Yarn and books

Saugerties, NY, located between the foot of the Catskill Mountains and the Hudson River and just across the river from Rhinebeck. It was a beautiful morning on Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement; the day that my Godmother, Amy, died in 1996. It felt like a good day to take a slower drive up to Rochester along the Hudson and check out a new town.

The exit off the highway leads right into the Main Street of Saugerties, about two hours from Riverdale and an hour north of the turnoff for Route 17. Turned onto Main Street and then circled around a block to find parking. Discovered The Perfect Blend, Yarn & Tea Shop at 50 Market Street. The shop occupies two storefronts and there are yarns filling shelves along all the walls and through the center of the store. In the back room three women were working at a knitting table. The woman who greeted me mentioned the Sheep and Wood Festival in Rhinebeck coming up on October 20-21 and then mentioned that the Indie Untangled, the kickoff to the Festival, was taking place in Saugerties that Friday. I mentioned the one memory that sticks with me from my last visit to the Festival, the woman who spins wool from her live rabbit. "Oh, she works here on Mondays and Tuesdays!"

Walking down Main Street I saw the other store that caught my attention, Inquiring Minds Bookstore & Coffee House. A large corner property filled with books, seating and a coffee shop in the back. Children's books on the shelves near the entrance, NY Times on the coffee table by the seating, good coffee.

Stopped in a natural food shop and bought some snacks to take to Ellen's and headed north for Sodus. Arrived in Rochester around 9pm and spent my first night in my apartment. Mental list: a rug for the livingroom, rug for the bedroom and a place to sit in the kitchen.