Herbs and the Happy Place...

     ...It is very green and very wet here at Johnson House.  Once again the weather has turned cold, and even if it isn't raining constantly, we have dreary wetness to deal with.  My yard and gardens are beginning to look a bit like Jurassic Park.  The ferns are huge and so are all the weeds.  It's too wet to run the riding        mower just yet.  So, I just inspect the plants while measuring their growth and am biding my time until it       warms up a bit.  I don't mind the wetness, but the cold chills me through and through.  It takes a lot of hot tea to keep me going on days like these.                                                                                                         
        Last Saturday I attended the Herb and Craft Fair in downtown Wadsworth.  As some of you may     know, I have been allowing myself small outings as my artist date days.  The adventure was to see if I could find the things I consider fun amidst the crafts and junk peddlers.  I cringed every time I passed a                Tupperware sales booth.  Not what I was looking for.  After passing up all the junk beads and badly          constructed flower arrangements and wreaths I made my delightful find of a no frills booth that had only one item.  Hand-made soaps were that vendor's only offering, but they were worthy of presentation.  As I          inspected and sniffed each of the fragrances I was carried back to a time in my life when things were easier and there was a lot more money in my pocket.  Back then my only concern was the garden and all the herbal crafts and books I could acquire.  While I was debating on how many bars of soap to buy I found the        fragrance that made my day.  That single bar of soap helped me to clarify my vision for putting together my herb business and website.  HerbnArts is just one step closer to that goal.  But I was doubting myself as to whether or not I could realize that dream.  The fragrance of plumaria and lemongrass transported me to one of my happy places in life.  Johnson House Herbs was alive again.  Needless to say, I bought 5 wonderful bars of different scented soaps.  Generously the vendor gave me a freebie choice for buying so many bars of his soap.  I added another plumaria to the batch.  From that point on I wandered through the fair talking with vendors and stopping to converse with a lady who specialized in fragrance oils.  We talked about the            festivals she had done, and I remembered buying oils from her at one of them.  It made a bond with us, and I know I'll see her again at the next festival later in the summer.  As I continued through the rest of the festival I found a few herb plants I wanted.  Everywhere I went, the vendors were impressed that I had brought string bags to carry my purchases.  I was having a great time.  By the time I made the full circle of the downtown area I had gathered oils, herbs, and soap.  And I had talked with everyone from crafters to church groups.  Loved it, loved it, loved it!                                                                                                                       
      It may be cold and wet right now, but I remember how happy I was as I found special things to buy at the Craft and Herb Fair in Wadsworth.  Maybe next year Johnson House will have a small booth of herbal goodies for sale and delights.  I'm pretty sure that is going to be not just a dream, but finally a reality.  So, it looks as though it will be a pretty busy summer for me.  Lots to do, lots to grow!  Come on, Sun!  I've got stuff to do!!!