Weekend Recap

What a weekend!  Isn't it amazing how much weather can change in such a short time?  

January 21-23 we had 8 inches of snow.  

February 21 we were getting ready for a freeze and when we ran the sprinklers overnight on February 22-23 we woke up to a winter wonderland.

March 1 we spent the weekend in shorts and t-shirts enjoying the sunshine and blue skies.  

This past weekend we were back at the Coastal Alabama Farmers and Fishermens Market.  You might have looked for us over the past two weeks and not found us; we are not always on the same spot.  It's rather hit or miss where our tent will be on any given Saturday.  We are usually out on the grassy area out front (and we love being out there); if you don't see us, ask one of the other vendors.  

We sold some quail eggs, some English muffins, and some bookmarks.  One gentleman stopped and admired the shawls and bought the yellow one for his sister.  I always get a thrill when someone wants to purchase one of my shawls.  I'm hoping she finds it comforting when she wraps up in it.  

One of my favorite parts of the market is the people I get to meet and visit with.  We have visitors from all over and have learned to enjoy the opportunity to talk with them, hear about where they are from and what brings them to our area, and just spend time getting to know each other.  Life over the past few years has made me much more introverted and almost reclusive so this has been a lovely surprise for me.

On Friday as I was getting ready for the market and making English muffins we had an unpleasant surprise.  The power went off in half the house, including the outlet I was using for my griddle for the muffins, the outlet out back for the lights and heaters in the quail shed, but fortunately NOT the outlet the incubator was using!  We  I bumbled around and Cletus finally was able to rig up enough cables and extension cords to get heat to the babies in the shed and keep me cooking.  Once we had all that done we sat down, looked at each other, and realized we were going to have to call an electrician.  Gulp!  Those folks do great work but they are not cheap.  

Saturday during the market Cletus said he needed to run to the house for a bit.  He's been sick, so I figured he just needed to go home and get some rest.  By the time I got home, he had fixed the breaker box, rewired everything that needed to be rewired, fixed everything that needed to be fixed, cleaned up all the cables and extension cords, and had everything back to normal; I don't know which of us was more relieved!

Sunday afternoon we decided to run down to the park for their annual Ballyhoo Festival.  This is a fun time seeing arts and crafts vendors, meeting some dogs and their humans, and taking a nice walk around the lagoon.  It is a different perspective for us this year looking at the different vendors because we are watching their set-up as much as their art.  

Our favorite vendor this year was Royal Richardson Miree III from Birmingham.  He makes fascinating kinetic sculptures and beautiful copper engravings.  We stopped and talked to him for several minutes (he was very generous with his time and attention).  One of his pieces is called "The Dot and The Line" from a book by the same name.  (check out the link; it is a fascinating piece)

 

As we talked about it and I glanced at the book, I mentioned it reminded me of another book, Flatland ~ was he familiar with it?  As it turns out, he was very familiar with it.  We were both astonished because very few people know Flatland (my mother read it to me when I was a child).  We had a nice visit and I hope you enjoy looking at some of his creations.

As we walked over the bridge back to the parking area, I had to stop and just stare at the water.  It was a beautiful, sparkly day; the kind that makes us look at each other and wonder aloud how in the world we are so blessed to live here.  However it managed to happen (a gift from God) we do, and we are thankful!