Clowns and Craft Fairs

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I didn’t have to live in Bossier-Shreveport, Louisiana for long before I realized there’s ALWAYS something going on in this town. There’s always a show, a fundraiser, a county fair (opening this weekend!!!!), or… a craft fair.
A friend had told me her sister had a booth selling boutique clothing at this craft fair. I was in a shopping mood and boutique clothing always = yes anyway. So I paid my five dollars not to win a door prize and went in.

In the end, I escaped having only spent $15 on a cute ruffled dress. But there was so much more! Booths for miles full of clothes, local crafts and delicious treats. Here are a few snapshots:


Cinderella and Elsa made an appearance too:

 I loved getting a chance to be out with the fine people of Bossier. They’re open and friendly, down-to-earth people.

One little girl, though, was crying passionately. “It’s the clowns,” her mother explained to passers-by, trying to pull her daughter out. The clown culprit, standing at the end of the row, looked apologetic and turned away. “How old is she?” asked one lady from a booth. “Eight,” the mother responded. “Oh,” said the booth-sitter in disapproving tones, appearing to judge the girl too old for such conduct. I side with the eight-year-old because, let’s face it, clowns are terrifying.

But the craft fair was a blast, and Bossier’s autumn will continue under the brilliant blue sky. Bring on the whirl of gaiety!

And don’t send in the clowns.

-The Dauntless Princess-

Spontaneously, Arkansas

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I was looking at my map from the Chamber of Commerce and realized I’m about thirty minutes from the Arkansas-Louisiana state line. 

I’d never thought much about Arkansas (wasn’t Bill Clinton from there?), much less been there. Going to a new state sounded like a brilliant idea. So with not much more thought, that evening I rolled out my gate in my little red Ford Focus and headed north on highway 3.
   
 
The flat farmlands quickly turned to forests. Beside the road some lakes lay between the trees, the glowing sunset reflected off the water. Louisiana is stil summer-green but after driving only a few minutes north I saw a change in foliage and the air seemed cooler. The road was empty and it was the perfect evening to be out for a drive.

  
And soon, there was the state line! Here is the obligatory selfie!

  
Trying to turn around and go back home proved a challenge, and I ended up taking my Ford Focus off-roading just a little bit! Heading back home, the sunset was perfect. Apologies for the glare off my windshield in this picture, but enjoy this beautiful sky with me.

  

-The Dauntless Princess-

Life Beside the Bayou

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Greetings from Bossier City, Louisiana, where the temperatures still rise into the nineties during the day and rain has fallen exactly one-half time since I arrived.  It’s my first excursion west of the mighty Mississippi.  I’m on central time now!  I’ll be here for another few weeks… and to think I have to leave is difficult.  To think I haven’t always lived here seems absurd.

I made my way inside the huge iron gate and found the castle charming, gracious, down-to-earth.  Living here is as easy as sitting on a porch swing, talking coyly with a southern accent, watching out for kids throwing footballs, saying “hey” to your neighbor, and talking for an hour about how much you looooove so-and-so’s something-or-other.  This is the ultimate small southern town.  Sit a while.

A bayou drifts through my backyard, creating a barrier of peace to protect the castle from traffic’s rumble.  Cypress and willow trees rise out of the still water… white birds poke their toes delicately as they look for edible things there. Beyond the this grove, a few active farms are nothing but flat dirt right now, lowering the horizon so at sunset the sky has more colors than your colored pencil box.

What a beautiful place to be.  What a beautiful place to stay, to think, to live and grow, and to explore. I already love it here, and it’s a corner of the world I never would have discovered without traveling like this.  Hello, Bossier City and Shreveport, and Barksdale Air Force Base with all your green uniforms!  I look forward to gettin’ to know ya.

~The Dauntless Princess~

Mountain Retreat

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After I returned home from Canada, I yearned for solitude and retreat… Quiet forest, lit candles, breathtaking views. Googling “cabin in the mountains” gave me a snug hidey-hole in Rabun County, Georgia. After a few moments’ thought, I couldn’t see any reason not to go for it. 

I bought a huge amount of books from thrift stores: Freakonomics, Christy. I checked out even more books from the library: Isabel Dalhousie novels by Alexander McCall Smith, young adult novels, and dreamy romances. This was the focus of the week: reading, reading, and more reading. 

But there were also candles. Giant pillar candles discount from Marshalls in soothing neutral colors. Others were relics from Gainesville, candles I dragged out of storage. 

   
 I was a bit apprehensive about the cabin itself, since I’d never been there before. I’d only seen pictures of it on the Internet. What if it didn’t exist? 

But as I drove up Screamer Mountain through the hurricane weather, more and more excited each time my ears popped, I came around the scariest bend in the road yet to find the cabin beautifully nestled right there. It looked so tiny and rustic I couldn’t help but smile.

Once inside, I set up my few belongings in a flash and took a long bath. Then I didn’t go anywhere for forty-eight hours. I sat on the back porch with my bathrobe and coffee. The rain fell tremendously, unbelievably. And it was so peaceful. It was perfect and just what I had looked forward to.

   

   
  
 

 
Even as my next trip to Louisiana loomed in the near future, the mountain served as a temporary sanctuary. Someday, maybe, I’ll make the long drive up the mountain again.

-The Dauntless Princess-