Here in the States, we're celebrating Labor Day weekend. Uncle Joe and Aunt Christine are enjoying a three day weekend, with Monday a day off from work. Grandma and Grandpa never have a day off from their current jobs of being Pearl and Sapphire's caretaker and publicist.
To kick the long weekend off right, Grandma, Aunt Christine and Uncle Joe went down to Soulard Market in downtown St. Louis. Grandpa spent the day helping spread the word about his fellow buzzards, as it was International Vulture Awareness Day. He'll have more to say on that later.
Soulard is one of the oldest operating farmers markets in the United States, and with the temperatures cooling a bit, the market was hoppin! Hundreds of folks were pouring in to pick up all their fresh produce and meats for a weekend full of grilling and greens. Watermelons are in season, and boy did they have some whoppers! Henry would have been in heaven. Speaking of Henry, the chicken fingers were super fresh...
The chickens were laying fresh eggs, and they had bunnies, ducks, and goats for sale as well. Aunt Christine was beside herself, and wanted to bring them all home to a better life. We agreed that they were selling them only as pets, and quickly moved on to the cauliflower section.
After a lovely stroll through the market, we gathered up all the proper fixins for a great dinner. Unfortunately, dinner was still nine hours away, and after seeing all that fresh veg, we were a tad hungry, to say the least. Right down the road from Soulard Market is the Anheuser Busch Brewery, as well as the Budweiser Beirgarten, so we stopped in for a quick beer and a bite.
It was no fish n' chips or shepherd's pie from the pub, but it certainly hit the spot. Great grub, and the weather could not be beat.
After we were proper full, we drove over to Cherokee Street to check out a few shops. We saw some cool artwork, bought some art supplies, and we spent a good while looking through some old books. Grandma and Aunt Christine, of course, lost Uncle Joe. He has a tendency to wander, especially around old books.
We were a bit worried in the book store when the scent of burning paper reached our noses. Turns out it was incense they were burning, perhaps to deter the mosquitoes that were floating around the endless shelves of books. It didn't work. Uncle Joe managed to get mosquito bites, even in an antique bookstore. With his poison oak just now healing up, he can't seem to catch (or scratch) a break.
After the morning's excitement, we were all in need of a nap. We all went home, each grabbed a pup, and cuddled up for a comfy late summer nap.
As the cool evening rolled in, Grandma really got things cooking. Literally. She grilled up some tasty pork steaks, fresh rice, asparagus, and cauliflower. We sat out on Grandma and Grandpa's back porch, poured a few beers, bourbons, and diet cokes, and had a great time.
The times were good, so the evening of fun rolled on in to the night, and with the "Miller Bar" still open, we had a few more locals elbow up to the porch stammtisch. Nora and Fred stopped by, and we talked about our globe travels, from Branson to Fripp to London to Reykjavik.
The night carried on long enough for Aunt Christine to snap a picture of Uncle Joe putting together this very blog post. How meta.
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