Hazardous Fun

Saturday Tom and I went to an antique show at the Puyallup Fair Grounds. This is a very big show, over 400 vendors, and on Saturday morning it can be very crowded. We arrived about 11:00, after the first rush, but with the hall full of lookers. About five minutes into it, still trying to gear ourselves into dealing with lots of people, I was run over by a motorized wheel chair. I was trying to get into a booth the entry of which was being blocked by a very large man who was standing there looking but not allowing anyone else in. I hate that. Don't block the entrance! I was just about to say "Excuse me" (we are so very polite we ask to be excused when it's really someone else's fault, don't we), when I was broadsided. As I quickly tried to assess first what happened, and second, was I alright, I looked down to see a big, fat wheel on my foot and the frame rammed against my ankle, and my bad ankle at that. Well, I couldn't move and the elderly lady was apologizing all over the place, so I had to ask "Could you back up?" I don't think she realized I was still under the wheel. Flustered, it took her a bit to back off my foot. I didn't seem to be too bad off, but before I could walk and try it out, I had to reassure the lady that it was alright. She shouldn't worry. After all, she was in a wheel chair and I am able to walk, I hope. Then I limped off. Tom got to my side and asked if I was OK. I replied, as I blinked back tears, that I would be. And I was. I gimped around for a bit, and then recovered enough that I was able to spend most of the next four hours on my feet, with a short time out for lunch. Remarkably, by the time we left a little after three, I was tired and stiff, but not really in pain. Hurray! The other hazard, besides to my physical well being, is, of course, to my pocket book. We weren't really looking for anything, so we just had fun looking. However there were a few items that called to me that I did not resist. The first was this heavy porcelain baby's plate. I love these things and I'm always attracted to them. I have resisted collecting them because they are usually over $100. But I found this charming little English plate, circa 1940, that was only $25, and it made me buy it.

You can click on the photo to read the verse. These plates were made to sit on the back of a wood stove and absorb heat so they would warm the baby food and keep it warm while the baby was being fed.

-

We have Tom's mother's child plate which would be from 1910, and I bought a little probably 50's era plate a year or so ago. They needed company. Now I'm afraid I may be starting another collection!

A collection I do have is McCoy pottery, mostly in matte white. I have been collecting for about ten years and have pretty much stopped because I'm running out of places to display them. But I found this little jardiniere in the leaves and berries pattern, circa 1935. I love this old, almost clunky stuff from that era, with it's heavy thick clay and factory imperfections all covered in heavy matte glaze. It was a good price, so I bought it. Last Christmas I was wishing I had some little glass bowls to use with my china for serving cranberries, or a scoop of sherbet for dessert. I found this Heisey Glass berry bowl set for the reasonable price of $29. It was in good condition and a pattern I liked. So I bought it too.

-

I have already looked on line for more little dishes to add to it. I didn't find what I wanted yet, but I did find this same set, minus one little bowl, for a starting price of $39.95 So I guess I did OK.

I don't really feel bad about spending money when the price is reasonable and it's something I like. No, I don't really need any of this stuff. But I figure my spending money may mean someone else can stay in business a bit longer. So, Hey, it's for the good of the country! Right?

-

Oh, and one really cool thing happened there. I met a vendor who was from my home town, Molalla, Oregon. I heard him mention Molalla to someone else so I asked him about it and then said I was from there too. In talking a bit we discovered that he knew my dad. He was just a boy then but he remembered that my dad had worked for his dad as a logger for the Olson Brothers Logging Company. Small world!

-

We had fun and although Tom found lots of stuff he would like to own, none of his finds were in the inexpensive range, so he abstained.

-

Then we headed for a Starbucks to refresh.