Whew! It was wicked warm when I departed the house in minimal clothing. The heaviest items I was wearing were my shoes, and, I felt like I was clump, clump, clumping along, like an old horse. I generally like to walk when it is cooler, but today I wanted to check out the Lincoln Park Farmer’s Market and it doesn’t open until 11:00. The LP Farmer’s Market has downsized since the last time I was there about six years ago, and they have moved to a new location. Back when I was a frequent visitor to the Market, it was a hoppin’ place on Sunday mornings and the pickings were best if you arrived early. My mom loved those tiny new potatoes, and she often said she could make a meal out of them, hot out of the pot, opened with a fork and slathered with butter and a shake of salt, so I often picked her up a basket or two of them. She also enjoyed slices of beefsteak tomato piled high on a piece of crispy toast, so come August, rather than drive miles out to the country to the roadside stands, I’d often head over to the Farmer’s Market and load up. Well, it is a new type of market I noticed – different vendors and more crafts for sale than in the past. I was told some of the vendors come as far as Flint or Saline to sell their wares. I guess it is still early in the growing season for fruits or veggies, and, in fact – some of the vendors were still selling veggie plants. If you hesitated to buy your flats or hanging baskets as you thought we might still have another hard freeze, do not despair since you could pick up some deals on some hardy flowers at the Farmer’s Market. There were bottles galore of Sam’s BBQ salsa and even samples of chips and salsa courtesy of Jar Head brand. People were happily dipping their chips into the hot salsa, raising their body temp to “scorching” despite being under the cooling canopy. Homemade zucchini bread, cornbread cake and wedges, sweet potato pie, plus Maggie’s 7-Up Pound Cake seemed to be in abundance so they must be hot items at this venue. The Summer sun glinted off the translucent jars of honey which were lined in neat rows on that vendor’s table making the setting homey and inviting and a quick trip under the canopy was a nice break from that searing sun. Perhaps food is not the reason you want to frequent a local farmer’s market? Well, if crafts are your shtick, there were plenty of items like hand-made jewelry, crocheted wearables, wood items and candles … looks like there was something for everyone, all crowded into one small corner parking lot at Fort and Southfield. I came home empty handed as I really only went there for a destination and a quick look-see. I meandered around City Hall and past the police station and courthouse and took the long, long way home to get me to four miles. Well, I’ve visited all the sights around my fair town over the course of the last few days, so I hope for a return to Council Point Park at the tail end of the week when the stormy weather has subsided and cooler temps are back once again.