Here be jugglers, fire-eaters and sundrie entertainment. See the jousting knights and the dancing bears. Beware of cutpurses.


After much soul-searching and scrying I have decided that Nottingham should host yetta nother nodermeet. The stars and the I-Ching suggest that an autumnal event bodes well. Running parallel with the Robin Hood Pageant, 25th - 26th October 2003, the event will include time at Nottingham Castle, enjoying a Mediaeval Fayre, lots of old crafts, possible jousting tournament. Food and drink always provide a background, and with the Ye Olde Trip to Jerusalem and the The Salutation Inn around the corner, should be good.

Meeting up

Best option is to ring Albert Herring or wertperch (on 07931 342765) (although my time is severely limited due to new working arrangements*, so Mr Herring is the best bet there!).

Accomodations are fewer than other Nottingham meets, largely due to my housemate taking up valuable space. Albert Herring has offered some floor space, but there may not be more than 8 spaces in total. Priority will be given to those best-known to locals, and known students or similar impecunious types. As at current writing, 6 crash spaces are available, I think.

I have sought out some inexpensive accomodations locally (listed below). Meantime, those expressing an interest so far are:
Locals Travellers
* His suggestion, not mine...

Maybe. Hopefully. They'd better.

Regrets

If you want to be included, or have any suggestions for activity, let me know!


Accomodation

Local hotels include:

  • Grantham Hotel:   0115 981 1373
  • Acorn Hotel:   0115 981 1297
  • Balmoral Hotel:   0115 955 2992
  • Gallery Hotel:   0115 981 3651
  • Comfort Hotel:   0115 947 5641
  • Elmbank Guest House:   0115 962 5493
All are on good bus routes, about 10 minutes from the city centre.

* I'm about on Saturday and Sunday between 1100 and 1600 only. Please don't bother ringing outside these times...

Some supplementary notes for the various churls, knaves, etc. who are intending to visit our fair city:

If you're arriving on or rather for Friday evening, plan A is to meet at The Salutation Inn where we will be playing WWwBD. This is five minute's walk from the station* and although like everything in our fair 24-hour city it will be chokka on a Friday night, is not so cramped that they won't let you in with bags and stuff. Probably. In case of changes, rearrangements, getting lost or just wanting to reach out and talk to someone, my number is 07743 937821. I may well even have remembered to charge the thing up. If you want anything in writing, mail me on albert.herring@hughes.be

As to what we do after that, well, wertperch is in charge, but it's likely to be mildly ad hoc.

My other half proposes to put on Sunday lunch for all comers who are willing to hang around and eat a slow but pleasant meal. She'd like to know how many people are coming, and what food fads they may have.

For those who are staying at Herring Towers, directions are as follows:

From the city centre (any stop on the City Loop which most buses follow) or the rail/bus stations, get a number 11 bus (destination Trent Boulevard). They run about every 10 or 15 minutes in the early evening. You want to get off at the Gertrude Road stop, which will cost you £1.10 (90p from the station), no change given; all-day tickets for £2.20 are worth considering. The stops are fairly well labelled, but anyway it's the fifth one after you cross the river and the bus only goes about 400 yards further before it turns round. There should be someone in most of the time. From the stop, turn south/right up Gertrude Road itself (opposite the N&S Stores); we're at number 88, just by the speed bumps. Do not be concerned if the garden appears to be full of horses.

Accommodation will be allocated by lot, arbitrary decision, order of arrival or any other means deemed suitable or entertaining at the time. Suffice it to say that some will get beds or mattresses, but life will be easier if as many people as possible bring sleeping bags and/or karrimats. The accommodation is unsuitable if you seriously dislike small children who may tend to unpack unattended bags or spread yogurt on your possessions, or if you are allergic to horses or domestic mess. The long-suffering Mrs Herring is to be treated with care. The shower only runs cold, the bath only runs hot. We have a network with the odd spare socket in the hub and DSL; if anyone wants to buy me a wireless access point, they're welcome.

*(To get to the Salutation from the station on foot: head rightwards out of the front of the station, continue straight ahead over the canal and past Broadmarsh bus station until there isn't any more straight on to continue down (about 200 yards); cross the rather large main road (Collin St) with all the bus stops and stuff, then turn left and follow the road round under the concrete arch and up the hill until you get there (about another 400 yards).

Left luggage: there are coin-operated left luggage lockers in Broadmarsh bus station, if you are arriving at a point where otherwise you'd have to cart your luggage around all day.


Photographic character assassinations on http://albertherring.dyndns.org/nodermeet

Lost property office

Found chez Herring to date and as yet unclaimed:

  • One navy blue men's mid-length coat, Marks and Spencer
  • One pair of sumptuous Herr Flick-style black leather gloves
  • One pack of Chrononauts cards

a scar faery said "Herring is absolutely groovy and we love him to bits." Indeed we love Herring to bits. And wertperch, for mentioning at the point in time where I couldn't possibly imagine myself without noders around me for more than a couple of weeks, that indeed, he was thinking of having a nodermeet in Nottingham in October. So he held one and I went, but really only to see lou's tiara and perhaps get a hug. I got several.

We even love Albert's two resident piano and seven-on-a-sunday-morning-noisy-cartoon terrorists. Despite behaving like robotic customs officials, constantly rummaging through our carefully packed rucksacks. We love his horses and his local newsagents and his house which he opened for the lot to sleep in. I think we scared Mrs. Herring though, but I promise we tried to be nice to her.

I got to take a stroll with some guy from the other side of the planet, I got to take the number eleven bus and say thanks to the bus driver. I have pockets full of funny money that my kids will inevitably find and try to buy sweets with (ha ha!) and a head full of Nottingham. Didn't get to see many sights or jousts though, but there was coffee and ales and fish and chips and card games and smokes and hugs and pats and questions and answers and laughs and pauses and silliness and a little more ale and a Japanese businessman's glasses (poor sod!) some very special toothbrushes and a couple of sprints to the loo and a quiet fifteen minutes at the train station and princess loulou and booyaa and wertperch and Albert Herring and sloebertje and a bunch of Dutch people and lemur and ascorbic and Danny and Anthony and catchpole and Tiefling (who should be renamed Briefling after his shortish visit) and Sarah and Dee and the Baron again and Patrick and Daniel and Mrs. Herring and HamsterMan and probably a lot of other noders and an old guy who told me he was old while StrawberryFrog bought crisps that tasted great. The Sunday was sunny and I was bloody thankful for getting far more than what I bartered for.

And lemur's favourite bra which she refused to show us. How British.

Not to mention the fact that I travelled about ten hours each way to sit in a pub a whole day and talk. Britnoders does that to grown men.

I'll be back.


A toalight announcement: The Andrew Aguecheek/toalight Saddam Hussein/Osama bin Laden reality show will air once the CIA is done with them in the interrogation room deep inside their secret carrier off Diego Garcia. The setup is rather sketchy at the moment since one of the Executive Producers fell asleep about half two Saturday morning. Also, he won the snoring contest with flying colours (or nostrils rather).

In short, the show will feature Osama and Saddam in a caravan, given only blunt plastic silverware with which to finish each other off. The catchline for the show will of course be "Death Of A 1001 Cuts". All of the 2000 webcams will air exclusively in Osama's blog. Contrary to popular belief, his blog is devoid of popup traps.

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