm. We slowly wandered (read: drank) our way around the fairgrounds. After two beers and a cup of delicious mead, I decided to buy an axe. I’d been eying this axe since my first visit. It was magnificent, built for a headsman, glorious. Six feet long, it weighs 13 pounds. You don’t really notice how heavy that is until the day after you carry it for a two miles over the course of five hours.

Sholoh the Nubian, me, and THE AXE

I get home from the fair and announce I have a souvenir. I show my parents the upgraded weaponry. They are less than impressed. On a different note, my dog must have been beheaded in a previous life because he is scared to death of it.

Anyway, Ren fair society is an interesting thing to behold. Everyone one knows everyone. People are so friendly. It’s like they don’t even let the naysayers cross the threshold. If you’re a nerd, whether steampunk, Dr. Who, or Star Trek loyal, get thee to a Renaissance Fair. You’ll find your kind. And these guys…

Bowmen
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