A fortnight from now I should be stood by a bonfire, having just watched the sunrise on the way from the Beltane after-club, and everything will, no doubt, have gone swimmingly.
In the meantime, however, we're still incredibly short of people: last night I went through the list of people who'd signed up but we'd not seen recently and managed to confirm that some of them are still interested. Ideally, though, we could use another fifteen between torchbearers and processional stewards (normally, we're turning folk away by now, but one of our main sources of new people has dried up this year).
There's still time to join in, so just in case there's anyone reading this I've not already tried to recruit, here's what's still to come.
Bottom line: if you've can make a walkthrough and a health and safety meeting, we can use you. If you've done any form of stewarding before, that's fantastic, but if you haven't, you'll be amazed how much you can learn in one Thursday evening session.
In the meantime, however, we're still incredibly short of people: last night I went through the list of people who'd signed up but we'd not seen recently and managed to confirm that some of them are still interested. Ideally, though, we could use another fifteen between torchbearers and processional stewards (normally, we're turning folk away by now, but one of our main sources of new people has dried up this year).
There's still time to join in, so just in case there's anyone reading this I've not already tried to recruit, here's what's still to come.
- Thursday 19 April, 7pm: practice on Calton Hill - meet at corner of observatory wall by the cannon.
- Sunday 22 April, 12.30pm: first full all-Beltane walkthrough on Calton Hill - attendance at at least one of the two walkthroughs is mandatory, so if you're interested in signing up, but can't make this one, please let me know. This is followed by a Health and Safety briefing (again, attendance at one of these is mandatory, but there's another chance on Saturday 28 April
- Thursday 26 April, 7pm: crowd control class on the Meadows - not compulsory, but pretty useful
- Saturday 28 April, 2pm: Second Health and Safety briefing in te Pooka office, Lady Lawson St - only if you weren't at the first one. If you really can't make either, let me know and we'll try and fit something in
- TBA after Thursday but no later than 6pm on Sunday 29 April - fireproofing session: misting the clothes you'll be wearing on the night with fire-retardant.
- Monday 30 April, 12.30pm: Second full walkthrough: it's best to have been to two walkthroughs, but if you can't make this one, please let me know. After the walkthrough, there's time to eat something and go get ready (appropriate clothes, costumes, facepaint) before coming back up the Hill (torchbearers for about half eight, stewards earlier) and ready to be in position on the Acropolis by half nine or so.
- Tuesday 1 May: 12.30am: stand down, relax, have fun, then off to the Beltane after club (with live music and 5am licence: stewards get in free, rest of performers get a reduced entry if tickets bought soon) - you probably don't want to have work to go to
Bottom line: if you've can make a walkthrough and a health and safety meeting, we can use you. If you've done any form of stewarding before, that's fantastic, but if you haven't, you'll be amazed how much you can learn in one Thursday evening session.