The peach festival has come and gone. If you haven’t already read a little about it in our Peach Pie post, it’s an annual church sale in our area where people donate all their unwanted housewares, kitchen items, Christmas decorations, furniture, wall hangings, luggage, books, etc. etc. in the month leading up to the main event, and then flock back on the big day to buy up other people’s old unwanted stuff. When you’re young, financially challenged, and looking to furnish an apartment or find a vintage leather Dooney & Bourke bag for a dollar, then this is kind of your holy grail.
So we went, we shopped, we conquered. And it was a particularly interesting year. Mostly because for the first four hours, it was raining.
This led to mud.
Lots of mud.
We got there about 45 minutes early, expecting the line that usually starts forming around 7 AM to be a lot shorter than usual…on account-a it was rainin’ and all. But as it turned out, there are a lot of die-hard peach-fest-goers in this town who will stand in the rain, wind, and hail the size of meatballs to be among the first through those gates.
So there we were…standing under our umbrellas. I was a little shivery in my tank top (because it’s summer, and it’s definitely NOT supposed to be 65 degrees and raining). When they finally rang the bell that signaled that the hunt was on, people started surging in…walking in a way that said “I’m trying to maintain a certain…civilized veneer because this is a community/church/public event and oh yeah…I’m just strolling right in like it doesn’t matter, but I’ll speedwalk a little because I MUST get to the free-for-all-of-household-miscellany before ALL these other people. Try not to shove. Try not to shove!” Some people just dropped all pretense and started sprinting for the back of the church like their lives depended on it.
And then we were through those gates. By the time we got to one of the tents in the back to look through the jewelry, ten ladies were already crowded around the tiny jewelry table, peering through Ziploc bags hoping to find…what? The way they were staring through that clear plastic, you’d think there was a pair of pearl earrings in there or something. Alas, I’ll never know, because there was no way I was getting through that wall of sensible summer cargo shorts and windbreakers. All the while, it was pouring. So eventually, the whole thing was starting to look like a giant mud-wrestle.
So there I am. My feet are kind of sloshing around in the mud, but the hunt is on, and a little mud is the least of my worries. I make my way to the rows of tables set up under the largest tent on the grounds. Eyes scanning the tables…SCORE! A bag of antique silverware for $3. A brand new springform tube pan! A brand-new still-in-the-packaging whisk! A set of three really cute Victorian plates. A stainless steel mixing bowl. We can never have too many of those. And WHAT!?! Parfait glasses? You’ve always wanted your own set of parfait glasses! Okay, so it’s probably a good idea to start branching out. You can’t concentrate on just the kitchen stuff. You move to the boxes of luggage and purses. A leather bag. Peering inside, it says “made in Brasil. Genuine leather.” It’s got a yellow sticker on it. $1. YES. Wait, there’s a hat stand for a dollar. That will look awesome in my room…I’ve got…hats…
It continued like that for about 3 hours, believe it or not. We made three trips to the car to drop off loot before going back. Kaitlin bought about a gazillion picture frames, a new carpet for her apartment, and a bunch of tchotchkes, because she is the queen of tchotchkes.
Mid-way through, we went to the dessert tent for buttery therapy and a much-needed break. I wish I had a picture to show you, but uh…we weren’t exactly thinking about photography when we started stuffing our faces with whipped cream.
And then Kaitlin signed up for the auction.
Which was a mistake.
We were standing there, having taken our first, second, and third passes around the place and were pretty much ready to leave.
But we took a detour to the auction, which is always fun. And they bring out this ginormous coffee table, and before I know it, Kaitlin’s hand shoots up, and 25 dollars later, she’s bought it.
And of course, all I can think about is the fact that we drove there in a little four-door sedan, and that the giant block of wood my sister just bought is definitely NOT going to fit in the backseat.
We ended up calling a friend to come to the rescue.
Sigh.
Another year. Another peach festival…
The circle of life continues.
In other news, it is my opinion that one can never have enough peaches. Try out the pie recipe. Butter, flour, peaches, sunshine, and rainbows. We highly recommend it.
