Hello, I’m Branwyn Two-Moon of Clan Lightridge and these are the Ersatz Echoes of Eastfjord Harbor for the week of Shade Waiting, 2019.

With only three weeks left in the year, everyone is starting to show the energy of Year’s Turning celebrations – in one way or another.  Sure, kids have been hyper for a couple of weeks, and festival vendors have been hard at work preparing, but there’s a general sense of restlessness that goes beyond holiday preparations.  As someone who is generally up until the late hours, I’ve noticed more nocturnal activity than normal in houses – and guards I’ve spoken with see the same. The late night jitters that wake people with thoughts of “Did I get this thing done? What about that thing?” run through Pinecrest before every festival, but never so strongly as before the end of the year.

While the year may be coming to an end, the cold is not.  The good news is that Sylph-casters are calling for less wind and only a small chance of snow late in the week.

Year’s Turning decorations are going up in every town, village, and city in the kingdom.  Ribbons of silver and teal join shimmering bits of purple and green on store fronts, houses, and even lamp posts.  As is normal, people have decorated any tree, or tree-like substitute, they have available but centerpiece of every presentation is a communal octolith star.  With each family, or branch of a family in some cases, building a point for their chosen Mana Spirit and the group the lighting them in unison the first day of the new year.

I was approached by several dozen people to contribute the Wisp point to a star, and I regret that I had to turn them down.  I’ve actually made two points this year, one for my usual group of friends, and one that everyone at Petrosk will get to see on Year’s Turning.

Farther south, Dawnshear has taken up a mostly defensive approach to handling the houndlings of the White Mountains, but that appears to be a delay tactic as they’ve reached out to Deep Delve to request a contingent of the houndlings from Valleywatch Keep come serve as interpreters and possibly mediators. Assuming a favorable response, it will likely take most of a month to resolve this given the travel time from the keep to the western portion of the White Mountains.

There are no updates from Kurst Ice-forged and company to the north, but that’s to be expected.  They’ve always been big on detailed research of a situation.

One last note before we get to our sponsors, I’m traveling for the week of Shade Waning, so responses to inquiries will be delayed.

The Ersatz Echoes of Eastfjord Harbor are brought to you by Red Wombat Tea Company, purveyors of fine and otherworldly teas. Red Wombat: We Dig Tea.

Also brought to you by the Nightlighters, who are looking to establish branches in the fast-growing towns near Eastfjord Harbor. If you like long walks alone in the dark, and brightening people’s lives, we have a job for you.

These have been the Ersatz Echoes of Eastfjord Harbor for the week of Shade Waiting, 2019. Take care, and mind the breeze.