The Perfect Day for a Farm Market

Yes, today was the opening day of this year's Collingswood Farm Market. It was also the day of Haddon Township's town-wide yard sale. As with the Audubon sale last month, I had some really wonderful luck, especially with records:

The Who - Odds and Sods, soundtrack for The Kids Are Alright

Madonna - Like A Virgin

Foreigner - Foreigner

Earth Wind and Fire - Greatest Hits Vol 1

Disney kids' Christmas record that includes Chip n' Dale singing "The Chipmunk Song (Please Christmas Don't Be Late)"

Cream - Disraeli Gears

Blondie - Eat to the Beat

Frank Sinatra - Songs For Swinging Lovers (The woman who sold this one - along with the Disney album and Madonna - to me said it was her father's favorite album.)

Soundtrack to the offbeat 1984 rock musical/action flick Streets of Fire

I also found a large gingerbread man-shaped Wilton cake pan and That's Entertainment Part II on video.

It was a gorgeous day for riding all over Collingswood, Haddon Township, Westmont, and Oaklyn. The morning was sunny as could be, with blue skies and 70-degree temperatures. It's the nicest it's been in weeks.

Not surprisingly, the Farm Market was packed to the gills when I finally made it there around 10:30. Not only was it a nice day and the first one of the year, but this is a very busy weekend. Tomorrow's Mother's Day. Many colleges either have already finished or will be done next week. It's the beginning of the month. May is a big month for birthdays. Not to mention, I'm sure the gorgeous weather prompted many spontaneous picnics and barbecues.

I finally picked up asparagus, mushrooms from the mushroom seller, leeks, and carrots. Strawberries won't be out until next week and it's too early for other fruit like peaches, so I picked up grapefruit (2 for a dollar!), oranges, and kiwi from the wholesaler. (I did end up getting strawberries and bananas at the Acme. They were out of bananas by 10:30.) Grabbed a small jar of plum butter and a bear-shaped bottle of blueberry honey.

There was a pleasant surprise waiting for me when I finally got home around 12:30. I used part of that Barnes and Noble gift card my brother Keefe gave me for my birthday to buy the second edition of one of my favorite books, A Song In the Dark: The Birth of the Musical Film, by Richard Barrios. I ordered it almost a week ago, and it only now just got here. No matter; I'm thrilled to have it. There's new (and larger) photos, references to recently-found fragments of formerly lost films, and still some of the best information on a rarely-discussed topic.

I was feeling pretty good as I headed to work. For once, my shift didn't damper my mood. We were steady all night, and it went quickly. During my last hour, one of the college students complained that he volunteers for a local fire department and will be training on Monday; he couldn't take his shift. I was more than happy to take it over for him. I'll now be working 5-9 on Monday, which, with my lack of hours this week, I sorely needed.