11/29/08 Does It Get Any Busier Than This?

Our day started at o'dark thirty today! I had set the alarm for six but that was a waste of time since I seem to be up long before that anyway. I wish I could get out of this 4 a.m. habit!

I was out the door by 6:40 and it was DARK. Everyone was on time this morning and raring to go. Oh ok, everyone was on time. We took all the baked goods we had in the Oasis over to the main building and started setting up the bake sale right away. Within minutes of our arrival the outside vendors started coming.

I managed to get this shot of the Carnaval Room before it got crowded. Take notice of the clock on the wall. It's 6:50 a.m..

Now here's another shot of the room. Take notice of the window. See! It is o'dark thirty! It is still night time!

Soon the room was a abuzz with the setting up of homemade treasures for display.

Our Bake Sale table, we couldn't even get everything out at once. The winter residents really came through for us! They baked their little hearts out and to each of them we send out a heartfelt THANK YOU! Oh the calories! We sold every single item donated!

This lady makes all kinds of canned goods. Her corn relish is to die for!

This fella etched all these scenes into these blue plates. So beautiful! And he makes wooden signs too!

Ahh,,,the potato bag lady's table. I have one of the potato bags she sells. I swear by them! They make THE best baked potatoes! See the lights here? They are made of plastic drinking glasses. She's going to teach a class here after the first of the year so we can make our own.

And the same lady does plastic canvas too! Where does she find the time?

We can't forget the pets! Doggie coats!

Our own Marilyn with all the crafts she makes.

Remember the Iris Folded card I made last week? Here's a whole table full of them. These belong to the lady who held the class I went to. Aren't they beautiful? These are done with folded paper.

This is probably my favorite table of all. I just love these things! Potted Pants!

Look at the intricate detail in these creations.

At noon it was finally time for our lunch. We served meatball sandwiches, a tossed salad, a choice of potato chips, corn chips or Cheese-its, iced tea and choice of cake, all for $4.00. Salad with a smile from Mary.

Chris serving up meatball sandwiches and Carol taking care of the assorted chips.

I did manage to get some of the homemade treasures for myself. I bought this "glass brick" that had a hole drilled into it, lights pushed into the middle and adorned with a pretty bow! I'll have to get a picture of it all lit up in the evening. Why don't I ever think of these things?

Now here's something else that went over very big! These are made from, gee, I don't know what you call them....parts of a palm tree.

I could have looked at that until the cows came home and I would have never seen a reindeer!

I haven't done the final tally as yet but I do believe our Craft Fair/Bake Sale/ Luncheon was a huge success!

I did have one winter resident come up to me this morning and tell me that she was disappointed. When I asked her about what she replied, "I haven't found one thing to complain about as far as Activities is concerned!" That made my day!

I have a few hours to rest before the dance tonight.

Bob spent his day working on the caulk on the 5th wheel. It seems like every time I turn around he's replacing the caulk but it is so dry here and the sun so strong that it dries out quickly and cracks and doesn't look very nice. Besides, I think he's gearing up for the Christmas lights season and wants everything to look nice.

I can hear a crowd forming across the street at the Turner's. It must be the first jam session of the season getting started. So much for a rest, I have to go listen.

Wilf, a fellow I don't know and The Peacock.

Rounding out the group for our listening pleasure is Pat and Bill.

This group could just sit and play and sing for hours. In fact, they did.

I stayed for awhile but knew that this was going to be a long post today so I came back to the house to work on the blog. Before too long it was time to go get things ready for the dance tonight.

Cactus Carl is DJ'ing for us and we're trying something new this year. In the past the dances were by donation only. Well, Halloween, the "take" wasn't very much and since Carl does put so much time into getting the music ready for the dances and he MC's, well it is only right that he be rewarded for his efforts. So we have started charging $3.00 per person. From comments we've heard in the park since this was announced the change is well accepted and thought to be something that should have been put into effect long ago.

Imagine our surprise when attendance wasn't nearly what we expected. These dances are always crowded and well, tonight, it just wasn't. Now that's not to say the people who did come didn't have a good time because we surely did. Carl and Sandy and I talked about the lack of participation and wondered out loud if it was in fact because of the entrance fee. I pointed out that many of the usual attendees were at the Craft Fair early this morning and maybe are just too pooped to party. I'm sure we'll learn more tomorrow as to why the number of party goer's was down. But like I said, those who went, had a great time.

The line dancers were out in force.

Jerry, just how low can you go? This eighty something never misses a chance to Twist!

About eight o'clock I hit a second wind and had so much energy I didn't know what to do with it! It is so NOT like me to get up in front of a crowd and sing. No, the mike wasn't on,,,,THANK HEAVENS!

Jeannie, our park manager, (left front) had a ball at the dance. I think she laughed the whole night away. Her daughter, Kelly, (right behind her, you can't miss her they look exactly alike) is visiting from the West Virginia and I'm sure that makes her even happier.

After we turned the dance hall into a place for church services we all headed home. I thought I would crash as soon as I hit the door but that wasn't the case. I was up until 11:30 before I finally fell asleep.

I'm glad this day is over.