Jamulfest 2012

Sunday, October 21st, was "Jamulfest" here in Jamul at St Pius X Catholic Church. The day started at 8 am with Jamul's only parade of the year, on a stretch of Lyons Valley Road.  Small, but fun, with lots of locals participants. The main event is a whopping 1,200 pound deep pit BBQ.  Local dance groups provide some of the entertainment, and this year, a high school dance band preformed. A big white elephant sale (one mans junk is.....)!  Games and jumping tents for the kids.  Raffle prizes included a Grand Prize of $1500 dollars cash.  Also a raffle for a 55 inch TV.  The 'beer garden' provided lots of refreshments. Each year the Knights of Columbus, Council 9659, man the bar.  In addition, with the help of many parishioners, also set up and tear down the festival booths.  There were numerous 'crafters' providing handmade jewelry, tole paintings, and one lady, Lisa Howe, who traveled from Scottsdale AZ to make available a selection of her beautiful pottery.  We placed an order that was so big we have to pay it in installments! The ladies of the parish contribute immensely to organizing and keeping things running smoothly at the White Elephant sale and also making sure everyone gets fed. The Kiwanis conducted the Gymkhana (an equestrian event consisting of speed pattern racing and timed games for riders on horses) for our young Jamul equestrians.  St Pius X is one of the few church's (read only church) with it's own horse corral. 

"Thanks" to all who sponsored the Jamulfest with financial assistance.  Also, to all the contributors to the community raffle. 

This is the only time I have to wear this outfit. Like Dolly Parton says, "It takes a lot of money to look this cheap." 

So, mark your calendars - next year, October 2013 - and we'll see you then!

Photo by Deinna, location our back yard!

La Mesa Farmer's Market

After driving by the "Farmer's Market" sign in La Mesa numerous times,  which says they are open on Fridays from 2 to 6 pm, we finally made it there, actually on a Friday!.  It is located at University and Spring streets.  Lots of vendors with a large variety of fresh food, some locally grown and some from northern California.  There were the usual varieties found at most markets, plus some that are grown only by dedicated gardeners.  Like, tables full of 'heirloom' tomatoes - beautiful!  Beets that were sort of pink, with varigated centers.  One gal let me try some little pickle that was the size of an olive.  She said they were great!  They didn't suit my taste.  One lady had a table which featured objects from Kenya, made by children who were being schooled by professional artists to make figurines by hand.  Very unique.  A lady who made handmade copper jewelry, a booth with ladies blouses (I bought one), two or three booths with vegan specialties, and one featuring things like hummus, tabbouleh, and other stuff I've never seen before.  All in all, a nice little farmer's market.

The highlight of the trip was visiting a vendor who was NOT selling vegetables.  His thing was "skateboards" - or what he calls Blue Murphy's Original Wonderboards.  They range from two to eight feet long, one inch thick plywood boards painted in bright primary colors with complimentary psychedelic wheels.  Here us a link to his website.  It contains various pictures of the "Wonderboards" he manufactures in El Cajon.

This picture show how brave we are.  Hah! Neither of us have ever skateboarded in our lives.  Blue, the woodworker, could hardly get this picture taken, he was laughing so hard.  So, if you're in the market for a fancy "street cruiser" skateboard, check his site out, or look for him at the farmer's market on Fridays, from 2 to 6 pm.