I’m home
I haven’t forgotten I’m home, and that it’s good to be home. My first few days walking to work, I positively soaked in the Madisonity of it all: lake, cold, variegated (*ahem*) architecture, university. That particular sense of pure wonder faded, as it was bound to, but I still haven’t forgotten.
Today I went back to the Art Fairs, having Somebody’s Upcoming Wedding and Somebody Else’s Upcoming New Baby to buy presents for, also a bit of something for New Baby’s older sister, who oughtn’t be forgotten.
I found what I was after (and one of the Somebodies reads this blog, so no hints forthcoming), picked up the usual assortment of cards from Lorraine Ortner-Blake (who did my incredibly gorgeous Celestina quote piece for me) and almost but not quite managed to talk myself into a lovely burnt-velvet shruggy-wrappy-thing for conference-wear.
It is good that there should be art fairs. It is especially good that they should be good art fairs. I mostly buy from Off-The-Square merchants because of that local thing (plus, habit; the Off-The-Square merchants don’t change as much from year to year, and I have my favorites among them), but I’m always blown away by how much amazing stuff there is in the world, and amazing people to make it. I’m also grateful that I can buy, now; lots of years there were when I could only look.
I walked home with the loot, stopping off at Electric Earth on West Washington Avenue because that was where we all went for lunch when the Puerto Rico Census Project was still in the ex-warehouse on West Mifflin. It’s still pretty much what it always was, and the Chocolate City smoothie still kicks butt.
Got home and took some stuff from a neighbor’s yard sale; both parties won, I think. (I know I sure did. Wool car coat in impeccable condition for a buck! Now my falling-apart thrift-store skating coat can go to its well-deserved reward.)
I do love me my Madison.