Turns out the Park Blocks season was not over after all

 I had such a good day selling with the Farmers yesterday. Maybe because my usual space on the West block looks over at them, I shop there a lot, every week, and I have friendships over there, some going back decades. They're such solid and friendly people, those farmers and their employees. Growing food and plants for the community is a very righteous way to make a living. I admire them. I guess because Mom grew up on a Nebraska farm, and made our backyard into a tiny Delaware farm, I have always felt like I belonged with the farmers.  

Sure, their prices are high, but the fruit and veggies I get over there are just peak quality and so gratifying to eat. I try to just not look at food prices, as it is pretty much the only type of thing I consume, so I can afford to pay more for organic, healthier food and it has paid off in my life. I was quite able to stand there all day and be the last one to leave (too many conversations...) and enjoy the sunset on my way home. Farmers starts an hour earlier, at 9:00, so I had to leave here by 6:30 am and it was cold and foggy pretty much all day, but I was finished by 5:30 pm and made a ton of money. 

My sales were at the level of an excellent summer day. I had many customers who rarely come across the street, because once they get all their food they are weighted down and not that interested in browsing the craft booths, but also many brand new customers and plenty of returning ones. Lots of people did miss the craft market, the hot foods and the music and fun of the Saturday Market. It was a surprise to most that it was not there. I think it was a huge mistake, and I am glad I opted for the challenge of crossing the street. 

It's different in lots of ways. You are assigned a booth space, instead of getting to choose, and somehow I got the best one, in my opinion, and I think location matters more over there. People don't tend to wander around seeing everything except at the final hour when those groups of roving young people did show up to delightfully choose their hats. Despite the obvious need for bags I didn't sell that many. 

Cost wise, it was way cheaper. Instead of the $100 I would have paid, I paid $45, of which market got $20, so that's $80 bucks less for market. And I had no opportunity to donate to the Kareng Fund, so they lost out a little too (though of course I will make that up at HM.) However, I would have paid that $45 no matter what I sold, so if I hadn't done well it would have maybe been expensive. I don't think the booths on Park Street did that well, out of the main flow of shoppers. I might find that out next week if I get shuffled over there. I wish it were a more viable option to sell there every week but they just don't have enough room, and Tuesdays, while better than they used to be, are probably not going to be what I want. Maybe, though. 

It was such a relief to be free of the hostility I get from my market neighborhood now that I have been labeled and dismissed by a lot of people who were fine with me when I was being used. I didn't get to make any new products or work on my business for all the time the narcissist has been in power...but now I can, and I am much happier as well. I don't need those people who only liked me when I was useful to them...I'm still mad about it as it made me look back at all my years of service and wonder what life would have been like if I had prioritized myself instead of giving so much. It's the downside of being a dedicated volunteer...that you are also subject to being exploited if you are not careful about how your loyalties are assigned. It was always a pleasure to be on teams with people who had ethics and really cared about the common good, and I am happy to have experienced that. It's hard to let go of it, since I'm such a worker and have so many useful skills, but I'm getting more used to it as time goes by. 

Now that my body is letting me know that my productive days will come to an inevitable end, I'm working harder than ever to get things in better shape in every way. It's hard to accept limits but your body is something you can't dismiss. I've been having a blast cutting down trees and buying new perennials and shrubs so that my yard will require less maintenance. I got an elderberry and am planning some new areas where filberts had taken over. I collected all the neighborhood leaves as usual and will be spreading those around with my beloved hay fork that I got from Virgil Cortwright years ago. It's such a pleasure to use it. I keep it in the kitchen. He even told me the very tree it was from, a white oak in Daniel's OCF booth, the booth that was rumored to have an underground hideout for his friends to escape the sweep in. It's masterful and I doubt it would be easy to find another these days. 

 It's another golden day and those leaves are calling for me. I love spending Sundays outside and even though it is kind of cold, I'm going to keep at it. I plan to make grape arbors with the filbert poles I cut, and will never run out of projects, only time.