I've only seen a few sailors' superstitions listed on the boards, so I thought I would look around for some other colorful ones to give to my players (and share here, of course).
I found these at the following website:
http://pacificoffshorerigging.com/nautical_superstitions.htm
- A stolen piece of wood mortised into the keel will make a ship sail faster.
- A silver coin placed under the masthead ensures a successful voyage.
- Disaster will follow if you step onto a boat with your left foot first.
- Pouring wine on the deck will bring good luck on a long voyage.
- Throwing stones into the sea will cause great waves and storms.
- A stone thrown over a vessel that is putting out to sea ensures she will never return.
- Flowers are unlucky onboard a ship.
- Don't look back once your ship has left port as this can bring bad luck.
- A dog seen near fishing tackle is bad luck.
- Black cats are considered good luck and will bring a sailor home from the sea.
- Swallows seen at sea are a good sign.
- Sighting a curlew (a wading bird) at sea is considered bad luck.
- A comorant sighted at sea is bad luck.
- Dolphins swimming with the ship are a sign of good luck.
- It is unlucky to kill an albatross.
- It is unlucky to kill a gull (they contain the sould of sailors lost at sea).
- Handing a flag through the rungs of a ladder is bad luck.
- Losing a mop or bucket overboard is a sign of bad luck.
- Cutting your hair or nails at sea is bad luck.
- Church bells heard at sea mean someone on the ship will die.
- St. Elmo's Fire around a sailor's head means he will die within a day.
- When the clothes of a dead sailor are worn by another sailor during the same voyage, misfortune will befall the entire ship.
- If the rim of a glass rings, stop it quickly or there will be a shipwreck.
- Never say the word 'drowned' at sea.
- A ship's bell will always ring when it is wrecked.
- A shark following a ship is a sign of inevitable death.
- Avoid red-haired people when going to a ship to begin a journey (it brings bad luck to the ship, which can be averted by speaking to the red-head before they speak to you).
- Avoid flat-footed people when beginning a trip (they also bring bad luck to the ship, which can also be averted by speaking to them before they speak to you).
- Women on board a ship make the sea angry, but a naked woman on board will calm the sea (this is the reason for naked figureheads).
Feel free to add to the list (and make any corrections where needed - apologies in advance if I got any wrong).
Your Friendly Neighborhood Dalesman
"Bringing Big D**n Justice to the Bad Guys Since 1369 DR"
- Cutting your hair or nails at sea is bad luck.
This may be true, but working aboard ship is rough on hands and hair. Until the 19th century, sailors typically greased their hair and wore it in a queue or pigtail to keep it out of the way. Getting it caught in a moving line could be quite disastrous. As for nails, they'd break regularly anyway--it's impossible to grow long nails if you're handling lines, scrubbing decks, and so forth, plus you'd get tar and dirt underneath--I suppose people must have filed off the rough spots and kept going.
- Women on board a ship make the sea angry, but a naked woman on board will calm the sea (this is the reason for naked figureheads).
This may have been a real superstition, but you'll have to think carefully whether to keep it in a fantasy world where there are some women sailors. Since Lavinia sails with the Blue Nixie in the third adventure, and I doubt she'll be able to hide her sex (as well-known citizen and ship's owner) or consent to walking around naked, this could either be a source of mutinous talk among the sailors or a problem for your game, depending. I've got two female PCs in my party--this could make for some interesting roleplaying or a serious distraction from the main business at hand, depending on how I handle it.
- Women on board a ship make the sea angry, but a naked woman on board will calm the sea (this is the reason for naked figureheads).This may have been a real superstition, but you'll have to think carefully whether to keep it in a fantasy world where there are some women sailors. Since Lavinia sails with the Blue Nixie in the third adventure, and I doubt she'll be able to hide her sex (as well-known citizen and ship's owner) or consent to walking around naked, this could either be a source of mutinous talk among the sailors or a problem for your game, depending. I've got two female PCs in my party--this could make for some interesting roleplaying or a serious distraction from the main business at hand, depending on how I handle it.
Yeah - I probably should have explained why I included that superstition, Peruhain.
I did so because I personally did not know about the tie-in to figureheads until I read the article. I thought it would be an interesting bit of trivia for those of us not well-versed in nautical ways.
I agree with you that this superstition wouldn't really work in most fantasy campaigns (and definitely not in mine). Besides, if Captain Jerrel in Bullywug Gambit ever heard such nonsense, I'm sure she would have some colorful things to say about it :)
Your Friendly Neighborhood Dalesman
"Bringing Big D**n Justice to the Bad Guys Since 1369 DR"
I heard somewhere a sailing bloke would give his wife an earring and keep one, and that meant the pair would be reunited later on.
This explains much. But odd that pirates then somehow ended up being the ones depicted with one earring, and it later becoming associated with bad-boy attitude in modern times.
Never woulda took Blackbeard for the monogamous type.
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I heard somewhere a sailing bloke would give his wife an earring and keep one, and that meant the pair would be reunited later on.
And thus did the undead return to wreak havoc and death upon his on household, drawn by the earring to kill and kill again until all who stood in it's way were slain and the earrings reunited again.........sounds like Aberzombie's honeymoon!
FH (for no mere mortal can resist the evil of the Thriller!)
This may have been a real superstition, but you'll have to think carefully whether to keep it in a fantasy world where there are some women sailors. Since Lavinia sails with the Blue Nixie in the third adventure, and I doubt she'll be able to hide her sex (as well-known citizen and ship's owner) or consent to walking around naked, this could either be a source of mutinous talk among the sailors or a problem for your game, depending. I've got two female PCs in my party--this could make for some interesting roleplaying or a serious distraction from the main business at hand, depending on how I handle it.
- Women on board a ship make the sea angry, but a naked woman on board will calm the sea (this is the reason for naked figureheads).
You might still include this superstition to exist in some places, even if not everywhere...after all, few superstitions are followed everywhere and sometimes same thing can have wildly opposing meanings in different places. So it might be fun to throw in couple of old sailors who keep predicting doom when female PCs come to a ship, even if most of the crew would be ok with it (though they might be supporting that "being naked" part too).
One superstition not mentioned: Whenever a cigarette is lit from a candle a sailor drowns.
One superstition not mentioned: Whenever a cigarette is lit from a candle a sailor drowns.
I know it somewhat different: Not drowning, but simply dying.
There is even a real-world rationale behind this: When not hired on a ship, sailors sold matches to have some income at all. And so, if somebody does not use matches to light cigarettes, she is responsible for sailors starving...
This is obviously fairly new, as it needs cigarettes and matches.
Stefan
I believe that tattoos originated after James Cooke first arrived on Tahiti. Tattooing was very popular in the South Pacific. Fletcher Christian and George Stewart of Mutiny on the Bounty fame both had stars tattooed on the left of their chests. Perhaps these were early Nautical Stars.
FAQ Farmers have offered these:
Sailors got their ears pierced because it helps improve eyesight (I think its an acupuncture site).
A black pearl earring for survivors of a sinking ship .
Golden earrings were used as a means of ensuring they were buried properly should they die at sea or in a foreign port. Earrings were worn to pay the ship's cooper to make a barrel to transport the pirate's preserved body home in, so he would not be buried at sea or in foreign lands.Earrings were worn to ensure that the pirate did not die a pauper and had at least some wealth to pay for his funeral.
In modern times a brass earring denoted a survivor of a ship sinking.
One left ear piercing for crossing each of the Equator, Artic Circle, and Antarctic Circle.
Earrings were thought to keep spirits from entering through the ear, but that's not a purely sailor thing.
A sparrow for every 5000 thousand nautical miles traveled,.
A sailor would get a swallow tattoo for every 5000 miles he had sailed.
A swallow because it will always find its way home.
A rooster and pig on the ankles are to prevent a sailor from drowning.
The pig and the rooster are tattooed on either the calves or the top of the feet, to prevent a sailor from drowning,. These animals were originally carried on most ships in wooden crates. When a ship goes down these crates would float and then catch currents and wash ashore with the other debris from the ship, making the pigs and roosters often the only souls to survive a shipwreck.
A tattoo of a pig on the left knee and a rooster (cock) on the right foot signified "Pig on the knee, safety at sea. A cock on the right, never lose a fight."
Tattoos of pigs and chickens were to make sure they always had their ham and eggs so that they never go hungry.
A turtle standing on its back legs (shellback) for crossing the equator and being initiated into King Neptune‘s Court.
A tattoo of King Neptune if you crossed the Equator.
Crossed anchors on the web between the thumb and index finger for a bosn‘s mate.
Royal Navy tattoos of palm trees for the Mediterranean cruises in WWII.
Many US sailors have a palm tree or hula girl from Hawaii.
The words HOLD and FAST were tattooed on the knuckles to help hold line.
Hold Fast across the knuckles to keep them from falling overboard or dropping a line.
Anchor tattoo for sailing the Atlantic.
Full rigged ship for sailing around Cape Horn.
Dragon for crossing the international date line or serving in China.
Rope around the wrist for being a dockhand.
Two stars to ensure always knowing the way.
The anchor usually noted that the sailor was in the merchant marine.
Guns or crossed cannon for military naval service.
Harpoons for the fishing fleet.
Crosses on the soles of one's feet to ward off hungry sharks.
A nautical star, or compass rose was to always find your way home.
A dagger through a rose signified a willingness to fight and kill even something as fragile as a rose.
Many sailors also got pornographic images so that they would always have them with them.
I have a very old book c.1910 where an old sailor be moans the end of the sailors tattoo, yea right. he expounds that. " on the forearm the ports you've visited. on the wrist 'bracelets' on the upper arm the girls name or initials. on the lower leg the initials of all the girls you've 'had'." The "MOM" tattoo became popular during WWII as well as the "death before dishonour" dagger piercing the skin. but thats with the USN in the Royal Navy, and presumably the Commonwealth navies,this is my info; full rigged ship (on the back very large) for rounding the horn (cape horn), The anchor (fouled or not) for service in the atlantic. All remaining tattoos except since 1970 are in this discussion. Many 'modern' sailors have put tattoos of their specility or of the distinctive badge they had earned. like having crossed hammers with wings for aircraft carrier mechanics, or the divers helmet for a diver,etc. As for crossing the line. None of us Shellbacks want to repete this trial! You get a card. but some of us wisely have the longitude and date as well as ship on our upper leg. So if we ever get mistaken for a pollywog we can "show a leg".
Sailors have attributed superstitions to almost all aspects of their work and life on the sea. One of the common traits of superstitious belief is that the subject matter of the superstition usually involves some uncertainty and because of our desire to feel secure, we create superstitions to account for all the possible outcomes, thereby minimizing our lack of control (or making us feel as though we have reduced the risk.) This concept can be seen most clearly in the sailing profession and is largely due to the uncontrollable weather that the sailors life and work is powerless before. The job, more so in the past than in the present and in the days of pirates, was a very dangerous one and the slightest mistake could spell disaster for all on board. To deter any type of dangerous action and behavior, superstitions could serve as a warning and therefore minimize future calamities. It also brought comfort to passengers and crew.
One of the most repeated verses that originates from a sailor superstition is below:
Red sky at night, sailor's delight
Red sky in the morning, sailor's warning
For sailors, it was lucky:
to smash a bottle against the boat just before sailing
for sailors to have tattoos
to throw an old pair of shoes overboard just after launch
to have a black cat on board
for a child to be born on the ship
for sailors to wear gold hoop earrings
to touch the collar of a sailor
to step aboard using the right foot first
For sailors, it was unlucky:
to name the boat with a word ending in "a"
to have the bottle not break when used in the launch ceremony
to change the name of a boat
to sail on a green boat
to sail on a Friday
to see rats leaving a ship
to have someone die on the ship
to whistle on board a ship
to cross an area where another ship once sunk
to lose a bucket at sea
Other sailing superstitions:
Women and clergymen as passengers bring bad luck
If you meet someone with red hair, a clergyman, or someone with cross-eyes on the way to the harbor, you are encouraged not to set sail
A bell ringing by itself on the ship is a death omen for one of the crew
The word "drown" can never be spoken at sea or it may summon up the actual event
A ship without its figurehead will not sink
Horseshoes on a ship's mast help turn away storms
A ship will sail faster when fleeing an enemy
A ship carrying a dead body will sail slower
Seabirds are thought to carry the sould of dead sailors
Whistling, cutting nails and trimming beards at sea will cause storms
Good stuff, Kendrik. keep it coming
Do you know about the ship´s kobold ? A (probably faerie) creature, invisible, but very noisy, not unlike a poltergeist. He is a practical joker. He takes care of the ship, and may warn of danger, or see to repairs. If he becomes visible, it is a bad omen. He only leaves the ship if it is doomed. Generally, he is a creature of good luck for the ship and its crew.
In german, he is called a "Klabautermann." Klabauter stands for moving noisily.
Stefan
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Do you know about the ship´s kobold ? A (probably faerie) creature, invisible, but very noisy, not unlike a poltergeist. He is a practical joker. He takes care of the ship, and may warn of danger, or see to repairs. If he becomes visible, it is a bad omen. He only leaves the ship if it is doomed. Generally, he is a creature of good luck for the ship and its crew.
In german, he is called a "Klabautermann." Klabauter stands for moving noisily.Stefan
That's awesome.
OK Stefan, you're going to have stat up this little bit of German fey-lore and share it with us. I can see this being an interesting addition to the Sea Wyvern's "crew." Of course, if you don't give us stats, I'll just have to have the crew blame whatever disruptions the stowaway causes on the Sea Wyvern's klabautermann.
On another note, are there any shellbacks out there (besides me)? I'm thinking that the Isle of Dread's position might possibly place it south of Oerth's equator, which means a ceremony for "Crossing the Line" is in order. I don't want to give away too many guild secrets, but perhaps a brief discussion of a few of the traditions of this venerable rite are in order--might make for some fun roleplaying.
Edit: This wiki article is a spotty start, but provides most of the basics. On my ship, the drag ball was replaced with a pre-event "wog beauty contest" in which each division on the ship selected one wog to dress in drag and represent the division in the contest.
Do you know about the ship´s kobold ? A (probably faerie) creature, invisible, but very noisy, not unlike a poltergeist. He is a practical joker. He takes care of the ship, and may warn of danger, or see to repairs. If he becomes visible, it is a bad omen. He only leaves the ship if it is doomed. Generally, he is a creature of good luck for the ship and its crew.
In german, he is called a "Klabautermann." Klabauter stands for moving noisily.
Hmm, haven't heard of those in ships but makes sense, as there are similar feys in pretty much every household building who take care of them, and should you offend one that is baaaad luck.
I do wonder if DM should make a checklist of all the superstitions "Ok, you did this, this, this and this but not that and that today...it's -2 for all rolls you make today!"
OK Stefan, you're going to have stat up this little bit of German fey-lore and share it with us. I can see this being an interesting addition to the Sea Wyvern's "crew." Of course, if you don't give us stats, I'll just have to have the crew blame whatever disruptions the stowaway causes on the Sea Wyvern's klabautermann.
Hmm, lets see... It should be along the lines of household faeries, as Magdalena suggested. I will have to look if I can find something like this anywhere in D&D and build from this.
Stefan
Good stuff, Kendrik. keep it coming
as you command...
IT is notorious that sailors, all over the world, are extremely superstitious—but this appears to be a nameless dread of anything out of the usual. Until the discovery of wireless telegraphy, those who went down to the sea in ships were, practically, isolated from the rest of Humanity between port and port.
We can easily understand that anything beyond their normal experience would disturb them. For one thing, sailors are absolutely dependent on their own company—in olden times, for weeks together. If one of their number happened to be an obstinate type, and at all self-opinionated, the others would follow his narrow lead, and in that way idly expressed opinions would soon become rooted beliefs, and would be passed on as such.
Many of these sailor superstitions are comparatively recent—a few go back to early Man; not, of course, to really primitive sources, like so many of our popular superstitions, but still far beyond history.
One of these early superstitions is the throwing of a shoe after a boat to assure good luck—as already pointed out, this really meant fecundity, and therefore, in a secondary sense, good luck.
Many sailor superstitions concern the Moon, which must have been a real blessing to these lonely mariners during the hours of darkness. All these are probably very ancient, and it is not always easy to discover any reason for them.
Sailors dread a new moon on Saturday, or a full moon on Sunday. One can explain the former, because in these early days, Friday was dedicated to love, which was supposed to increase with the increase of the moon. So a new moon falling on a Saturday would probably mean a very dissipated Friday—making the most of it—and thus be disastrous for the vessel. But I fail to see what harm could fall if the full moon came on a Sunday, which has only been a sacred day within historical times.
Another “moon” superstition was to the effect that “as many days as the moon is old at Michaelmas, so many storms of rain before Christmas.” Sailors may be able to say if there is any truth in this belief—it would not be possible to verify it in any way.
Stones with natural holes in the centre were tied to the bows of boats—these were known as Holy flints. Here we obviously get another form of the symbolism of the womb, which, through fecundity, begets luck.
Again, most fishing boats carry a bit of Iron as a mascot—I have fulIy gone into the sacred character of this metal.
All sailors dread a corpse, and no doubt in ancient days illness and death at sea must have been real dangers. The illness might be infectious, about they knew nothing—apart from anything else, it left the crew short-handed, and therefore in danger. We must also remember that the earliest voyages were real adventures—Man did know something about the dry land; he knew nothing about the water, except that his comrades died if they fell into it.
In the East it would be impossible to keep a dead body on board more than a few hours, but it must have been terrible work throwing their comrade overboard, with no knowledge of what would become of his Soul, or his Ego.
From this dread rose the sailor’s fear that if he saved a stranger from the sea, he was raising up an enemy who would do him an ill-turn before long. For all be knew, this stranger might be some evil spirit in the body of a dead man!
But it is impossible to say why sailors dread a whistling woman! Whistling was supposed to draw a breeze, and therefore danger, but why the woman?
Perhaps it simply means that they resented feminine interference.
It is true that sailors did not like to have a woman on board, and this can easily be understood. In those primitive days, passion would be strong and easily roused, so the presence of a woman meant quarrelling and blows. No doubt this explains why they like a birth on board ship—it is merely another variation of the same idea, and apparently removes all danger of any quarrelling over the woman.
While on this vexed question of the woman, it is rather interesting to find a superstition to the effect that if you beat your wife, you will be lucky in your fishing!
Of course you must not do it on purpose—it must be a normal quarrel, not a forced one. I have already mentioned the lucky results that follow a naked woman harnessed to the plough—this other superstition appears to have a similar basis, for we are told that it is extremely fortunate if you draw blood! Obviously the woman would have to be naked, or very lightly clad indeed—possibly her nightclothes, as fishing boats often set out at night—or else a normal marital whipping would not draw blood from the body of a strapping well-built woman.
That word “strapping,” by the by, strongly suggests that healthy men and women were supposed to be those brought up on the strap.
It is considered unlucky to pull a boat out of the water stern first—probably this is a philosophical way of rebuking laziness, because a boat bows-on would be less likely to be lifted by the tide. It is also unlucky to ask a fisherman if he has had a good catch—it suggests that you doubt whether he is in favour with the gods, and therefore, by the law of reversal, that he must have done something wrong.
I have already spoken of the sailor’s superstition as to the effect of the tide upon birth and death. There are, of course, many superstitions, now amounting to a regular ceremonial, at the launching of a ship of any kind. Champagne is one of the modern innovations, but it all dates to the days of a living sacrifice, offered in exchange for the favour of the high gods.
The fishing boats are regularly blessed each season, and in many districts the nets are “salted” in order to ensure good luck for the ensuing year. This certainly seems a needless waste of salt!
Another sailor custom was to fasten a wreath of flowers to the mast, which was left till their safe return to port—here, apparently, is the origin of the more modern flags.
The early superstitious ceremoniaIs that accompanied the “Crossing of the Line” have degenerated into rough horseplay. At one time they were genuine, and included worship and living sacrifice—but originally they were not confined to the Line, nor to any other imaginary place. It was done when passing a great many places, some of these being well-known head-lands, thus showing the mariner that he was in safe waters again—other places were Temples on land, when these were visible from sea.
It is an interesting fact, proving the intense hold that these ancient superstitions have upon our daily life, that all Naval salutes are given in odd numbers—for luck! The minute gun is the only even numbered salute.
In Spain, it was considered unlucky if a sailor’s wife put her broom head upwards while her husband was at sea! They also considered it unlucky to step on board ship left foot first, or to step back to shore in that careless fashion.
Wednesday is considered an unlucky day at sea—but I do not know why.
You should never point with your finger at a ship at sea—it means ill-luck for those on board. You should use the whole hand!
It is generally considered unlucky to fish every day of the week—this again is a philosophical superstition, and is intended as a rebuke for those who are selfish and greedy, or dissatisfied with what the gods are doing for them.
White stones are rejected as ballast by sailors—I presume this is a touch of the old idea that white is a sacred colour and that it would amount to rank blasphemy to use such stones for such a purpose!
Another curious colour superstition among sailors is that a black cat is lucky, but that two change the luck! Poor Puss!
Another sensible superstition of the philosophic order is the belief that it brings bad luck if you swear while fishing. What unlucky mortals we landsmen must be!
Birds coming on board a ship at sea must not be chased or taken—they are in the care of the high gods and should be left alone. You yourself will assuredly need assistance before long if you interfere with these winged little strangers.
Images have long been used to decorate the prows of vessels of all sizes—originally most of these were naked women, who are apparently luck bringers according to popular belief.
When a vessel earns a name for bad luck, it is not easy to get good men to sign on. There are many well-known and authentic cases where the name of the vessel was changed but the ill-fortune continued. Airmen nowadays are very superstitious, and it certainly is strange that so many fatal accidents should have occurred on the thirteenth of the month. Very few airmen will now ascend on that day. A really extraordinary series of such accidents occurred in March, April, May, July, August, September and October 1912—in May, two men were killed in distinct accidents. This sequence of fatalities continued in the January and February of 1913, but after that it ceased, because the men refused to run the risk. The January fatality was a double one.
There are, naturally, countless superstitions about the weather, but these are generally very technical and would lack interest. But sailors strongly believe that the weather changes at, or about, the new moon and the full moon. It has, of course, long been held that the moon influences the tides, and it is quite likely that it may affect the wind.
Good stuff, Kendrik. keep it comingprobably shouldn't be in this thread but i suspect there are more than a few superstitions that have been endorsed herein...
PART I
An ancient Mariner meeteth three Gallants bidden to a wedding-feast, and detaineth one.
It is an ancient Mariner,
And he stoppeth one of three.
`By thy long beard and glittering eye,
Now wherefore stopp'st thou me ?
The Bridegroom's doors are opened wide,
And I am next of kin ;
The guests are met, the feast is set :
May'st hear the merry din.'He holds him with his skinny hand,
`There was a ship,' quoth he.
`Hold off ! unhand me, grey-beard loon !'
Eftsoons his hand dropt he.The Wedding-Guest is spell-bound by the eye of the old seafaring man, and constrained to hear his tale.
He holds him with his glittering eye--
The Wedding-Guest stood still,
And listens like a three years' child :
The Mariner hath his will.
The Wedding-Guest sat on a stone :
He cannot choose but hear ;
And thus spake on that ancient man,
The bright-eyed Mariner.`The ship was cheered, the harbour cleared,
Merrily did we drop
Below the kirk, below the hill,
Below the lighthouse top.The Mariner tells how the ship sailed southward with a good wind and fair weather, till it reached the Line.
The Sun came up upon the left,
Out of the sea came he !
And he shone bright, and on the right
Went down into the sea.
Higher and higher every day,
Till over the mast at noon--'
The Wedding-Guest here beat his breast,
For he heard the loud bassoon.The Wedding-Guest heareth the bridal music ; but the Mariner continueth his tale.
The bride hath paced into the hall,
Red as a rose is she ;
Nodding their heads before her goes
The merry minstrelsy.
The Wedding-Guest he beat his breast,
Yet he cannot choose but hear ;
And thus spake on that ancient man,
The bright-eyed Mariner.The ship driven by a storm toward the south pole.
`And now the STORM-BLAST came, and he
Was tyrannous and strong :
He struck with his o'ertaking wings,
And chased us south along.
With sloping masts and dipping prow,
As who pursued with yell and blow
Still treads the shadow of his foe,
And forward bends his head,
The ship drove fast, loud roared the blast,
The southward aye we fled.And now there came both mist and snow,
And it grew wondrous cold :
And ice, mast-high, came floating by,
As green as emerald.The land of ice, and of fearful sounds where no living thing was to be seen.
And through the drifts the snowy clifts
Did send a dismal sheen :
Nor shapes of men nor beasts we ken--
The ice was all between.
The ice was here, the ice was there,
The ice was all around :
It cracked and growled, and roared and howled,
Like noises in a swound !Till a great sea-bird, called the Albatross, came through the snow-fog, and was received with great joy and hospitality.
At length did cross an Albatross,
Thorough the fog it came ;
As if it had been a Christian soul,
We hailed it in God's name.
It ate the food it ne'er had eat,
And round and round it flew.
The ice did split with a thunder-fit ;
The helmsman steered us through !And lo ! the Albatross proveth a bird of good omen, and followeth the ship as it returned northward through fog and floating ice.
And a good south wind sprung up behind ;
The Albatross did follow,
And every day, for food or play,
Came to the mariner's hollo !
In mist or cloud, on mast or shroud,
It perched for vespers nine ;
Whiles all the night, through fog-smoke white,
Glimmered the white Moon-shine.'The ancient Mariner inhospitably killeth the pious bird of good omen.
`God save thee, ancient Mariner !
From the fiends, that plague thee thus !--
Why look'st thou so ?'--With my cross-bow
I shot the ALBATROSS.
PART II
The Sun now rose upon the right :
Out of the sea came he,
Still hid in mist, and on the left
Went down into the sea.
And the good south wind still blew behind,
But no sweet bird did follow,
Nor any day for food or play
Came to the mariners' hollo !His shipmates cry out against the ancient Mariner, for killing the bird of good luck.
And I had done an hellish thing,
And it would work 'em woe :
For all averred, I had killed the bird
That made the breeze to blow.
Ah wretch ! said they, the bird to slay,
That made the breeze to blow !
But when the fog cleared off, they justify the same, and thus make themselves accomplices in the crime.
Nor dim nor red, like God's own head,
The glorious Sun uprist :
Then all averred, I had killed the bird
That brought the fog and mist.
'Twas right, said they, such birds to slay,
That bring the fog and mist.
The fair breeze continues ; the ship enters the Pacific Ocean, and sails northward, even till it reaches the Line.
The fair breeze blew, the white foam flew,
The furrow followed free ;
We were the first that ever burst
Into that silent sea.
The ship hath been suddenly becalmed.
Down dropt the breeze, the sails dropt down,
'Twas sad as sad could be ;
And we did speak only to break
The silence of the sea !
All in a hot and copper sky,
The bloody Sun, at noon,
Right up above the mast did stand,
No bigger than the Moon.Day after day, day after day,
We stuck, nor breath nor motion ;
As idle as a painted ship
Upon a painted ocean.And the Albatross begins to be avenged.
Water, water, every where,
And all the boards did shrink ;
Water, water, every where,
Nor any drop to drink.
The very deep did rot : O Christ !
That ever this should be !
Yea, slimy things did crawl with legs
Upon the slimy sea.About, about, in reel and rout
The death-fires danced at night ;
The water, like a witch's oils,
Burnt green, and blue and white.A Spirit had followed them ; one of the invisible inhabitants of this planet, neither departed souls nor angels ; concerning whom the learned Jew, Josephus, and the Platonic Constantinopolitan, Michael Psellus, may be consulted. They are very numerous, and there is no climate or element without one or more.
And some in dreams assuréd were
Of the Spirit that plagued us so ;
Nine fathom deep he had followed us
From the land of mist and snow.
And every tongue, through utter drought,
Was withered at the root ;
We could not speak, no more than if
We had been choked with soot.The shipmates, in their sore distress, would fain throw the whole guilt on the ancient Mariner : in sign whereof they hang the dead sea-bird round his neck.
Ah ! well a-day ! what evil looks
Had I from old and young !
Instead of the cross, the Albatross
About my neck was hung.
PART III
There passed a weary time. Each throat
Was parched, and glazed each eye.
A weary time ! a weary time !
How glazed each weary eye,
When looking westward, I beheld
A something in the sky.
The ancient Mariner beholdeth a sign in the element afar off.
At first it seemed a little speck,
And then it seemed a mist ;
It moved and moved, and took at last
A certain shape, I wist.
A speck, a mist, a shape, I wist !
And still it neared and neared :
As if it dodged a water-sprite,
It plunged and tacked and veered.At its nearer approach, it seemeth him to be a ship ; and at a dear ransom he freeth his speech from the bonds of thirst.
With throats unslaked, with black lips baked,
We could nor laugh nor wail ;
Through utter drought all dumb we stood !
I bit my arm, I sucked the blood,
And cried, A sail ! a sail !
A flash of joy ;
With throats unslaked, with black lips baked,
Agape they heard me call :
Gramercy ! they for joy did grin,
And all at once their breath drew in,
As they were drinking all.
And horror follows. For can it be a ship that comes onward without wind or tide ?
See ! see ! (I cried) she tacks no more !
Hither to work us weal ;
Without a breeze, without a tide,
She steadies with upright keel !
The western wave was all a-flame.
The day was well nigh done !
Almost upon the western wave
Rested the broad bright Sun ;
When that strange shape drove suddenly
Betwixt us and the Sun.It seemeth him but the skeleton of a ship.
And straight the Sun was flecked with bars,
(Heaven's Mother send us grace !)
As if through a dungeon-grate he peered
With broad and burning face.
And its ribs are seen as bars on the face of the setting Sun.
Alas ! (thought I, and my heart beat loud)
How fast she nears and nears !
Are those her sails that glance in the Sun,
Like restless gossameres ?
The Spectre-Woman and her Death-mate, and no other on board the skeleton ship.
And those her ribs through which the Sun
Did peer, as through a grate ?
And is that Woman all her crew ?
Is that a DEATH ? and are there two ?
Is DEATH that woman's mate ?
[first version of this stanza through the end of Part III]
Like vessel, like crew !Her lips were red, her looks were free,
Her locks were yellow as gold :
Her skin was as white as leprosy,
The Night-mare LIFE-IN-DEATH was she,
Who thicks man's blood with cold.
Death and Life-in-Death have diced for the ship's crew, and she (the latter) winneth the ancient Mariner.
The naked hulk alongside came,
And the twain were casting dice ;
`The game is done ! I've won ! I've won !'
Quoth she, and whistles thrice.
No twilight within the courts of the Sun.
The Sun's rim dips ; the stars rush out :
At one stride comes the dark ;
With far-heard whisper, o'er the sea,
Off shot the spectre-bark.
At the rising of the Moon,
We listened and looked sideways up !
Fear at my heart, as at a cup,
My life-blood seemed to sip !
The stars were dim, and thick the night,
The steerman's face by his lamp gleamed white ;
From the sails the dew did drip--
Till clomb above the eastern bar
The hornéd Moon, with one bright star
Within the nether tip.
One after another,
One after one, by the star-dogged Moon,
Too quick for groan or sigh,
Each turned his face with a ghastly pang,
And cursed me with his eye.
His shipmates drop down dead.
Four times fifty living men,
(And I heard nor sigh nor groan)
With heavy thump, a lifeless lump,
They dropped down one by one.
But Life-in-Death begins her work on the ancient Mariner.
The souls did from their bodies fly,--
They fled to bliss or woe !
And every soul, it passed me by,
Like the whizz of my cross-bow !
PART IV
The Wedding-Guest feareth that a Spirit is talking to him ;
`I fear thee, ancient Mariner !
I fear thy skinny hand !
And thou art long, and lank, and brown,
As is the ribbed sea-sand.
(Coleridge's note on above stanza)
I fear thee and thy glittering eye,
And thy skinny hand, so brown.'--
Fear not, fear not, thou Wedding-Guest !
This body dropt not down.
But the ancient Mariner assureth him of his bodily life, and proceedeth to relate his horrible penance.
Alone, alone, all, all alone,
Alone on a wide wide sea !
And never a saint took pity on
My soul in agony.
He despiseth the creatures of the calm,
The many men, so beautiful !
And they all dead did lie :
And a thousand thousand slimy things
Lived on ; and so did I.
And envieth that they should live, and so many lie dead.
I looked upon the rotting sea,
And drew my eyes away ;
I looked upon the rotting deck,
And there the dead men lay.
I looked to heaven, and tried to pray ;
But or ever a prayer had gusht,
A wicked whisper came, and made
My heart as dry as dust.I closed my lids, and kept them close,
And the balls like pulses beat ;
For the sky and the sea, and the sea and the sky
Lay like a load on my weary eye,
And the dead were at my feet.But the curse liveth for him in the eye of the dead men.
The cold sweat melted from their limbs,
Nor rot nor reek did they :
The look with which they looked on me
Had never passed away.
An orphan's curse would drag to hell
A spirit from on high ;
But oh ! more horrible than that
Is the curse in a dead man's eye !
Seven days, seven nights, I saw that curse,
And yet I could not die.In his loneliness and fixedness he yearneth towards the journeying Moon, and the stars that still sojourn, yet still move onward ; and every where the blue sky belongs to them, and is their appointed rest, and their native country and their own natural homes, which they enter unannounced, as lords that are certainly expected and yet there is a silent joy at their arrival.
The moving Moon went up the sky,
And no where did abide :
Softly she was going up,
And a star or two beside--
Her beams bemocked the sultry main,
Like April hoar-frost spread ;
But where the ship's huge shadow lay,
The charméd water burnt alway
A still and awful red.By the light of the Moon he beholdeth God's creatures of the great calm.
Beyond the shadow of the ship,
I watched the water-snakes :
They moved in tracks of shining white,
And when they reared, the elfish light
Fell off in hoary flakes.
Within the shadow of the ship
I watched their rich attire :
Blue, glossy green, and velvet black,
They coiled and swam ; and every track
Was a flash of golden fire.Their beauty and their happiness.
He blesseth them in his heart.O happy living things ! no tongue
Their beauty might declare :
A spring of love gushed from my heart,
And I blessed them unaware :
Sure my kind saint took pity on me,
And I blessed them unaware.
The spell begins to break.
The self-same moment I could pray ;
And from my neck so free
The Albatross fell off, and sank
Like lead into the sea.
PART V
Oh sleep ! it is a gentle thing,
Beloved from pole to pole !
To Mary Queen the praise be given !
She sent the gentle sleep from Heaven,
That slid into my soul.
By grace of the holy Mother, the ancient Mariner is refreshed with rain.
The silly buckets on the deck,
That had so long remained,
I dreamt that they were filled with dew ;
And when I awoke, it rained.
My lips were wet, my throat was cold,
My garments all were dank ;
Sure I had drunken in my dreams,
And still my body drank.I moved, and could not feel my limbs :
I was so light--almost
I thought that I had died in sleep,
And was a blesséd ghost.He heareth sounds and seeth strange sights and commotions in the sky and the element.
And soon I heard a roaring wind :
It did not come anear ;
But with its sound it shook the sails,
That were so thin and sere.
The upper air burst into life !
And a hundred fire-flags sheen,
To and fro they were hurried about !
And to and fro, and in and out,
The wan stars danced between.And the coming wind did roar more loud,
And the sails did sigh like sedge ;
And the rain poured down from one black cloud ;
The Moon was at its edge.The thick black cloud was cleft, and still
The Moon was at its side :
Like waters shot from some high crag,
The lightning fell with never a jag,
A river steep and wide.The bodies of the ship's crew are inspired, and the ship moves on ;
The loud wind never reached the ship,
Yet now the ship moved on !
Beneath the lightning and the Moon
The dead men gave a groan.
They groaned, they stirred, they all uprose,
Nor spake, nor moved their eyes ;
It had been strange, even in a dream,
To have seen those dead men rise.The helmsman steered, the ship moved on ;
Yet never a breeze up-blew ;
The mariners all 'gan work the ropes,
Where they were wont to do ;
They raised their limbs like lifeless tools--
We were a ghastly crew.The body of my brother's son
Stood by me, knee to knee :
The body and I pulled at one rope,
But he said nought to me.But not by the souls of the men, nor by dæmons of earth or middle air, but by a blessed troop of angelic spirits, sent down by the invocation of the guardian saint.
`I fear thee, ancient Mariner !'
Be calm, thou Wedding-Guest !
'Twas not those souls that fled in pain,
Which to their corses came again,
But a troop of spirits blest :
For when it dawned--they dropped their arms,
And clustered round the mast ;
Sweet sounds rose slowly through their mouths,
And from their bodies passed.Around, around, flew each sweet sound,
Then darted to the Sun ;
Slowly the sounds came back again,
Now mixed, now one by one.Sometimes a-dropping from the sky
I heard the sky-lark sing ;
Sometimes all little birds that are,
How they seemed to fill the sea and air
With their sweet jargoning !And now 'twas like all instruments,
Now like a lonely flute ;
And now it is an angel's song,
That makes the heavens be mute.It ceased ; yet still the sails made on
A pleasant noise till noon,
A noise like of a hidden brook
In the leafy month of June,
That to the sleeping woods all night
Singeth a quiet tune.[Additional stanzas, dropped after the first edition.]
Till noon we quietly sailed on,
Yet never a breeze did breathe :
Slowly and smoothly went the ship,
Moved onward from beneath.
The lonesome Spirit from the south-pole carries on the ship as far as the Line, in obedience to the angelic troop, but still requireth vengeance.
Under the keel nine fathom deep,
From the land of mist and snow,
The spirit slid : and it was he
That made the ship to go.
The sails at noon left off their tune,
And the ship stood still also.
The Sun, right up above the mast,
Had fixed her to the ocean :
But in a minute she 'gan stir,
With a short uneasy motion--
Backwards and forwards half her length
With a short uneasy motion.Then like a pawing horse let go,
She made a sudden bound :
It flung the blood into my head,
And I fell down in a swound.The Polar Spirit's fellow-dæmons, the invisible inhabitants of the element, take part in his wrong ; and two of them relate, one to the other, that penance long and heavy for the ancient Mariner hath been accorded to the Polar Spirit, who returneth southward.
How long in that same fit I lay,
I have not to declare ;
But ere my living life returned,
I heard and in my soul discerned
Two voices in the air.
`Is it he ?' quoth one, `Is this the man ?
By him who died on cross,
With his cruel bow he laid full low
The harmless Albatross.The spirit who bideth by himself
In the land of mist and snow,
He loved the bird that loved the man
Who shot him with his bow.'The other was a softer voice,
As soft as honey-dew :
Quoth he, `The man hath penance done,
And penance more will do.'PART VI
FIRST VOICE
`But tell me, tell me ! speak again,
Thy soft response renewing--
What makes that ship drive on so fast ?
What is the ocean doing ?'SECOND VOICE
`Still as a slave before his lord,
The ocean hath no blast ;
His great bright eye most silently
Up to the Moon is cast--If he may know which way to go ;
For she guides him smooth or grim.
See, brother, see ! how graciously
She looketh down on him.'The Mariner hath been cast into a trance ; for the angelic power causeth the vessel to drive northward faster than human life could endure.
FIRST VOICE
`But why drives on that ship so fast,
Without or wave or wind ?'SECOND VOICE
`The air is cut away before,
And closes from behind.Fly, brother, fly ! more high, more high !
Or we shall be belated :
For slow and slow that ship will go,
When the Mariner's trance is abated.'The supernatural motion is retarded ; the Mariner awakes, and his penance begins anew.
I woke, and we were sailing on
As in a gentle weather :
'Twas night, calm night, the moon was high ;
The dead men stood together.
All stood together on the deck,
For a charnel-dungeon fitter :
All fixed on me their stony eyes,
That in the Moon did glitter.The pang, the curse, with which they died,
Had never passed away :
I could not draw my eyes from theirs,
Nor turn them up to pray.The curse is finally expiated.
And now this spell was snapt : once more
I viewed the ocean green,
And looked far forth, yet little saw
Of what had else been seen--
Like one, that on a lonesome road
Doth walk in fear and dread,
And having once turned round walks on,
And turns no more his head ;
Because he knows, a frightful fiend
Doth close behind him tread.But soon there breathed a wind on me,
Nor sound nor motion made :
Its path was not upon the sea,
In ripple or in shade.It raised my hair, it fanned my cheek
Like a meadow-gale of spring--
It mingled strangely with my fears,
Yet it felt like a welcoming.Swiftly, swiftly flew the ship,
Yet she sailed softly too :
Sweetly, sweetly blew the breeze--
On me alone it blew.And the ancient Mariner beholdeth his native country.
Oh ! dream of joy ! is this indeed
The light-house top I see ?
Is this the hill ? is this the kirk ?
Is this mine own countree ?
We drifted o'er the harbour-bar,
And I with sobs did pray--
O let me be awake, my God !
Or let me sleep alway.The harbour-bay was clear as glass,
So smoothly it was strewn !
And on the bay the moonlight lay,
And the shadow of the Moon.[Additional stanzas, dropped after the first edition.]
The rock shone bright, the kirk no less,
That stands above the rock :
The moonlight steeped in silentness
The steady weathercock.
The angelic spirits leave the dead bodies,
And the bay was white with silent light,
Till rising from the same,
Full many shapes, that shadows were,
In crimson colours came.
And appear in their own forms of light.
A little distance from the prow
Those crimson shadows were :
I turned my eyes upon the deck--
Oh, Christ ! what saw I there !
Each corse lay flat, lifeless and flat,
And, by the holy rood !
A man all light, a seraph-man,
On every corse there stood.This seraph-band, each waved his hand :
It was a heavenly sight !
They stood as signals to the land,
Each one a lovely light ;This seraph-band, each waved his hand,
No voice did they impart--
No voice ; but oh ! the silence sank
Like music on my heart.But soon I heard the dash of oars,
I heard the Pilot's cheer ;
My head was turned perforce away
And I saw a boat appear.[Additional stanza, dropped after the first edition.]
The Pilot and the Pilot's boy,
I heard them coming fast :
Dear Lord in Heaven ! it was a joy
The dead men could not blast.
I saw a third--I heard his voice :
It is the Hermit good !
He singeth loud his godly hymns
That he makes in the wood.
He'll shrieve my soul, he'll wash away
The Albatross's blood.PART VII
The Hermit of the Wood,
This Hermit good lives in that wood
Which slopes down to the sea.
How loudly his sweet voice he rears !
He loves to talk with marineres
That come from a far countree.
He kneels at morn, and noon, and eve--
He hath a cushion plump :
It is the moss that wholly hides
The rotted old oak-stump.The skiff-boat neared : I heard them talk,
`Why, this is strange, I trow !
Where are those lights so many and fair,
That signal made but now ?'Approacheth the ship with wonder.
`Strange, by my faith !' the Hermit said--
`And they answered not our cheer !
The planks looked warped ! and see those sails,
How thin they are and sere !
I never saw aught like to them,
Unless perchance it were
Brown skeletons of leaves that lag
My forest-brook along ;
When the ivy-tod is heavy with snow,
And the owlet whoops to the wolf below,
That eats the she-wolf's young.'`Dear Lord ! it hath a fiendish look--
(The Pilot made reply)
I am a-feared'--`Push on, push on !'
Said the Hermit cheerily.The boat came closer to the ship,
But I nor spake nor stirred ;
The boat came close beneath the ship,
And straight a sound was heard.The ship suddenly sinketh.
Under the water it rumbled on,
Still louder and more dread :
It reached the ship, it split the bay ;
The ship went down like lead.
The ancient Mariner is saved in the Pilot's boat.
Stunned by that loud and dreadful sound,
Which sky and ocean smote,
Like one that hath been seven days drowned
My body lay afloat ;
But swift as dreams, myself I found
Within the Pilot's boat.
Upon the whirl, where sank the ship,
The boat spun round and round ;
And all was still, save that the hill
Was telling of the sound.I moved my lips--the Pilot shrieked
And fell down in a fit ;
The holy Hermit raised his eyes,
And prayed where he did sit.I took the oars : the Pilot's boy,
Who now doth crazy go,
Laughed loud and long, and all the while
His eyes went to and fro.
`Ha ! ha !' quoth he, `full plain I see,
The Devil knows how to row.'And now, all in my own countree,
I stood on the firm land !
The Hermit stepped forth from the boat,
And scarcely he could stand.The ancient Mariner earnestly entreateth the Hermit to shrieve him ; and the penance of life falls on him.
`O shrieve me, shrieve me, holy man !'
The Hermit crossed his brow.
`Say quick,' quoth he, `I bid thee say--
What manner of man art thou ?'
Forthwith this frame of mine was wrenched
With a woful agony,
Which forced me to begin my tale ;
And then it left me free.And ever and anon through out his future life an agony constraineth him to travel from land to land ;
Since then, at an uncertain hour,
That agony returns :
And till my ghastly tale is told,
This heart within me burns.
I pass, like night, from land to land ;
I have strange power of speech ;
That moment that his face I see,
I know the man that must hear me :
To him my tale I teach.What loud uproar bursts from that door !
The wedding-guests are there :
But in the garden-bower the bride
And bride-maids singing are :
And hark the little vesper bell,
Which biddeth me to prayer !O Wedding-Guest ! this soul hath been
Alone on a wide wide sea :
So lonely 'twas, that God himself
Scarce seeméd there to be.O sweeter than the marriage-feast,
'Tis sweeter far to me,
To walk together to the kirk
With a goodly company !--To walk together to the kirk,
And all together pray,
While each to his great Father bends,
Old men, and babes, and loving friends
And youths and maidens gay !And to teach, by his own example, love and reverence to all things that God made and loveth.
Farewell, farewell ! but this I tell
To thee, thou Wedding-Guest !
He prayeth well, who loveth well
Both man and bird and beast.
He prayeth best, who loveth best
All things both great and small ;
For the dear God who loveth us,
He made and loveth all.The Mariner, whose eye is bright,
Whose beard with age is hoar,
Is gone : and now the Wedding-Guest
Turned from the bridegroom's door.He went like one that hath been stunned,
And is of sense forlorn :
A sadder and a wiser man,
He rose the morrow morn.
Cool, so we'll have to depict sailors hunting the alleyways to look for a suitable ship's cat as we prepare to get the Wyvern underway, then offer sacrifices to the Azure Trinity (Procan, Osprem, and Xerbo) for a safe and profitable voyage. Then more propitiatory sacrifices to the local sea spirits as the ship passes key landmarks, and a final one as they leave the land behind and head south to the Isle of Dread.
So, I´ve tried to write up a Klabautermann, as asked :-)
It is very sketchy, especially in the stats, but I wanted to share my ideas so far nevertheless.
Please comment and expand!
Klabauterman
Small Fey
Hit Dice 2d6 +4 (11hp)
Initiative +3
Speed 20 ft, swim 20 ft
Armor Class 15 (+2 natural, +3 Dex)
Base Attack/Grapple
Attack Mallet
Full Attack
Space/Reach
Special Attacks
Special Qualities
Saves
Abilities S 12 (+1), D 16 (+3), C 15 (+2), I 13 (+1), W 14 (+2), Ch 8 (-1)
Skills: Craft: Shipwright, Profession: Sailor, Survival, Hide, move silently, Rope use, swim
Feats
Environment: sailing ships
Organisation: Solitary
Challenge Rating
Treasure
Alignment
Advancement
Level Adjustment
A small sailor with a big nose, red hair and beard, oversized ears and crooked green teeth, smoking a pipe while wielding a wooden carpenters mallet and hammering away, suddenly comes into view – seemingly out of nowhere. He seems to be irritated or perhaps irate that you see him. All of sudden, he vanishes again from view.
The Klabauterman is a fey probably related to the brownie. He is always living on a sailing ship. He is generally a good omen for any ship having one, but can be annoying due to his tendency to play practical jokes. All Klabautermen ever seen have been male.
Those sailors who hear him rapping with his hammer gain a +1 luck bonus on all rolls for the remainder of that day.
Those who see him have a – 2 penalty on all rolls concerning ships and the seas for the remainder of the journey.
If the Klabauterman leaves the ship, which will only occur in the most dire circumstances of if severely angered, the ship won´t survive the next storm
A Klabauterman can use Improved Invisibility at will, at Caster Level . He also can use Ventriloquism (sound only, not speech) at will.
A Klabauterman is angered if tools are left lying around, if a ships crew is sloppy about maintaining the ship (thus taking the Klabauter for granted), if his work is ever criticized, if he his searched for, if a foolish captain denies his existence summarily or ignores his warnings. If mildly angered, his pranks may just increase in viciousness. But if angered too much, he might just leave the ship, thereby dooming it most assuredly (-4 on all checks made on the ship at either the remainder of the journey or the next one, with this penalty being reduced by 1 for every journey completed successfully)
So far for now,
Stefan
Stefan--This is great. I'm eagerly awaiting the final product and if I think of any suggestions I'll share them!
Reminds me of this guy I knew, especially the physical description. Do they have Army Klabautermanner?
Probably. But wouldn't that be bad luck that you saw him? Or is it some kind of lycanthrope thing that you can see fey we normal humans (or half-elves) can't without bad effects?
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Reminds me of this guy I knew, especially the physical description. Do they have Army Klabautermanner?Probably. But wouldn't that be bad luck that you saw him? Or is it some kind of lycanthrope thing that you can see fey we normal humans (or half-elves) can't without bad effects?
Naah....everybody saw this guy.
I'll leave it at that.....
- Avoid flat-footed people when beginning a trip (they also bring bad luck to the ship, which can also be averted by speaking to them before they speak to you).
Does this mean sailors all have Uncanny Dodge?
Thank you, I'll be here all week.
- Avoid flat-footed people when beginning a trip (they also bring bad luck to the ship, which can also be averted by speaking to them before they speak to you).Does this mean sailors all have Uncanny Dodge?
Thank you, I'll be here all week.
That's right folks - office_ninja will be performing all week at the Holiday Inn Harbor Market! And remember - the Highsun and Eventide shows are not the same, so get your tickets now!!!
(Ahem - sorry about that, I'm okay now...)
I was beginning to wonder if anybody was going to take the bait on that one - thanks for the Friday pick-me-up office_ninja, I truly needed it sirrah :)
Your Friendly Neighborhood Dalesman
"Bringing Big D**n Justice to the Bad Guys Since 1369 DR"