Scottish Festival Peeves?

[Tartan Tess]

I live in a Big state with a small population compared to some of you folks.
Our local Saint Andrews Society doesn't make a ton of money off our Highland Games. As a matter of fact, they barely pay for the site, entertainment etc. and what is left go to Scholarships for pipers, dancers, kilt makers etc.
I personally don't care what people wear as long as they pay their way in and are polite. I imagine that a CJS Pirate outfit can cost as much as a tank from one of the best.
The people not working the event are just there to have fun like everybody else.

[O'Callaghan]

OK, for instuctional purposes, let's put together a list of stuff you guys find intolerable at a Highland games event.

Too many pipers.
"Modern" celtic music.
Fat athletes, or maybe fat people in general?
Irish dancers.
The Irish in general it seems...Too bad the "Scotti' brought the games tradition with them from Ireland!
People who wear their Highland dress funny or wrong.
People who just dress funny.
People who like to drink.
Pirates. Disney ones in particular.
Mythological creatures like fairies or elves etc.. Guess that would go doublr for Leprechauns, sinse they're Irish.
Renfaire folk in garb of any kind.
LARPers, actually I'm with y'all on that one. They are invading SF cons and faire too.

It's quite a list, isn't it?

Can't see how you could have too many pipers, but I'm not a piper myself;
I'm fat, but no athlete;
What's wrong with Irish dancers at a celtic fest? Ireland is celtic;
I'm ethnic Irish, so apparently that's a problem;
I don't see major errors in dress, or maybe I just don't notice?;
I expect I do dress funny, but that's in the eye of the beholder;
I like my beer, if I didn't I'd be an impostor;
Never seen a pirate at these events;
Never seen fairies or elves there either, perhaps a leprechaun or two;
Never seen renfaire folk or LARPers either, except kilted ones, and not many of them.

I have seen the guys in kilt slogan T-shirts worn with trousers - now they are a scream! One woman stallholder drew my attention to one, and I told her I'd seen another the same day. I don't get them. Especially when the shirt loudly proclaims the lack of underwear, but they are wearing trousers. That is, they are wearing trousers with a shirt that says if they were wearing underwear it would be a skirt. This is an insult when I am wearing a kilt with underwear and they don't even have the cojones to be wearing a kilt. I even wonder if that's why they do it?

I do also go to renfests, and have tried wearing a kilt with a T-shirt as ordinary non Renfest garb, but decided I looked out of place without at least a puffy shirt (ducks for cover) and possibly a piper's plaid. At least dressed like that I would look better than the guys who convert a ladies' kilted skirt, but still have the pleats running in the wrong direction for a guy. I refuse to tuck a plaid into the waistband of my kilt, though, which is what they invariably do. If wearing a plaid is good enough for pipers to evoke the look of the great kilt, then I think it's good enough for me, but not tucked in (shudders).

[Nighthawk]

OK, for instuctional purposes, let's put together a list of stuff you guys find intolerable at a Highland games event.

Too many pipers. ...that's possible? In Denver, it's the nasty sniping amongst some of the pipers that irritates me.
"Modern" celtic music.Are you joking?!?! Did you see my Iron Maiden concert photo thread? I proudly wore my Angus Mohr t shirt and Colorado state tartan kilt to the show.
Fat athletes, or maybe fat people in general? I'm chubby... Why do you all hate me?
Irish dancers. Don't they belong at Celtic festivals?
The Irish in general it seems...Too bad the "Scotti' brought the games tradition with them from Ireland! Again... Don't they belong at Celtic festivals?
People who wear their Highland dress funny or wrong. It's not the funny or wrong... It's the blatant lack of research! How hard is it to find a picture of a kilted guy and make sure that your new kilt is on front to back? People who make half assed efforts are the irritating ones. DO IT! Or don't bother.
People who just dress funny. Why you all hatin' me?
People who like to drink. Why you all hatin' me... again?
Pirates. Disney ones in particular. I just wonder... "What made you think this was a costume party?"
Mythological creatures like fairies or elves etc.. Guess that would go double for Leprechauns, since they're Irish. I just wonder... "What made you think this was a costume party?"
Renfaire folk in garb of any kind. See above 2!
LARPers, actually I'm with y'all on that one. They are invading SF cons and faire too. They have a place at SF cons. LARPers can be Klingon, or any other race in general! But at Highland games? Really, how does that fit?

[Semiomniscient]

Zardoz's List

OK, for instuctional purposes, let's put together a list of stuff you guys find intolerable at a Highland games event.

Too many pipers.
Never actually had a problem with that--but it CAN be annoying never hearing the end of "Scotland The Brave"
"Modern" celtic music.
Yeah, it's not my cup of tea in the least--I prefer more traditional fare--I did hear this band that covered Johnny Cash's "Burning Ring of Fire" in a fake "Celtic" accent... that was just silly to me. I think the VOLUME is an issue too. It's a Games, not a bloomin' concert!
Fat athletes, or maybe fat people in general?
I don't even think this has anything to do with Scottishness, unless it's in reference to wrapping tablecloths around oneself instead of a real kilt--which can be acquired for men of great girth, just need more tartan is all.
Irish dancers.
Shouldn't be invited to Highland Games. If it were a Celtic festival, that's a different bird. I enjoy watching them, but it's not my culture.
The Irish in general it seems...Too bad the "Scotti' brought the games tradition with them from Ireland!
I get really annoyed when I'm seen in my kilt and someone calls me Irish. I'm not Irish. I don't want to be Irish. If you want to go back into the early middle ages and discuss the commonalities of people, let's remember that a lot has developed since then and Scottish culture is far different from Irish. Besides, if the Irish invented Highland Games, why don't they have Irish weight throwing games?
People who wear their Highland dress funny or wrong.
Well they're the ones looking dopey.
People who just dress funny.
When you wear a cultural garb, one does well to be respectful of it. Bravehearting it up--while often well-intentioned, gives a poor impression on the culture as being barbaric.
People who like to drink.
No, most of us enjoy a good beer or whisky--but using your ethnicity or heritage as an excuse to get wasted in public is immature at best.
Pirates. Disney ones in particular.
Um... yeah? Disney pirates have to do with Scotland how?
Mythological creatures like fairies or elves etc.. Guess that would go doublr for Leprechauns, since they're Irish.
Maaaaaybe if they were hired entertainment and had some part in helping out with the children. But just attending dressed like a fairy just as an excuse to dress up--unless you'd go out to the mall like that, why would this be the appropriate occasion?
Renfaire folk in garb of any kind.
See all the above comments about costume... It's not about disliking these things in general, it's about their appropriateness at a Highland Games. Would these people be deemed appropriately dressed out shopping or somewhere else in public? Probably not.
LARPers:
who DOESN'T pick on LARPers...? even my Dungeons and Dragons crew makes fun of LARPers!

[Tobus]

Zardoz, in response to your list, I think the main point here is that the ones that annoy me are the ones which show a lack of respect. I'm not bothered by too many pipers (unless they are trying to play over each other). I'm not bothered by Irish stuff, although I think it's a disservice to the preservation of Scottish culture to try to mix the two.

But the ones that bother me are the ones that simply aren't appropriate. LARPers, Ren Faire folks, Goths, people wearing their kilts entirely wrong, etc. The reason it bothers me is because they are making a joke out of it. If they don't take it seriously, that's fine, but it's downright insulting to show up to a genuine Scottish festival and make a joke out of peoples' heritage by dressing ridiculously.

Slohairt's example was a good one. It would be like showing up to a Japanese cultural event wearing a bathrobe, slippers, and carrying a fake ninja sword. And while I'm the kind of guy who would never try to tell someone they can't do something, I do at least think it should be frowned upon by those who do take it seriously. Scottish culture is rich and wonderful, and shouldn't be reduced to blue faced Mel Gibson wannabes and See-You-Jimmy hats.

[OC Richard]

OK, for instuctional purposes, let's put together a list of stuff you guys find intolerable at a Highland games event.

To be fair to the people who have been posting here, I think that this is the first appearance of the word "intolerable".

Seems to me that people have been expressing interest and amusement (about various quirks) rather than true annoyance, let alone intolerance.

The Original Post used the word "lighthearted" which we might use as a guide.

[denmcdough]

Gees, after reading some of these posts, I see where some folks need to look up the word bigot!!

Remember, the OP was "lighthearted" as mentioned by OC Richard.

[auld argonian]

Okay...so I'm thinking that the folks who show up not knowing what they really should do but trying to put on some kind of what-they-think-is-Scottish outfit (the three T's: t-shirt, tablecloth and tube socks) are either going to not come back in the future or...possibly...look around and see how neatly the properly dressed folks look and maybe get serious and acquire the proper kit for future events.

I'd be willing to bet that there's a parallel discussion going on on other boards...the Jimmy Buffet Fan Forum..."...you could just tell that those people weren't real parrotheads; they were just weekenders who threw on a Hawaiian shirt and shorts and were pretending to be parrotheads..."

So we are not alone...I'm sure that every group of "cognoscenti" take exception to something.

And the LARP'ers and pirates and Rennies...basically they're just exhibitionists having fun...harmless. It'll always be this way. Knowing Xmarksers as well as I do, I doubt that any of us take any real offense to any of these folks.

Best

AA

[Andy Proffitt]

Ok guys, I'm sorry I posted to this thread and helped to send a few people over the edge with sarcasm and observational humor. Can't we all just go back to being a loving group of kilted brothers. Let's make up, blame the Irish and move on

PS The blaming the Irish thing was also a joke, it happens to them enough.

[nagod]

sure glad i dont have to call some of you to see if what im wearing meets your standards for appropriate