Sisters off kilter

I'm just back from my annual spring junking weekend with my sister and my niece.  And I'm feeling a little bit like it wasn't quite enough....It seemend that everything was just a little bit off.  Could it have been us?  I do have this nasty cough and excessive phlem build-up issue.  Or was it that we had absolutely horrible food this year?  Corn dogs so salty we could not eat them, burnt burgers on dried buns....  And no, we did not try the spamdog, which was a new feature this year.   Was it that we decided to get a jump on the weekend and start a day early?  Which, as it turned out, was actually the saving grace for the whole weekend.  The weather, as predicted, was horrible.  And by that I mean, cold, rain, snow and bitter winds.  Keep in mind, our junking adventure is comprised of going to an open field in southern Minnesota where farmers from a 5 state area converge to buy and sell tractor parts and other stuff from the farm.  Usually we find treasures like garden gates, windows, doors, and other good rusty junk for the garden.  Often there are cupboards, tables or chairs that these farmers have had in their sheds and just decide to throw on the trailer.  Over the years we have developed our favorites that are usually in the same spots.  There is the "fertile farmer" from the town of Ferile who knows exactly what I like and stashes it away until I arrive.  There are the "Iowa Farmboys" who usually have a lot of garden gates and barn windows.  And there's the "hefty man".  One year he was selling tree stumps to city women!  He's very funny and loves to barter.  We once paid for our purchases in part with corn dogs!  A way to his heart is excessive bantering, bartering and food!  There are also those sellers we have learned to avoid, like the "desperate man".  The first year I bought several nice pieces from him.  The following year, he expected me to buy again and would not take no for an answer.  He actually chased me carrying a chimney cupboard that he had slapped together from old wood.  Please, how pathetically desperate!  I now avoid him like the plague!  Then there's the "pathetic man" who tells everyone that his wife ran off to find herself and he can't find a replacement.  After about 3 years, it truly is pathetic.
  
My sister and I always manage to have a great time, even in the most dire circumstances.  And I mean cold, rain, mud, bitter winds and snow!  We have endured the worst or the worst.  But we realized this year, that although we were prepared, there was something different, a little bit off kilter.   For one thing, vendors were all in different spots.  We had to search harder to find our favorites.   And when we did find them, we were disappointed that they did not bring what they usually do.  No little cupboards, tables or trunks.  Not one hand garden tool.  Very few kitchen utensils.  We also realized that quite a few regulars were not there at all.    

The weekend was not lost.  I did manage to find some very fun things, just not what I was looking for.  I'll be bringing things in to my shop in the next few days.  More ladders and calf buckets to hang on them for planting flowers.  Also some totes and other fun things for the garden.  This week I'll be scrubbing things and uncovering the beauty in all the junk I found! 

So, the lesson learned from this year is that things change.  People, weather, our environment....is all changing, constantly.  You never know what you'll find, or what you won't find...  The search goes on.