Ren Fest Has Now Ended - Fall is Officially Here - LOL

DH and I finished up Ren Fest yesterday. Chickie and Chickie Mama also came out to spend a bit of time at the Fest. The weather couldn't have been much better. It was too hot for many people, but I was loving all of the heat. I know that all too soon it will be gone. 

We ended up missing two weekends of Fest this 
year. It's unusual for us to miss any weekends, but 
it is what it is. Since we pre-buy our tickets at an 
excellent price, we certainly didn't waste our money 
unwisely. We did waste two days of parking fees, 
but those were only $10 since I pre-buy that as well. 

DH was in serious pain from having overdone things in the garden earlier in the week. He was also cranky because coming to Ren Fest meant that he had to miss the Ryder Cup. I brought it up on Peacock on my phone and voila - he was able to watch it, even if the USA didn't win this time. DH was moving VERY slowly, so we didn't even walk around the Festival grounds. I did swing over to the leathercrafting store where my friend is now part-owner to wish him and his wife a good year. They're local, and they do drop into the shop every now and again, but it's always good to see them. He's flying off to California for the northern California Ren Fest in a week or so, and she'll be here. 

This is the Front Gates of the Minnesota Renaissance 
Festival. One thing we'll miss when we move to our 
new location are the old-growth trees and the myriad 
of different buildings that the old grounds have offered 
to us over the decades. I'm not sure when we'll move 
to the new location, but I'm quite sure it won't be much 
longer - another year, maybe two. 

We've known them since before they were married, and their oldest, Duncan, is now 16 or so and working in the shop alongside them. It's crazy to realize how long we've all known each other, and we met at Ren Fest, when they were part of the Mayor's entourage. Many, many years ago. 

This is my friend Ben from several years ago, when he 
was just an employee of Stronghold Leather. Now he's 
a part owner and his wife Lizzie and son Duncan also 
work there. 

So DH walked the minimum amount, and after listening to the Court Revelers, we headed for the exit and home. We had purchased our tickets when we checked in that morning, so we're set for another year. The cost is low enough that if we go three times, we've paid for our tickets. But that special low cost is only offered on-site for the last two weekends of Fest. Since we didn't go last week, we had to go this week. And, you have to be present to purchase your ticket. You can't buy for someone else. Not for the special price. It's worth it, and it's why I dragged DH out there even though he would have been far happier staying home watching golf. 

This photo is from the early days of Stronghold Leather. Ben 
has been working for and with them for more than a decade 
now. He just bought into the company a month or two ago, 
and will now be travelling for them to other Festivals. 
Here in Minnesota, his wife Lizzie and son Duncan are 
often helping out in the shop along with him. It's been a good 
association for him over the years. 

So summer is wrapping up. We have one more day of heat today, a final farewell to the season. Then we'll finally be into a true Fall and sliding down into Winter. Although it's possible we'll have one more weather anomaly, it's doubtful. We'll be much colder from this point onward. *sigh* I hope all of you have a tremendously wonderful Monday and I'll be back tomorrow. Slava Ukraini.