Ballroom boot fair

View from our stall

If you are going to do a boot fair, do it in a pub! That is my top tip. Who wants the stress of getting up at 6am on a Sunday morning and lining up at a freezing cold outdoor venue? Especially if there are no guarantees on return of that investment. My local pub has been running indoor bootfairs for a few months and this was our second appearance with an eclectic mix of vintage goodies. In my case, it was a chance to get rid of a stack of books, some old clothes and a few bits of jewellery. My mate A. is a seasoned pro and was selling vintage clothing, bags, accessories and the star item, a Pelham puppet ventriloquist's dummy. 

The fair was 12-5 and it was an agreeable way to spend a Saturday. With vintage jazz and blues to entertain those cheery punters seeking that elusive £43million Chinese vase and an on-tap supply of food and drink, I was a happy soul. I easily made £50 and felt the difference as I packed up my suitcase. This is the last vintage stall I am doing before I go back to Spain. I have however booked a stall for December to sell some Christmas gift items so I have to get the sewing machine whirring over the next couple of weeks. 

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Seasonally affected ...

Last weekend the clocks went back. It didn't feel like the big event it usually is for me when I am in London. For the first time in five years I was not dreading the moment that signified shorter days and long, dark nights. I am in Spain and the days may be getting shorter but the light is still good here. Today it was also 25 degrees so I had no excuse not to smile.

In my class this afternoon I taught my students all about "spring forward and fall backwards" and we had a good session where we revised telling the time in English and discussed the impact of changing the clocks. I told them how I look forward to the 21st of December, the winter equinox, when the days start to lengthen again. Now it is really autumn and the nights are getting darker earlier. I have no light box here so I am relying on the natural light to keep away my SAD. It is going to be an interesting experiment!

Tomorrow I have an interview to see if I can teach some classes in the mornings. Now this is going to be a real challenge for me to see if I can get up at 6.30 in the morning. I need the work so I am going to give it a go. Teaching is proving a nightmare here at the moment with cancelled classes every day. It seems the answer is to take on slightly more than I need and can do and then hope that some of them cancel each week - ideally on the same day so that I get paid too. This is not how I imagined my life in Madrid!