Chase Farm

September 12-13, 2009

The quote for this weekend: "NEVER tell your wife anything!"

Me and Dave went down separately because I had a class and he was a half hour away from Lincoln, RI at work. There was no point in him going back home and then turning around again. He got down there and the guys from the 1st Maryland (the only ones we really knew down there) helped him put our tent up in the rain (cracked a tent pole dammit).

Well, I called as I was heading down there & he told me his truck was dead. A slight problem since it was parked right outside camp. He spoke to me on the phone and told me about it then I heard in the background one of the guys shout "Never tell your wife anything!" So he tried to deny it.

Next morning things went from bad (the night before) to worse as he got a call from work and his battery needed replacing, there was no mistake, it had to be replaced. So he left and headed back home and called me a little while later & told me his electronics were flipping out. Which upgraded the problem from battery, to alternator. To make a long story short, the new battery that he got on Saturday, lasted him until Tuesday night.

By Saturday night, the small access road was soup. I looked at the mud and said to myself, 'there is no way my little front wheel drive Volvo wagon is going to make it out of here this way,' which is why the people in charge of the event shut the worst part of the road down. Yeti did show me another way that I could get up to the camp site which would not cause me to get stuck or slide down the hill backwards. He had scouted the area on Thursday and found a little used access road.


There was night firing at the Confederate camp on Saturday night, that was really cool. A Federal cannon actually fired back a couple of times, we had the better location though.


Captain Henry was court martialed for supporting Miss Joy's brothel and his punishment was to ride a stick horse throughout the Confederate camp. It made horse noises, too.

I actually got my union pants and kepi on the Friday before the event (for when I galvanize at Train Robberies). I had them with me because I did not go home after work on Friday. It all worked out because I got to help with an artillery crew. Obviously, I did not do anything much because I had no experience, but it was really neat to stand behind those cannons as they went off.

I have to thank Chris and Pam for taking my camera and catching these photos for me. Thank you so much guys! You did a great job!



And those are just two out of several they took.

Camp Pratt

May 1-3, 2009



For the first time, in a long time, it did not rain all weekend. Despite the wind of death and the freezing weather at night, it was actually pretty nice.

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You learn the value of wearing a hat at night when it gets down into the 20s.

Unfortunately me and Dave did not get there until midnight for reasons I will not go in to detail about... Our employers do not quite understand our hobbies, and we should make a habit of packing the Friday morning before we leave.


One exciting new note, Kate has turned to soldier! She did pretty well, too! From what I understand she has been biding her time until she turned 16 so she could carry a rifle on the field. Very clever, Kate, very clever. It is nice when she is a civilian, however, it looks better when we have more soldiers in our ranks.



It was pretty much a weekend of learning and practicing. Everyone got out in the air and refreshed themselves with the re-enactor spirit!



And I realized that I have to go through mine and Dave's things to see why we have so much stuff... I do not know where half of it came from. When you rummage through the box and pull out something that causes you to ask yourself "What the heck is this doing here?" that is when you need to re-organize.

Another note, I have added a new level to my farby-ness; I bought a cot. And I am going to tell you right now, I cannot believe I wasted two seasons on an air mattress! I simply cannot go back. Besides, it keeps me off the ground from biting bugs in the middle of the night. It also makes it easier to store things.

Next event, Memorial Day Parade & Strangers Grave.

Excuses

October 31/November 1, 2008

Yes, I know I cheated. I finished posting my Chamberlain Days memoirs under the guise of September. Things have just been so crazy lately! "George Banks" ("Father of the Bride" movie) was right, getting married is one thing, a wedding is something else entirely!


(Photo stolen from my friend/sister, Alli on HER blog "Alli's Adventures". Yes Alli, that is an awesome photo you took.)

The rest of the 15th Alabama's season will soon follow.

Chamberlain Days: Part 2

August 22-24, 2008

Now, you need to understand the layout of the downtown area of Brunswick that we were confined to. There was practically no room for an actual reenactment so we did not put one on our schedule. Well, then (young) Keith had to go down to the 20th Maine's camp and steal some things (they were actually his that he took out of his father's tent because technically Keith is a member of the 20th Maine). The 20th was not going to stand for some whippersnapper stealing things from their tents! Hell no! Especially a Confederate! So, they attacked. They were pretty darn sneaky about it, too. They came up the hill & went around a church to hide their precense.

Dave & Captain Pratt reloading.

Captain Pratt was wounded (once again) in battle and carried back to camp to be treated by the Major Nulle.

Dave shoots at some Yankees.

Here are some members of the 20th Maine who were kind enough to pose with Joshua Chamberlain's statue after the fight.

On Sunday we held a Memorial service at the grave of Joshua Chamberlain. It was very nicely done and actually one person wondered what Chamberlain would think of re-enactors from both the 20th Maine and the 15th Alabama coming to honor his continued effect upon American History.

Wow..

....it has been a long time since I have picked up the proverbial blogging pen! Amazing how life can just come at you like a 2x4 that flew off of that over-loaded truck in front of you on the interstate! I guess a little update is in order..



...well, tentatively, the 15th will start it's season at the beginning of May with "Camp Pratt." That glorious camp where apparently it rains every year it is held (that held true for last year, and no Charlene, we still do not have Ghirardelli chocolate).

What is really exciting is that we have rounded up a few new bodies! Deb now has to choose which side of the train she wants to be on; Sara went up to her first meeting already inducted (she made the dress before she even met these people...I raised an eyebrow & told her she should have waited), but she still joined; and it looks like we might get a few more here and there. What is really interesting is that the 15th's civilian base is growing faster than it's military strength. It actually left us looking for a civilian liaison at the last meeting (Mike was eyeing Sara, but it WAS her first meeting so we need to go easy on her, wait until the third). I am now wondering what we can do with this new civilian might. I will be doing some homework on that (between work, regular homework, and my newly minted Historian's duties).

That is another thing, are there any other Company Historians out there who can maybe give me an idea on how to document my company's glorious activities? I mean, any dope can handle a camera (that's why I do it), I was just wondering about registers and the like. I plan on starting a "15th Alabama Family Tree" because once I obtained possession of the 15th's records, I realized as I was going through the photos I kept saying to myself "who is this?" "Where did this guy come from?" and "Wow, where did these people go?" Any tips for the newbie Historian would be great. Historian is really code for "Propaganda Minister," I thought that was what Dave was going to be, Mike. What happened?

Ft. Knox, Maine; Take Two!

September 22-23

While I was not there, my super-secret-undercover-roving reporter (the dope I love) was there and brought his camera! Let's see what happened!


~*********************************************************************~
It looks like Saturday dawned (or rather, didn't) the same as it did last time, foggy. Chris must be wondering what Mike is wearing...I'm wondering, why is he wearing that?


Camp looks like it was set up in the same place as last time and from the look of Vicky's hair, it was rather windy.


Here are some of our compatriots from the 20th Maine. I am guessing Vicky was taking the photos, but Dave was not to clear on that and I am not certain when Peg and Kate got there. So it could have been any one of them!


Ah, the glory of the 15th Alabama! Wait...four of them are loading their guns...at the same time... I think I know what is going to go on at Camp Pratt next year.


Looks like our on-sight photographer got pretty close to the action this time! I had to stand pretty far away from them when I was there. This is a good shot of the Union line, not as big a group this time, states my source, but still, they make it look good.


And once again, Ben plays the bloodied victim. He's pretty good at that, and it looks like Chris not only has a bloodied apron (that's new), but he has two very pretty nurses to help him care for the wounded! Lucky Ben!

It looks like everyone had a good time, I also heard (from a reliable source) that the ladies of the 20th Maine invited the ladies of the 15th Alabama to tea! I am so jealous! Unfortunately, as of yet I have no photographic evidence of that soiree, but hopefully I will get to participate in something like that next season!

Well, it sounds like things went over pretty well, and everyone came back alive. I was sorry to have missed it, but I hope to see everyone in the near future or at the latest, next season!

Robbin' a Train...again!

September 1, 2007

We just can't get enough! This event seems to be the only one where we have outnumbered the Union troops. We only had three this time, too, but we had some new civilians and one of the soldiers from the 3rd Maine was new! It was a fun affair! I actually missed the first couple of runs, but I made up for it!

Here's Ashley, a daughter of the 3rd Maine, Deb's child. She's sweet and the same age as Charlene...two ten year old girls on a train doing basically the same thing over and over again all day...they were talking about killer ninja rabbits stopping the train by the end of the day. The vivid imaginations on these girls!

Here's a photo of Deb and a new civillian, Brenda. It's always nice to meet new people. I did not get a real chance to sit down and talk with Brenda, but she seemed nice and all the 3rd Maine women I have met like to get into the act of accusing 'our boys' (the Confederates) of being traitors. Something me and Vicky take offense to! To think of those dashing men of the 15th Alabama as criminals is just horrible! And they're not robbing the train, they are "liberating" goods for the benefit of the country as a whole.

Here's a photo of Rick and Private Cylik. I had never met him before, he was our replacement for Matt. I hope he comes back next year, it is so great that more Union people come to protect the train! It makes the whole robbery more plausible in the defense of the train part (two Union soldiers shooting down six Confederates...I don't think that would have happened during the Civil War unless someone was REALLY lucky).

Here's another photo of Deb and the other new (to me) civillian, Marsha! Once again, I came late so I did not get to say hello to the two new ladies of the 3rd Maine, but I cannot wait to see them again! Hopefully sooner rather than later! I have to say, I loved all their hats! I need to get into hat making! As if I had free time! >rolls eyes, snorts<

Here's Ben's valiant charge at the Union troops!

Unfortunately, as brave as Ben is, he was brought to a halt by the musket fire of the 3rd Maine. Here, our surgeon, Chris administers something to assage his misery (no, not whisky).

Here's another elusive member of the 15th Alabama, Mr. Joe! I have actually only had the pleasure of meeting him once, at the Stranger's grave in Gray, ME on Memorial Day.

This was great. As mention above, I arrived late for this day's events. Well, on my way up to Maine, I stopped and picked up Dave and a few others, some provisions which did not fit in my basket! Kate was gracious enough to loan me hers. Well, once I got the food covered, I had to figure out a way to get it to the guys. So, I called Dave on his cell phone (I know...real authentic >eye roll<) and said that I was going to figure this out and ask the 3rd Maine to help me out. I was thinking, I'll just put it on the end of the last car and someone can sneak it off. Well, I went to Rick to ask for his assistance. Well, told me that it shouldn't be a problem passing off the basket to the Confederates because some of the ladies (Vicky) had been flirting and consorting with the men in some manner all day. Basically, it was Vicky flirting her heart out. >smacks forehead< That's what I did. Someone burst out laughing as I lowered my face into my hand and then looked back at Vicky sharply. Honestly, what are we going to do with that woman?! Well, she did pass off the food rather well, and Mike made it seem part of the plan when he asked if anyone had found provisions on the train with the dispatch case and coin box.


This was a good scene. Chris came over to his daughter, Kate and started calling her "Maggie." He asked her where her mother was (Peg, who was back at the station). Peg was there to pick Kate up and she wasn't supposed to be on this ride, which could be why Chris came up to her and asked (in a southern-like accent why she was on the train). Anyway, Kate, with her own southern-like accent, said that the Yankee's had captured Peg. Then the conversation went downhill and Chris said something about how Kate should know how much of a troublemaker her mother is. His parting words to Kate were something along the lines of, 'your mother should be out of prison, soon.' It was so hard not to spend the entire event laughing hysterically.

There were enough of us to seperate the Union sympathizers from the Confederates. Here's a good shot of the Union, Steve is wearing the straw hat. And you can see a young boy in suspenders peeking out from between the railings on your left...that's Deb's son, Benjamin. I actually did not get many photos of him.

Well, finally, the Union got to take the Confederates out in the last run. Fair enough seeing as how our boys took them out all day in June.

It was a good day. The weather was nice, there was a good breeze for those of us wearing layers, and we had a great turnout! The best part was the last run, we were sitting there for a while when all of the sudden, about fifteen asian tourists came around the boatyard. We thought, "okay! tourists! And foreigners, this'll be great for them!" well, next thing we know, a huge bus comes into the parking lot and we end up taking on about fifty asian tourists. My big question of the day was, why are they in New England? >shrug< but they seemed to enjoy themselves, and as always the 15th Alabama and the 3rd Maine do not disappoint when it comes to drama!

Evil? Me?

.

Now, is this the face of Evil?
So, Dave finally sees this blog, well, he saw the truck post and said to me "That's it! I'm getting the Jetta!" I asked him if that was the great test of our relationship. When he replied "yes" I told him I'd have to think about it. >grin< Isn't the truck the incentive?


Nah, I torment him, but I'm not in it ONLY for the truck (oh don't get me wrong, it's a very nice truck=a pretty good lure), Dave's a good guy who has nothing but respect for me. And where else am I going to find a guy who opens doors for me on his own accord, still when we've been dating for over a year now? I count myself pretty lucky to find a guy like him. His type are rare, I know because I've looked.

4th of July

July 4, 2007

Do you know where Winslow, Maine is? It's one of those places where if you drive to the middle of nowhere and take a left, you'd find it. Actually, since joining the 15th Alabama, I've noticed a lot of that in Maine...hmmm. Anyway, it was quite the drive for me and Dave, especially since we couldn't leave until we got out of work. We had Mike (Captain), Steve (1st Sergeant), Chris (Surgeon), Tom (Corporal), Dave and Ben for soldiers while me and Kate represented the civilians.

So let me show you how I spent my 4th of July holiday!
I got to meet another one of our younger members, Kate. She's a real sweetheart and she walked the parade route with me which really put me at ease. I was worried that I was going to be the only one. We actually turned into the company's propaganda scouts. Tom turned to us after our first "tourist-y" encounter (a parade watcher coming over to take a photo with Tom) and told us to hand out cards with the Company's contact information on them. I mostly held the stuff and sent Kate over to pass the cards out, which she did very well.


Here's a great photo of the guys firing their muskets. I actually had to ask the Captain to wave me forward so I could get this shot (no pun intended). When he did I had to trot out in front of them, which was farther than I would have had time for if I didn't have the signal from the Captain.


This photo gives you a better look at Mike and Tom with the flag.


Here are the guys standing next to this blockhouse which is all that is left of Ft. Halifax which was built by the English to ward off enemies during the French and Indian war.

Ft. Halifax: National Park Service

Finally, here's another photo of Kate except at the end of a fairly warm day at the end of the parade, which turned out to be almost two miles long. Thank goodness they had a "VIP" bus service to take us back to our cars.

Well, it wasn't as warm as years past, according to the veterans of the parade, but almost everyone finished their canteens full of water (no, there's no whisky in them...this time >wink<). I don't blame them though, it was warm. What was nice though, was that Mike kind of tried steering us into the shade when ever it looked like we were going to have to stop for a while. We might have mutinied if he hadn't, and Vicky would have been mad at him, too. But it was nice, me and Kate really were not looking forward to having to play nurse to the surgeon, I kept having flashbacks to the Train Robbery a few days previously where Deb was pretending to dig bullets out of soldier's arms. >shudder<

On to the next event! Groton!

What's up with the truck?

You're probably wondering that, right? Well, shortly after we started dating, I told Dave that I really liked his truck. In fact, I jokingly said that I was only dating him for his truck. Well, we were on spring break in '06 and he made out this holographic will bequeathing the truck to me upon his demise. For those who don't know, a holographic will is a document, dispersing your estate post-mortem (essentially a will). You have to keep in mind not all states recognize a holographic will unless it is created in a jurisdiction that does recognize them. They also have to be almost entirely written in the hand of the testator (the dead person). There are all sorts of requirements, but Dave did it anyway. Unfortunately, I can't "accidentally" bump him off because he put a clause in there that says I forfeit the bequest if I had anything to do with his death. Can you believe that?!

Anyway, when people ask me why I'm dating him (because he does get a little crazy sometimes), I just tell them "It's for the truck." He's a good guy to put up with me.

Lincoln, RI

April 4th - 5th, 2007

After months of meetings, this was mine and Dave's first event. We were excited, we were pumped, we had to sleep on the ground. Yeah, that didn't go over well with Dave. Come to find out that camping is not exactly his thing. The lack of shower bothered him, it was very cold, and the ground was pretty hard (it was frozen, no joke, it was 30 degrees that night). It didn't bother me much, but we were unprepared to tell the truth. So we ended up driving around who-knows-where Rhode Island (it doesn't seem that big until you're lost at 4am) to find a Wal-Mart to buy an extra blanket and an air mattress. We managed to find one (thanks to a pretty cute, and very nice, Woonsockett police officer) but it did not open until 7am, so we did the unthinkable; we waited for it to open.

Now armed with our "Farb" we headed back to the campground. This event was one of the first in the season and it was actually a school of instruction. There were classes that the men and the women could attend to help them be better re-enactors. It also gave me a glimpse of how to interact with the tourists. It was fun to hear some of the stories about dealing with tourists (can't call them civilians because that's what we call the re-enactors who are not soldiers). Apparently, many tourists just walk around the campsite and kind of look at you like you're a living diorama or not even real. They kind of just walk around or through your camp and stare, but don't say anything. I witnessed it, and it was kinda disturbing.

Now you're probably wondering what a re-enactment is like? Well if you've been to Plimouth Plantation in Massachusetts, that's basically a re-enactment, just a different era and less exciting.

So, the guys practiced drilling, we met the cavalry, and I realized that, there was no Union camp. When I asked about that, Miss Vicky said, "Oh, they're >insert place here< this weekend for their school of instruction." Oh, okay.

Our group was fairly small for this event; me, Dave, Mike, Vicky, Charlene ("The Child"), and Tom (who is REALLY hard to photograph because he moves so much!)

Well, now for some photos:
Here are Mike and Vicky at the camp, despite their look it was actually quite cold.

Here is one of the few photos I have of Tom (who is a corporal in the group). He's an awesome guy who, as I have learned after a few events, is really quick and hard to track with the camera. But I have the rest of the season!

At this event they did a payroll re-enactment which was pretty neat, but at the same time kind of humiliating because Dave (my boyfriend) was docked a dollar (from a private's pay of $11) for excessive cleanliness. >hangs head in shame< However, Mike got docked I think it was $10 from his pay (not sure how much it is for a captain) for excessive drunkeness last season. He tried to defend himself, but I guess it didn't go over well. He also owed Tom money from a card game they played.

As I later found out, they passed forms around the camp to find out who was there, how much each was getting and what he was going to be docked for. So it was really Mike and Tom who had Dave docked for excessive cleanliness. I guess it was also Tom who put in excessive drunkeness for Mike. Tom was the only one who didn't get docked for anything. What did they use for money, you ask? Someone took some confederate bills and photocopied the crap out of them to make a suitable payroll box. They even staged (or maybe they didn't do it intentionally) a payroll robbery by two privates. Also, I learned that the enlisted men got paid first (probably so they wouldn't see how much the officers got).

Well, a few hours after the payroll, we packed it up and left. I can tell you now, there were a lot of sore bodies for the next couple of days.
But it was a lot of fun.