K-Ville Pear Festival

This weekend was the annual Pear Festival in our area.  K-Ville is the pear capitol of the US, with acres and acres of pear orchards surrounding the town.  So every year there is the big Festival complete with Pear Queen and a substantial parade. 

Max marched with the K-Ville High School Band. Although he couldn’t play his bass (which is NOT a marching instrument) he did carry the banner along with the piano player.  The band played “25 or 6 to 4” by the band, Chicago and marched well, near the front of the parade.  A couple of times, I thought the parade was almost over and crossed to the other side, only to have more contestants come down the street!  Lots of antique cars and a whole herd of antique tractors! Yes, you read that right---there must have been 25 old tractors being cheered on by the large crowd! Definitely not your usual parade---this is an agricultural area, so I guess one has to expect it.

There were lots of stands set up selling everything from jewelry to wood carvings, soap, lots of food with that Pear theme---pies, ice cream, smoothies and turnovers.  I had a marvelous pear/apricot smoothie that was nothing but ice blended with fruit pulp---no dairy and no added sugar!  YUM!  AND I managed to get one of my favs---an enormous frozen banana with nuts! 

All in all, it was a fun time with local bands and businesses setting up raffles, etc.  The weather was perfect for it as well---dry and warm!  Old planes and helicopters did flyovers as well.  Lots of fun!

Just one of those days…

Yup, it was just one of those days---thank goodness they are few and far between.  It started out early---up at 5:30 and off with Max to get him to school by 7:20 (although I usually get him there by 7:10).  We were running later and ended up pulling into the back school lot (by the band room door) by 7:15.  After he left the car and ran up the sidewalk to the building, I checked my rear view mirror and since there was nothing back there, I started to back up.  Well, that lot is pretty small and because there is always a truck parked in the space closest to the building, I usually just pull in at an angle and drop him off, then back into a space and drive out of the lot (there’s only room to park on one side).  Well I backed up and bang---it was like I hit a wall.  Actually it was  the back of a Toyota truck that had pulled into a space right behind where I’d pulled in.  I couldn’t see it through my inside mirror, but there it was in my outside one.  My car was dented in the back door (truck lid) but I can still open and close it.  The truck’s bumper was still fine, from what I could see---although the lady insisted that the bumper needed to be replaced.  I couldn’t see even a dent in it…however, I’ll have to probably replace my back door on my PT.  If it can be repaired well enough, I’ll go with that, but I’ll have to check it out.

Well, although I was upset, I went on to Curves and later to tennis (where I played rather well) before going home and calling my insurance agent.  She said not to worry---they wouldn’t do anything until they heard from the lady.  So, we wait and see.  Tomorrow, I’ll take some pics of it all…

Max had soccer practice after school and was supposed to catch the Transit bus which drops him only a couple of miles from our house, but he got on the wrong bus and ended up in the town on the OTHER side of K-Ville!  He called and I had to go all the way there to get him.  So, an hour later, we finally got home!  Thank goodness Hubby was home and could get the dinner together for us upon our arrival.

Hope tomorrow brings me better luck---it can’t be anything but better…

BOOKSHOP MANIFESTO

Here is something that was handed to us at our booth at the Bluegrass Festival by the bookstore that sponsored our booth.  Hope you love it as much as I:

   BOOKSHOP MANIFESTO

We believe in the book.  We believe in quieting the noise and listening to the stories.  We believe in traveling far and wide between paper pages.  We believe in touching the words, scribbling in the margins and dogging the ears.  We believe in surrounding ourselves with books long finished and books not yet read; in revisiting our younger selves each time we pull from the shelf old favorites.

We believe in 5 year olds inking their names in big letters on the fly leaf.  We believe in becoming someone else for 400 pages.  We believe in turning off the screens and unplugging the network once in a while.  We believe in meeting the author, reading the footnotes, looking up words and checking the references.  We believe in holding our children on our laps and turning the pages together.

We believe in standing shoulder to shoulder in comfortable silence with our fellow citizens before a good shelf of books; be believe in the aisles of a good bookstore.

We believe that together, readers, writer, books, and bookstores can work magic.

Save the world.  Buy a book.

(Thanks to Gallery Bookshop, Mendocino, CA)

 

With that said, I shall be making only about 2 or 3 (at most) blog entries in the next month or so as I need to concentrate on getting a manuscript ready to sell.  I’ll keep you informed as to its progress and things here at home through FB and here when I can.  Thanks for your patience!  Have a great day!

BLUEGRASS FESTIVAL 2010

Yesterday was the 5th Annual Bluegrass Festival and my 4th time at the Lake County Writers’ Group booth.  We set up at 7 a.m. and tore down around 6 p.m.  A long day, but the weather was bright and sunny with only a hint of a breeze, so the weather was perfect.  Besides our booth, there was everything from tie-dye to hats to jewelry to crafty stuff.  Tons of food and this cute little stand helped quench our thirst.  The unending music ranged from old fashioned picking to yodeling to county with lots of banjoes, mandolins, and fiddles.  Our local Konocti Fiddlers Club was there (with a lot of fiddle players that are also in the Youth Orchestra with Max) and many other duos, trios and huge groups.  At the Anderson Marsh State Park, where the event is held, there is a big old house that is the park center with a huge covered front porch. For the Festival, three or four spinning wheels were going at all times and small clumps of musicians could be found in various places practicing and tuning up.  Our local radio station presented the music live, so those who didn’t want to come in person could still hear it all.

However, I spent most of my time sitting (or standing) behind my book display and talking to people about the books written by local artists.  All in all, it was a great day for everyone! 

Pre-Labor Day BBQ

We celebrated Labor Day a day early this year.  After Sunday Judo practice, the Judo kids and families came back to our house for an impromptu BBQ.  There was lots of great food (we provided the burgers and dogs and they brought most of the rest of it---except for my zucchini bread!) and conversation while the kids swam and jumped on the trampoline.  Max and E spent most of their time playing pool in the garage or shooting the BB gun at the archery targets.  All in all, it was small, but fun get-together on a perfect sunny afternoon!

School starts tomorrow for Max and E!  Oh boy!!!

SOCCER NEWS

Max just had his first soccer match on Tuesday and it ended in a 2-2 tie.  They played hard and well and he was exhausted at the end.  Everyone had fun and did a fine job.  The audience was enthusiastic and quite loud.

Then, at practice on Wed. afternoon, during a sprinting exercise, Max stepped into a hole and damaged his ankle.  They laid him on the field with an icepack and his foot elevated.  He managed to limp into the team picture before we left for home. He’s #16!

So, all day yesterday he lay around or practiced walking on crutches.  His ankle is still swollen, but by the end of the day, it had quit hurting as much.  We’re hoping he’ll be able to play on their first day of school game on Tuesday (after Labor Day), but don’t want to rush him into it if he isn’t really healed well!  He’ll have a little break with no Thursday game next week---their next one is on the following Tuesday.  So, keep good thoughts for his healing and we’ll just have to take it one day at a time!