Obsessive Weather Watch for an Outdoor Artisan Fair

Any artisan attending an outdoor fair freaks out about the weather. How can you not? If the weather stinks, people won't come and you go through all that effort and make no money. If the weather is iffy, people might come, they might not, and you have to worry about whether your wares will get soaked from rain. Or even if the weather is sunny and a lovely temperature, the wind might blow your tent away. I've learned to put wooden blocks inside every one of my bags so a stiff breeze won't take them flying.

Here is a peek into my paranoid mind the two weeks leading up to an outdoor event on May 16.

8 Days Away--partly cloudy and 70. Woo-hoo! This is going to be a great event!

5 Days Away--WHAT!??!?! NINETY percent chance of rain??? I'm going to stop sewing inventory right now. This event might be a total waste of energy. Note to self--find my rain boots.

4 Days Away--70% chance of rain. Hmmmmm. Better find a lot of hand sewing projects to keep me busy in the tent. I double-checked the artisan application, and it says specifically, "Rain or Shine." <sigh>

4 Days Away--Where the hell did the lightening bolt come from??? Being inside a tent when it's raining is one thing. Being inside a metal framed tent in a lightening storm is another. Wonder if there's an exception for *really* bad weather?

3 Days Away--30% chance of rain or thunderstorms. Hmmm. Is that the same as when the Oregon Trail Computer game (I'm dating myself) said 30% chance of rain? You knew it would always rain. Still, there's that sun peeking out...maybe it means it will rain only while we set up in the morning, or only after we are done. This weather graphic tells me basically nothing other than I should not have stopped sewing a week ago. And that I need to start watching weather on TV.

2 Days Away--Ohhhhh, now my Yahoo Weather App will give me an hourly breakdown because I'm so close to the event. Sweet! And it's only calling for rain in the morning. But no lightening in that hourly breakdown. I'm starting to be hopeful!

1 Day Away--Back up to 50%. You know what? All this weather obsessing hasn't gotten me anywhere. What happened on the actual day of the event??? Rain showers in the morning, no lightening, and we still had oodles of customers.

Whew! Next event is the outdoor farmer's market. Wonder what the forecast says about that one...