Got talked into going to my first historical re-enactment - the Buckskinner's Rendezvous in historical Fort Atkinson, Wisconsin.

I didn't dress up in a funny costume. Neither did my wench, TNT of Smiling Dynamite. However, the group we hung out with did.

Graumagus of Frizzen Sparks

Little Joe of Little Joe's Soapbox

Anathematized of Rivers of Blood

Contagion of Miasmatic Review

Also starring:

Ktreva as charming and sexy wife of Contagion

Clone as the devilishly amusing offspring

Grau's .50 cal rifle as "Hey, that wasn't so bad"

Contagion's .75 cal musket as "OW! My f***ing shoulder!"

Anathematized's breasts as "the all-purpose gum and tobacco storage facility".

Contagion's balls as "my, those ARE tiny!

and featuring special guest star:

The $3 hooker coin as "an excuse to make smutty remarks about the women".

Anyway, I must add that Ktreva was a delightful hostess, plying us all with meat, cheese, and dried fruit.

Oh, and Happy Birthday, Grau!

Anathematized... honestly, I didn't know what to expect, but she's so warm, earthy, and outgoing that I felt comfy hanging with her after about 5 seconds. I wish EVERYONE were that easy to get along with.

Looks great in a corset, too, although I have NO idea how she stayed inside that thing.

Posted by: Harvey at 08:37 PM | Comments (7) | Add Comment
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1 You mention cleavage, corset...and hint it was something to see, but no photos? You sir are a tease.

Posted by: ArmyWifeToddlerMom at May 31, 2005 11:40 PM (8mIWs)

2 I, madam, wasn't in charge of the camera :-)

Posted by: Harvey at June 01, 2005 12:06 AM (ubhj8)

3 Well sir, you should have the camera holder flogged and sent to the gallows! Off with the minion's head!!

Posted by: Michele at June 01, 2005 06:31 AM (ht2RK)

4 Since TNT was the camera holder, there will be floggings. Possibly head ;-)

Posted by: Harvey at June 01, 2005 06:50 AM (ubhj8)

5 What I found most amusing was your reaction to the culinary "delights" and unrelenting smoke.

Posted by: Contagion at June 01, 2005 06:59 AM (Q5WxB)

6 Why thank you Harvey! It was a pleasure to meet you and your lovely wife. I look forward to getting together again sometime

Posted by: ktreva at June 01, 2005 05:45 PM (977gQ)

7 I'm a bit slow in response, but thanks Harv (even though you are definately a HORRIBLE judge of character)...Hmmmm...sad fact of the matter is: After you and TNT left, Ktreva took a pic of my corseted boobs so I could FINALLY see them for myself. I felt the need to apologize to all for what I had subjected them to...They're friggin' HUUUUUGE.

Posted by: Anathematized1 at June 02, 2005 08:51 PM (eRMc4)

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I first met Contagion of Miasmatic Review (in the virtual sense, anyway) in the comments at Frizzen Sparks. Geez, he was all OVER the place there. Runnin' his freakin' yap in damn near every one of Graumagus's posts.

Pretty good stuff, too.

So - as I often do with talented writers - I said, "Dude. Get a blog."

To which he responded something very much like "Up yours. I've got a website. I don't need a stinkin' blog. Piss off!"

The website is mostly dedicated to his hobby of historical re-enactments. Which is pretty cool, because you get to blow stuff up with black powder and you get to take pictures of hot babes next to archaic weaponry.

Two things intrigued me about him. He's a Packers fan living in Illinois, and he's a friend of Grau's. Figure those two things alone added up to someone I had to meet.

What you DON'T know about Contagion from reading his blog is how good he can talk trash. On his site, he's gentle & good-natured (relatively speaking) and I've even caught him doing good deeds by helping out his fellow bloggers.

But get him in good company, and MY how the smackdowns do fly. Which is a GOOD thing. I gather from reading his blog that he doesn't often get the chance to cut loose to his hear's content, but he was in fine form on Saturday. Had me laughing for hours, he did. Kinda gives lie to that "shy" claim he makes. But I imagine that if you put him in a group of stuffed shirts he'd clam right up - if only to keep from stangling all the idiots in the room.

Although it's hard to choose, I'd have to say that my favorite part was when he brought out his cop instincts and started profiling everyone at the table. Me, I'm a shoplifter. I talk big, so any crimes I'd do would be of the stealthy sort.

Beloved Wife TNT of Smiling Dynamite?

Serial killer.

It's always the quiet ones, ya know. Figure one of these days I'll come home & she'll ask me to help her bury her co-workers in the back yard. So if anyone can get me a good deal on 50 pound bags of lime, I'd be appreciative.

Anyway, Contagion's a great guy to hang with, and I had a blast in his company. I look forward with both anticipation & dread to the time when I get to go drinking with him and Grau at the same time. I have a feeling they'll just feed off each other's twisted senses of humor something terrible.

If either one of them has a bag of lime in the trunk, I'm leaving immediately.

[Contagion's version of events can be found here]

Posted by: Harvey at 09:36 PM | Comments (3) | Add Comment
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I first became aware of Little Joe of Little Joe's Soapbox because Graumagus of Frizzen Sparks mentions him from time to time and posted a picture of him once. I read the Soapbox a few times to get an idea about him, but he's not a frequent poster, so there's only so much to learn. So I didn't really know what to expect when I met him.

Well, that's not quite true. He's a good friend of Grau's and Contagion's, so I assumed that there would be a certain... twistedness... to his sense of humor.

Turned out I assumed correctly.

What you DON'T know about Little Joe from his blog is what an imposing figure he is. Six foot six, 300+... he's easy to spot in a crowd. But like most imposing men, he's quite gentle & soft-spoken. Not the least bit threatening at all. Listening to him talk about how much he loves fuzzy kittens is almost comical for its contrast.

I sat & chatted with him for a good 9 hours and he's quite the entertainer. Good stories plus a wit that is both razor-sharp and lightning-quick. He can outquip me any day of the week, which is an all-too-scarce and pleasant feature in a person.

But the thing that impressed me most about Little Joe was his overwhelming and radiant sense of optimism. He's going through some VERY rough times right now. Marital strife and a debilitating medical condition. Yet his smiling good humor and cheerfulness were all that were apparent. Even when he discussed his problems, he'd shrug at the end like it was no big deal and he expected things to get better.

A fine example of a man.

So if you're holding a blogmeet, make sure Little Joe gets invited. Just have a lot of Coke and an extra large chair on hand. Then sit back & enjoy his company.

[Little Joe's version of events can be found here]

Posted by: Harvey at 09:23 PM | Comments (4) | Add Comment
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1 Growing up in a military family, we moved constatnly. I never had a friend for more than a few years. I think what has always had me in awe of Grau and LJ is the fact Grau remembers watching LJ's Mom bringing him home from the hospital as a baby. That just blows me away. It sounds trivial to others, but it is a big thing to me. And then to stick with each other through thick and thin like that...

Posted by: Boudicca at May 13, 2005 10:03 PM (z7nbM)

2 That's honestly one of my earliest memories. His folks were friends with mine, and his older sisters were friends with my older sis, etc. So when I call the guy family I'm not exaggerating. Sometimes I forget how goddamned blessed I am in the friend department.

Posted by: Graumagus at May 13, 2005 11:03 PM (Sg9HN)

3 Oh yeah, and I'm going to start a campaign to get Harvey to include Littlejoe's quote about him in his sidebar quotes. Read his blogmeet entry and you'll know exactly which one

Posted by: Graumagus at May 13, 2005 11:04 PM (Sg9HN)

4 Awww man, now I feel bad for making fun of you Harvey....bastard. Thank you for the compliments, I am all verklempt now.

Posted by: littlejoe at May 14, 2005 11:37 PM (QJRRo)

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Why did I ever buy TNT of Smiling Dynamite a digital camera?

Why did I continue my habit of sleeping in the raw afterwards?

Oh well. At least we had a good time.

Oh, and there's also her version of our trip to Indiana to visit Wolf Park with Blake of Laughing Wolf as our guide. Lots of cute pictures there, too.

Posted by: Harvey at 10:48 PM | Comments (7) | Add Comment
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1 damn fooled again.....

Posted by: ArmyWifeToddlerMom at May 02, 2005 11:15 PM (SsPoh)

2 Yikes! I expected a picture where it would be difficult to tell if you were really "nekid" or not. Instead, I see...more than I wanted to! I think my duck eyes have been seared beyond recovery! Harvey, are you there? All I see is vague dark shadows! Is that you? Say something so I know it's you! (I hereby retract the honorary title of "Wise Harvey." A wise man does NOT sleep "nekid" with a digital camera and a mischievous wife in the room!)

Posted by: VARepublicMan at May 03, 2005 07:38 AM (vZum+)

3 MY EYES! MY EYES! Who do I send the bill to for the years of therapy this is going to take to recover from?

Posted by: phin at May 03, 2005 11:08 AM (Xvpen)

4 hmmm, I think I'm going to take a warning from all the blind men around here and NOT click on the link.

Posted by: Contagion at May 03, 2005 01:38 PM (Q5WxB)

5 I clicked fully expecting something y'all picked up from the 'net. I wish you could have heard me *Gasp!* when I realized, "Holy crap... I'm looking at my nekkid blog father... or part of him anyway..." LOL!

Posted by: Boudicca at May 03, 2005 02:25 PM (z7nbM)

6 Y'all shoulda seen the parts she cropped out ;-)

Posted by: Harvey at May 03, 2005 06:03 PM (ubhj8)

7 Am I the only one here that's wishing she had fallen asleep first??

Posted by: Graumagus at May 03, 2005 11:07 PM (KZgWC)

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