by Mary Wakefield Buxton –
Urbanna, Va.— It’s over! The 2019 Oyster Festival not only delivered good food and fun for thousands of visitors to Urbanna but also enjoyed perfect weather. This is rare. It was my 35th Oyster Fest and I can almost count ideal weather during this popular fall event on the fingers of both hands.
It’s usually bone cold. I should know because my usual post for many years has been seated behind a table selling books and newspapers in front of the Sentinel office on Virginia Street. In most cases, no matter how many layers of winter clothing I have on, I’m too cold for comfort.
There’s usually wind slamming in from the Rappahannock River that blows newspapers and books awry. I’ve even had dollars blow out of my hand as I made change and had to go scurrying down the street to retrieve them.
Worse, it has rained either Friday or Saturday. It’s really bad when the rain comes during the Saturday parade. It’s awful to watch the marchers battling cold, rain and wind, especially the little girls in skimpy costumes twirling their batons.
One really nightmarish Oyster Fest I remember there was torrential rain both Friday and Saturday. I gave up trying to sell books and went home as did most others that miserable year.
So, I marvel at our good fortune this year. Good weather, ample sunshine, and fairly mild temperatures provided a successful weekend.
The crowds were huge. Friday’s crowds seemed as sizable as Saturday’s, which was unusual because Friday has always had lower numbers with many natives coming to town that day when traffic can move in and out of Urbanna at will—at least until the Fireman’s Parade in the evening.
I didn’t hear any of the sirens during that parade this year from my home on Kent Street, which was unusual. Not sure why. I also noticed the green leaves on the big trees along Virginia Street were still intact with a little tinge of autumn color. Usually by this time of year all leaves are bright orange, red and yellow.
Many people who came to town were sparsely dressed for the morning chill. They looked cold walking by in shorts and short sleeves. I saw a lot of hatless babies in strollers and worried like a grandmother over those cold, precious little bald heads.
The dogs were plentiful and I so loved seeing them walk by. Big beauties. Labs and goldens were most in attendance but I saw quite a few golden doodles, those beautiful mixes of goldens and poodles that create such marvelous dogs.
A friend found a dog running loose dragging a red leash followed by a smaller dog and captured one of them. (The other ran away.) He spent an hour walking around trying to find its owner. Finally he spotted a policeman who was kind enough to take the dog and hand it over to animal control. I worried all weekend about the owner who had lost his dogs and especially the little one that ran off. I know the dog owner’s weekend was ruined as there are few things worse than losing a dog.
I enjoyed several crab sandwiches at the Mathews Lions Club tent. Then those wonderful home-cut French fried potatoes that are sold each year directly across the street from the Sentinel.
Several “townies’ came by to say hello. Jim and Kerry Robusto and their daughter Kelsey had just returned from a two week vacation in Italy and reported having had a wonderful time. “That was the first two weeks vacation the doc has had in many years,” Kerry said. In my mind doctors must work much too hard and can barely schedule any time to get away. This fact and the multitude of government forms that now have to be filled out before doctors are paid even one cent have caused many dedicated doctors to give up their practice… very bad news for all of us.
The Middlesex Kiwanis Club next to the Sentinel had their usual great turnout for oysters. We enjoyed hearing Kiwanian professional huckster Dave Lively, who called out “oyyyyyy-sters” like a true fishmonger in merry Olde London until he lost his voice. He wore a handsome sports coat covered in a pattern of oysters!
Husband Chip always sits with me and many of his clients stopped by to say hello. One in particular from Mathews owns a beautiful 2-year-old female black-and-white cocker spaniel. We planned to introduce her to our three-color cocker, “Dandy,” and each of us dearly hopes to get a precious cocker puppy out of this future meeting!
This well could come under the category of . . . “Best laid plans of mice and men!” Yet chalk it up to another favorite adage . . . “Hope springs eternal from the breast of man!” ©2019
Note: Books on Middlesex County make great Christmas gifts. The Sentinel carries all of Mary Wakefield Buxton’s books that are still in print.
