WHAT Ladder??

Remember what I said about having too much food and not needing any more sweets?  Well that went right out the window the second I landed at the Astoria Sunday Market.  If you are ever in this area, it's a MUST see.  Happily, more than half of the upper parking lot was full of vendors.

Meaning it has expanded by another 20 or more vendors, with three more selling plants and flowers.  You could landscape your entire yard with the beauties found here, not to mention your home with the amazing arrangements the ladies make.

This is where it hit me.  The very top vendor is HUGE and has more cinnamon rolls and cookies than you can shake a stick at.  My sweet tooth kicked in immediately, dragging me all around the display table where taste testing is a MUST!  There are samples for each and every one!! 

To make it even better, as my tooth cried out with joy .... they have every kind of jam, jelly and honey you could imagine .... and you can taste test every single one of those TOO!!  Baskets full of crackers await you!!  I think I showed great restraint.  I only tasted three jams and NO cookies ... however, three cookies, one scone and some jam ended up in my bag.   Not bad for a sweet fanatic!!

I stored all that in the car and headed back down the three block long gauntlet of goodies.  There are samples of everything edible, lots of fruits and vegetables and tons of jewelry.  I skipped them all however .... I was on a mission.

THIS was my target .... they call them a POCKET, but really they are like a pastie (pronounced pass-ty) a traditional pie from Cornwall England.  They are also called Byrek (Albania) or Borek (Istanbul) or any number of other names, including DELICIOUS!!  It's puff pastry with filling, this one being spinach and cheese.  I ate every single bite!!  I'm going to try and duplicate it, after I take out a little more fire insurance.

There were lots of organic vegetables, but I opted only for lettuce and basil, since my fridge is already full of squash and tomatoes from Illwaco.  The good news is I'll be around here for another month, so I'll get all my required daily veggies.

The Canadian guy at the end is still making birdhouses.  Yes, MANY of these vendors come all the way down from Canada to sell their wares.  Made with the BEST Canadian wood, he said!!  Even the man who makes and sells cigar box guitars is still here.  

Meet Ariel.  My oh my ... what a sweety she was.  She tried to get in my pockets and succeeded in jumping up on my chest and giving me a nice big kiss!!  Ariel is promoting the goats milk soap her Mama makes and was attracting loads of customers, unlike last year.  There were at least three vendors selling goats milk soap, so having a gimmick as cute as this, upped her sales dramatically!!  I wonder if they can be motorhome trained??

Still trying to buy local, I saw the Nehalem Bay Wine Company was giving out samples ... pretty LARGE samples at that ... of their wine selections.  This may be the one Miss Terry of Miss Terrys Kitchen and Gypsy Journal Fame, purchased last year.  You're going to think I'm weird, but the Pear Wine makes a GREAT salad dressing!!

Feeling pretty good that I showed GREAT restraint, except for that 2000 calorie pocket I consumed, I loaded up my meager purchases and drove down the hill to the huge two story Antique store I visited the day before.  Phog Bounders on Marine Drive is the name, but I don't think there's a sign.  I really wasn't looking for anything particular, but once in the basement ... you HAVE to go to the basement ... I spotted not one, but TWO ladders.  

What the heck does she need a ladder for??  As a quilter, you are always looking for ways to display your quilts.  Hanging them all over your walls is one option, but really my walls are not suitably wide enough where I want to hang things.  This idea came from seeing the ladders Indians used to access their rock wall houses .... and of course I've seen it in many a quilt store.

The best part is this ladder is wider and taller than most, making it perfect for it's new occupation.  Unfortunately with bike and ladder in the Jeep, no one can ride with me.  Maybe I can fit it in the basement of the rig.

The fog never lifted and the wind never blew yesterday, so the puppies and I lounged around the campground watching late comers fighting for spaces.  Being Sunday, it was nice and quiet last night as the horde of tent campers and weekenders filed out the gate.  I can actually see a tiny bit of blue in the sky this morning, so here's hoping there a nice breeze on the beach for kite flying.