After Action Report: Tripping The Light Fantastic · 1:36am Feb 22nd, 2020
Hello, my loyal readers! I'm certain you've been wondering what I've been up to as of late... assuming you haven't been thinking of finally gone completely mad as my last blog led some of you to believe. This is of course as silly conclusion to come to, as it is scarcely possible for me to get any crazier than I already am.I shall start with the usual updates, simply to get them out of the way, before I launch into my after action report.
My third article in my local historical society's newsletter, a biography, is finally about to be published. It follows the life of one Nicholas Weidenkopf, the last survivor of the Cleveland Light Artillery and one of the last GAR veterans in my area, who just so happened to have lived in my hometown in his waining years. I started writing the article about two years ago while employed at the Soldiers' and Sailors' Monument as an intern, and for various reasons it has only finally come to fruition.
Meanwhile, I am preparing to apply to Graduate School. I have gotten most of my old professors to send letters of recommendation, so I'm moving on to the next step of editing the essay I'm going to submit, then formalizing my application. We'll have to see how things go from there, hopefully I will get accepted.
I continue to work on writing the next installment of Wondercolt Weekends... and it'll be out for editing soon, I swear! Not to give too many spoilers, but this bit is a FlutterDash (light) shipping story, and is proving to be the most difficult piece I've worked on in quite a while. I'm not sure exactly what I'll work on next after that, I would like to return to my Naval Epistolary, working title "Heart of Oak". It would be in a similar vein as Team Boat, but rather more in universe, and set during and after the events of the movie. I've got some core pieces already written, but it's far from complete. It's a long piece, and given the speed at which I write I may pursue shorter fics before taking it on.
Anyhow, on to the AAR you came here for! You may remember that I'm a Civil War reenactor, and that last year I attended a ball in Canton where I had the pleasure of making the acquaintance of the lovely Ms. A. She's a fashion student at Kent State, of Chinese-American extraction, and a wonderful young lady. Anyhow, this year I attended the same event, where I had the pleasure of her company once more.
This year, the ball was held not in the city of Canton but the town of Cuyahoga Falls (Not to be confused with the Cuyahoga Foals, a Brony group from the same area). That's because them sport ball people, what own the hall of game, apparently bought the long time event venue and forced a move to a new hotel. While the new hotel was beautiful, being sited right above the titular falls, the new venue caused a certain amount of confusion and chaos. Mother & I arrived on Friday to find the restaurant packed to the gills, apparently eniterly reserved (who knew hotel restaurant even had reservations?) for the Singles Awareness Day crowd. The food was also appallingly expensive thanks to the holiday. It was quite the pickle, but thankfully our attentive server made up for it. The restaurant was clearly understaffed, no doubt another way for corporate to eek out the extra buck, to the detriment of staff and guests throughout the weekend.
After climbing aboard the glass elevator which reminded me of the Mel Brooks film High Anxiety (seriously the lobby was a spitting image of the one in the film), we reached our room, which proved to be in earshot of a busy road and a rail line. This produced a restful atmosphere best likened taking a nap on a freeway onramp! Amusingly, what we thought to be the sound of a loud heater in the room was actually the gentle rushing of the falls far below us, which we didn't realize until Saturday night!
After a fitful night, we readied ourselves for the exciting day of Civil War lectures and ballroom dancing ahead of us. Revivified by copious amounts of tea, I arrived late to the first panel of the day which was about Civil War railroads. I had expected the topic to be more general in scope, but it transpired to be mainly focused on the Ashtabula Train Wreck of the 1870s which was a slight disappointment. There is supposedly a PBS special on the subject coming out soon, and they are still filming it, so there is a possibility I might be able to be an extra in it. The second panel was in the same room, and focused on the Civil War activities of the USS. Michigan, the first iron hulled ship in the Navy and only Navy ship on the Great Lakes, and the Confederate plot to free the prisoners on Johnson's Island. I quite enjoyed the Commodore's presentation, as well as his self built model of his command. Personally, I don't know if I'd be comfortable moving a model ship around a convention! After these panels, I hit up the sutlers and procured a set of spare brass buttons (always useful) and patterns for both a cravat and sleeping caps as well as a new pair of dress gloves for the ball. The walking about was excellent for breaking the new pair of civilian shoes that I got before the ball, too. I chatted with my good friend Mr. Lincoln, and a passerby remarked I looked like his son, Robert Todd Lincoln. Personally I see no resemblance, but quite the compliment none the less. Stuffed from the preceding nights dinner and with a high bg from breakfast, I skipped lunch. This was fortunate, as I just then received a electronic ( and urgent) telegram from Ms. A, informing me her car had a flat battery and that she needed me to let the photographer know she would be late to her appointment to have her daguerreotype taken. Fortunately I was able to track the man himself down at lunch and inform him, thus becoming the hero of the day! Hurrah for being useful for a change!
One jumpstart later, Ms. A arrived and had her picture taken. She is graduating soon, and her thesis as a historical textile student was a series of woven pieces, so she decided to celebrate it by getting a picture of herself with the shuttle she used for the project. We then wandered the dealer hall, and caught up with one another. I ran into one of my other reenacting friends, from the infantry: Billy. He informed me that, after only 11 years, he'd made Corporal! I then ran into Mr. Davis and asked him "Where did you get that hat?" (insert musical hall song here) and eventually bought another hat from him for my Union Army impression as he had no need for it.
I then changed from a civilian into an Union Artillerist in preparation for the ball. I wore my new artillery uniform, a pretty jacket with becoming red braid and a smart looking kepi. I soon found myself engaged along with Billy and the Commodore in an inter-service detachment to escort the President to dinner. This slightly interfered with my appointment with the photographer, forcing me to leave halfway through dinner to have my picture taken! I was happy with the results, however, Mother & I have a lovely portrait together that turned out better than last years. I also availed myself of some Amstel beer, which was fairly good although Billy & I agree Guinness is the superior brew. Finally, it was time for the dance.
Ms. A and I shared all the waltzes, and by the third time around we had almost got the hang of it! Although waltzing isn't exactly her cup of tea, I really enjoyed the opportunity to dance with her again. I also had the pleasure of dancing the Virginia Reel with her, which was fun but exhausting! During some of the social mixer dances, which make up the bulk of the ball, I also had the unique experiences of dancing with Mr. Lincoln and a Sesch cannoneer (jokes about blue & gray abounded).
After the dance, I brought down my violin to play for the afterglow party. Unfortunately, the hotel had a cavernous atrium which meant my playing initially drew the criticism of the Basil Faulty Hotel Manager. Fortunately, I happen to be just as good with pizzicato as conventional playing, and was able to carry on to the joy of all. Soon I bid Ms. A adieu, and headed off to bed, the hour being very late at this point.
Our trip home was uneventful, but I was was absolutely exhausted after my escapades and the first night of non-sleep. And I had an Star Wars RP that night! Hence, I took some simple notes and left this AAR for a later date which now has finally come!
Well, dear reader, that is all for the moment. I hope you have enjoyed my latest adventures, more of which I assure you are coming. Oh, yes, and stories too!
Ah, congratulations on the publication. :)
And good luck with graduate school!
And a nice AAR; glad it sounds like you had a good time, and thanks for sharing. :)
Congratulations on your article! And best of wishes with grad school as well. ^_^
Sounds like you had a great time. It was fun to read about in part because my dad is from the Cleveland area, and while I'm not overly familiar with everything I've been through Canton and heard about Cuyahoga Falls.