It's Raining

I'm committed to cycling, so I do have plenty of rain gear, for warm or cold rains, even including the booties that keep the rain from running from your rain pants directly into your shoes. I'm usually happy to put it on and bike anyway, but today I'm having trouble getting started.

I'm also committed to Tuesday Market, but a bit less so. It works for me in a lot of ways: the hats always sell, I have bags, which are needed by produce shoppers, and I bring sale stuff that I don't have room for on Saturdays. I've had my share of good days this summer. But I skipped last week because showers were even a slight possibility, and I skipped today, when it was sure to be wet.

I had my excuses ready, because I am leaving town in two days and I do have stuff to do. But most of my downtown errands are still possible on Tuesdays even while selling at the Market, because it is never very busy, ends early, and the neighbors are very friendly and helpful.

Tuesday is the Farmers' Market, with a crafts section to fill in the unused spaces, and this year we moved to the East Block, which made it kind of fun and different, since we had always been around the fountain on the West Block. The farmers were concentrating on making a vibrant lunch scene which was a good plan, since there are still plenty of workers downtown who have lunch breaks. The food is always delectable, and buying produce on Tuesdays is great for a lot of people, including me, since I already have such a big load of stuff on Saturday.

But Tuesdays just don't yet have a critical mass of customers, and it's a labor of love and possibility to sell there. Everyone has at least one decent day, and I have had many almost-worth-it sales days. It simply isn't Saturday, and if you look closely the differences in the two organizations are evident. Part of the Saturday success is excellent promotion, plus that extra customer service and amenities like the metal forks, credit card service, chairs and tables, and all the infrastructure that makes sense on Saturdays and not as much for a shorter, midweek market. All of that takes staff and stuff.

One of my biggest problems with rainy markets on any day is the booth structure itself and how heavy it is. It's hard to get the booth to Market, hard to put it up, and hard to cram everything under it and not get anything wet. I love the two umbrella system I have worked out for shade, but it really doesn't work for rain as I found out this spring when I thought it might. I could take the car to carry the booth and have everything be dryer, but then I have the parking and loading/unloading stresses that can make human relations fall apart. That gets worse in the rain too.

It's not that there aren't sales on rainy days. On Saturday it often works out great for those who do set up, as there are plenty of excellent spaces to choose from, and customers still come. It almost never rains steadily all day long, and sometimes the weather forecasts are wrong and the rain falls somewhere else. I will go on Saturday rain or shine, unless there are other factors such as being at my Mom's 3000 miles away where I will be this week and next.

But Tuesday just didn't make the grade today. I feel bad about it, since I won't even go for food, as I'm emptying the fridge. I might drop in for the gossip, if the sun comes out, or if I can make myself suit up and get out the dry bags for the things I have to drop off and pick up downtown.

I'm working on that. It's warm enough that I won't need the layers and the booties. I'll get a little rain on my face and it will feel good, and cyclists, who almost always smile at each other anyway, are always pleased to see others out there braving discomfort for all those other rewards. I'll remember that one time I was biking through Amazon Park in the snow, the only one in sight, just glorying in the soon-to-melt anomaly.

It's nice hearing the patter of the drops on the skylight. It's cozy and quiet. Market does call me though. I was looking around nostalgically at the end of the day on Saturday wondering how I would stand missing two weeks, with that Beautiful Booth of the Month excitement and all. It's time for the hoodies and the students and the strange rhythms of football days and the variety of visitors we get when tourism overlaps academia. And it's getting darker in the mornings and evenings and soon we'll be packing way too early in the day.

Summer's over. This still feels like a summer rain though. Guess I'll get out and enjoy it.