ah, the strawberry festival!

jeff had the opportunity to work an extra job on Saturday but in the end chose to turn it down and hang out with me. because he's pretty much amazing!!! :)
the hardest part of the new job transition has been not spending as much time together. in the past we worked together, and would come home most night without the need to ask "how was your day?", because we both already knew the answer to the question. as much as i think that was a blessing for us in the fledgling years of our marriage, this new phase is good too. it is just taking adjustment. i now work two night a week, and on Jeff's day off. for the first time he now has evenings at home by himself, and hopefully some opportunity for some man time... :) even so, we were feeling the stress of moving, new schedules, and non stop activity... so we decided to go to the strawberry festival together.

this was this first i can remember in a long while we had absolutely no other obligations than what we wanted to do. it was glorious. we slept in, jeff made breakfast, watched the soft spring rain outside, and eventually piled in the explorer to make the trek up the ridge to Portland. By this time it was noon, and though we had heard rumors of rain throughout the day, we decided we ere young and adventurous and continued on our way. Now, i must also say that not only was this the day of the famous Portland Strawberry festival, but also the day of the 2nd longest yardsale in TN.We determined to visit the TN52 yard sales first and then go to the festival for some strawberries and entertainment. Those were our plans.

Approximately 3.2 minutes after turning onto Hwy 52 the heavens opened, Noah's Ark floated by, and we slowed to 10mph, wipers on high and flashers on. :) It was a downpour to say the least. we kept driving in disbelief for a few miles passing frantic yard sale people packing up their *ahem* junk and taking cover. Ten minutes later we had all but given up and the rain cleared to a measly sprinkle. We thought, "its over, lets go yardsale!" Raincoats in hand we stopped at a place that was taking off the tarps and had some promising bathrooms sinks sitting out. After surveying the junk, we got back in the car and within a few minutes, the down pour began again.
We decided to tuck tail and turn back to Portland to find some sort of shelter with hopefully food involved. As we drove we passed a house with two dozen cars parked in front and tents set up covering the precious junk they had for sale. I convinced Jeff that it would stop raining soon, lets pull over here and look at one last place. The rain Did Not stop, but after a few false starts, I opened the door and bolted towards to the tents, seeking their shelter and hopefully a good deal on something. Jeff stayed in the car and Libby jumped up to the window to watch with concern. :) Eventually Jeff joined me and 30 minutes later we were damp and leaving empty handed. I should have known there wasn't anything I wanted to buy when the first person i passed was an old lady in a bad mood with a BB gun.

We now set our sights on the great city of Portland. After finally finding parking, we leashed Libby, donned our trusty raincoats and headed for the festival. The crowd was sparse (everyone else was smart and stayed home). We perused the food vendors, saying hi to a few friends, and tried to choose with greasy entree we wanted, when it began to drizzle. At this point i have to say that 1. Libby does not like being wet, at all 2. I do not like being wet, and 3. we bought an off brand raincoat for me a few years ago from REI, and we now know there is a difference between the off brand and the real deal... its called water repellency. (not sure if that's a word, bu it should be) After braving the increasing rain for a few minutes, three things happened: Libby stopped mid-puddle and refused to go a step further(you crazy humans), the lightning started, and my raincoat stopped working. so the three drowned rats made their way in defeat back to the car. After much laughing, shivering, and dog full body shaking- spraying all of us again with wetness... the rain stopped.
So, and I'm not kidding, we were the eternal optimists and set out again for the festival, this time leaving wet Libby in the car. Actually, I should be honest, optimism had little to do with it. Jeff saw a smoked turkey leg that he wanted, and refused to lave the strawberry festival without a single strawberry in his tummy. I on the other hand, had on soaked jeans (probably one of the worst things in the world to be wearing) and a raincoat that now attracted, not repelled rain... but i like funny adventures. So off we went. and we enjoyed the:

FRESH strawberry shortcake (real shortcake yum!)


smoked turkey leg (before... and after...)



loaded ribbon fries (a good idea at first, but after, not so much i must say)


and the small town parade, which was...interesting... :)
all in all it was a fun, more so funny, day.


Afterward we came home and became addicted to the West Wing Season 1-3 dvds (which we saved from my Ma's goodwill bag) seriously, we're now officially addicted :)