► Jo finished setting up the booth (with my help) and we were ready to go in plenty of time for the 9:00 AM "Patron Brunch". Shows often try adding special events to their schedules. They pitch these events to artists as additional opportunities for sales, but we know better. They are primarily fund-raising
attempts by the organization putting on the show -- and they are virtually never well attended. Shaw's "Patron Brunch" was no exception.► I'm glad we grabbed that sausage biscuit from the hotel. Like many shows, Shaw provides breakfast (donuts, bagels, muffins, breakfast rolls, juice, coffee, etc.) for artists. However, when I went down to get Jo and I some morning munchies, they were already out of almost everything. After 16 years of successfully providing breakfast, you'd think they'd know how much food was required.
► Artist parking for this show is at a Catholic school several blocks away. Show volunteers provide shuttles back and forth from the artist parking lot. The main idea here is keeping artists' vehicles from using the street parking near the show so that there will be plenty of customer parking nearby. Unfortunately, someone at the school forgot about the show and scheduled a home volleyball game for Saturday morning. The school parking lot was getting very full by the time I took our van down.
► The weather was great Saturday: Blue skies and sunshine with no wind. The temperature started out in the lower sixties and topped out around eighty degree.► Sales were good -- better than we've done thus far this fall, but not quite up to years past at this show. As long as they weather cooperates, this is the best show on our schedule. It's also the hardest to get juried into. We only get accepted every three or four years. This year Jo was juried in, but my work was not.
► The show closed at 5 PM. An artists' party/awards presentation began at six o'clock. The food was good, but the jazz trio providing entertainment was too loud for the confined area (tent) where they were playing. Artists want to visit with each other and that was impossible while the trio was playing. I hope the group didn't get too badly offended when everyone picked up their tables and chairs so they could get away from the band by moving out into the street.
► Jo and I were back at the motel a little after eight o'clock, and were asleep a couple of hours later.
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