Tuesday, January 10, 2012

flea markets.

It is no secret to anyone who knows me that I love a flea market or a swap meet.  Not really cuz I like to shop them, I just like the "vibe".

Somehow I have ended up with a really lovely market.  Really, 2nd Saturdayz for it's size and the fact that we have it once a month is extraordinary.  I would be proud to have a show once a year as lovely as 2sat is most months.  But the vendors bring it every month.  I am always amazed and proud to be part of such a great and talented bunch.

But, and here it comes, what I also really love is a market like we bumped into in Elma this Saturday, after the Grays Harbor Swap Meet (which I love).  It was in an old grange, love an old grange hall, and it had a rusty tin roof.  The ramp going up to the door was so steep that if it was ment to be used by someone  in a wheel chair lets hope that they were an olympic athlete.  I was in love before I opened the doors to see it was painted entirely in PINK!  The pink Linda Marcov and I call old lady pink, soft and glowing.  Not only the walls, but the tables and all the benches, old lady pink.  I was swooning.  Geff and I were the youngest folks in there, except for the 12 year old girl selling friendship bracelets.  There were tables filled with the most undesirable crap I have ever seen.  Yet I was enchanted. When I bought candles made by the honey man.......he only had 6 and he really seemed not to want to sell them,  each one he carefully wrapped in a paper towel and closed with tape, in the middle of the candle wrapping he ran out of tape.  It was all stop, everyone went looking for tape.  You gotta love that.  Crocheted beer hats, yes they were there.  Crocheted everything.  In the most ghastly variegated acrylic yarn imaginable.  I was loving them.

And this is why.  I love what we do, all of us that sell.  When Linda was speaking at 2sat a couple of months ago she called what we did a noble profession.  And it is.

I love that those folks gathered items all month and crocheted and cleaned and lugged, boxed, and priced.  Just like we do at 2nd Saturdayz.  We have a different customer base, ours are hip, urban, sophisticated shop keepers and the very discriminating.  But it is the same, the same care and hope that we will come away better off at the end of the day.   

So I hope you will come to our little market this Saturday, January 14th.  I can promise that over Debs dead body there will be no variegated  acrylic anything, but there will be heart, just like in Elma last Saturday.  Hope to see you there.  OX L