Art and Wine Fest '05

The SO and I haven't missed many of these. One year I was out of the country on business and another I didn't feel well that weekend but we've gone to 5 or 6 of them now. Today we dropped my car off for service and drove downtown. We park in a parking structure that's just next to the blocked off festival street. It's amazing that we pass so many cars all looking for curbside parking and always find a spot in this garage.

We walk down the street past all the booths, stopping in some and just glancing into others. I see hand crafted jewelry I think is lovely but know I wouldn't wear -- it all fits a lifestyle look that just isn't mine at this time. We grab a teriyaki chicken kabob at a booth and munch as we stroll.

We hit the end of the street without a purchase and see the booth with the tree frog shirts from last year. In we go. These shirts are made from a great fabric that defies wrinkles and is light as a spider's web. He's come up with a new design this year based on South Pacific tribal tatoos. He's printed the tatoo designs in a subtle goldish taupe on a dark royal blue. It looks wonderful on the SO. The designer has also made some reversable jackets with the frog print on one side and solid black on the other. The first one I see is a short jacket but he shows me one that's longer and on sale. I buy it too. I suggest he comes back next year with a Celtic design.

We find the festival tee shirt for sale and buy a couple of those as well. Down the row of stalls some more and there's the fellow who makes the "Real Flower" jewelry. I have a brooch and had two earrings to match. One of the earrings is lost. I look for a new set but don't see what I want. I may go back tomorrow though - if I can find the earring, and see if he can replace the set. I took a quick look in my jewelry boxes (yeah, I have 2) and didn't see the pin or earring. I may have left it in a box when we moved. Glenn points out the kettle corn stand and I buy a small bag. mmmm.

Down the street a bit farther on there are extravagant hats with lots of feathers. I put on a wide brimmed black one trimmed with long floaty black feathers. I actually liked it a lot. I wish I had the nerve to wear stuff like that. I have an ambition to be one of 'those' old ladies (and that's not a time too far off in the future, either) who wears wild clothes and lots of weird jewelry, wears too much makeup and has 40 cats. Sounds like fun. I will spoil the grandkids rotten. I'm tempted to go buy the dang thing, put it in a hat box and wait for the day when I have the nerve to wear it.

Finally we've done the circuit and so we buy our souvenir wine glass for me and beer glass for the SO. This year's wine glass doesn't have a stem, it's a bulbous little thing and I'm not crazy about it but we must have it for the collection anyway.

Back home I hear from the garage my car will be ready around 6 pm. They need to do the front brakes. Everything else is spiffy.

Tomorrow I go to Nordstrom and spend my birthday gift cert on something black for next week's black and white dinner which, thankfully, isn't going to be a formal as I originally thought. Problem is the organizers haven't made it clear, I happen to know one of them and asked. I wonder if anyone will wear a tux?

I will be down in Anaheim all next week? The IT organization I work in is having a world wide managers meeting there. I wonder how many will play hookey at the Magic Kingdom. We're planning one dinner at the ESPN Zone which doesn't do much for me. I'm hoping I can at least see Downtown Disney while I'm there.