Next stop; old memories displaced!

Coombs, Vancouver Island, billy goat on a environmentally tuned roof.

Yes, these goats really do live on the roof. I had to climb the steps of a nearby church to be almost level with the rooftop to get these shots.

I wanted a full range shot of the market but my camera was not co-operating and so alas I have no view from the road showing the market which is underneath the goats, which is alright with me as my past memories of Coombs are wonderful.

Years ago when the grass was greener I remember my older sister taking me and little bro to Coombs for an adventure to see the goats and of course to get a humungous ice cream cone. Of course thats a highlight not soon forgotten, so when my son was little his dad and I would once in a while cruise out to see the goats on the roof and buy ice cream cones. It was a quaint little marketplace then. Over time it had filled with artisans who produced wonderful handcrafted articles, which for me made for a wonderful jaunt on a sunny summers day where one could buy free range eggs and farm produce, and chat with artisans while they worked, it was a wonderful destination. Sadly time alters all things and commercialism tends to broom in and sweep out the hand-crafters. Four years ago we stopped in Coombs and though the goats were still on the roof the market had expand and many little commercial shops had set up replacing the hand-crafters with tourist trade imported junk. Though a few artisans could be found amidst them, it was quite a disappointment.

Four years pass, step into 2010. The market is now highly commercialized to the point that everywhere I look is imports from China.  I have a strong belief in supporting local artists so we wandered into a few artisan shops but they have lost the quaint appeal as they tended to be a mix of imports and local work. So sadly in this over-expaned market it was difficult to find local works amongst the overpriced commercial imports. From the church steps looking in one direction are goats, the opposite view are huge chinese lions.

This dragon pot seemed to be standard fare for the market now along with a big  Chinese imports warehouse that I didn't enter. Pleasant memories of ice-cream and goats on a quaint thatched roof market are replaced by greed of make-a-fast-buck commercialism. Alas, time does not stay still.

May your day be filled with Love and kindness, a smile travels a long ways.