MedFaire Weather

It looks as if the weather I predicted last July for MedFaire is still reasonably accurate. The storms right now are predicted to be heavier on Thursday than I said they’d be, but Friday, Saturday, and Sunday look to be almost spot-on.

If you go, don’t wear thin shoes or clothes that drag on the ground. It will be somewhat muddy, at least on Friday. After that, it should be hard packed and dried out enough not to worry. Dress warm for Friday, but do so in layers so as the day warms up, you can remove some of them. Bring extra socks that are dry in case your feet get wet.

The wind will be the usual MedFaire wind – I’m thinking around 20-25 miles per hour, with gusts up to 35. We may get a burst of higher wind Saturday night – maybe up to 40 or 45 miles per hour.

If you’re a merchant out there, bring good tie-downs and sturdy stakes. If not, any of the blacksmiths can make stakes for you, Elm Tree Forge usually stocks pre-made stakes – he’s on the south side of the Faire on the other end of the row of merchants immediately south of the SCA Compound, backing on to Jenkins Avenue where the cross walk is in the middle of the block.

I will have Scottish Eggs, roast buffalo, cheese, and bread to share. Maybe some fruits and cookies. On Sunday, I’ll have treats to celebrate Itzl’s birthday.

MedFaire

MedFaire is NEXT WEEKEND!

Rain or shine (but probably rain, it always rains during set up), folks will be out marking spaces, setting up electricity cords, finding all the pieces to the various buildings we erect, and sorting through the fabrics and laundering nad pressing them. This will go on until Thursday, when I get to relax in the faire office and directing people to their spaces and helping to resolve last minute issues.

Friday morning I will be in the faire office directing schools to the cool spots for kids and pointing out the First Aid station for all the inevitable bangs, scrapes, and bumps.

Saturday and Sunday mornings both I’ll be at the Info Booth on the south end of the faire.

This year I don’t have to do sound management on any of hte stages. This is a Good Thing since I can’t hear feedback, and haven’t reliably heard it for several years. All the performers would cringe when they saw I’d been assigned to their stage, with my little hearing dog. They’d make the best of it, poor things. And when the feedback got bad enough, they’d stop and send someone over to adjust it for me. The stages that had visual sound level meters and lights that indicated feedback I could handle – not great but enough that no one’s ears got blasted. I was always extremely amused that a person with a hearing problem was doing sound management.

I guess there were enough complaints last year (I should hope so – I filed several dozen myself!) that I am removed from sound management. Yay!

When I’m not at the office or the info booth, I will be at Elm Tree Forge, just south of the row of booths south of the SCA area, along Jenkins. There’s a crosswalk right by Elm Tree Forge, giving him plenty of room in case of fire – or, more likely, coal smoke embuing other merchant’s products.

I will be making me two new underdresses to wear with my old overdresses, and a new neck pouch for carrying Itzl. I’ve finished off his new costumes and have been trying to teach him some cool tricks for the Faire, but he’s not reliable in doing those tricks. He’s a hearing dog, not a circus performer, he’ll have me know. Even if he does love his pretty, froo-froo clothes.

MedFaire.

If you’re anywhere in central Oklahoma March 30, 31, or April 1, stop by. It’s free admission. And April 1 is Itzl’s birthday.

Sound Familiar

People who don’t know any better as well people who should know better keep asking me if Itzl is my familiar.

For those who don’t know any better – there is absolutely no way I would allow Itzl to be my familiar. He is too valuable to me, not just because he helps me with the things I can no longer do for myself (hearing alarms, sirens, ringtones, train whistles – I regret that one, I like train whistles), but because he is very dear to me.

I am very protective of him because he is charming, personable, sweet, funny, useful, and cuter than a bug in a rug.

I would be devastated if he were my familiar.

Familiars are animals that absorb negative energies about one, malignant and malevolent forces. They tend to die young. This is why historically, witches had toads, frogs, salamanders, newts, rats, and such as familiars. These animals tended to be short lived anyway, so they weren’t losing much of their life if they died from psychic attacks, malignant spirits, evil forces, or spells gone awry. In cultures that viewed cats and dogs more as work animals than as pets, they were sometimes used as familiars as well. Most often the creature chosen as a familiar was a stray, an animal with less than endearing qualities, so when it died, it wasn’t a wrenching loss.

Do you begin to see why it offends me when someone asks if Itzl is my familiar?

Nor is he a numen, for numena are the discorporate form of loved ones or ancestors who have left behind their individuated corporeal life, or the spiritual embodiment of natural forces or ideas. Since Itzl is very much still alive and corporeal, I have no desire for him to become a numen anytime soon.

What he is is my companion, my partner, and, in some ways, my soul-mate. We are a match (and those of you who have met him in person will understand that more than those who’ve only seen pictures of him).

For those who should know better – I’m sure y’all are clever enough to connect the dots.

I have had familiars in the past, at need. They never lived long. But I and mine stayed safe, and I am very grateful for their sacrifice. I remember them fondly in the winter celebrations that honor the dead and the afterlife and commend them well into Dea Nutrix.

Dogs and Color

Dogs do see in color. They don’t necessarily see in as wide a range of colors as we do, and different breeds have differing levels of color perception. Even within breeds, color perception varies, much the same way it does among humans.

This article has a color chart of what scientists think most dogs see in comparison to humans.

Itzl does seem to have a wider range of color vision than most dogs – he can distinguish purple and red. It’s possible the pink he loathes is seen by him as an obnoxious yellow, and he does have trouble seeing green unless it’s got a lot of blue tone in it and is bright. He’s attracted to purple, red, and blue the most.

New research indicates even cats can see some colors, blue being one of the easier colors for them to see.

Spring Fever

We went spring shopping today – the hardware store for screws and metal glues and wood glues to repair the lawn furniture that was bent and warped by the winter weather, and the garden store to see what bulbs, seeds, and plants were out already.

I scored the right screws (yay!) and got the arches in the front yard repaired. The gazebo in back will have to wait a few days. It’s going to require two people to work on it and we have to coordinate schedules.

The garden store was woefully empty. I guess it’s too early for them. My yard, however, is ready to grow. I have dandelions up and wild plantain and the daffodils are shooting up and the irises. Thelavedner is in bud along with the roses. My sage is greening back and the rosemary is thickening up. The horsetails are already hip high. The mints have little leaves peeking up. Even the basil is sending up a tiny shoot or five.

My redbud will soon be covered in yummy red buds. Two weeks. I’m sure it will be two weeks before I’m munching on red buds again.

I know we’re getting more cold weather, but the worst for the season is over.

Even Itzl is agitating to go outside and play. He’s being neglectful of his duties and whines at me that he wants out. He’s restless and not very focused unless he’s dressed. At least his training holds when he has clothes on.

He’s also determined to not let me out of his sight for a nanosecond.

We were in the parking lot at the hardware store, and I asked Chantria if she wanted to go to the garden center with me. Itzl immediately jumped up and leaped into my arms so I wouldn’t leave him behind. Never mind that we were already in the car, and he was with us, and we’d already gone to one place. He was freaked out that I might leave him behind.

Silly boo.

So we went to the garden center with him, then to the novelty store to see what last minute Mardi Gras goodies they might have (voodooo doll bead necklaces!).

Then, I drove Chantria down to where her new job is, to show her how to get there and some good eating places that are hidden, tucked away in places downtown. She will be working just a couple of blocks away from me, and a couple of blocks away from laughterdance. I am almost exactly in the middle there.

Then we drove through a few neighborhoods near by so she could see what they were like before she started house hunting among them.

Itzl was utterly content because he was with me the whole time.

When we got home, he ran around like a maniac outside while I repaired the arches and other garden structures out front.

Now, he’s hoping to be rewarded for good behavior with a piece of King Cake. I think he remembers it from last year.

More Snow

Even though it’s been snowing almost constantly since Tuesday, this is all the snow that’s accumulated.

Itzl isn’t too sure of it, and he quickly wanted back in where it’s warm and dry.

In fact, he’s taken up residence in my lap because I have a space heater under the desk that keeps our immediate area warm. If I had a fireplace, he’d compete with the cats for a spot in front of it.

Faux Paws Brewery

OK, after research, and pricing equipment, and locating ingredient sources, I think Faux Paws Brewery (thanks for the votes!) is a go.

Last weekend, I formulated several non-alcoholic pet brews that were met with much slurping from the big dogs out back, the cats, the rat and hammie, the hedgie, and the ferret.

I don’t expect to have any demand for the hammie, hedgie, and ferret blends, but the cat and dog beverages should prove popular. assuming I can find catchy names for them, that is.

I’ve thought of some names, but I’m open to suggestions or alternate names:

Rottweiler Dunkelbier: for dogs. Made with beef, buffalo, and free range turkey broth, malt, liquid dog vitamins, slightly fizzy mineral water, and a touch of molasses to make it darker.

Haveneser Draft – for dogs. Made with chicken broth, rabbit broth, dog vitamins, malt, fizzy mineral water, garlic, and carrot juice.

Lap Dog Lager for dogs. Made with buffalo and venison broth, dog vitamins, fizzy mineral water, malt, molasses, garlic, ginger, and carrot juice.

The last one I made is Moon Doggy Mead for dogs. Made with chicken broth, bony salmon broth, honey, garlic, fizzy mineral water, dog vitamins, and pumpkin juice.

Abyssinthian Amber: For cats. Made with non-fizzy mineral water, tuna and salmon bony broth, cat vitamins, carrot juice, and cat nip tea.

OciCatbernet for cats. Made with chicken broth, carrot and beet juice (for coloring), cat nip tea, fizzy mineral water, cat vitamins, and a bony broth for extra calcium.

Other names (with no recipes attached) are: Black and Tan Boozehound Beer, Howling Beef Ale, Bubba Dog Brewski, Fat Cat Cream Ale, and Egyptian Mau Please.

I have an artist friend who is creating the logo for me, and will design the labels once I settle on names and ingredients for the brews.

I think 6 different kinds is a bit ambitious to start. But I haven’t a clue which I should try marketing first. I already make the Moon Doggy Mead for Itzl on a regular basis and he adores it. It replenishes him on hot days, and as a black dog, that’s important. Now, assuming you would buy beer for your pets, which would you be more likely to try for your dog or cat? Would you pay $2.50 a 12 ounce bottle for it, or $10.00 a six-pack (plus shipping)? I can’t really get the prices much lower, as I use a lot of meat and meaty bones in the making of these – and meat’s not cheap even when I get it from local ranchers.

Pet Beverages

Well, I found a close and relatively inexpensive source for bottles. I can get them in green, clear, and amber.

I’ve also sold 2 cases of Dogshead Mead, and will have to make them this weekend.

I have another food article to write.

I need to get started on making garb for MedFaire. I’m wondering if I should contact the Faire Coordinator and ask for a booth from which to sell these pet brews? And I need a name for it so I can use them on the labels.

Chantria suggested Booze Hound Brewery. It sounds good, but I also sold half a case of Sea Cream Cat Beer.

I thought of calling it the Sirius Brewery, but I feel that’s too close to the Dog Star Brewey in California.

I could go with Faux Paws Brewery.

Or Tipsy Paws Brewery.

Booze Hound

Time Online has an article in it about Dog Beer, made in the Netherlands. He makes his with beef and malt and extra minerals.

Because Itzl desperately loves drinking from bottles (bottled water is easier to haul than bowls of it) and he also desperately wants to drink my Dr. Pepper, wine, juice, or whatever I’m having, I have made special Puppy Mead for him – honey and chicken, slightly fizzy, no alcohol.

He loves drinking it whenever I drink from a bottle myself. Because he’s been so deeply acclimated to human culture, he may think he’s a very small human. After all, I expect him to earn his kibble and toys by being my service partner. He has a lot of work to do for that little walnut sized brain of his.

He’s not a big beef eater, but he adores buffalo. I wonder if I use a bufflao essence and mesquite honey, if I can brew up a dark “beer” to go with Itzl’s mead?

I can create a whole line of Booze Hound Brews.

And making other brewskies for, say, cats (I think a creme soda, easy on the fizz and heavy on the tuna might be acceptable), rats (they’ll drink most anything, just in rat-sized bottles), and ferrets (de-caf, of course, ferrets don’t need any encouragement to be any more hyper than they already are).

I’d never thought of marketing Itzl’s mead to other pet owners, but I could do it. What regulations are there for making pet beverages?

My research tonight is cut out for me.

Snowboots

I will be packing away Itzl’s quad of snowboots until the next bout of bad weather. He doesn’t like wearing them until we get outside and he realizes just how much traction they give him and how much more stable he is on his feet. Then he tolerates them.

During this ice storm, he’s also discovered how much warmer his little feet stay in them. When it got really cold, he even brought one of his boots to me so I would get the hint and put them all on him.

He is far too clever for his own good at times.

Right now, he’s trying his Jedi mind tricks on my daughter to convince her to share some of the fresh from the oven yeast cake with him.