Yesterday was the first day out of seven, that I didn’t have a fever which reached over 100 even though I kept beefing up with aspirin. After lugging a cement sinus head around and feeling like something a cat might have barfed up, you can imagine the thrill of an outing!
We went for breakfast at a local restaurant—one of those owned by Greeks who know how to serve huge platters of food for a good price. Joe and I always split a meal at these places. Otherwise we’d leave feeling like we were going to blow up and we just might!
Then we went to THERAPYVILLE—that’s what I call one of my favorite stores: the BEN FRANKLIN store in Oconomowoc. This place is incredible for craft supplies, decorating stuff, creative gifts for all ages, you name it. There I found: YES! paste for all those collages I want to create; a set of goauche paints—new to me and wonderfully creamy to use; a funky mop brush for applying a wash on paper (the brush has a clear plastic handle with a pretty pink stripe); an angle shader—3/4″; and a set of wooden puzzles for our great-granddaughter, Brynn, who will be three years old in a few weeks. (Brynn is passionate about puzzles.)
What a joy it was to get out! Looking back, I recall many happy outings in the wake of sick spells. One memory especially surfaces: a 1962 recollection of going downtown in Milwaukee to the Shrine Circus with our first five children, after being incarcerated for ten days with what was then called the “Asian flu”. I can close my eyes, and hear/see/smell that circus! (And I can still taste the pop corn, even though we always brought our own to the circus.)
There are branches of THERAPYVILLE all around our home: colorful coffee bistros, resale shops, used book stores, STEIN’S GARDEN CENTER—and charming antique shops in our villages and up our country lanes. How delightful to come home with bounty. The therapy lasts and serves me well, even when stuck indoors with a fever!
Margaret L. Been—All Rights Reserved
NOTE: See that green stuff outside the window on the above photo? It’s GRASS! Coming soon! 🙂
The Messy Palette . . . 