“Remoted – Hybrid” – Day 991 (Saturday) – bazaar day

The Finnish breakfast and celebration of Finland’s Independence Day featured vendors selling beautiful hand knits, jarred honey and beeswax candles, and Christmas dishes and ornaments. The hall at Saima Park was packed and the atmosphere was lively. It was fun seeing people who are not usually at the monthly breakfasts, which included a couple classmates from high school and one from grad school.

Purchases at the Finn breakfast were a hand knit neck cowl, a small beeswax candle in the shape of a pine cone, a ceramic tree tea light holder, and some snowflake ornaments. I didn’t buy a coffee bread on the way into breakfast and then it was sold out. She who hesitates loses out on coffee bread. 

Bazaar acquisitions.

Later, Mom, my sister, and I went across town to the St. Joseph’s Church holiday bazaar, which was also packed. A crowd circled the massive raffle table dropping tickets into buckets for every manner of themed basket imaginable. A long line of people waited for various lunch items and take-home Canadian specialties including pork pies. The event also features baked goods, craft vendors, and the always amazing “Attic” flea market section. There were tons of amazing glass ornaments, Christmas linens, dolls, and décor. I got a small gold bottle brush tree and a clear glass tree container.

My sister surprised me with a flat door hanger she found at St. Joe’s after I told her the wreath I got last year doesn’t fit in the too-narrow space between the back door and the storm door. She’s thoughtful like that.

My acquisition of random ornaments and décor keeps happening. It feels easier in the moment to buy “new” stuff when compared to the chore of schlepping storage containers upstairs from the basement to dig through the existing inventory. Over the years, ornament creep turns into a case of way too much stuff.

It was raining and we hadn’t mapped out a plan for the rest of the afternoon, so after St. Joe’s, we parted ways. Over the potholes and asphalt patchworked roads, I jingle belled my butt back to Lowell. Literally. Every nick, bump, and flaw in the roads cased the wreath to jingle. Now the task is to figure out where to put the day’s bazaar acquisitions. Maybe on Sunday.