Back in my happy place.

Ahhhhhhhh!  I have come up with a satisfactory way to deal with the We-Must-Do-Art-Competitions thang in a manner that points no fingers, harshes no one's wa, and makes me feel good. Posted the following to the kingdom and principality e-lists this morning:

A challenge!

The Arts and Sciences are not just about competitions. They're about doing what
you love and sharing what you know.

Are you going to Estrella War? Are you an artisan? Do you have a skill to teach
or knowledge to impart?

I just sent off class descriptions to the Estrella Collegium - I misremembered
the deadline for the gate book, but they will still be published online and
posted on-site. You can too.
http://estrellawar.org/Activities/ArtsandSciences/CollegiumClasses

If, like me, you believe that your art is not about scores and points, there is
an Artisan's Display on Sunday of the war:
http://estrellawar.org/Activities/ArtsandSciences/ArtisanShowcase

If competition IS your thing, there are three categories to participate in:
http://estrellawar.org/Activities/ArtsandSciences/ArtsAndSciencesCompetition

The Known World knows the West's might upon the battlefield. I challenge you to
help me show them our might in the Arts and Sciences.

Saionji Shonagon
Defender of the West for Bein' All Arty In Their Wars

*I've offered the Estrella Collegium taiko and the tea class I did at Kingdom Collegium.

********************

Dear Buddha. I want a pony and a shime-daiko. Please keep the plastic rocket as they don't hold up when one hits them with sticks.

Taiko was laid back last night, well, for taiko. We unpacked Shannon-sensei's truck, deconstructed Sunday's gig (all good, positive feedback), and played around with some stripped down versions of the same pieces to do at a senior center crab feed in two weeks because we'll only have room for five drums on-stage. Shannon-sensei wants to keep my o-daiko solo, which means I won't play on "Shinkyoku," though I did stand in for Bob (dealing with a bad head cold) on shime-daiko so we could experiment with close-quarters staging. Tracy and I managed not to bean each other. Whether Bob's Flailomatic style will work in the same case is anyone's guess.