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gurdonark ([personal profile] gurdonark) wrote2007-07-14 07:10 pm

Third Mondays

In Texas lots of small towns have regular "trades days". They usually take place one weekend a month, based upon the order of the particular Monday each month. The largest flea market of this type is in Canton, an hour from here, where first Monday is attended by tens of thousands of people each month.

This morning I drove to nearby McKinney's Third Monday. I walked the booths among hundreds of my fellow Texans. Here is what I saw:



A Bowl Full of Marbles for Sale




Hot sauce is an essential food group



Pet bunnies on sale. Lately, I think that there are too many pets in shelters for anyone to need to buy one at a flea market, but I don't want to sound like one of those bitter people.



Fresh Texas local vegetables, sold in quantties of "by the plastic plate".



This native American gourd flute was not for sale, but it still came with a long story of how it won a prize because it was "orchestra tuned" and the judge loved it so much she played a song on it.


Fried Pies!!



Giant gourds, three dollars each




You get a choice with local honey--wild, hearty honey made from wildflowers, or genteel, elegant honey made from local clover. I went wild.


Caps with "Texas" on them, five dollars each.







Back home in our back yard, the black-eyed susans bloom.



It didn't rain much today, but the water was up last Sunday at the little local creek on Renner Road. We live in a rainy time

My purchases at Third Monday:

a. 1 hat--8 dollars;
b. 1 model car to give to a relative--9 dollars
c. 1 small jar of wildflower honey--5 dollars
d. 1 tiny child's electronic keyboard--2 dollars
e. 1 air soccer game--5 dollars
f. 1 small jar of bite-sized beef jerky--1 dollar

Items I managed not to buy despite temptation:

a. 50x refracting telescope--30 dollars;
b. ten speed street bicycle--35 dollars and bargaining down
c. corny dog
d. kettle popcorn



May your weekend be lovely and serene like a purple coneflower.

[identity profile] deanarae.livejournal.com 2007-07-15 12:41 am (UTC)(link)
What, pray tell, is a fried pie?

[identity profile] gurdonark.livejournal.com 2007-07-15 01:40 am (UTC)(link)
A southern institution. The best ones are made in small towns by obscure pie=making companies, and sold in convenience stores on a rack not far from the beef jerky.
Tastes like Heaven. Not low fat. Franchise restaurants sometimes have 'em, but they cannot hold a candle to the real ones.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fried_pie

[identity profile] deanarae.livejournal.com 2007-07-15 12:28 pm (UTC)(link)
Ooooooh. I was imaging... well, something far more complicated. Lately at the fairs up here you can get deep fried anything, my personal favorite being the deep fried Oreos. So I was imagining perhaps small sized pies, somehow breaded and... well the real answer makes much more sense and sounds delicious.

[identity profile] reneesarah.livejournal.com 2007-07-15 02:25 am (UTC)(link)
That was lovely. And fun. Thank you!

[identity profile] gurdonark.livejournal.com 2007-07-15 10:33 am (UTC)(link)
I'm glad you liked it. Thanks!

[identity profile] skygoodwill.livejournal.com 2007-07-16 04:20 pm (UTC)(link)
I like the flute! Nice post. :)

[identity profile] sortofkindof.livejournal.com 2007-07-16 06:57 pm (UTC)(link)
I think I'm going to start all my buying and selling via "by the plastic plate" unit.