Due to an unfortunate series of events, I regret to you inform you that my recent betrothal to Lord John the Bear has been dissolved.

Please know that I bear him no ill will and wish that he have only the best in life as time continues on.

As to my welfare, all will return to normal in due time.

Well, I've been WAY too busy for any one person recently, but I am among the living and still have hair... yes, indeed!!

Let the update begin, huzzah!

School, yep, it's time for tax school again; the topics, to those who are NOT bean counters, sound boring and to those of us in the field are still sometimes boring, like: Update for Schedules A, B and C, Depreciation, etc. The good news is I've completed four Instructor Led classes and have an average exam score of 88%.

Cars, yes, I have two of them, oh dear! Since July 10, it's been a trial of my patience and checkbook: tires (like a set of four!), oil changes and insurance for both. PLUS, a starter, battery, tailgate repair and exhaust work on the station wagon, how much does that add up to? a nice trip to somewhere, but less than a new car OR car payments, YEAH!! My other car is a small sedan, with a stick and is so much fun to drive while being in relatively good car health, thank goodness.

Faires, oh yes, there have been faires this year: Scarborough, Mayfaire, Derbyshire, Silver Leaf and Michigan so far this season. At Silver Leaf, things got a bit exciting (speaking for myself) when Sir Clisto came to visit us on August 1. Read on, good gentles, prithee, read on...

Lord John the Bear wished to speak with Sir Clisto, Percard and D'Khan while I went to examine the wares of a few merchants, *I* should have been more suspicious, but I am acquainted with all the gentlemen involved and thought I could trust them.

So the day proceeds and I am at the School of Villainy show with Lord John and Sir Clisto, when I am asked to go on stage with Lord John; there are 100+ people in the audience...  can you guess where this is going? If you guessed that he proposed, you would be correct, and, in case there is any question, I did say, Yes! Did I turn several shades of red? Of course and I spent the rest of the day blushing as there were many people who stopped to offer me their well wishes on such an auspicious event. 

The photo is courtesy of Sir Clisto:

Next, would be the opera... yes, I am singing, as part of the Chorus, in an opera in September. Turandot by Puccini is the opera, I sing First Soprano, boy do our voices get a workout in the process... about 2 and a half octaves worth of workout, in Italian *sigh!*  Puccini is challenging, especially when you put three words on a 32-note, there is such a thing and it's really fast. Three words on something that short and it might sound like you've got a mouthful of rocks... oh my goodness. But it is great fun. 

I would be remiss, if I did not mention that I have been in the process of moving the last few weeks. Did I ever tell you how much I dislike it? Well, now I've told you, but would greatly appreciate your prayers and good intentions as the process continues. I take possession of my new apartment in the coming week. *BIG sigh of relief*

So we are in August and the Michigan Faire at Hollygrove opened the weekend of August 22-23. It was my privilege to be escorted by Lord John, Sir Clisto, King Henry of Shiabruck and a few other gentlemen that Sunday the 23.

The weather did not behave well, in the beginning (rain) but by noon it had cleared nicely, sunshine, scattered clouds and about 70 degrees with a pleasant breeze. The following photo was taken and provided by King Henry. Lord John is one of His Majesty's Guards.

Well, I've got 101 things I'd LIKE to write about, but have the difficulty we all encounter at some time in life... the dread WRITER's BLOCK, aaaahhh!!!

SO I have been writing, scrapping, rewriting and so on, with the resultant words being closely related to gibberish... curses! 

The good news is that I've made a little progress on my photo galleries for Derbyshire and Silver Leaf. 

The bad news is: I still have writer's block, classes have resumed, job hunting continues and I'm in the middle of moving.

I don't like moving, grr! I wish there was a magic bullet for moving, that doesn't cost a fortune. 

One of my English instructors said that when you have writer's block you write about it until you (me) can write on the subject at hand; however, I am not having any success with that tonight.   :(    This case of writer's block is getting on my nerves and I need sleep so I can handle the rest of life as well. 

Fare thee well, my friends.

It's now been about a fortnight since last I scribed 'pon my page, there is SO much to tell you about: braces, family type stuff, Mother's Day, adventures with my car, Mayfaire (the recap), Derbyshire (an update), random musings and will include photos in several of my galleries that have been sorely neglected of late.

A tribute to Gunnar the Barbarian, who was also known as Jim Gasser...

July 3rd, 1962 - March 30th, 2009

I only wish that while I was in Canterbury last fall, that I would have had the privilege of meeting this great and well loved man.

My prayers are with each of those who knew him, especially his family. 

In service, 

Dame Catherine

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This was written by Jim on March 30, 2009, prior to his departure for California.

Sword fighting and Life by Jim Gasser 

Most Warriors are made. 
Some are born. 
A few have always known 

Sword fighting and life, while on the surface appearing diametrically opposed, are in fact, parallel paths. Sword fighting in its purest form is the taking of life. There was no other reason to pick up a sword. Through the Path of the Sword we discover the true Path of Life. We slice away at the very layers that cloud our true purpose-Enlightenment. The principles and foundations of sword fighting are congruent with those of life. 

Why does the sword feel so natural within our grasp? It is a symbol, a reminder of our past. Today, the sword is not the sword of the past, an instrument of death; the sword has become a tool for our enlightenment. 

With the correct mind, any endeavor or action can lead to enlightenment. 

The style that I pursue is one of basics and practicality. I have found it is best to embrace simplicity as the cornerstone of sword fighting and life. 

We fight with swords because it is who we once were and will ultimately define who we become. 

Fighting is a progression and must be approached as such. To leap over or ignore the fundamentals will result in weakness, false hope, and ultimately defeat. Fighting is form following function. No superfluous, wasted movements. Our movements are timeless. They have always been. 

We must continue to question the strength and integrity of the bridge, until one has crossed over it and come back. 

I often speak of what lies within us as something eternal. I believe that our concept of death occurs as we conceive it. Under no circumstances do I think that we truly know and understand the concept, which we call death. Until one has crossed over the bridge and come back, it is nothing but conjecture. 

(It is my theory that God would not allow us to have this insight until we have evolved enough to grasp it. At this point in our existence, if there were complete certainty as to the concept of afterlife and a closer relationship with God, why would we choose to remain in this life? Our evolution would never occur if we walked like lemmings into the water.) 

Anyone can pick up a sword and swing it. Sword fighting by its very nature embraces simplicity. A child can grasp a sword and begin the dance. As we grow older, we forget these deep- rooted, natural movements. The timeless, simplicity of the sword’s lesson is replaced by the complexity of life. We have become distracted by the race.
_________________________________________________________

Now to hear from others about this gentle giant...

Jim's friends and family said that Jim embodied contradictions and that they didn't understand him.  I understood him perfectly.  He had a dream, a goal, and worked toward achieving that goal.  Jim wanted to evolve and become the best at what he wanted to do, and that was improving himself, his own soul, his life and the lives of those around him, and have fun while doing it.  Jim evolved and became the One, and had to move on to the next life's duties in order that we who are still here may evolve on our own paths.

As for me, I've a long road ahead to evolve, as to many of us left behind.  I shall never forget Jim's smile, the infectious way he had of making one feel as if they were more important than anything else in life at that shining moment you were interacting with him.  God gives us many chances to improve, I believe, and we live as long as He gives us, taking each opportunity and hopefully making the best of it.  If our opportunities improve our condition or the condition of others around us, then it is a step toward evolving and one step closer to our next life.

It was said that Jim wouldn't take "no" for an answer.  If you reasoned with Jim on any subject, he certainly would take your opinions into advisement.  He was far from unreasonable.  He was hard to persuade if you didn't have a logical or valid reason to present him on a topic on which he was firm, however he was reasonable and logical.

Someone said that Jim embodied peace and violence, and I saw both sides of Jim.  I remember once at a Shakespeare on the Green event where we were promoting the Barbarians and helping raise money for the arts centre, a teenage boy was sparring with Jim and repeatedly hit Jim in the head.  Jim warned him various times, finally thwacking the lad a time to warn him further.  I was in the pavillion tent when Jim came through with an intense angry look in his eyes, thrashing soundly this lad, spilling over all of us, knocking over tables.  It ended quickly and the lad was no worse for wear, however he'd learned a valuable lesson.  I watched Jim speak to him without hearing what was said, but I can imagine how Jim counseled him on the "rules" of fighting.  I saw Jim hug the lad and they parted with huge smiles.  Jim was a walking balance of our innate and inborn instincts toward violence and peace, but Jim was the yin and yang of those.

When Jim took me in and mentored me, taking my corner during a very difficult time when no one else would speak for me or believe in me, his confidence and trust in me brought me out of a very deep abyss and motivated me to become better, to improve and be the best I could be at swordfighting, my personal life, my work life and my performances at renaissance festivals all over the country.  When I met Jim and the Barbarians, the motto was "Be the One."  I have had that motto on the splash screen of my phone since then and have lived it every day since making Jim's acquaintance and friendship.  

I can only extol Jim's virtues and encourage others to do as Jim did...live life to its fullest and be the best you can be at whatever you do.  In the end, you can say that you led an honest life.  Success isn't in how much money we make or how many friends we have, but how we have affected others for the positive, how we have made a beneficial footprint on this plant, in this life, and made the paths of others more tolerable or better for our having been here.  

My personal philosophy, beside "be the one" is to leave any situation in which we find ourselves better than that in which we encountered it.  In essence, this is what Jim did, but on a much grander scale than I could ever possibly hope to achieve.  For those of us left behind, we are sad and longing, but speaking for myself, I am happy that when it is my time, Jim will be there at the gates to greet me with the smile I shall never forget and that mischevious glint in his eye that means he's on about something great.

We've a lot of work ahead of us!

-- Ian Richard Sharpe

He was indeed a King.... I was his area manager his first year at faire back in 2002 and we would always embrace as good friends on the rare times we saw each other in recent years.

My truest sadness is that when I was at KCRF in Sep. 2008, I did not have the privilege of making acquaintance with Jim. I have heard much about him in the last few days from several people I know that knew him, also.