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I did my second-ever show this weekend in downtown Denton. It was a one-day event, open from 9 AM to 3 PM. A much better length than the four-day ordeal this spring at the Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth. Suzanne did the show with me. We were required to be there by 7 AM to set up and get out of the way for the show cars. It had begun raining sometime in the early morning hours (as was forecast), so when Suzanne and I arrived at seven, we were told to come back at eight due to the weather (it was effectively still dark due to the cloud cover). Which we did and proceeded to set up our canopy, tables, etc. Fortunately there was no wind and the rain was light. We got set up by nine and the rain tapered off and ended by ten. Above are some photos for context, in case you are not familiar with Denton. Denton is still a small town, centered around the county courthouse, even though it is located at the convergence of two interstate highways - 35E and 35W. It boasts two universities, both over a century old. The areal photo on the left looks generally north with the courthouse just above center. The center photo of the Courthouse Square looks northwest. For the annual Arts & Autos event the streets immediately adjacent to the Square are closed to traffic, making a large pedestrian mall for the public to enjoy the free event. The right photo shows one of the adjacent blocks across from the courthouse - our booth was located at the sidewalk along the courthouse at the center-right edge of the photo where a sidewalk to the courthouse entrance intersects the street. The afternoon temperature barely exceeded eighty degrees, whereas it had been in the mid-nineties all the week before. The sun set on a dry and tidy Courthouse Square. The car exhibitors had taken their cars and awards home and the vendors had had a productive Saturday afternoon. I sold seven items to five customers. I also distributed almost thirty business cards to local car enthusiasts, some of whom told me they had automobilia at home that they might like to have mounted for display.. All in all a pleasant and productive day.
So what else is there to say about Ireland? More castles, tower houses and manor houses. In the photos, they all look pretty much the same. We visited the Cliffs of Mohr on the Atlantic coast - if you have never been to the Pacific Coast they are remarkable, but I grew up on the Oregon Coast, so it was not so special. We visited a Work House where poor people were housed during the potato famine of the mid-1800's. Families who were housed there were separated, parents from children, men from women, boys from girls and put to work to support themselves, but not to compete with the local economy which was struggling also. We stopped at a cathedral ruin on our way back to Dublin which is reputed to be where St. Patrick preached. We learned some interesting facts about St. Pat. His official color is light blue [not green]. He has never been sainted. by the Church. He is actually an amalgamation of two or more missionaries who came to Ireland to spread Christianity in the fifth century. The name Patrick likely was derived from the Latin "Pater" (father) and was bestowed as an honorific for the Christian missionaries who came to Ireland after the withdrawal of the Romans from Britain. We ended our trip with two full days in Dublin. That was very cool. We went by the front of Guinness Brewery in St. James Gate, There is no tour of the brewery, just a museum open to the public. We did tour the first new distillery in Dublin in a century. We wandered through Temple Bar and toured Trinity College. Ate more Irish dishes. Sheppard's pie is good, but Irish stew is my favorite. So there you are. Ireland is the only place I have visited outside Oregon where I could imagine wanting to live. If Donald Trump is elected, that is where I am moving.
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CategoriesAuthorI am still trying new show venues to find those that provide the most effective exposure for my works. Archives
October 2020
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