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Feast of the Leviathan
Despite having reservations about the incoming inclement weather, I journeyed to Rhiassa this past weekend to attend their annual festivities. Honesty, ever since Runaris put the idea into Miguel's head that Sven was out to get him, the food at my house just hasn't been the same. Apparently all of Sven's wonderful seasonings come from the gardens, and Miguel is not cooperating. I mean, who knew that's where spices come from? I was desperate to eat something with some flavor, and was willing to risk life and limb for some of Gwen's fantastic cooking.
So let's start with the food then, shall we? This year saw a different arrangement than in years past, with more of an overall social atmosphere, and the food was organized as a compliment to this. I will admit that I was quite skeptical of how this was all going to work within the space of the hall, but I do love when the majority of the food is of a more cocktail style nature, and was quite pleased to see this work so well. All of the appetizers were quite delicious, though someone should teach Syruss the difference between celery and cucumber. Like most people, I enjoy anything I can put sour cream on, so I was quite excited to see what we now call 'the tater table'. I was a bit taken aback to find the small tots of the parental potatoes, but they were delicious all the same. I wasn't such a fan of the chicken marsala, but I was so full of all of the appetizers that it wasn't much of a concern. The vodka sauce was disappointing, but then again I just heard vodka and got excited. Turns out, it wasn't just vodka. I had the tiramisu for dessert, and it was quite divine. Overall the flavor and delivery of the food was excellent, but keep an eye out for the next issue of The Neden Kazoo to see my opinion about forks.
The drink bar was a wonderful addition and I hope it returns in the future. My only critique is that it could have used more tea choices. I think the amount of tea I can drink was grossly underestimated, and I would have liked a better variety. Keep in mind for subsequent gatherings that the amount of tea most people can consume is about equal to the amount of shade that they can throw. Also, the drink bar shouldn't have taken away from having water more readily available, and it would have been nice to have some cups and water pitchers available either per table, or simply at a self serve side bar.
Moving on to the games. There was a new game featured this year called Klask. I did not compete in the actual Klask tournament, as I usually feel I don't need some kind of competition to prove that I am better than others. But I did get a chance to play later on in the day and it was actually quite enjoyable and would love to play it again in the future. I didn't get a chance to play in the casino this year, as it was quite crowded, so I just popped in from time to time to say hello and it looked as though the plebs were having a good time. The new stage area for the bardics and games was an excellent addition, and the games were a lot of fun. Perhaps a bit better organization and presentation of them as well as limiting the raffle entrants to folks actually planning on being there would have made it better still, and as this was the first year I am sure it will only improve in the future. The best game was the one with the balls, and would have preferred to see that played a few more times. The Realms could use more balls.
I was quite happy to see my favorite historian, Brother Pryor (I am horrid with names, so I apologize if that's incorrect) was in attendance with his amazing devices. I love being photographed, so really this was the highlight of my day. We also had a very lovely conversation about the importance of the time in which we live, and how fondly I will be looked upon in the annals of history. Those may not have been his exact words, but those were the words I chose to hear. Either way, he's a wizard with his photographic equipment, and we are all lucky to have him. His historical records of this years gathering can be found here.
Court was short and sweet this year which I think we all appreciated. As usual we couldn't hear much of what was going on, but that's a rant for a future 'I Can't Even'. The awards were also carried on at a good pace, though again, it was hard to hear some of it. I did manage to hear my own name called a few times, which was quite an honor, as well as the names of my close friends and countrymen who I couldn't be more proud of. Well, I mean, I could, but that's not how the saying goes now is it.
I would be quite remiss if I did not also mention Sir Iawen's induction into the Knights of the Realms. As a pillar of our community, she is utterly deserving of such an honor, and I am truly sincere in congratulating her on such an achievement.
Overall, I had a genuinely wonderful day. I absolutely adore a decent social gathering that I have no responsibilities towards. It's simply wonderful to sit back and relax with no worries, having time to turn my full attention to judging everyone and everything with no concern that it's my obligation to fix any it. Thank you to the Nation of Rhiassa for providing us all with this lovely opportunity year after year, and I look forward to next year's gathering.