Busy week! Did 3rd Sunday Market last weekend so was looking forward to a quiet week but that did not happen. Had a house full of guests on Thursday of week before show. Had pulled sheets but not gotten beds remade. Got a call while in Bloomington that a lady wanted a room for Sunday evening. As I mentioned last week she was from Indiana and was very nice and a first time B&B guest. Just after she left on Monday morning there was a knock on my door. There were two ladies at the door and I am sure I looked surprised because I thought they were arriving on Tuesday. Made more beds!! They left on Wednesday.
Tuesday was the beginning of the Hancock County Fair at Augusta. I always enter the antique and collectible categories to try to win enough money for a fair gate pass, I had to get the van unloaded from the show to put some things into it to take to the fair. Got that done on Tuesday and got my things entered. Kathy Holst was very helpful as is everyone who works at the fair. Attended the horse show for a while on Wednesday evening. Have always loved horses.
For years, Ben and I tried to buy something along the Mississippi but never got it accomplished. This week an ad came out in the shopper for a small home on the river so called and made an appointment to look at it on Thursday. That went fine but I had not had supper so stopped in Hamilton to eat. That turned out not to have been such a good idea. As we were eating the sky got darker and darker. When I left it looked very bad and the storms were coming from the west. You will remember that Iowa had a lot of damage on Thursday evening. I headed east as fast as my van would go and headed south hoping to out run the storm. I made a mistake and turned east too soon so instead of hitting the black top to Basco, I ended up on a gravel road that got smaller and smaller and eventually turned into a one lane road going up and down hills and valleys. Now with thunder and lightening immediately over head, with the black sky and not knowing if the road was going to eventually run out, it was not a good situation.
Decided not to buy the house and made it home safely so all worked out.
Eleanor White will turn 100 on August 2nd. If you would like to send her a birthday card, her address is Bickford Assisted Living, 1600 Maple Avenue, Macomb, IL 61455.
Good news-there will soon be a new store in Plymouth. I talked to the Lanning family today in Freddie’s building next to Plymouth Rock Antiques. They are fixing up the building and plan to have a shop in it. They have the sawmill just west of town and will have sawmill related things and crafts. Can’t wait for them to open. They are going to try to be open by Old Settlers.
There was a draft horse pull at the fair on Friday evening. As I had never seen a horse pull, I wanted to attend. Got there a bit early and watched some barrel racing then moved to the other arena. The horse pull was just great! It took me quite a while to catch on to the rules. There was a chain attached to the sled. It had an iron rod on a base attached to it. When the team had pulled the sled far enough to tip over the iron rod, a whistle was blown and that particular pull was over. The announced kept yelling things like “one block”, “6 blocks”, “10 blocks” and eventually I figured out that he was telling the grounds people how much weight to add to the sled. The horses were matched sets of draft horses who had to work well together. They were beautiful and their harness gleaming. They were anxious to pull. There was a team of three people for each pair of horses. One was the driver and the other two held the double trees and hooked them to the sled and got out of the way. Usually before the driver got his/her seat, the horses were pulling. Weight kept being added and the teams pulled over and over until the winner was determined. Hope they will bring that event back next year. None of the teams were local, but there were some Amish helping on the grounds and some Amish in the grand stand.
Attended the Kelso Auction on Saturday and brought back another van load to an already full set of store buildings! Come in and shop and help me find room for the new things.
My birthday is tomorrow. Have an exciting day planned. Had to clean out the van so I can take it to Gentry Motor Company to be fixed first thing in the morning. Will then come back to Plymouth and open the antique store. Then probably back to Macomb to pick up the van. Oh well- bought myself a painting at the June 3rd Sunday Market for my birthday and I am already enjoying it!
Have a good week. The weather is not to be so oppressive as it has been. Remember to be kind to others and to “do good, do no harm and stay in love with God.”