Next Stop.....New York!

It's hard to believe Christmas was less than a month ago.  The numbers have been tallied, inventories taken, and decorations stowed away.  So now what?  New York, baby!  We're heading to the Gift Show to gear up for summer.  Yes....summer.

The past few months of living in a seasonal community have been a definite learning curve.  Most retail shops around the country see a significant drop in business after the holidays as we did at our previous shop, Grandiflora, but being in a remote coastal town in Maine gives the "slow season" a whole new meaning.  I now understand why most businesses in town close from October to May.  While that goes against everything "business" in my head, but I'm starting to see their reasoning.

Over the course of my life, summer has always been my least favorite season.  My order of preference had been winter, fall, spring, summer.  And then we moved to Castine and opened a store.  Now the only season that matters is SUMMER.  Period.  Okay....throw in the shoulder season that starts Memorial Day and ends on Columbus Day and a twinkle at Christmas.  But in the words of Porky Pig....."Th-th-th-that's all, folks!"

While most people probably thought we would most mind the snow and cold this winter, our pining away for summer really has nothing to do with temperature and more to do with missing the hustle and bustle of the summer residents and tourists.  I long to have the door open and see everyone strolling down to Bah's for breakfast, waving and wishing us a "Good Morning" as they pass.  Until then, I'll keep myself happily busy reviewing lines, determining orders, evaluating displays, and knitting.

First step toward summer?  The New York International Gift Fair which starts this Saturday.  It's been eight years since Dan and I attended the show and I can't wait to set foot in Javits again.  I have list in hand of lines I'm pondering, but know we'll be up to our ears in catalogs by the time we pile back in the car on Wednesday morning to make the trek back to Maine.

To say we're not excited about being back in a city would be an understatement of gargantuan proportion.  Some of the things we're most looking forward to?  The Russian Vodka Room, being in the same zip code as a Michael Kors boutique, and pastrami sandwiches (Dan only).  We're also looking forward to staying at Yotel.  Only four blocks to the convention center, it was far more than proximity to Javits that appealed to us.  Hopefully it won't disappoint and I'll be sure to post photos and more details after we arrive.