Flying, Forts, and Friends.
Dec. 17th, 2009 01:00 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
ktlovelyWhen we last left our heroine, she was sitting at the Gerald R. Ford International Airport, patiently awaiting her 6:35 a.m. flight departure.
Yeah, that didn't so much happen. At about 6:20, the gate agent came over the intercom to cheerfully inform us that Grand Rapids currently had one working runway, and that was being closed for plowing until seven. To their credit, they boarded us, de-iced the plane, and had us taking of just about at seven on the dot, which left me the absolute perfect amount of time to make my connection in Detroit, which then got me to the Dallas/Fort Worth airport around noon. It was staggeringly simple. I was amazed. And also slept through almost the whole trip.
Anyway. Ginger met me at the airport and we proceeded to fill the rest of Thursday (was it not even a week ago?!) with pre-event sewing and packing. I did not take pictures, but I did text Mike and told him "So I showed up here for vacation and spent all day on a sewing machine." Which was fun! We shortened some skirts, lengthened a hoop, and assembled a pair of little undersleeves. And packed. Actually, I sewed and Ginger packed, which worked out great.
Then on Friday--Fort Washita! More after the picture and the cut.
Staying indoors--it was cold outside!
When we got to the fort, it was pretty chilly out. Definitely sweatshirt weather, a coat would have been better, and gloves were good to have. I'm guessing it was in the forties? Which, given that it was twelve degrees in Mason, MI the day before, felt pretty good to me. That's not to say I wasn't cold. I just knew I wasn't going to die from it.
Ginger working on her quilted hood--much needed for warmth! And a dress that I didn't even know Ginger owned because there weren't pictures online. Green check (?) wool with a lavender bias trim, double-pointed bodice.
And the hood, mostly finished! I think one tie was still pinned and the turnback might have been pinned, too.
Side of the hood, and another dress...although I think there were pictures of this one a few years ago from the week-long event down south. Er...south for me.
My hood, which was only done pre-event because the pattern was stupidly easy. I was very glad to have it though! Wore it pretty much the whole weekend.
It got pretty cold on Friday night, but I kept surprisingly warm. Ginger's family graciously provided me with a cot and pad to sleep on, and so between that (being off the ground) and several blankets, I was actually fine. It might have been "fort-st-joseph-cold" but I didn't wake up at five a.m. with people all up in my bidness and no covers, so I was thrilled.
And then we lost power. Not that we were using much electricity to speak of in the living quarters, but we did have a couple space heaters on account of there were babies that needed to be kept warm...but then something happened and we lost electricity, which caused the kitchen in which our meals were being prepared to be...less helpful than it was when there was power. It didn't last long, though, so we had a warm meal instead of a hot one for Saturday breakfast, washed our dishes in REALLY REALLY COLD water once, and then were fine for the rest of the weekend after the power came back on (due to someone's hard work; I'm just not sure who made with the magic on that one.)
Speaking of babies (which I did), there were a couple exceedingly adorable ones. I'm a big fan of infants, especially when they're making cute faces, not fussing, and dressed adorably. We had a trifecta.
This one was a living Cabbage Patch Kid. Seriously.
I don't know about Ginger (who was forced into service as a book-on-tape), but my Saturday at the fort was amazingly pleasant. It was still cold, but we parked ourselves in front of the fireplace in the ladies' quarters and I worked on Mike's Christmas present while Ginger read to us aloud. Treasure Island, which is a fantastic be-read-to story even if it's not perfectly correct for the period.
By the time I'd finished the soutache on the band of Mike's smoking cap, it was time to get ready for the ball--also known as dinnertime with dancing to follow. And Ginger changed into yet another dress that I had no idea existed. Magic surprise wardrobe!
See that? That's a curling iron. Like, a not-electrical one. I told her she could try it on my hair.
I actually had no idea how a period(ish--this one is slightly later, but the principle is still the same) curling iron would work, so it was a revelation for me when she had me clip it to the chimney of the nearest oil lamp to heat up. Duuuuh! I saved her a chunk of hair loose at the nape of my neck when I re-styled the front around my headpiece, and gelled the dickens out of it while we waited for the iron to heat up.
It worked! Not as well as it could have if we had been patient enough (and had enough time) to let the iron get really hot for each curl, but it definitely made ringlets! I'm not sure how long they lasted, or if they dropped out, or at what point they did so, and I forgot to check at the end of the night...but there were ringlets for a little while at least.
As you can see, this was kind of a highlight for me. I've always wanted to try it!
The ballroom was quite lovely; Ginger and I had hung garlands in the windows on Friday afternoon, but then others had gone to gather greenery from the outdoors and there was juniper and mistletoe and candles bedecking the windowsills, chandeliers, and mantel. This makes three Civil War era events at which I have danced, and I have been surprised and pleased at how good the young men are about asking for dances. Not that there was a huge crowd here; I think it split pretty evenly on the guy/girl ratio, which is rare. And it was cool for me, because I've danced under like, two callers in all the time I've been doing this--Ray Bantle and Glenn Morningstar. I like them both, and they both do different kinds of dances, but I've started to get used to both of them and there are definitely dances that I've done many times now. The ones we did Saturday were new to me, so that was fun. Except the Virginia Reel, which I spent two summers teaching tourists how to do (sometimes), which was still fun and relaxing, since I didn't have to learn anything new!
Also, there were desserts. And undersleeves! Those were part of Thursday's sewing projects.
Ginger's "not approved," face, due to the fact that I was taking her picture while she was eating.
Oh, and also, Ginger gave me gloves! They've got adorable little beaded flowers on them, and I felt very proper to be finally dancing not-barehanded.
Annnd...this was just cute.
Sunday was breakfast, which I probably would have slept through if Ginger hadn't shaken me awake, and then packing up. I'm glad she did wake me up; I somehow managed to sleep through almost everyone waking up and starting to get dressed, including the little children, which is excessive even for me.
Last photo at the fort!
We hurried to pack up and get back so that everyone could shower and change before heading off to a choir concert in which Ginger and her brother would be singing. Short version: we made it with plenty of time, I really enjoyed the concert, and I finally lost my internal battle to not make Chicken Run references on account of Ginger's name being...Ginger. But then her brother called her "Dollface" and I didn't feel so bad. ;) I also got to meet one of my until-then just-Facebook friends, Christopher, which was great.
Despite having slept relatively well during the actual event, I was quite tired by the time we got back to Ginger's house, and slept like the proverbial rock. We got up early-ish the next morning and fitted a corset pattern for Ginger, though, which went smoothly and will hopefully be very helpful in the future!
Flying back home was a little more eventful than my trip down, however. Ginger dropped me off at the airport in plenty of time for my noon-ish flight. Except that my flight was then delayed by almost an hour. Okay...except my layover in Minneapolis was only an hour and ten minutes. So I talked to the gate agent and she switched my flights so I was flying to Detroit and then getting back to Grand Rapids at darn near the original planned time. It also gave me an extra hour so I could grab a quick lunch at the airport. As it turns out, I didn't actually need to...why?
Because they sat me in first class, that's why! It was a complete surprise to me; I didn't even bother to look at the seat assignment on my new boarding pass. I just checked what gate I had to be at and at what time I had to be there, and then found food. When it turned out that seat 3-A was in first class, you could have knocked me over with a feather. And yeah, first class really is nicer. I've had worse service at nice restaurants. I also got to finish Mike's gift on a larger-than-average tray table with nobody jostling my elbow, which was great. Also good that I could finish it on the plane, because he and Tyler met me at the Grand Rapids airport shortly after I landed and if I hadn't finished it en route, it wouldn't have gotten done.
Anyway, yes. Mike and Tyler (and evidently Gwendolyn, though that wasn't what I told my landlord when I let him know just-in-case) had been staying at my apartment for a portion of the weekend while I was gone, as Tyler had a stopover on his way home to Traverse City from Delaware. They picked me up at the airport and we dropped in at my parents' house to use the internet and pick up my car. I had my mom wrap Mike's present (Tyler's and Gwendolyn's were already wrapped and I left them under my undecorated tree before I left) and we then left to go pick Gwendolyn up at work. It all worked out quite well, since then all three of them were there when I finally walked into my apartment. Why is that important?
Because while I was gone, my friends decorated my apartment for Christmas, that's why. Gwendolyn apparently forced Mike and Tyler (and Tyler's brother and our friend Sarah) to cut out dozens of paper snowflakes, which were then suspended on thread from the ceiling. The tree was decorated with more cutouts, and red tinsel...which apparently was cookie wrapper at one point. And Mike (I think?) made a tree topper, using foil that I didn't even know I owned, but that was evidently in one of my kitchen drawers. ("I had FOIL? Where!?)
When I saw it all from the kitchen door, I pretty much dropped everything in my hands right there on the floor and wandered into the front room in a daze. It was perfect.
And this? This was just cute. They're blowing upwards to make the snowflakes flutter, right before bed. If I did Christmas cards, this would be my photo.
Yeah, that didn't so much happen. At about 6:20, the gate agent came over the intercom to cheerfully inform us that Grand Rapids currently had one working runway, and that was being closed for plowing until seven. To their credit, they boarded us, de-iced the plane, and had us taking of just about at seven on the dot, which left me the absolute perfect amount of time to make my connection in Detroit, which then got me to the Dallas/Fort Worth airport around noon. It was staggeringly simple. I was amazed. And also slept through almost the whole trip.
Anyway. Ginger met me at the airport and we proceeded to fill the rest of Thursday (was it not even a week ago?!) with pre-event sewing and packing. I did not take pictures, but I did text Mike and told him "So I showed up here for vacation and spent all day on a sewing machine." Which was fun! We shortened some skirts, lengthened a hoop, and assembled a pair of little undersleeves. And packed. Actually, I sewed and Ginger packed, which worked out great.
Then on Friday--Fort Washita! More after the picture and the cut.
Staying indoors--it was cold outside!
When we got to the fort, it was pretty chilly out. Definitely sweatshirt weather, a coat would have been better, and gloves were good to have. I'm guessing it was in the forties? Which, given that it was twelve degrees in Mason, MI the day before, felt pretty good to me. That's not to say I wasn't cold. I just knew I wasn't going to die from it.
Ginger working on her quilted hood--much needed for warmth! And a dress that I didn't even know Ginger owned because there weren't pictures online. Green check (?) wool with a lavender bias trim, double-pointed bodice.
And the hood, mostly finished! I think one tie was still pinned and the turnback might have been pinned, too.
Side of the hood, and another dress...although I think there were pictures of this one a few years ago from the week-long event down south. Er...south for me.
My hood, which was only done pre-event because the pattern was stupidly easy. I was very glad to have it though! Wore it pretty much the whole weekend.
It got pretty cold on Friday night, but I kept surprisingly warm. Ginger's family graciously provided me with a cot and pad to sleep on, and so between that (being off the ground) and several blankets, I was actually fine. It might have been "fort-st-joseph-cold" but I didn't wake up at five a.m. with people all up in my bidness and no covers, so I was thrilled.
And then we lost power. Not that we were using much electricity to speak of in the living quarters, but we did have a couple space heaters on account of there were babies that needed to be kept warm...but then something happened and we lost electricity, which caused the kitchen in which our meals were being prepared to be...less helpful than it was when there was power. It didn't last long, though, so we had a warm meal instead of a hot one for Saturday breakfast, washed our dishes in REALLY REALLY COLD water once, and then were fine for the rest of the weekend after the power came back on (due to someone's hard work; I'm just not sure who made with the magic on that one.)
Speaking of babies (which I did), there were a couple exceedingly adorable ones. I'm a big fan of infants, especially when they're making cute faces, not fussing, and dressed adorably. We had a trifecta.
This one was a living Cabbage Patch Kid. Seriously.
I don't know about Ginger (who was forced into service as a book-on-tape), but my Saturday at the fort was amazingly pleasant. It was still cold, but we parked ourselves in front of the fireplace in the ladies' quarters and I worked on Mike's Christmas present while Ginger read to us aloud. Treasure Island, which is a fantastic be-read-to story even if it's not perfectly correct for the period.
By the time I'd finished the soutache on the band of Mike's smoking cap, it was time to get ready for the ball--also known as dinnertime with dancing to follow. And Ginger changed into yet another dress that I had no idea existed. Magic surprise wardrobe!
See that? That's a curling iron. Like, a not-electrical one. I told her she could try it on my hair.
I actually had no idea how a period(ish--this one is slightly later, but the principle is still the same) curling iron would work, so it was a revelation for me when she had me clip it to the chimney of the nearest oil lamp to heat up. Duuuuh! I saved her a chunk of hair loose at the nape of my neck when I re-styled the front around my headpiece, and gelled the dickens out of it while we waited for the iron to heat up.
It worked! Not as well as it could have if we had been patient enough (and had enough time) to let the iron get really hot for each curl, but it definitely made ringlets! I'm not sure how long they lasted, or if they dropped out, or at what point they did so, and I forgot to check at the end of the night...but there were ringlets for a little while at least.
As you can see, this was kind of a highlight for me. I've always wanted to try it!
The ballroom was quite lovely; Ginger and I had hung garlands in the windows on Friday afternoon, but then others had gone to gather greenery from the outdoors and there was juniper and mistletoe and candles bedecking the windowsills, chandeliers, and mantel. This makes three Civil War era events at which I have danced, and I have been surprised and pleased at how good the young men are about asking for dances. Not that there was a huge crowd here; I think it split pretty evenly on the guy/girl ratio, which is rare. And it was cool for me, because I've danced under like, two callers in all the time I've been doing this--Ray Bantle and Glenn Morningstar. I like them both, and they both do different kinds of dances, but I've started to get used to both of them and there are definitely dances that I've done many times now. The ones we did Saturday were new to me, so that was fun. Except the Virginia Reel, which I spent two summers teaching tourists how to do (sometimes), which was still fun and relaxing, since I didn't have to learn anything new!
Also, there were desserts. And undersleeves! Those were part of Thursday's sewing projects.
Ginger's "not approved," face, due to the fact that I was taking her picture while she was eating.
Oh, and also, Ginger gave me gloves! They've got adorable little beaded flowers on them, and I felt very proper to be finally dancing not-barehanded.
Annnd...this was just cute.
Sunday was breakfast, which I probably would have slept through if Ginger hadn't shaken me awake, and then packing up. I'm glad she did wake me up; I somehow managed to sleep through almost everyone waking up and starting to get dressed, including the little children, which is excessive even for me.
Last photo at the fort!
We hurried to pack up and get back so that everyone could shower and change before heading off to a choir concert in which Ginger and her brother would be singing. Short version: we made it with plenty of time, I really enjoyed the concert, and I finally lost my internal battle to not make Chicken Run references on account of Ginger's name being...Ginger. But then her brother called her "Dollface" and I didn't feel so bad. ;) I also got to meet one of my until-then just-Facebook friends, Christopher, which was great.
Despite having slept relatively well during the actual event, I was quite tired by the time we got back to Ginger's house, and slept like the proverbial rock. We got up early-ish the next morning and fitted a corset pattern for Ginger, though, which went smoothly and will hopefully be very helpful in the future!
Flying back home was a little more eventful than my trip down, however. Ginger dropped me off at the airport in plenty of time for my noon-ish flight. Except that my flight was then delayed by almost an hour. Okay...except my layover in Minneapolis was only an hour and ten minutes. So I talked to the gate agent and she switched my flights so I was flying to Detroit and then getting back to Grand Rapids at darn near the original planned time. It also gave me an extra hour so I could grab a quick lunch at the airport. As it turns out, I didn't actually need to...why?
Because they sat me in first class, that's why! It was a complete surprise to me; I didn't even bother to look at the seat assignment on my new boarding pass. I just checked what gate I had to be at and at what time I had to be there, and then found food. When it turned out that seat 3-A was in first class, you could have knocked me over with a feather. And yeah, first class really is nicer. I've had worse service at nice restaurants. I also got to finish Mike's gift on a larger-than-average tray table with nobody jostling my elbow, which was great. Also good that I could finish it on the plane, because he and Tyler met me at the Grand Rapids airport shortly after I landed and if I hadn't finished it en route, it wouldn't have gotten done.
Anyway, yes. Mike and Tyler (and evidently Gwendolyn, though that wasn't what I told my landlord when I let him know just-in-case) had been staying at my apartment for a portion of the weekend while I was gone, as Tyler had a stopover on his way home to Traverse City from Delaware. They picked me up at the airport and we dropped in at my parents' house to use the internet and pick up my car. I had my mom wrap Mike's present (Tyler's and Gwendolyn's were already wrapped and I left them under my undecorated tree before I left) and we then left to go pick Gwendolyn up at work. It all worked out quite well, since then all three of them were there when I finally walked into my apartment. Why is that important?
Because while I was gone, my friends decorated my apartment for Christmas, that's why. Gwendolyn apparently forced Mike and Tyler (and Tyler's brother and our friend Sarah) to cut out dozens of paper snowflakes, which were then suspended on thread from the ceiling. The tree was decorated with more cutouts, and red tinsel...which apparently was cookie wrapper at one point. And Mike (I think?) made a tree topper, using foil that I didn't even know I owned, but that was evidently in one of my kitchen drawers. ("I had FOIL? Where!?)
When I saw it all from the kitchen door, I pretty much dropped everything in my hands right there on the floor and wandered into the front room in a daze. It was perfect.
And this? This was just cute. They're blowing upwards to make the snowflakes flutter, right before bed. If I did Christmas cards, this would be my photo.
