Everybody Wants What Won't Work For Them..Even Me (Inspired By Bunny)

The Fall Market at Duncan (my weekly Saturday Farmers' and Crafters' Market that is) is in full force, and I've put the jewelry away until Spring, concentrating strictly on hats and scarves, in keeping with the weather..
A woman came rushing into my booth, first thing, and told me that she had been searching for me, since I wasn't in the spot I was last time (they move me around all the time) and that she was surprised I was there, because it was 'raining' (just spittin' a little, I don't come if it's heavy rain) and immediately bought a hat for her baby son who she said had a huge head, although I told her it would probably be too small.
She came back, son and 11 year old daughter in tow, and told me, sure enough, the hat was too small, didn't ask if she could exchange it, assumed she could (of course she could, still, would have been nice to have been asked) and then fussed over everything else that did fit him, finally settling on something, and trying a bunch of hats on her daughter who really wanted a bunny hat (didn't have one her size) while Mom thought she should be getting into something less childish...
I wondered at that, is 11 now considered no longer to be a year in childhood? So many parents complaining about their children growing up too fast, but what do I know?
All kinds of teenage females love animal hats, it's a 'thing' and has been trendy for a few years..I tried to explain this to Mom, who finally let her daughter settle on an adult sized bear hat, which I can't keep in stock..
Then Mom turned to me and said that she had no more money, and told her daughter that if I still had the hat next week, she'd get it then..
I have a feeling that this Mom will be returning to my booth next week, and have her son's exchanged hat in tow, because it won't be "quite right".
Well it sure beats the other little girl, her Grandma distracted in the booth next to mine, who was carefully picking her nose, scrutinizing it, then trying to grab my hats....
But then, these are the joys of selling what you make, yourself.
I don't mind, really, it's sort of part of the entertainment to explain their children to these often bewildered parents, and I'm childless...
As I was packing up to leave, two (count 'em, two) young dads came by, seperately, just a few moments apart, looking at the hats, picking up everything sort of randomly, saying nothing, and finally I asked "What gender and how old?" They were each so relieved, I pointed them in the right direction and within two minutes both had bought a hat, almost grateful that I hadn't needed an explanation beyond my two questions..I love it when men shop my booth, they don't waste a lot of time second-guessing themselves and just want to get the right 'something,' pay, and get out as quickly as possible..
I had another Mom come in with three little girls in tow, first one tried on a hat, after asking politely if it was okay (that almost never happens, especially with kids) and then the second daughter wanted to try one on too, so I picked one that would fit her, and the baby, one of the most beautiful, sweet little girls I've ever seen, about two years old, was tugging on her Mom's skirt and looking at me beseechingly, saying nothing, so I asked Mom if I could put a hat on the little one, I did and showed her what she looked like in a mirror, she gave me the greatest smile, took off the hat, handed it to me, and as they left each one said "thank you" unbidden by Mom...No purchases, didn't care....
And, not for the first time, I realized that these lovely, polite, well-mannered children would have been a great asset in my life.

Because I Haven't Mentioned it Before...Cautionary Tale #2

I was wondering what to write about for this week, and realized the old adage about 'write what you know' is always the best plan to follow..
I am a skin cancer survivor- now, for the second time...
I grew up in Southern California, and yes, all those cliches are true, we lived at the beach in the summer, during the week went everyday, all day, and I was almost black by the time school rolled around..me, blonde-red hair, freckles..I see you mentally cringing out there..and you're right to flinch, you know what's coming..

This was late 50's, early 60's, and aside from a cute puppy de-pantsing a tanned little girl on billboards (can you imagine that ad now?) and big letters saying "Tan, Don't Burn, Use Coppertone", there wasn't a whole lot of info out there, about skin cancer, or aging early, or any of it. The fad when I was a teen was to take baby oil, add iodine (for its' staining properties) and slather yourself with it..that's right, oil..and yes, it made us literally fry..but hey, we were tan!
Being a chubby teen and a bit of a nerdy type at school(not that 'nerd' as a term of derision even existed, all you had to say was "smart kids" to see lips curl with scorn), I was thrilled to have something the cool kids had-a beach tan..we even used to wear jewelry for a few days to contrast the area around it..sort of tan tattooing..
Years (let's face it, eons) later I am paying the price..and you will too, and your children even more so, because the sky is full of unseen hazards, barely understood, that barely existed in my day- a terminally disappearing ozone layer, and thus our protection from infra-red, among them..The fact that some scientists report a 'healing' happening is great..how many centuries will that take?
I thought really seriously about removing the bandages from my arm today (I had still another chunk of myself cut out yesterday), and taking photos of the ugly mess that is the stitched-up removal site, and using a bit of tough love to get people shocked into being sensible about spending time in the sun, but I know it won't work on those who are addicted to the tan thing..I get it, been there, done that, got the surgical scars to show for it, the one on my face is particularly attractive....this one was a melanoma, far more serious than the more common basal cell carcinoma that I used to have cut out routinely..although it's called a 'low-grade' melanoma, I can't get past the 'm' word and feel casual about this one; to tell the truth, I feel like whatever I do now is too little, too late..

Please tell your children, no, insist on slathering them with sunscreen, if they are spending the day in the sun..and if your teens sneer at the thought, I'm sure there are lots of horrifying images on line to help to convince them..just don't say I didn't warn you..wish someone had warned me..