On the Market

What a day it was! Last week, the inn was the setting for a movie called, "On the Market." All I knew was that it was a romantic comedy. The inn was chosen for several reasons. It was perfect for the wedding scene they envisioned, since the mother of the bride was an innkeeper and the wedding was to take place at her inn. They also thought it would be a good opportunity to use the dining room for a scene they'd do in a restaurant. As the day got underway, my curiosity got the best of me. Some of the scenes were pretty funny, so naturally, I wanted to know the storyline.

It's a story about a series of bad dates. Now I've had my share of bad dates, but I can't say I had any experiences like the ones they created. One guy had herpes on his lip with an open lesion who was constantly trying to steal a kiss. Another guy had a thing about wearing pantyhose. Does that make him a cross-dresser? And, bad date number three was a self-absorbed doctor who was so preoccupied with the phone and his own importance, that he failed to see the rolling eyes that his actions provoked.

As I sat with the crew members who were feeding me these storyline details, one of them casually brought up a recent experience he'd had with a girl he'd met on e-Harmony. It seems that the girl of interest owns a funeral home in a city in the western part of the state, and this guy lives on the eastern side. Anyway, they were trying to figure out how they might meet.

She said that she had to pick up a body - yes, a dead human - in a nearby city, and the she could stop by his place. He assumed that she'd stop on the way, but much to his surprise and shock, she stopped on the way back. Now I KNOW that you KNOW what THAT meant. There was a dead body in the back of her van when she arrived. Was she going to go out with this guy and leave the dead body there for someone to steal, or were they going to drive the van to their dinner destination? Either way, it was a bad deal/date. We laughed so hard, I don't recall what choice he made, but I will tell you that when he asked her who would look after the dead guy, she replied, "Nobody, he's dead."

The production crew and actors filmed countless takes during the day of many different scenes involving what I thought were the worst/funniest dates imaginable. And this guy endured 10 hours of filming before he told anyone HIS story. As a matter-of-fact, I don't think he'd told anyone on this Earth about it until that moment. There were so many opportunities during the day to springboard into his tale, but did he? No, and I think I know why. To him, it wasn't funny, but the telling of it made it so.

Now, is truth stranger than fiction, or what?!

Newton's MayFest

Saturday, May 16: It was a Newton day, starting with the

citywide yard sale. Held at Southside park, the leased spaces - all 102 - were sold out. I was there at 4:30am helping with traffic. When I left at 6:30am, most of the vendors were set up and ready.
Back to the inn for breakfast. Once my guests were served and rooms cleaned, I headed downtown. It was truly a southern experience. Bib overalls, cowboy hats, John Deere equipment on display, pig races, Nascar, Bar-b-que. Catch my drift!

Pictures tell the story..............