A Bard's Blog

 Crypto Jewish, Passover Rollillos  Dealing with the state of the world with a friendly baking challenge. First week in March theme was any holiday. From the Cookbook “A Drizzle of Honey” It uses Inquisition records to recreate recipes and given the Spring holidays coming up, it seemed meaningful to try this one. I used white pepper for this recipe. The only honey I had on hand was a spiced honey, so I used that.  Crypto Jews would often be generations away from someone  who had practiced their faith legally so recipes may not be strict for that various cultural traditions of Jewish communities today. Easter European Jews have a strict tradition about baking times because any kind of matzah isn’t supposed to rise. So from mix to oven is only allowed at eighteen minutes.  I explored a bit of ancient matzah as well for research and most of that would have been griddled, over a fire. Result for this was a flatbread consistency, I would probably experiment with thin...

Disability in SCA Period through Art and Theater  Alienor Hathaway  146537@members.eastkingdom.org   Introduction to some of the recent disability scholarship on cognitive, physical, and mental disability throughout time and lands covered by the SCA. The attitudes and language in period ranged from distressing attitudes of monstrosity to thoughtful consideration. As examples, we will consider Shakespeare's portrayals of disability and artistic renderings of disability. Please be aware that the language and images from original sources can be  distressing  Detail of Old Age, portrayed as a woman with a crutch from the Roman de la Rose, Harley MS 4425 , f. 10v  https://blogs.bl.uk/digitisedmanuscripts/2016/09/disability-and-illnesses-in-medieval-manuscripts.html St. Pantaleon restored the sight of a blind man, Chartres Cathedral https://www.cathedrale chartres.org/en/mediasrc/disabled-people-in-the-stained-glass-windows-of-chartres-cathedral/   “Th...

Compiled Period Works for a Young Bard Compiled by Alienor Hathaway  146537@members.eastkingdom.org      The North Wind Doth Blow      16th Century Nursery Rhyme       The North wind doth blow and we shall have snow,      And what will poor robin do then, poor thing?      He'll sit in a barn and keep himself warm      and hide his head under his wing, poor thing.      For Want of a Nail      The earliest recorded version of this proverb comes from 1230 Middle High German.      For want of a nail the shoe was lost;      For want of a shoe the horse was lost;      For want of a horse the battle was lost;      For the failure of battle the kingdom was lost—      All for the want of a horse-shoe nail.                  http://www.pbm.com/~li...

Evolution of Robin Hood What do you think of when you hear “Robin Hood”? http://boldoutlaw.com/robbeg/robbeg3.html I.  William Langland in The Vision of William Concerning Piers the Plowman , printed ca.1377. “If I shulde deye bi this day-me liste nought to loke; I can noughte perfitly my pater-noster- as the prest it syngeth, But I can rymes of Robyn hood-and Randolf erle of Chestre, Ac neither of owre lorde ne of owre lady-the leste that evere was made.” II. From Robin Hood and the Monk ca.1450 edited by Stephen Knight and Thomas H. Ohlgren http://d.lib.rochester.edu/teams/text/robin-hood-and-the-monk Ye, on thyng greves me," seid Robyn, "And does my hert mych woo: That I may not no solem day To mas nor matyns goo. "Hit is a fourtnet and more," seid he, "Syn I my Savyour see; To day wil I to Notyngham," seid Robyn, "With the myght of mylde Marye." ---- "He is trew to his maister," seid oure kyng; "I sey, be swete Seynt John, He ...