Market Day.

I took myself into town today. Friday is traditionally market day and although the cattle market closed some years ago on Fridays there is a general produce market in our covered Pannier Market with quite a few farmers' stalls selling small amounts of eggs, plants, vegetables, flowers and baking. This is the place where you can still hear the true North Devon accent with plenty of indrawn breaths and words like tis & dreckly. I enjoy shopping especially when I get plenty of bargains and today was a good day. In Primark which is cheap enough anyway I got some less than half-price fleece throws, good for keeping out the winter cold, and then I put an extra one in my basket to cut up to put on the chairs that the cats to sleep on in the conservatory. Easily washed and total cost £2. I also bought some imitation ugg type boots to use as next winter's slippers, £1 a pair and some short pjs for Pete which he had asked for and also happened to be in sale. I had a good wander around the charity shops but didn't buy any clothes for myself. However I did get this lovely gravy boat. I have been looking for a gravy boat or a jug ever since our old utilitarian white jug developed a crack and had to be thrown out. The only possibilities I had found were in the 'normal' shops but one was ugly and both were expensive. Then today I came across this gravy boat which was being sold with a big lidded tureen and a stack of plates which I didn't want. Luckily this wasn't one of the main charity shops some of which are run like businesses and very inflexible. This was a shop run by the Rotary club and when I asked the nice lady sold me just the gravy boat for £1.50. It wasn't until I got home that I realised how gorgeous this piece of Royal Doulton was. After a good trail in and out of all the shops I drove to Tescos to stock up on basics and then to B&Q and bought compost and all the plants I needed for my hanging baskets. Normally I would check out several garden centres for the best prices but I was just too tired and the prices are not a lot different. I have got more or less the same plants as last year, pink, purple and burgundy surfinias and some mixed blue trailing lobelia. Planting up the baskets was my afternoon job and I also topped up the stone wall with extra compost and planted some clumps of sedum and aubretia to replace that poor old lavender plant.