New toy!

Spouse had a meeting in Salida today. Since I hadn’t been there, I rode along and then wandered around town while he did his thing.

The first place I stumbled upon was The Mixing Bowl. It’s a fantastic little store with a great selection of cooking utensils, dishes, kitchen gadgets, and small appliances. They have those amazing silicon measuring cups that fold flat – FLAT! How awesome is that? – a nice variety of Fiesta ware, and another style of dishes whose name I can’t recall. The other style had some cool ramekin-looking things in two different shapes which were pretty fantastic.

It was there that I discovered this:

Awesome bottle opener.

It’s the perfect size (the handle is the width of my palm), the perfect shape (flat enough to fit in a pocket or apron), and the perfect weight (enough heft that you won’t forget it’s in your pocket but not so heavy as to feel awkward). I didn’t need a corkscrew so this was the best possible option and the thing I was looking for without even realizing it. Very, very happy.

There’s also a great little pottery place in town. Let’s be clear, I was going to go in anyhow because it’s called the Maverick Potter – who can resist that? When I walked in, I was really happy to discover that I love pretty much everything in the shop. Great shapes, great colors, great textures. Not only that but they’ll let you paint your own pieces *and* if there’s something you want and they don’t have it, they’ll make it for you! Love it.

All in all, a really nice visit.