Most of you followed the predicament of the massive Ever Given cargo ship that was stuck in the Suez Canal until this past Monday.

It carried over 220,000 tons of goods coming from China to Europe, and all of that cargo was left to sit in the Egyptian sun until engineers were finally able to refloat the mammoth ship in cooperation with the Suez Canal Authority. The freighter’s position blocking the canal held up commercial travel for thousands of other ships and affected supply chains world-wide for almost a week.

The good news is that the rattan that was being hauled by the Ever Given and other ships delayed by its mishap is now on its way toward the Netherlands. From there, a supply of rattan will make its way to the U.S., Canada, Australia, and other parts of Europe. So SCA fighters, rejoice! Soon you should once again have enough rattan for all of your fighting needs.

Which are… uh… kind of low until the pandemic restrictions are lifted and we can have events and practices again.

But hey, rattan!

In related news, the following letter to the SCA Board of Directors was made available to the Gazette today for public posting.

Unto the Noble Lords and Ladies of the Board of Directors, Greetings.

Over the years I have been fooled on more than one occasion regarding the activities guided and supported by the Society of Creative Anachronism. For a while, I thought the Society was involved in a new musical style, and enjoyed it very much. Then I found out that what I thought my friends were referring to as ‘SCA’ was in fact ‘SKA’. You can imagine my disappointment. I still enjoy the music though.

However, I have been greatly encouraged that our Society has gone heavily into public good works. The re-floating of the Ever Given by the SCA is a great example of doing good works for the entire world, not just for our members.
I look forward to more good works to support.

Jacque D’Eau