event-pricing-msg

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event-pricing-msg - 1/22/96

Event pricing, reservations.

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Stefan at florilegium.org

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From: memorman at oldcolo.com (Mary Morman)

Newsgroups: rec.org.sca

Subject: Children at Events

Date: 22 Feb 1995 16:21:02 GMT

Organization: Old Colorado City Communications (oldcolo.com - login "newuser")

mistress elaina de sinistre sends greetings unto the rialto.

i've been reading with interest the ongoing threads on childred

at events. a few things have struck me.

first, there is a feeling that as more sca gentles have children,

more of them will be concerned with the interests of children. this

tickles me a bit, as it is *exactly* what many of us said back in

the west kingdom 20 years or more ago. practically, i do not think

that the 'numbers' (the overall percentage of sca folk with children)

will change significantly.

i have raised three children in the sca. all are now grown and one is even

finding an interest in a college sca group where no one who has known him

since he was in diapers is watching. i cringe these days to think of how

negligent i really was, on occasion, about my 7 to 11 year olds. but i

also remember a period of about 5 years when either my husband or i stayed

home from events and watched the children because we really strongly felt

that bringing toddlers to events was a 'bad thing' for all involved.

my autocratting years came after my young children years, and my attitude

changed drastically. sometimes it is possible to arrange separate space

for children. sometimes it is not - especially with indoor halls. my

nightmare event was a major atlantian kingdom event some five or six years

ago where i -offered- babysitting, but no one (that's a zero) wrote to take

me up on it. so we did not have babysitting. the young children, looking

for a place to play, took over the hall reserved for dancing - so the

dancers were furious. an argument over one child's behavior, running

around during the feast, so angered one esteemed lady that a physical

fight occured with the parents. were there well-behaved children at the

event? certainly. were there over-exuberant children at the event

with no place to go and nothing to do in a crowded darkened room full

of candles and swords. absolutely. was it my fault? i'm not sure.

two questions that have not yet come up on this thread and that i

feel deserve discussion are:

1. how much, if anything, should children pay?

my personal feeling, is that children who attend events should pay

the same site fee as adults. they use facilities (space, bathrooms,

trashcans, etc) and thus should pay. the argument that they are

smaller and therefore use less is spurious. add to one small baby

his diaper bag, playpen, changing area, baby seat, disposable diapers

in the trash,etc. and you have more space than a merchant. (people

often hate me because i feel this way. when i was a mother with

three young children, i would have hated me.)

2. how much should children, inculding babies, pay for feast.

i know that they eat little or nothing, but as an autocrat and cook

i arrange servings in tables of eight. if a family with a baby and

a small child are sitting at one of those tables, then that table

still gets eight servings. there's really nothing i can do about

it. should the youngsters who do not eat get there places free when

the same amount is being spent on serving their table as on a table

of husky, omniverous young squires? one possible solution that we

attempted for a while in atlantia is adding non-eating (or little eating)

children to the already full complement of eight to a table. a little

crowding, but no displacement of those who have paid for a portion of

the feast. other ideas?

enjoying the discussion, and hoping all will keep open minds,

yours in service,

elaina

elaina de sinistre * * * currently outlandish

mary morman * * * memorman at oldcolo.com

From: schuldy at abel.harvard.edu (Mark Schuldenfrei)

Newsgroups: rec.org.sca

Subject: Re: Children at Events

Date: 23 Feb 1995 16:26:01 GMT

Organization: My own little corner.

Mary Morman <memorman at oldcolo.com> wrote:

1. how much, if anything, should children pay?

I've not made too many friends with this one, but lately I've been

suggesting that parents use their common sense. Events cost us money, and

parents should pay what they feel is right, knowing our expenses.

My own attitude is something like: if the child doesn't know it's at an

event, it's free. If the child knows, but could care less, it's half price.

If the child participates, it's full price. With perhaps a family price cap

per family, depending on their means.

I haven't set children's prices for the last several events I ran. It's

worked pretty well. What's wrong with people using their judgement?

2. how much should children, inculding babies, pay for feast.

That's easier. A seat is a serving, a serving is full price. If a parent

wants to make arrangements with me, such that we can reduce the number of

servings cooked and served, and thereby they get a break on the price, OK

with me. But I have no control otherwise, and we charge little enough as it

is.

I also feel that if an extra seat is pulled to the end of the table, and the

child sits there, that's OK too. Just use some common sense.

I'd love some feedback.

Tibor

Mark Schuldenfrei (schuldy at math.harvard.edu)

From: jkrissw at aol.com (JkrissW)

Newsgroups: rec.org.sca

Subject: Re: Feast Costs (was Re: Non-member surcharge)

Date: 20 Nov 1995 06:03:03 -0500

Organization: America Online, Inc. (1-800-827-6364)

In article <48l6fm$ej4 at hugo.lloyd.com>, pat at lloyd.com (Pat McGregor)

writes:

>6) Since you can't ask for payment in advance (kingdom custom),

> you have to take whatever price you can get the day/week of.

Which kingdoms have this chaotic policy? Caid commonly has

pre-registration for major event banquets, in response to announcements

printed in the Crown Prints a couple of months prior to the event. I

can't imagine how event autocrats could get a realistic estimate on the

number of attendees without it, nor how the responsible parties would

gather resources for the food required for a large banquet (say 12th Night

or one following a Coronation, especially).

Daveed

From: memorman at oldcolo.com (Mary Morman)

Newsgroups: rec.org.sca

Subject: Re: Who pays for what?

Date: 12 Jan 1996 19:52:43 GMT

Organization: Old Colorado City Communications (oldcolo.com - login "newuser")

SheehanTA (sheehanta at aol.com) wrote:

{snip}

: simply never occurred to me. To my surprise, and admitted dismay, I have

: recently heard that some events in my kingdom have paid for hotel rooms

: for the royalty. What other expenses are autocrats including in their

: fees? I know that events usually waive the event fee as a courtesy to the

: Crowns, but is that extended beyond the persons of Their Majesties? What

: costs may ethically be asked to be subsidized or wholly borne by those

: paying to attend events?

: Deirdre O'Siodhachain, OL Atlantia

: (Terry Sheehan)

I share your concern Mistress Dierdre! I have autocratted for years, in

the West, Caid, the East, and Atlantia - and now in the Outlands. I was

horrified when I first found out that autocrats here were budgeting in

hotel rooms for royalty as part of event expenses. I tend to see it as

a new wave in the society rather than something particular to any kingdom,

but would love to see some discussion of this subject on the Rialto.

I have had it carefully explained to me that it's a sign of loyalty and

good will for the groups to pay for royal expenses (also, here, to waive

site fees for any and all landed barons and baronesses) but i just don't

buy it. people who fight in crown -know- that it is expensive to be

monarchs, and if they can't manage to pay their fees, they should decline

the privilege. as a long time baroness (in atlantia, not the outlands) my

lord and i carefully paid our site and feast fees wherever we attended =-

whether we would have attended the event for our own pleasure or were just

there because we felt we needed to be.

i would truly hate to think that this custom of paying crown (and baronial..)

expenses is something that is becoming 'tradition' in the SCA.

Could we hear from a few more kingdoms?

In Service,

ELAINA

Mistress Elaina de Sinistre

Barony of Dragonsspine

Kingdom of the Outlands