Mayday! Mayday! Oh, wait..... Beltane! Beltane!

It's hard to believe I started studying Celtic culture way back in 1990. Funny what stays with you. I remember my teacher telling us not to 'get frisky' on May Day or face the consequences.

Not that I'm normally a superstitious person, but today is Beltane and the Druids had some powerful mojo. The Celtic feast of Beltane is all about fertility, which is why I am staying home alone tonight, with no male company. I have learned to never tinker with the pagan Gods, for they are tricksy!

Smart guys, the Druids. If one were to celebrate the Beltane fires with a little physical intimacy, and one happened to become pregnant from the festivities, you've got a perfectly timed due date that should fall very near Imbolc on February 1st. In the event that the mother dies in childbirth, the babe would have a much higher chance of survival, as the female livestock would be producing milk for their own young as well. Not to mention the weather has shifted from the long dark winter temperatures to the blustery but warmer beginnings of spring.

But if she did survive the birth, Beltane rolls around again after three months. The new mother has presumably regained her strength, probably wants a break from the new baby, and is undoubtedly 'randy' following a winter cooped up with her swollen belly. That's a pretty decent population machine, and it keeps the gene pool from stagnating.

OK, enough Celtic history and baby-talk.

Check out this Medieval Marathon Runner who finished the London Marathon 8 DAYS LATE. Granted, I appreciate that he was raising money for a childrens' leukemia charity, but SERIOUSLY. Plate Mail?? He could've finished the same day if he had gone cavalier...

And speaking of cavalier, I simply cannot resist reposting a wonderful bit of humor from the OutlandsRapier Yahoo Group that came up today. Here is the entire thing, in case you are too lazy to join the list to read it:

Top 10 Reasons For Being A Musketeer

10. Spiffy tabard doubles as duvet cover.
9. Takes the sting out of being French.
8. No bag limit on the Cardinals Guard.
7. Fleur De Lys envy.
6. Screw swords, we've got guns.
5. Pick up spare change posing for candy bar wrappers.
4. Lifetime membership at la Rochelle Bed & Breakfast Club.
3. Two words: Annette Funicello! (Ooops, sorry that's Mouseketeers)
2. All for One and One for All, applies to wenches.

and the number one reason....
1. The Queen's diamond studs (if you know what I mean ;) )

Compiled by:
Baron Haakon Haakerson (Patron Saint of geese & gambling)
and Don~a Bianca Isabel d'Orsin