This morning I got to sleep in........it was nearly 10.30am before I got out of bed. Tony said that he got up a couple of hours earlier and thought he would let me sleep. Thankyou darling!!! That boy is so good to me!
We didn't have much planned for the day, we could get out and do the gardening but the skies looked too threatening, instead we opted to go to the Showgrounds and have a look at the Home Show. They were also having a Craft Fair, a Pet Show, a Lego Exhibition and a Book Sale.
We weren't that interested in the Lego or the Books and so we went into the Craft Fair. Oh dear, what a disappointment! I don't think they would have had 30 stalls and of those over half of them sold jewellery.
Next stop was the Pets. At least here there was a good assortment of cats, dogs, miniature ponies, rabbits, ferrets and their associated foods. Also on stage was the popular TV vet Dr Harry Cooper.
From here we went into the Home Show. Another major disappointment. The exhibitors were spread out making it look like there were lots of stalls, but we walked through in half an hour and that was after spending time finding out about a new front security screen door and also talking with a guy who was selling safes.
I remember years ago, I'm going back 25 or more years, when the Home Show used to be on, the showgrounds were full of exhibitors. You needed at least the whole day to be able to see everything and they were open until 10.00pm at night. It also used to go for a week. Now its only Friday to Sunday and it closes at 5.00pm.
There were all sorts of displays back then, everything you needed for your home and the garden ranging from carpets, furniture, beds, furnishings, plants, lawns, mowers, pots, barbques, fences, verandahs, pergolas, window frames, doors, pools, spas, tiles, baths, sinks, toilets...... you name it, they had it there. You also went to get the latest gadgets and ideas. Not anymore.
Today you could look at security screen doors, safes, solar panels, beds, musical instruments, bed linen, rainwater tanks and above ground garden beds, a few plants, remote control front gates, ironing steam press, windows, a locksmith and that was about it. There were hardly any vendors selling kitchen gadgets like slicers, chamois, knives, brooms etc. We did see a couple, vegie peeler and a knife sharpener, but didn't stop to watch the demonstrations.
I think it's a sign of the times. Many people don't have the extra money to spend anymore what with the electricity, gas and water prices continually rising, plus food, petrol and clothing costs also on the rise and the cost to the sellers to put up their displays and pay for the area they use. A lot of the sellers in the past were small businesses and I think it's cost prohibitive to them now. They can most probably find cheaper ways of advertising their businesses now especially with the internet.
We did get some rain too. It was persistant for at least a couple of hours but I don't think it helped the garden too much. Looks like we'll have to turn on the sprinklers unless we get quite a few mil more in the coming days.
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