Drinking tea all day and stuffing yourself with cakes to build a base before moving to heavy foods and wine, and more, is a way of living. but it does get tedious after some time. Roleplaying is very mild and light these days and seems to have moved more to private and rural estates - personally I think that's a good development: it makes people move around to visit and what better than to visit and actually see something. I'm biased to this ever since I entered the Guardian y Sombras (G&S) system - which is, albeit originating in the muddy soils of Gor, thus far still the most suitable roleplay-system to fit our baroque era. But what to do with it - and could we do more with it to reaffirm the community as a whole in its purpose?

At the moment there are three estates producing, with a more than double number of producers (I think). The Queen's Hamlet sticks to her true colours by being a royal dairy farm and vineyard with a diverse side production. Magritte is a real rural estate in the Dordogne with special attention for its vineyards - and not to forget its function as a market town. To this the Barony's vintner Gaspard and I (present there as banker) opened a local brewery and distillery - Le Cheval Qui Rit . And, lastly, Rocca Sorrentina - which I consider my own laboratory for experimenting with genome strains within the wine system 3.0 (also used by the previous two estates); and which I have now updated to be an appellation vineyard as well with a small distillery to produce local specialties. 
Both the Queen's Hamlet and Magritte have fully stocked markets that can boast a wide variety of local products, I would almost dare say that with these two the baroque community produces a near full range of what G&S has to offer.
Consuming is always troublesome if it doesn't have set consequences when you do not; same with G&S. So it's mostly G&S producers that consume to gain energy-points to be able to work and get good results. It would be nice if the rest of our community would take notice of what is produced and use it more. Personally I have tried to promote the use of it on Rocca Sorrentina by regularly bringing cakes and such to the coffee hour, and during the last Carnevale festival I supplied drinks and arranged, with the cookery and presenting skills of Madame Ragueneau of Magritte, banquet tables. I hope this will continue. Not all is suitable, but there are some fine items to display.

I'm so glad to see that where Magritte tunes down, the Queen's Hamlet is active again. I hope there will be more activity in trade, and am most willing to participate in it. Although I only produce wines/brandy on Sorrentina, I do need foods and tools. I purposely do not cook, make our barrels or do repairs, I'd much rather order my needs to give someone else the chance of taking up some part of the G&S-economy. And for this we do not need the Goreans or the public OOC-markets. Trade in materials and products that are not available in our own community could also be something to be picked up.
My point in general being: We as the baroque community could do more in using this system to make bonds that have a basic purpose to roleplay; it opens doors to a class diversity we haven't seen yet. After all this already has a set rp-currency that is easily entered in - I would consider expanding the banking activities to facilitate this - and a full range of applicable roleplayinng options to farming, producing, and consuming.

It is my belief that it has a purpose and could quite possibly the greatest way to make our community a sustainable one from the base. And on top of that you can still drink tea and gossip...