Week 20: Festival Season Has Arrived [Score +12]

While I continue working on turning my full experience in Nicaragua into written words to share with you, I still have to stick to my Intrepid Introvert mission: to get out of my routine in one new way each week.

This past Saturday, a gorgeous July morning in central Indiana, I grabbed my bike and did my favorite thing with it: I used it for transportation. I braved the traffic of thoroughfares for the benefit of some exercise and easy parking when I made it to Brownsburg’s annual Festival of the Arts.

For $3.00 entry, I visited more than 100 booths where entrepreneurial and crafty folks from near and far sold their wares. Want some handmade jewelry? You had plenty of options. What about some baby clothes? I saw a surprisingly high number of people selling those. Are you someone who would like a lawn sculpture crafted from recycled spoons or tires? Line up, because you wouldn’t be the only one. Or perhaps you’re a fan of handmade soaps? At least three people offered just that.

My favorite conversation of the day opened when I complimented the owner of Half-Assed Homesteading on her shop name. Clever shop names always draw me in. I admired this woman’s knowledge of herself as a half-asser and her humble dedication as she builds her own small business.

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My one-of-a-kind necklace in the making!

I also talked with an older man who uses traditional quilt blocks as patterns for woodworking. After growing up with a mom who owned her own quilting business, my eyes can’t help but be drawn to quilts in the wild. (When I’m out on my own and recognize that my antennae perked up at the sight of a fabric store, I know she trained me even when I wasn’t conscious of the indoctrination.)

The one vendor who succeeded in making me part with my money on Saturday was Seize the Night Designs. I first learned of this young woman’s shop in Danville from my mom, who started going there for unique gifts for friends a couple years ago. I hadn’t visited the shop myself, though, but I knew it would be right up my alley.

And it was. I’m a sucker for jewelry (and artwork and clothing) that uses words and phrases as a design element, and this shop is full of exactly that.

The cherry on top: the artist herself offered to stamp a custom item while I shopped the rest of the festival. One particular necklace caught my eye immediately, but I wanted a different word stamped for my own personal talisman. When you see it, you’ll understand why.

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Score:

• Did something outside my routine: +1
• Left the house: +1
• Did something entirely new: +1
• Activity benefits my health/wellbeing: +1
• Burned real calories (so I got some exercise): +1
• Had a conversation with a stranger of at least 30 seconds: +2
• Had a conversation with a stranger beyond basics (i.e., work, hometown, what’s your dog’s name): +2
• Learned someone’s name: +3