A question about site formatting

Hello all,

I recently changed the colour scheme of this site while fiddling about with Blogger's new templates and found that I couldn't replace the original.  The white and green replacement was a bit hard on the eyes and uninspiring, so I have switched yet again to another format.  If you have any opinions about this one (softer colours but perhaps the text is now harder to read?), please let me know in the poll in the right margin or leave a comment down below.

Thanks!

Jim

Comments

  1. Bluebear JeffSeptember 30, 2010 at 12:35 PM

    Jim,

    It might help if you "bold-faced" your post . . . right now the post text is a bit dim for my old eyes.


    -- Jeff

    ReplyDelete
  2. JiminhoSeptember 30, 2010 at 12:56 PM

    Jeff,

    I have brightened up the font a little. Does this help at all?

    Jim

    ReplyDelete
  3. tradgardmastareOctober 1, 2010 at 4:42 AM

    Jim
    I am considering some "fantasy" element to my Ny Tradgardland colony nearish to Louisberg. Can you point me in the direction of 1st Nation mythology ,creatures of the woods etc which I could incorporate...
    best wishes
    Alan

    ReplyDelete
  4. JiminhoOctober 1, 2010 at 5:14 AM

    Yes I can. I'll need a moment to dig up a good scholarly work on the subject (there are a few of these) but you should go straight to the story of Glooscap, the mythological hero of the Mi' kmaq ( Micmac) who lived in Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Quebec and Maine (so, throughout the colonies of Acadia and New France). They apparently held sacred gatherings at Chapel Island on Cape Breton, so not so far from Louisbourg.

    There are many legends surrounding Glooscap (also written Glooskap, Kluskap), and these are published, I remember reading them in grade school. You can find some here:

    http://www.native-languages.org/mikmaq-legends.htm

    I just found a long list of titles with a search on Amazon.

    Good luck with your project, it sounds fun! The Tradgardlanders picked a beautiful part of the world for their colony though I hope that they are planning to fish rather than farm...

    All the best,

    Jim

    ReplyDelete
  5. tradgardmastareOctober 1, 2010 at 7:08 AM

    Thanks very much indeed for the help and offer of articles. I guess I am looking for "fantastical" creatures that the the Tradgardlanders and their nativ eamerican allies/enemies might intereact with. I guess sort of like bogles,trolls,eleves in Scottish european folklore...
    Are there any accounts of European settlers encountering such creatires in the 18th century in the historical records of the time?
    cheers
    Alan

    ReplyDelete
  6. JiminhoOctober 1, 2010 at 9:21 AM

    Alan,

    There certainly are such creatures in aboriginal myth throughout N. America. A few such are named on the web site I gave you, such as
    Míkmwesúk, a sort of magical Hidden People who aren't entirely nice... There are dwarves, cannibals, giants, flying serpents... Further north are Wolverine and Raven, two very powerful and troublesome characters.

    Of the top of my head, I don't know of accounts of colonists incorporating these creatures into their own imaginaire, but it would make sense that they did (to the extent that they were conversant with Mi'kmaq culture). There are a number of writings which suggest that the initial setters throughout the northeast of N. America felt themselves quite insecure about their new unfamiliar landscape and were quite fearful of its inhabitants. To they extent that they took their own traditions of wee folk, etc seriously, there is no way, I think, that the comparable mythological creatures of the Mi'kmaw would not have become part of the colonists' imaginations as well. Míkmwesúk make complete sense as elves.

    It makes for a rich fantasy setting at the very least!

    Jim

    ReplyDelete
  7. tradgardmastareOctober 1, 2010 at 12:24 PM

    Jim
    You have given me much to think about and the potentiality of some interesting times ahead re Ny Tradgardland. I was very interested in what you wrote about the writings whch suggest insecurity- any pointers where to find the material?
    I find all this fascinating yet am slightly daunted about what figures to use as I cannot find any good descriptions/illustrations yet. I will endeavour to continue research on the internet this weekend as much as time and energy permit...
    many thanks for the info and encouragement
    Alan
    ps I am at alangruber at waitrose dot com if you find any stuff to send me

    ReplyDelete

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