Colorfesting 2010

Anticipation was high . . . weather was perfect . . . it was Colorfest time in Mentone, and I was on my way there!  Handsome Hubby and I set out early Saturday morning for our second Colorfest in as many years, and we were not disappointed.

Arriving, we were greeted by the Boy Scouts in khaki shorts and plaid kerchiefs who took their car-parking responsibilities very seriously.  As usual, Handsome Hubby wanted to tell the boys where and how we should park, but the stern-faced 12-year-old waved his arms most adamantly, pointing to a spot that he intended for us to occupy - no questions asked!  :-)  So we did.

The sky was cloudless and the sun bright, with temps around 50 when we arrived.  As we made our way from the parking 'lot' to the festival site on Cool Street, I stopped to take a photo (perhaps my 50th!) of the beautiful bottle tree that always catches my attention at the cute house just down from the corner.  Every time I snap a picture of it, HH teases me about how many dozen of the same I must already have.  But still I snap, declaring that "the sun is hitting the cobalt blue bottles in an especially pretty way today . . .differenct than ever before!"  Truth is, I keep hoping that HH will realize how much I covet that bottle tree, and will gift me with one sometime soon!


Ahead we catch a glimpse of the vendor tents lining the street - more than usual, we comment with delight.  The air is heavy with the smell of funnel cake, and HH is instantly interested.  Moving past the first several tents of arts, crafts, and fun stuff, we come to the first food vendor, and I immediately hone in on those wonderful ribbon fries that I drool over.  We agree, however, to check out the goods all the way down the street before returning to one for food and drink.  The music of the morning was good ole' gospel, sung enthusiastically by an older gentleman who stopped between songs to work at saving souls and promoting his church.  The two dozen plastic lawn chairs ringing the pavillion were about half filled - partly by toe-tapping, hand-clapping sing-alongers, and partly by people balancing hot dogs, chili-fries and cold sodas on their laps.

We note that many of the vendors are those we've seen here before, or at the Rhodendron Festival, or at Boom Days.  They all have most impressive fare, and we especially enjoy the new vendor who makes the most wonderful creatures from common patio pavers.  Cute, but not too cute - just clever enough that you'd actually consider putting one on your porch or giving one as a gift.  We walk along, noting that some of our favorites are not there this year, including . . . THE DEEP-FRIED OREO vendor.  He's NOT THERE!  How can this be?  Doesn't he know that I have waited an entire year for his decadent sweet treat?  Don't the festival organizers realize that without him there is no Colorfest?????  I'm grief-stricken.  I can barely breathe!  This is a disaster!

My throat is dry from despair, and HH insists that we stop for a drink.  While my usual would be the quart of iced tea, I prefer not to visit the port-a-potty that many times today, and decide to go for the strawberry lemonade.  The chalkboard leaning against the tree tells me that this selection will cost me $5, and I think "what a racket!" but order it anyway.  The smiling young girl who cheerfully squeezes the lemons and mixes the concoction like a seasoned bartender assures me, "you'll love it", and "my mom came up with this recipe", and I think, "yea, and you'll enjoy the $4.95 profit you've just taken me for".  She hands it over, complete with chunks of fresh strawberries and two straws, in a plastic cup hunky enough to require two hands to hold, and I take my first sip of HEAVEN!  Forget the deep-fried what were they?  This stuff is unbelievable . . . indescribable . . . amazing . . . knock your socks off and slap yo' mama DELICIOUS!!!!!  So you won't be too surprised that we dropped a cool $10 on those things that morning, making the deep-fried whatever-they-were a distant memory.  I'd found my new Colorfest love!

At the end of Cool Street we found our ever-present and all-time favorite vendor, Smith Nursery.  The selection of colors and textures they'd brought for the festival was outstanding, including the trellised magnolia, the likes of which I'd never seen.  People always buzz around their booth like hungry bees, and we decided not to purchase anything, lamenting the plants we already have at home, still waiting for the elusive (non-existant!) rainfall to soften the ground enough that we can actually bore a hole large enough to accommodate their root balls!  (We've actually used a drill to try to break the ground, and broken a very large drill bit in the attempt!)

Satisfied that we'd perused all the Cool Street vendors, we headed down to the main town intersection to browse through vintage jewelry, farmer's market produce, and funky painted signage before taking the self-guided tour of Mentone Springs Hotel.  Built in 1884, the facility is about to be re-opened by a fellow from Birmingham who told us excitedly of the plans, and clued us in that Ben and Moon, the duo responsible for the top-notch Wildflower Cafe in Mentone, will run the hotel's restaurant when it opens in a few weeks.  We enjoyed touring the guest rooms, since we've never stayed there, and I found the 'flower basket' headboard to be the most novel and photo-worthy.

As always, Colorfest gave us the best fun and most relaxation two folks can have in a two-hour time span, only minutes from home, with a $20 spending limit and comfortable walking shoes!  We'll be back next year - you can count on us!