Recently we were approached by the Director of the Karpeles Manuscript Library Museum about having our meetings and events at that location. Today an associate and I visited with the director, who completely understands science fiction, horror, and steampunk.

The Karpeles is a magnificent building constructed in 1920, and currently has on display the original handwritten manuscripts from Arthur Conan Doyle, original notes of James Bond author Ian Fleming.

We toured the entire building from the boiler room to the rooftops and the place is majestic. Our host was not only in kind nothing short of sterling, but full intends to join our ranks, and has offered a host of ideas that are very steamy, and sound likes a lot of fun. We have been offered a room in the museum to set up as our meeting space.

When I go back I will take pictures and post them in this thread. You will find the place delicious.

For my part a gesture of this magnitude, only deserves something in kind so I offered my service to the museum twice a month to do maintenance on the aged facility.

With that I after the January meeting we will be informing the Jacksonville Library thank you but we will no longer be needing their facilities, and will be holding our meetings at the Karpeles.

The only other change there will be, it is more convenient for the museum for us to hold the meetings on the third Saturday of every month instead of the second. I did not see this as a problem so I agreed.

Here is the schedule as it stands.

January 10, 2009 – Meeting at the Pablo Creek Library from Noon-2:00 pm, with an adjournment to a local eatery.

February 21, 2009 – Meeting at the Karpeles Manuscript Library Museum, Noon- 2:00 pm.

March 21, 2009 – Meeting at the Karpeles Manuscript Library Museum, the time may vary because this will be the day that we in conjunction with the Jacksonville Photo Club Meet-up group will be meeting us at the museum to use us as subjects for their groups monthly theme. If you have multiple wardrobes bring them. Count on doing group and individual photos in various parts of the grounds. When more detail come available I will post them immediately!

April 11, 2009 – The 1st Annual Cowford Beach Beach Party! Get your bathing costumes stitched and your bathing engines to the shore because it is going to be a great day of retro fun in the sun! Right now I am calling for it to be held at the middle entrance to the Guana River State Park. Time to be determined. This is Florida as Florida has been for a thousand years and I love it. There are no facilities save for a port-o-pottie in the parking area. Bring a cabana, water whatever you wish to play with or eat.

April 18, 2009 – Meeting at the Karpeles Manuscript Library Museum, Noon – 2:00 pm. This is the regular meeting for the survivors of, and citizenry that couldn’t make it to the 1st Annual Cowford Beach Beach massacre! I realize the beach isn’t everyone’s favorite place to be thus it will not be disrupting our regularly scheduled meeting.

May 16, 2009 - Meeting at the Karpeles Manuscript Library Museum, Noon – 2:00 pm.

June 20th, 2009 - Meeting at the Karpeles Manuscript Library Museum, Noon – 2:00 pm.

That is just part of the events that we have going on in the next six months.

As you know the Vice-Mayor has brought up on a couple different occasions paying a visit to the Green Cove Springs Train Museum that I want to fit into our agenda somewhere, and there are numerous SF conventions going on that I would like to see a presence at.

So there you have it citizens and friends, the news of Cowford.

In Your Service,

Buzz Ryan,

Mayor, Cowford Florida
1889-Pressent

There is stepping in it, and then there is stepping in it....

A while ago when my partner-in-ne'er-do-well formed the Cowford Steampunk Society I got the bright idea to take advantage of the natural wonders we have that is the ocean and its shore line and have the 1st Annual Cowford Beach Beach Party.

So I started doing research on bathing costumes of the Victorian Era, and I have to tell you back then with the rules of propriety and what not going to the beach was no picnic. I am sure everyone knows what the garb of the day was but did you know there was a device known as a Bathing Machine that would trolly the ladies into the water so they could step out into the ocean and then bring them back into shore free of the gaze of men?

On the Brass Goggles forums someone joked about something called the "Steamkini" in which my fiendish little mind ran away with. I produced concept drawings which are posted in my gallery and now have three volunteers to model them.

So guess what I have spent a lot of time working on?

For my part I was going to simply show up at the Beach party in my Steampunk Divesuit, but one of the ladies at the Brass Goggles suggested the men have steamkinis as well. By this point you should know what I came up with.

If Steampunk and bikini make a Steamkini, then steampunk and speedo make Steamo. Not that it stopped there... we are now up to Steamudas.

Naturally I have volunteered to make and model the Steamo.

You will be hearing more about this I assure you.

So today wasn't bad. I hope all of you had a very joyous holiday today.

I had peace today, and it was good. I wish this day can go on all year long, but that isn't very realistic. I do think this though. I can carry this peace with me, even when the circumtances are not condusive to that fact.

Besides.... I got the Discovery Channel Shark Week Collection as a gift and how can one be in a crappy mood when watching Kari Byron in a bikini...

Merry Christmas!

I am listening to angry Christmas music and the Larry the Cable Guy CD.

I am not so much bah humbug, but Blah-humbug. I love this time of year. For me it is the season of rebirth but right now I am kind of pissed I woke up this morning.

I don't care how you celebrate, CELEBRATE DAMNIT! I don't want to be the only angry miserble person this night.

So here is my poem I wrote.

I am the drummer in the band.
I am the goalie on ice.
I am the TIE Pilot in the Empire.
I may not be the center of attention, but when...
I am.
I am spectacular!

It took a while but I finally did it!

At the last meeting I mentioned setting up a message board so we can share the wealth, and here is the link. It is a work in progress. This way we have freed up the restrictions of belonging to Live Journal, Myspace, Facebook, et. al.

[link]

Everyone from the area is invited to participate. I know there is a group in St. Augustine and a wonderfully active pressence in Gainesville.

My Best,

Buzz Ryan