Recollections... "Walking the Thresholds II was fun, magical and made me feel at home. I met many great new people and experienced many new things. Seeing a dragon hoard in midflight with cloaks was very fun. I loved the Native American touch that Hawk's Son provided this year, with beautiful tales, the wishing tree and other Native American things. The Weather mages did a great job keeping the weather beautiful enough for me and others to enjoy ourselves. The ritual was enjoyable too, and the outcome great. Lots of silliness abounded as it always does when many of us come together, and I was saddedned to have to leave again once it was over. I wish to thank Rialian for making this year's festival very memorable one and I will return :) next year. Des'tai and Namarie, Adara Question posed to Eyovah the Dragon: Did anyone go? How was it? Did I miss anything? Yeah, was a lot of fun. You missed a lot, maybe you can make it next year :) There was around 50 beings there, and thats not counting the hosts (6-16 in one body...), or all the other spirits around...like faery intercepting energies :) Met lots of cool people. Tis nice to put a face to a name. Interesting workshops too (I even gave one :). Cool hangout time, down time, relaxation. Bardic Circles, energy play :), fun+interesting ritual too Vendors included food (of course), my massage table (drool,melt), Sinfor's weapons (more drool), and Adara's good german chocoloate candy (drool,munch,munch). Dragon's playground comes to mind too. especially if you saw the small hoard of dragons flying around the campsite with cloaks for wings trailing behind. (note to self...don't stop in front of dragon trailing right behind you at full run...right Eshari?) dragon smiles and grins, :) Eyovah Well Back....grin made 31 new friends...grin got to put faces on to names...We told stories and sang around the campfire...We did so many things...Thanks for being such a great host Rialian. I had a wonderful time. I will be returning next year and hope see the faces of those who could not make it next year. We all had a hard time saying good bye seemed as though no one wanted to leave. It was the first time I have ever camped with a group that cared so much for each other...everyone was fed...what ever one person did not have another provided....it was almost like family....I am truely glad I went. When I showed up I didnt know a soul and I was welcomed and made to feel like family...Those who are on this list that went....I am proud to have met. A fairy Tale ... Firefen Cat from VA said that not only did the Reiki treatment fix that blocked nerve - she can now feel the right side of her back - but it was the first time in over 10 years that she has actually been *happy*. Hawk's Son was likewise impressed. It was the first time he'd had a chance to do a sweat lodge in years. The occasional rough spot did occur (scheduling went straight out the window, and the lower camp flooded the night before the Gathering started), but once things were officially underway, things pretty much happened as they should. Miaren Crow's Daughter P.S. I don't think Hawk's Son ever did figure out what that strange feather was from.... ===Yes, Rialian is still in deconstruct mode of looking at things and berating himself on what could have been done better....I get this way. I really enjoyed myself, but I know a few areas I need to work on. I know one thing.....I am going to watch the jokes and interesting happenings more closely before the next one so I have a little more idea what to expect. One was the first printing mistake made by FQF..."Crossing The Thresholds"....should have known that was a hint. the other one was the running joke of the name for the gathering "Walking the Thresholds 2....Crashing the Gates"......I am REALLY going to watch the jokes next year so I can be ready for the implications....(Smirk). Everything was good, all seem to have enjoyed themselves for the most part, but I will say the repercussions of the gathering are going to be interesting to watch. ===There is rumor of a possible gathering in West Virginia in October.....I will keep an eye on this, and let people know what I hear. Of course, there are the mini-gatherings that occur in this area on occasion, and Kinvention North in Ontario to look forward to. ===Me?....I am going to relax a bit, metabolize the past week's events, and look forward to being able to go to a gathering where I get to just go and attend, not run/work.....STARWOOD!!!! (Grin) ===As I metabolize, be certain that lots of meanderings are coming this way to the list......I have been thinking a lot over the event, and I have fun stuff to bounce off people's minds, bank shot to the side reality, and perhaps some "nothing but net" shots....(hehehehehehehe)... ===Oh....Lepti liquor is a good thing.....that, and Blueberry wine.....and Ginger Mead.....(Grin) Blessings, Rialian And a TOXIC voice was HEARD throughout the land The toxic elf drops his seeming in public...

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Click the picture if you are curious about the blueberry and dandelion wines we had at the gathering... It is really hard to find these anywhere else!

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Here's a recipe from Miaren Crow's Daughter for one of the many batches of homemade faerie mead we drank at the gathering... Note from Rialian - In my experience, this recipe makes an extrememly *dry* mead. If that's the way you like it, no problem, but just be aware the honey will be entirely consumed by the yeast. I recommend doubling the amount of honey. Needed: Large cooking pot, to hold a minimum of 3 quarts of liquid (to allow room for bubbling) Pasta drainer (looks like a slightly cupped disk with a handle and lots of small holes in it.) 2 Measuring cups, sharp knife, cutting board. 2 liter bottle (such as from soda) vapor lock (can be optional, but requires frequent tending without it) storage space with washable floor, or large bucket. (discovered the hard way) Ingredients: 1 pound honey, preferably dark - we used a tulip poplar. 1/4 pound cherries 2 pints of black berries 2 pints of blue berries 2 quarts water champagne yeast Directions: Use knife and cutting board to pit cherries and slice open blackberries. Put water, honey and fruit into pot, and bring to a boil. (It can help matters if you slightly heat the honey container first - makes it pour easier) As it starts frothing, skim the foam off the top, and mash the fruit in the bottom of the pot, using the pasta drainer. When it stops frothing, remove from heat, and use one measuring cup to dip out the liquid, and pour it through the pasta drainer into the second cup (this strains out most of the seeds and pulp) Pour into 2 liter bottle, but do not fill it to the top. When the bottle is no longer too hot to lay your hands on for more than 10 seconds, add a small pinch of yeast. Rialian and I believe that this step is the reason that the batch fermented so quickly - the yeast was in a warm environment. Attach vapor-lock and add water to the vapor lock to "seal" it. Place bottle in bucket, or in a place with a washable floor, and leave it alone. This last part is important - The mead ferments rather rapidly once it starts, and the first couple days actually caused some to push its way out of the vaporlock. When this occurred, I removed and rinse the vaporlock, then replaced it. Once this phase is over, move it to a cool (but not cold) location - a bathroom or basement is fine - and wait for the vaporlock to stop bubbling (a couple weeks). At this point, you need a second bottle and a length of plastic tubing (clean aquarium tubing works fine) Use this to siphon the liquid out of the first bottle, being careful not to suck up too much of the sediment at the bottom (which is dead yeast and fruit bits). Put it in the refrigerator for storage. The wonderful thing about the recipe is that you can sub in essentially any fruit - and adding spices is another modification (just a pinch or two usually does it.) The original that I based this on used lemons (2 sliced, juice from a third) and a pinch of nutmeg. Baking spices are the usual lot to pick from (ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, etc.) If you were to use a firmer fruit, such as apples or pears etc, or if you were to use fresh ginger root, I'd recommend chopping them rather finely or even grating them to help the cooking process. Non-alcoholic Version The original recipe is based on the "Soft Mead" recipe in Scott Cunningham's Wicca for the Solitary Practitioner . The only addition is really the yeast, which is more of a control factor to the ferment than a necessary part of it. Follow the recipe I gave, leaving out the yeast. Once you have bottled it, cap it (screw cap works fine) and stick it in the fridge immediately until you are ready to serve it. My "accidental" batch was the direct result of a) insufficient fridge security (college dorm, so I kept it in my closet) and b) airborne yeast (I had it in an open pitcher for a couple days, then transferred it to bottles). It also took over a month in those conditions to reach even a slight amount of ferment. Now - you still may want to do the siphon trick after a few days to get the fruit sludge out of it. You'll see a layer of the stuff settle out and the resulting clearer liquid will look about like a red wine. Have fun :) Miaren Crow's Daughter