Just a month ago we were wandering Berlin’s Trodelmarkt, examining stacks of old plates, baskets of doorknobs, stringless violins and rusted typewriters at a gigantic public flea market.
After all, goes the adage, one man’s trash is another man’s treasure.
It’s all about what street you take to get there, I guess.
In our case, we woke at 5.33 in the dark and quiet morning, caffeinated our travel mugs and set out on a lengthy and northerly drive into what my brother calls “Harrowsmith Country.”
We passed through a number of beautiful century-old towns, main streets lined with orange brick Victorian-era buildings, dotted between corn fields, dairy operations, Amish communities and wind farms.
Our destination: Mount Forest, home to the bi-annual Fur & Feather Fanciers Swap and Sale.
First and foremost, it’s a place where you will find Exactly What You Were (or were not *can we have a puppy? pleeeease? can we have a bunny? how about a kitten? pleeeeeease? oh! oh! look! a Vietnamese pot-bellied pig! can we have one? pleeeease?*) Looking For.
But mostly, it’s a farmer’s free-for-all and it’s fantastic!
Farmers show up very early in the morning to have their tables, cages and livestock assembled for the 7 a.m. start.
Seven o’clock in the morning these folks are selling their wares.
The best stuff is gone by 9 a.m. although officially it carries on until noon.
These farmers have to get back to their own barns and fields by a reasonable hour after all.
So let’s just say that you had some chickens pigeons. And that you went away on a trip. To, say, Germany Saskatchewan. And while you were away all your chickens pigeons were gobbled up by a coyote fox weasel you’re not exactly sure.
You’d need to re-supply your flock. Right?
Or maybe your parakeet flew away and you recently moved to a bigger condo and just now remembered your Grade 7 project on “Cute Australian Animals I Luv.”
You simply never know what you’ll suddenly need in your suddenly dull and very ordinary life.
Signs for the conflicted home-owner.
Lawn-management systems.
Cost-saving transportation for your commute.
Puppies. (*oh! oh! oh! pleeeease?*)
A piglet. (*oh! oh! pleeeease?*)
Well now, hello there. How about me? I’m cute too, right?
Will you take me with you?
Will you?
Pleeeeeease?
The Country Mice 
Oh pleeease tell me you bought the Emu? Pleeeease….
Did you? Did you? Did you?
Mary
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Umm, no.
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c’mon, you gotta give in sooner or later on the puppy…..
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Gord paused at every single puppy seller — and there were plenty — comparing, contrasting, hoping. I tried to keep my eyes focussed straight ahead.
While they’re not as cute as, say, labs or retrievers when they’re puppies, I do like the adult Basset Hounds. Slow-moving, short, doleful eyes — spouse-like that way — there were a batch of them in a pen that had a certain appeal. They were also well-priced, relative to city pricing.
Some day, perhaps.
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