Home for the Holiday (Market)

Holiday Market set-up went smoothly, for the most part. I left home around noon, arrived before my neighbors on either side (though the three across the aisle were all ahead of me), which made it easier getting the booth frame up and raised onto the wood block stilts. (Necessary to keep people from banging their heads on the light bar.) Denise stayed home, which turned out helpful when I realized I'd forgotten the under-counter strip lights. The booth looks really good; still a little cramped in back, but with room for a little more back stock, as I'm using the shorter Saturday Market shelves on the left.

The only snag came when I went to bring in the back stock from the hall, where I'd left it to be out of everyone's way. My hand truck was missing.

I checked in the office to see if anyone had stashed it with the Market supplies, but no joy. I also walked the entirety of both halls--well, stumbled, actually, it was after 4 pm at this point--to see if someone had borrowed it, but still no luck. I did run into Vanessa and J.J., Markets promotions and interim Manager, and whimpered my bad news to them, then started carrying in boxes one at a time, before Courtney of Steel Web, across the aisle, took pity and loaned me her hand truck.

I was just stowing the second load of boxes under the bench when J.J. arrived, triumphant. Someone had borrowed my wheels, and left them out by the back door. So I hauled in the rest of my pots, put out Denise's paper, and finished up around 5 pm.

Went home and had chili that Denise cooked for us, and went to bed early.

Woke up early too, trimmed some pots in the studio, and we drove down to put up signage and get organized for the 10 am opening.

It was never really crowded, but there were a good number of shoppers, almost all masked. Market hired private security this year, mostly, I suspect, to enforce masking. I haven't sold at opening weekend since sometime before 2009, when I joined Clayfolk, so I don't know if this was a typical weekend, but sales were pretty good Saturday, comparable to a really good pre-pandemic Saturday Market. Sales much slower, about a third, on Sunday, but all-in-all a decent weekend.

Lots of empty booth spaces, and only about half the food vendors we'd usually have, but that, and the fact that the Main Stage has moved to the other hall, meant that they could set out tables, smaller 6-tops more widely spaced, to allow sit-down eating.

Taking over the Exhibit Hall from the absent Farmer's Market means that we can use their built-in stage, saving the $6000 we usually have to pay for rental of risers and equipment. It also means that the smaller, acoustic music stage moves from Holiday Hall to our space, which was really rather nice. Quieter music, still enough to mask background noises, but easier to talk to customers over.

The nicest part of being back indoors is having Denise able to help again. I'd forgotten how good it is to have someone sharing the booth. She records sales while I process cards or make change and wrap. We can take turns for restroom breaks, or just get-out-and-talk-to-people breaks, desperately needed after all the isolation. Plus extra bears, extra hugs, and just time spent together again. I've missed it.

Sometimes, ya just wanna slap someone

Like the woman walking around Market Saturday, mask under her chin, "Legalize Freedom" on her shirt in big shiny letters.

And now I want a shirt that says Normalize Responsibility.