What is wrong here?

8:00 pm current tempurature



Orlando, Fl 79 degrees

Grand Rapids, MI 92 degrees

All was well

I am going to preface this entry by saying I was tired this weekend and reactions are always stronger when you are tired right?

Friday evening I picked up Harry Potter 7. As I had previously mentioned I had wanted to reread the other 6 books to experience the story as a whole. Finishing the 6th book on Wednesday, I gave myself 48 hours before beginning the 7th (I needed to get some stuff done and I knew if I had the book the temptation would be too great.) I arrive home around 10 pm and started the book. An hour or so later and 175 pages into the book I went to bed, kind of sad and disappointed. I had expected the book to be dark, but not like this. I went to bed thinking, well I want to know what happens to everyone, so I’ll keep reading, but I am not too excited. Thankfully the book takes a turn. The next morning I took the book with me to the farmers market and got some decent reading done (the only good thing about that morning.) By this point I was hooked.

I got home around 2 pm and settled in on my couch to finish the book. About 100 pages from the end I started to cry. Now being moved to tears by a book is nothing new, in first grade I cried when my teacher read Charlotte’s Web out loud to the class. I cried reading HP 5 and HP 6. But reading the last 100 pages of HP7 was more then just a few tears. There were points in the story that I had to put the book down due to the fact that I was sobbing inconsolably, those gut wrenching sobs that are usually reserved for the most emotional of times leaving you feeling empty and in my case with a terrible headache. For some reason the climax of this story and the emotions of the characters whom I have grown to love over the years hit me so strongly. Now I am sure you are thinking I am a bit crazy, and I would agree. It was just a book, it was not real life and to be honest, I was pleasantly surprised at outcome. There was no need to get so upset, but I did. I would like think this reaction was because I was tired, but the truth is that it is more of a testament to J.K. Rowlings and the masterful way she developed this realm.

Worst Day Yet

Today sucked, there is just no other way to describe it and I don’t know why. There was a decent amount of traffic at the market, but just not a lot of purchases. I did worse today then I have ever before, including the day it rained. Everyone at the Market said the same thing. Just not a good day and no one could put a finger on why. Maybe it was because it was the end of the month and people were out of money? Or maybe the neighborhood just can’t support it? I just don’t know. Today certainly was not worth the time I put in. I am beginning to think I need to search for a new market. You cannot get into Fulton Street at this point and even Rockford is full – so maybe Byron Center would be a good alternative? Something to think about.

Odds and Ends

Feeling Old
As I have gotten older the biggest change I have noticed is that I need more sleep. I used to regularly get by with 4 or 5 hours of sleep a night and could easily handle an all-nighter. But over the past few years I have noticed that this is no longer the case – I just can’t function as well with little sleep. Last Friday night, for variety of reasons (one described below) I ended up only getting about 3 ½ hours of sleep. I am proud to say I handled it much better then I had anticipated and needed a quick 30 minute nap on Saturday to get through the entire day. Maybe I still have some of it in me. :)

Acting Young
If you have been living in a cave this past week you might not have heard that the seventh and final Harry Potter book came out. HP7 was officially released at 12:01 am Saturday morning or Friday night if you think like me. I had no intentions of purchasing this book due to lack of resources and had hoped I could borrow a copy from someone who had. To my surprise, on Thursday my sister informed me that she just could not wait and was going to get book from Meijer’s, who was running a promotion – spend $30 get the book for $13. Prior to this she also was planning on borrowing the book. I happen to be at her house Friday night as she left around 11:30 to go to the smallest Meijer in the area and when she got there the line was over 500 people line. She called from the store, not wanted to stay (who could blame her). So I told her I would stop at the Meijer by my house on my way home. Thinking the lines would be gone. I think I pulled into the parking lot around 2:00 am and with my sisters list in hand I started picking up the items she needed as I made my way to the back of the store, where I discovered they had sold out of books. The good news was that their staff was out picking up books from other locations and they should be back in the next ½ hour. Hmm… what to do? wait at the store or go home, finish up some of the things I needed to do for the farmers market in 5 hours. I decided to go home and come back. Just as I was exiting the first set of doors, in came a group of girls, followed by 2 carts of books. Happily I went back to the back of the store along with everyone else in the store. The atmosphere reminded me of many crazy things I did when I was young. It was fun.

Harry Potter
No this is not a spoiler, I have not even begun the final book yet, much less finished it. My intentions where to re-read all of the books just prior to this one being released so that I could read them all in row. Unfortunately time has escaped me recently and I did not even start reading the 1st book again until Saturday. (Yes I really did have the 7th book in my possession for 10 hours and never even opened the cover) So over the past 4 ½ days I have been engrossed in the world of Harry Potter. I had forgotten how good these book were – so well written and engaging. Thankfully I am half way through the 6th book and will be able to pick up the 7th soon to finish out the story. Then I will be able to talk to everyone who has asked me about it. (Yes, I have been doing other things then reading, like putting in a full days of work. But I have spent all of my free time reading. :))

Okay

Saturday at the market was just okay – not great. The weather was beautiful and the market was pretty busy, but I only sold a fair amount. I am wondering if people are gravitating towards all the fruits and vegetables. The Zucchini Bread went well, although I did head many people say they had made zucchini bread that week. I think this week I am going to cut down on my quantities which will cut down on my costs and hopefully the time it takes me to make things.

Too much information

I don’t know if it is just that I look approachable or selling baked goods at a Farmers Market puts you in the same category as a bar tender or if some people just don’t have filters, but I find that people just tell me the craziest things!! I have to admit most of the time I find it entertaining, but this weekend I heard some strange and almost disturbing stories from people purchasing my bread. Was there a full moon?

Picture Perfect Day

The weather gurus are all predicting a gorgeous day tomorrow. Temps in the high 70’s low 80’s – low humidity, one of those days you use to sell Michigan. I am hoping the weather will bring lots of people to the farmer’s market tomorrow morning, especially those who are hungry for bread. This week I am going to have four different varieties of bread, Banana, Amish Friendship, Zucchini and Zucchini Carrot Nut. I have cut back on the quantities, but over all will have more bread then ever before. I hope it all sells. I will also have the usually congo bar, brownies and frosted cookies. I will have a few more congo then normal, I have to go away for a while this evening, so I am making a second batch and taking some with me and leaving some to sell tomorrow. The only things I have to figure out yet is how to display everything on my limited table space and how to have four different bread samples on one plate… I am sure I will figure something out.
The only negative side about potentially being busy tomorrow will mean less time to read Harry!!! (I always have a book with me to pass the time.)
As always would love to have you stop by.

Zucchinimania

Last weekend I was able to pick up some fresh zucchini’s which means this week I will debut my Zucchini Bread. My favorite recipe for zucchini is my Zucchini Carrot Nut bread. I have to admit it is very tasty. I look forward to Zucchini season all year long. The one down side to this bread is that is does cost more to make then my other breads, so I am think of charging $2.25 for the small loaf – up from $2.00 and $4.50 for the large loaf up from $4.00. I also make a variety of the bread for a friend of mine, who shall at this point remain nameless, that leaves the carrots and nuts out. I think this week, at least I am going to make both varieties and see how they sell. Last night I whipped up a batch for samples. For the first time since I have started this whole endeavor I actually baked something for me. Yes I will use part of the batch for samples, but I did keep a small loaf and it is so yummy!! I am hoping for dry weather this Saturday.

The "R" word

Rain, Rain, Rain… Saturday morning was cold and rainy and not a whole lot of fun. After hearing conflicting weather reports on Friday about the possibility of rain Saturday morning, I got up about 6:30 am to check the radar. At that point the rain was moving in, but the band did not look too wide, so I was optimistic about it blowing through by 8:30 or so. Evidently the rain kept reforming and it did not stop raining until around 11:00. I was not in a huge hurry to set up in the rain, so I didn’t arrive to the market until around 8:30 am. By the time I got every thing set up I was soaked and freezing. I did learn that my canopy keeps things pretty dry, which is good to know. Around 10 am a number of the vendors packed up for the day and went home. I have to admit it was pretty tempting, but I had only sold about $12 worth of goods to that point and I really wanted to break even. Thankfully as the rain stopped people started to come and we were busy from 11:30 to noon. At that point the vendors that were left unanimously voted to stay open for another hour, and we had a steady stream of customers. In the end I not only broke even, but made some money – not a great day, but better then losing money.

***I do have some Banana Bread and Amish Friendship Bread left – if you want it, it is yours, just let me know and I will get it to you.

Hello Kitty

Files this one under you only turn seven once or “Aunt Erinn” spoils her nieces and nephew. :) Today is my niece’s seventh birthday and she loves Hello Kitty!! Pretty much all of her gifts had something to do with Hello Kitty. A few days ago I was talking to my sister on the phone about making the birthday cake. I was asking what color frosting she wanted etc, and in the back ground I hear “Can Aunt Erinn put Hello Kitty’s face on my cake?” To which her Mom quickly replied “No.” Well that got me thinking, it might not be too hard. So I went online and found some clip art of Hello Kitty’s face. I printed that out, cut it out, and outlined it with a toothpick on the cake and then filled in the areas with the appropriate colors. I have to admit is turned out pretty cute. In fact my niece loved it so much that we never cut it and she is keeping it for her party tomorrow with her friends.

Saturday Update

Saturday was a decent day – not as good as the past two weeks, but okay. I am not sure if it was the weather or the weekend following the holiday, but everyone at the Market had a down day. I did take some pictures, as you can see. I also thought I would share some of the other things available at this market.

Of course there is tons of fruits and vegetables. This is the beginning of when things are becoming ripe and I was impressed with the vast variety. They had everything from Cherries and blue berries to carrots, radishes and potatoes. It all looks and smells so good. Zucchinis are not ready yet, so no zucchini bread yet, but as soon as it is ready I will be added it to my selection.

For you Dog lovers – there is a lady who sells the cutest Dog items, blankets, towels, canvass bags to keep our doggie supplies, and a mix to make your own dog biscuits. If you want more information, let me know and I will get it to you.

It is Friday already!!

This week has flown by. Wednesday was Independence Day, the day we celebrate our country and all the freedoms we enjoy. I chose to celebrate the freedom to do very little. I am not sure if it was because the holiday was in the middle of the week or if I just need a quiet day, but I just did not feel like doing too much. I did totally splurge in the afternoon and do something I really enjoy – I washed my car. I love to wash and vacuum my car all out and my car really needed it. So now it all nice and clean. (well except one spot I missed :))
Back to the Westside market tomorrow, with the usually lot, banana bread, Amish Friendship bread, congo bars, cookies, cakes, cup cakes. I got a lot done last night, and for the first time in a couple weeks I do not have anything going on tonight, so hopefully I can make my brownies and try them. Also I hope to get to bed at a decent time. Will report back after the market tomorrow. Would love to see any of you, if you want to stop by!!!