Well, Dear Reader, it has been a long while since last we connected through this new-fangled medium. You haven't missed much, let me assure you. The shop has settled into its post-Autumn low-fi hum. You can hardly hear the sound of it running at all. Which poses a question much like the old tree falling in a forest conundrum. If a shop is open, but there is no one in town to come in the shop, is the shop actually in business? Rockport gets so quiet at this time of year, I sometimes feel as though I'm sitting in my living room instead of my store (a living room overflowing with lamps and pillows - much like a crazy grandmother's...)

The holidays will provide some excitement, and, as we are always reminded, they are just around the corner. Hopefully the economic doldrums won't keep people from running around and at least feeling festive, even if they are unable to open their wallets and pour credit cards on the counter. ("I'll take two of everything!") The retail party is definitely over, but my shop is small enough and eccentric enough that I was never an attendee at the party anyway.

I've been busy with Autumn-related activities, one of which was to go to my family's farm to pick up some home-grown gourds to sell at Rockport's Harvest Festival a few weeks ago. I feel as proud as if I had planted them myself - oh wait! I did! (along with many other people in my family.) The gourds now grace the shop and it is fun to see them piled high in the manner of a Martha Stewart magazine spread. Not that I'm comparing our modest harvest to what goes on over at her amazing farm, Chanticleer Corners. (I don't think Chanticleer Corners is actually the farm's name, but it is close enough.)

Upcoming events include our annual Fall Sale & Amazing Bake Sale (to benefit the Cape Ann Food Pantry), held in conjunction with a few other Rockport shops on November 1st. And to make the transition into the holiday season, on November 7th (!) I'm a part of the Holiday Gift Show held here on Cape Ann. Hope to see you at these events!