Today's Adventures
Mar. 14th, 2026 10:36 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
ysabetwordsmithToday we went to Middlefork at the Mall in Lincoln Square Mall in Urbana. This is a big flea market, although not quite as big as the last one we caught. We both found some great stuff.
We got lunch at Arby's coming into town.
On the way in, my partner Doug picked up a button that says, "I'm already against the next war." I had one in college. My parents had one in college. In fact that was true for a majority of buttons in that set. :D I also got a pair of peace sign earrings from the same bohemian vendor.
My best score was a set of six ceramic plates, handmade and signed by artists in Brazil, each adorned with a glaze-resist design inspired by rock art. They were $4 each. I was mulling over whether to get four or five, when the shopkeeper said that if I bought five, she'd throw in the last one. So I got all six for $20. I've seen things like this go for $40+ each at art fairs; if I was lucky, I might have found one for $20. So this was a great bargain. \o/
Tamana's Unique Suncatchers offered a variety of sparkly things. I got one with a large sun-and-moon medallion and a slightly smaller lotus flower, plus lots of prisms. I hung that in the bathroom window.
Woodworker Frank Calaway had what amounts to a portrait of Good!Schrodinger and Evil!Schrodinger curled up together as in LOL_HEROES. :D I put this one in my office.
High in Fiber is a new fibercraft shop in the mall proper. The shopkeeper was giving away tiny offsets from a mother-of-thousands plant, so I took a few of those. I have put them in a pot on the planter.
I also got a very sturdy yardstick. I want to make a notch in one end, for reaching or hanging things high up. My grandmother had one like that, very handy.
My partner Doug's jackpot was at the coin dealer, where he finished a set of presidential coins plus one other. He also found a DVD.
Other vendors included:
Gi Gi's Soapery offered handmade soaps and other bodycare products.
Crafty As You Wish did crochet and sewing.
Kayahna's Art Studio had butterfly jewelry.
Rita's Hardwoods was one of several woodworkers. Among other things, they had samples of custom-made trim for edging windows, doors, floors, etc.
Kat's Curious Crafts included alternative shaped dreamcatchers (trees, crescent moons, etc.) and curiosities.
Just Breathe Permanent Jewelry does both public events and private parties with delicate chains and beads.
Smokin' Somethin' Supply was another woodworker, this one specializing in piecework with many small bits fitted together. Some looked very much like quilts; I saw an almost-log-cabin and a not-quite-drunkard's-path.
Whisky Business was a food vendor. We've bought from them and enjoyed it, but they didn't have anything in our size today.
Twisted Colorz Face Painting & Balloon Art had a booth with some cute samples.
I also saw a sign on an activity bulletin board: "How to Be a Luddite: Resisting Obnoxious Technology." I don't need the class; I already have those skills. But I was pleased to see someone else remembering the Luddites as activists rather than terrorists. They believed that handmade goods have value beyond mass-manufactured ones, that people need meaningful work, and that it is not okay for bosses to fire workers en masse just to make a bigger profit. We shouldn't have to put up with the enshittification of everything.
After the mall, we went to the Urbana Free Library Seed Exchange. I picked up six packets of seeds. More details appear in that post.
On the way home, we stopped at Maize, a favorite Mexican restaurant now with a new location. I got a pastor taco and Doug got a campesino taco. Both were quite good. We like this location; it's convenient to our usual route in and out of town. :D
We also finished reading Around the World in 80 Recipes. Among the ones we marked were Maple Walnut Cookies, Paella, Lamb and Mint Hand Pies, and Mongolian Beef.
It has been a fun and wonderful day.
We got lunch at Arby's coming into town.
On the way in, my partner Doug picked up a button that says, "I'm already against the next war." I had one in college. My parents had one in college. In fact that was true for a majority of buttons in that set. :D I also got a pair of peace sign earrings from the same bohemian vendor.
My best score was a set of six ceramic plates, handmade and signed by artists in Brazil, each adorned with a glaze-resist design inspired by rock art. They were $4 each. I was mulling over whether to get four or five, when the shopkeeper said that if I bought five, she'd throw in the last one. So I got all six for $20. I've seen things like this go for $40+ each at art fairs; if I was lucky, I might have found one for $20. So this was a great bargain. \o/
Tamana's Unique Suncatchers offered a variety of sparkly things. I got one with a large sun-and-moon medallion and a slightly smaller lotus flower, plus lots of prisms. I hung that in the bathroom window.
Woodworker Frank Calaway had what amounts to a portrait of Good!Schrodinger and Evil!Schrodinger curled up together as in LOL_HEROES. :D I put this one in my office.
High in Fiber is a new fibercraft shop in the mall proper. The shopkeeper was giving away tiny offsets from a mother-of-thousands plant, so I took a few of those. I have put them in a pot on the planter.
I also got a very sturdy yardstick. I want to make a notch in one end, for reaching or hanging things high up. My grandmother had one like that, very handy.
My partner Doug's jackpot was at the coin dealer, where he finished a set of presidential coins plus one other. He also found a DVD.
Other vendors included:
Gi Gi's Soapery offered handmade soaps and other bodycare products.
Crafty As You Wish did crochet and sewing.
Kayahna's Art Studio had butterfly jewelry.
Rita's Hardwoods was one of several woodworkers. Among other things, they had samples of custom-made trim for edging windows, doors, floors, etc.
Kat's Curious Crafts included alternative shaped dreamcatchers (trees, crescent moons, etc.) and curiosities.
Just Breathe Permanent Jewelry does both public events and private parties with delicate chains and beads.
Smokin' Somethin' Supply was another woodworker, this one specializing in piecework with many small bits fitted together. Some looked very much like quilts; I saw an almost-log-cabin and a not-quite-drunkard's-path.
Whisky Business was a food vendor. We've bought from them and enjoyed it, but they didn't have anything in our size today.
Twisted Colorz Face Painting & Balloon Art had a booth with some cute samples.
I also saw a sign on an activity bulletin board: "How to Be a Luddite: Resisting Obnoxious Technology." I don't need the class; I already have those skills. But I was pleased to see someone else remembering the Luddites as activists rather than terrorists. They believed that handmade goods have value beyond mass-manufactured ones, that people need meaningful work, and that it is not okay for bosses to fire workers en masse just to make a bigger profit. We shouldn't have to put up with the enshittification of everything.
After the mall, we went to the Urbana Free Library Seed Exchange. I picked up six packets of seeds. More details appear in that post.
On the way home, we stopped at Maize, a favorite Mexican restaurant now with a new location. I got a pastor taco and Doug got a campesino taco. Both were quite good. We like this location; it's convenient to our usual route in and out of town. :D
We also finished reading Around the World in 80 Recipes. Among the ones we marked were Maple Walnut Cookies, Paella, Lamb and Mint Hand Pies, and Mongolian Beef.
It has been a fun and wonderful day.
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Date: 2026-03-15 05:51 am (UTC)Thoughts
Date: 2026-03-15 06:00 am (UTC)