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Arastorm the Golden

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Photo
Arastorm the Golden.jpg
At the Stonemarche Palio, 2013
Information
Resides: Stonemarche
Status:
Awards: Order of Precedence
Heraldry
Arastorm blaz.gif
Gules, a seme of serpents involved Or
Award & Office Badges
Companion of the Order of the Rose Companion of the Order of the Laurel Companion of the Order of the Silver Crescent Companion of the Order of the Maunche Order of the Daystar Millstone

Joined the SCA in October, 1974. First event, King's Birthday Party (Aonghais Dubh) November 13? Date on first membership card December 1, 1974. At the time I was called Tchipakkan Arastorm- changed to Arastorm the Golden.

Formed house Stormgard with Maria of Oxenford as co-leaders at Valentines AS 8, also members were Ælfwine Dunedain, Tostig Gewisse (later James the Fair), Fernando Salazar, and my sister Patricia (who didn't stay). Soon after Vissevald Selkirksson joined. That night Maria accepted admittance of the new household as a sett of Clan Chreachin, and when she left for the mid-realm in June, gave her leadership to Ælfwine.

At Coronation (April, AS 8) I presented a portrait to Aonghais, outgoing King, and received my AoA (I think #13 in the East). At Twelfth Night Aelfwine got knighted by Cariadoc. Our betrothal feast was at Pennsic 3, our wedding feast in July AS 10. I made a flyer to be included in our wedding invitations on how to make simple garb which was the basis of my article in the KWH (I'd started on a complete new members guide in AS 10 and not finished it so Tam got impatient and made the Known World Handbook with multiple authors, as I'd done the Armorial). I think there are still versions of my Golden Key Guide being used today.

(hmm. getting off me, but...) During the first year in Carolingia I took over the Order of the Golden Key from Avi Ormstein and that dominated my life for the next several years. That was when I first wrote the BOD and told them that the rules were self conflicting and you couldn't have requirements for peerage and then give it out automatically to Counts.

At some point I was deputy seneschal of Carolingia. I was a herald, I was a marshal before they decided that you had to be a fighter, I did fight for a while, when Pikestaff went to every 6 weeks I was a deputy and put out Tooth-pike, a biweekly supplement of calendars for seneschals.

With Kathryn Goodwyn I started the Exotic Dancers Guild and I ran the 2nd Exotic Dancers contest (June or July 1976), which makes the Cattle Raid in Coilh Ordha AS 10, when the first contest was.

In AS 11 I put on the first Fair in the East, if not the SCA- the Steedmill Fair, although at the last minute it was moved from Aris of Steedmill's farm to Curry College.

At Coronation of Fernando and Ianthe (spring AS 11) we staged an Entrement which won the Canton of the Towers the right to have a Canton on our arms (I think I was seneschal of the Canton at the time).

In AS 12 we moved to NH and Melisande gave us the state to be the shire of Branswatch, which developed cantons: Anryveddud, [[Vatasvatstadir], and Little Goldenfolk(?) (must have gotten the Carolingian Order of the Daystar before that). I put out the newsletter BFR (Branswatch Family Reader, Branswatch Free Report, etc. the initials stayed the same and the title changed every issue) I was also contributing to the Soothsayers Guild Newsletter put out by Arwen Evaine. We'd had Ælfgifu in AS 10, and Ælfwyða in AS 13.

At Gyrth and Mel's Coronation I presented the first illustrated Armorial of the East, and received my OSC. I'd done the scrolls for Nicolyn and Fleeg (Fredrick of Holland).

AS 14 Tamera FitzGlouster made me a Court Baroness- I think that was at a Goldensword event. We started the Golden Sword (tourney for novices) in AS 12 (I think) as a summer solstice event. I think it's gone on every year since then.

In AS 14 we noticed that we'd been covering events costs by selling off the extra jewels we bought at the Dragon's Horde (a jewelry salvage warehouse in Bridge) and made a special purchase and started selling them at Pennsic under the name Cabochons.

In AS 15 Ælfwine won the crown (finally) which resulted in the Princesses Progress in September- I think I hit over 30 shires and baronies in that 30 days and collected thousands of recommendations. Our Coronation was in Bergental because of the promise of a previous king, and we went to Drachenwald over Yule. In an attempt to reduce the backlog we gave, I believe 205 AoAs (as well as other awards). We combined the offices of Master of Sciences and Mistress of Arts, We initiated alternative versions of awards that wouldn't destroy personas.

To create precident I attempted to refuse the automatic peerage when we stepped down, but was not allowed to- only to decline the OR (which I really would have liked to have had, but we NEED to make it not automatic!)

About that time there was an increase in required paperwork for branches, and Branswatch withdrew from the SCA in protest- and then one by one the cantons rejoined, thus effectively tripling the paperwork (sigh). The shires were eventually rejoined into Stonemarche.

When Megan and Morgan were chosen, we were offered the opportunity to be named Founding Baron and Baroness if we'd immediately step down, but took that as a slight, and refused. Megan and Morgan gave us the order of the Keystone or Foundation Stone or something that only went to us, and I've forgotten.

In AS 18 Ælfræd was born, and in AS 21 Ælfðryð. By AS 24 I'd either autocratted or been head cook at over 60 events and stopped counting. That would have been the year I put out the Stormgard Camping Booklet. I think it was AS 20 when they initiated "land grab" at the war, and we could no longer just go in and find a pleasant spot, and got stuck out on the Sarengeti. The next year we made our "playmobil" shop and became permanent merchants in the Old Market. Aelfwine and I got a joint Maunche about then for camping, and was being discussed for a Laurel but told several of them that they'd better not give me one for a "scabomination" like the shop, and they dropped it. That's the only Pennsic I didn't enjoy- although I have missed one (the one when Gavin was King- I had the flu and slept through it.

Around AS 29? we had a house-fire, and moved to a new house with a barn frame on it, which we rebuilt as a meadhall. We also got animals- goats, pigs, rabbits, chickens, geese, ducks, peafowl- but we forgot the peasants and that pretty much shut down our SCA activities except local ones for many years until Ælfræd was old enough to stay home and watch them when we went away. ("Master, I don't think you thought this out well...")

When Ælfwine got cancer and died, that also seriously curtailed our activities during his illness, although he did make Pennsic and his final Harpers.

After that I sold the panel shop and had a post and beam shop built on a trailer base to use at war (by Damasus aka Lugh)- starting Pennsic 32(?) I got into the habit of teaching as many classes as possible, and doing booklets to go with them (mostly on Anglo-Saxon subjects).

I was made the principle of the Order of the Lamp of Apollo in Stonemarche.

I was elevated to the Order of the Laurel by Brennen and Caoifhlion at the Lady of the Rose Tourney September AS 48, for "Many Publications and Teaching on Anglo-Saxon Subjects". My latest large project is Arastorm's Merchant Appreciation Award, first Pennsic XXXIX. I started this to raise awareness for excellence and contribution of merchants to the SCA and Pennsic.

Much editing needed, esp. for looking up dates is needed. Anyone who can fill in holes, please do.