Page 35 - ALG Issue 1 2022

If nothing else, the sight of me trudging back to my car, loading up and setting off back, had an uplifting effect on the gatekeepers, if their pointing and barely concealed laughter was anything to go by (by the third trip they were laughing so much they were all standing up). On my return trip to the marquee, I saw
a smaller marquee marked guides
and directions had been erected, so I stopped to ask if they had a plan/map of all the stalls, and they had. They dug out their plan and we pinpointed where stall SS16 was, and no, it wasn’t at the other
side of the show, it was just inside one of the marquee entrances. In fact, it was next door to the Ripon Beekeepers (of Calderdale).
So, I set to putting out my leaflets and publications, and when finished it measured about six metres. Further trips to the car and I thought I would put the stuff out and move it when I had brought it all, but in the end, as nobody said anything I just tidied it up. I was quite proud of my seven-metre display, which by the end of the day
A good
night’s sleep is a wonderful tonic and with a “full English” inside me, I set off to do battle
grew another two metres (that’s nine metres in total), and happily went off to find my bed.
A good night’s sleep is a wonderful tonic and with a “full English” inside me, I set off to do battle with the gatekeepers. Success! My escapades the previous day had them in such good spirits
they waved me through to unload the rest of my tackle and another metre
of display. I was very busy talking to people and the time passed quickly until the arrival of the light of my life. A tactical masterstroke on my part was
to tell her to have a quick look round the show before getting us a bite to eat. I knew she would encounter the craft gins in the food marquee, and, when she returned, her demeanour was as sunny as the weather. I was £40 poorer, but it was well worth it. She had also encountered the Prosecco stalls, so had more to look forward to for tomorrow.
Mike Farrell, Yorkshire Regional Representative
Allotment and Leisure Gardener 35