A couple of days ago two friends and I went to Rancocas Woods, a place I hadn't visited for about twenty years. I used to go there every time it snowed because I LOVE log cabins. And I would take my daughter there to see the log cabins and we would get lunch somewhere nearby, I thought it was in the village of shops, but I wasn't sure.
Anyhow, I had recently read a column in the Sunday Courier Post about the Village Shops struggling to stay alive. They mentioned the Crafts Co-op and Antique Emporium, a kind of store of which I am extremely fond. So off we went, thought we had no snow!
The Antique Emporeium was even more charming than I expected. The delightful mix of unique and inventive crafts with beautiful and evocative antiques was a delight to me. I bought a few small gifts. Most of my friends and I are working on clearing out rather than gathering in so I limit myself to gifts, objects I can enjoy until they are mailed or given to the true owner. I did, however, buy one item for myself, a cozy pair of irresistable mittens. My feet and hands get so cold they nearly went on strike until I bought those mittens. When I paid for them, the counter clerk told me they were made from recycled sweaters - a fact I found both charming and gratifying as I love recycle. We waste so much in this country, and I do say WE, so I'm not pointing fingers at anyone or throwing stones at other glass houses.
Those mittens are a luxury experience and they were only $10! I may go back to get another pair for my daughter who also favors recycle.
We visited all the other shops and I bought gorgeous greeting cards for Valentine's Day and St. Patrick's Day. I am one of those people who still like to remember my dear by far away friends and relatives with a pretty card for the holiday, whichever it may be, and these were on SALE! They were far less than you might pay at a pharmacy or card shopt and infinitely prettier. They were on sale for 2 for $5 and anyone who buys cards individually knows they are up to about $4 a card these days.
We had lunch at Carlucci's Waterfront because it advertised "waterfront views" and it provided them. The view over the Rancocas Creek was beautiful and brought back so many memories of old friends I canoed with on the creek and intriguing spots we explored on the banks, as well as treasures we found. Once I found a window fram, beautifully weathered with a shed snake skin entwined in a pane. I used it in an Art Display in the University City Science Center where I had been an invited artist in the Color Xerox Project. At the time, I was a printmaking major at Rutgers in Camden.
Visiting Rancocas Woods will not disappoint you neither will lunch at Carlucci's Waterfront. You can look them up on the internet for phone # or addresses, sorry, I'm on my way out the door to a dental appt. and have a very painful infected nerve, so I'm leaving that part of the work to you! ENJOY!
Happy Trails! Jo Ann
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