What a Day

The 40th Annual Artisan Market/Fair happened today in the nearby hamlet of Barry's Bay. 

(Unfortunately my computer or blogger is giving me grief about adding photos)

This was my first trip into the wild blue yonder without M., my daughter or my Pal by my side. I'm still figuring out some of the geegaws on Ruby so it will be interesting. Getting the CD player to play before I even left the lane was the biggest head scratcher.

It was quite a nice drive. There was little traffic until I got quite close to B.Bay when it all seemed to be coming to a near halt as I drove down the hill into town. It was a slow crawl to get through the main shopping area. I managed to snag a parking spot right in front of the lovely Madawaska Coffee Shop.  I had to make a pit stop and get caffeinated! 

I parked there and wandered up the other side of the street. Stop one was a run into Afelskies Shoes for a chat with the proprietor Sean. He knows I'm trying to snap a certain pair of Birkenstock SHOES. He hasn't had any luck yet but he pointed to another line he just brought in that are VERY GOOD (and CANADIAN!) knockoffs called Viking.! They are also about half the price. Sean says the footbed in this product is identical to the Birks, which is what I need.  I'm going to head back in a couple of weeks when he has most of his fall stock in to see what is available.

Stop two was a run through Stedmans V&S looking for a sundress. They had a nice selection marked down, so that was a score! We have an extremely hot week coming up and I need something to wear that isn't a muumuu. If you ever watched the TVs program Threes Company and remember Mrs. Roper, she always wore long loose cool dresses called muumuus. I think they originated in Hawaii though.

By that time, I needed to hit the Artisan Market. It was SO CROWDED. There were so many crafts and lovely art on offer.  I didn't buy anything there. I had a quick few words with my pal Teresa, who is the proprietor at the yarn shop in the town. She was at the market cooking up blooming onions. They sure smelled good. Unfortunately I'm allergic to onions so I had to pass. Her hubby Jason tried his best to convince me they were some delicious, but I tried my best to convince him they weren't for me, haha.

Teresa told me there was some delicious hand dyed yarn with my name on it across the street in her shop so off I jogged, dodging the traffic in the crosswalks. Barrys Bay has well marked cross walks with prominent signage. Unfortunately the tourists don't seem to be able to read very well.

I snagged my beautiful scarlet yarn and scurried back to the car. I decided to skip the traffic jam and headed up one of the well known back roads out of town. It was a pretty round about road, but a relaxing drive. I did get a little bit "lost" when I thought I was taking a shortcut. Instead of turning right off the first side road, I managed to miss it and turned on the second, which turned out to be a logging road with a gate at the very end. I had to drive a little further out of the the way then I anticipated. Yes, I got lost wandering around the Wilno Hills! It was no big deal in the end because all roads lead to the highway eventually. I even stopped to take some photos along with way.

When I left town my eyes started bothering me. They were itching and burning and my vision was a bit cloudy. I was getting concerned until the radio announced we are getting smoke from Quebec wildfires northeast of us.  Well that was a relief, of sorts.