More people in my neighborhood

but these kind don't make me want to sing any Sesame Street songs.

1. The very bad mother driving a silver Lexus yesterday in the early afternoon. I didn't get her name but she has a 4 year old daughter with short dark brown hair and a 18 month old son named Liam.

She's a bad mother because she appeared to be stoned. If she wasn't stoned then she is too stupid to be allowed to keep kids. She didn't watch them. The daughter spent all the time watching the boy. At one point she took the kids to the bathroom. We have a bathroom in the center that is only accessible from the sidewalk. After the kids went it was mom's turn. Mom put the kids on the sidewalk and shut the door with her on the inside, them on the outside. In Westport. With nobody she new out there with the kids. She was in there for 8 min 23 seconds. I think she thought I was going to watch the kids for her. I would have if she had asked. She didn't. She just put them on the sidewalk and shut the door. Of course even if she had asked, she doesn't know anything about me. I'm a balloon artist, I love kids. So do pervs. I'm not one of those, but making balloons isn't all that hard and it's a good way to get to kids - so I'm sure there are kiddie perv balloon artists out there. Mom had no way of knowing if I was one of them.

I wanted to tazer her but officer Cutie didn't have a tazer and he wouldn't shoot her. By the time he got there she was already in her suv getting ready to abandon her kids someplace else.

2. Crazy women

There are lot of those here, but I am referring to the kind that is attracted only to married men. Dan has one, and now my shop neighbor David has one too. Stephanie and I think it's hysterical. Hell, most days we would gift wrap the hubbies for the nut job women who want them. Crazy chics don't know this. They think they are so sly by flirting in front of us or making odd calls in the middle of the night.

Dan's crazy has been quiet for a few months, so I won't mention her name. However if she starts up again I will happily put her name and photo all over Westport. I love Dan and can see her attaraction. However, the way to his heart is NOT by calling me at 2am and saying crazy shit. I wish she would call his cell phone at 2am. Between 1am and 6am I only want to sleep. I'll defend my man's honor after 6, preferrably after coffee.

Dave's crazy just showed up. Today there was a big woman with red hair sitting in her car smoking and staring at Stephanie and me. Odd enough behavior. Then when Dave made an appearance, she jumped out of the car and waddled on over to talk to him. Several times in the conversation she referred to Stephanie as she. Keep in mind that Stephanie was closer to the crazy chic than David. Also, it's good to note that the woman has met Stephanie before and knows that she, not Dave, owns the store. By refusing to speak to Stephanie and using she instead of a name, I guess he was erasing wife from the man of her dreams.

Dave in true man fashion seemed pretty unaware that the crazy was in love with him.

Can't wait to see what happens next. I love crazies.

Art Fair Aftermath

The rain kinda sucked, but it cleared up for Sunday. Know what sucked more than the weather? The artists. The entitlement mentality was rampant. They rented a booth, so they owned the whole damned area. My shop was largely untroubled by the transient artists, but Sage & Daisy were. So were lots of other shops. I refer to them as transient artists because we are here all the time and we are artists too. The transients thought nothing of leaning their stuff on windows of open shops. One blocked the front door to Sage & Daisy and got pissy when asked to move her crap. I saw another leave her booth to smoke. She didn't want to smoke at her place, but she thought nothing of leaning against the window to Kevin's jewelry shop. Way classy.

Then there was the bathroom problem. Our shops have a common bathroom for customer use. We each have a key. The art fair promoters put port-a-pottys out for the fair, but many artists preferred to use our john. I can see that. The portable variety are kinda gross. What irked me was the way the EXPECTED to use it. On Friday I was asked for the key about 35 times. One lady (the pissy door blocking artist) asked 7 times all by herself. By the end of the evening a couple of transient artists were trying to go in my shop and get it for themselves. I was annoyed, but I'm fairly nice most of the time, so I got past it. Until Saturday. On Saturday one art fair vendor walked up to me, while I was with a customer at my button table, and said "key" with her hand outstretched. Tommy got it for her, but when she returned I told her no more. It was just too much.

Later Stephanie overheard her say to another artists that they pay so much for their spaces that we should be happy to get the bathroom key for them. I didn't get one dime of the cash she paid to sell her overpriced art. Next year I am making the key free for customers and $1 for everyone else. I pay enough for rent that she should be happy to pay me for use of my bathroom key. I should charge an extra quarter for anyone who wants to use my air freshener I keep under the sink.

Art Fair

The Westport Art Fair is in full swing and there is some cool stuff to see. I wish there were more cool artists though. Too many of them were unfriendly jerks and at least two of them lost a sale because they wouldn't acknowledge my presence in their booth. I guess I looked poor yesterday. Of course I am poor, but they had no way of knowing this. The color lady on the end of Pennsylvania - she got a sale. Her stuff is very cool, she is very nice and (this is important) SHE DOES NOT CHARGE TOO FREAKING MUCH FOR SOMETHING THAT ISN'T EVEN ALL THAT ATTRACTIVE. Seriously folks $500 for stuff glued to a canvas????? yeah - I understand why a lot of artists starve. No common sense.

Dan made the cool dress in this post. He worked on it for 6 hours. You can always tell when Dan makes the dress because of two key points.

1. The bubbles are all even. (I'm a bit more haphazard)
2. It's full length. I get bored and always end up making 'hooker' clothes that are mini skirts with crop tops. Dan has the patience to finish the dress and do a good job.

Stop buy the art fair this weekend and see it in person!

Kansas City is prepared to sacrifice

Westport and other areas in town to the Cordish Empire's goals. It's not just that KC isn't promoting Westport, it's that they appear to be actively seeking to destroy other entertainment areas. Drunks puke and piss on the street every night in the P&L. they stumble out barely able to walk under their own power, but do you ever see a police check point there? Nope, and you won't. Can't give the impression that everything isn't perfect.

Want to go to Westport? Even if the traffic is slow there will be a drunk check. You won't see the puking and pissing, but you will see cops making sure everyone knows they are on the wrong streets. Want to drink and drive then get your ass over to P&L. I don't condone drinking and driving - my father was killed by a drunk driver when I was 5. What I am saying is that the cops and KC don't give a rat's ass about drinking and driving if you do it in the all mighty Power & Light.

Lots of cops paid for by tax dollars patrolling the areas around the Cordish Empire. Westport begs for any to help with people loitering and causing trouble. I don't think Waldo and Brookside fare much better. Kansas City is too busy kissing the ass of Cordish executives to give a damn about the rest of the city.

18th & vine could be something cool. It could be an international tourist attraction, but not if the city doesn't stand behind it. I'm not asking for tons of money, I'm asking that they MENTION THAT IT EXISTS. I have checked several maps and tourist flyers at rest stops on my back to KC from out of town. You won't see mention of the jazz district or the museum. Lots of stuff on there, but not one of the things that makes the city truly unique. Power and Light looks almost exactly like most of the things Cordish builds. There is no Kansas City flavor to it.

Shop local, dine local, drink local. Quit sending our money out of state just because the city loves a company from Maryland.