Shhhh! I’ve got a secret for you.
There’s a big event coming up that you just cannot miss. It’s got fun, mystery, adventure, glamour, romance, scandal and a lot of other tantalizing surprises, including some in very good taste.
It’s the one event that’s worth dropping everything and coming into town for, even traveling great distances. It also perks up a holiday mood for those of us from up north who wistfully remember winter holidays with cold, snow and reindeer-powered sleighs, without which the holidays seem kinda empty.
I’m speaking about the Women’s Club’s annual bazaar and book sale, set for Nov. 18 at the CountryDay School in Escazú, west of San José.We who read pine all year for accessible and affordable books in English, and here there will be books enough to fill months of reading. (I became an avid reader in first grade when the Cudahy,Wisconsin –home of Cudahy peacock hams – library gave out paper peacock feathers for each book you read, and I collected enough feathers for a flock of peacocks.)
The book table is where the mystery, adventure, scandal and sex come in. There will be tables stacked with books for every whim, neatly laid out for easy title searches.
These are all used books and magazines priced at just three for ¢1,000 (about $2). So steal some empty boxes at the supermarket and come early.
Make it a day, because there is so much to see. There will be booths with fabulous jewelry, scarves and accessories, gift items, toys, crafts, cards and calendars, cheese, herbs and plants, home decorations and a special section with “once loved clothes and jewelry.”
The Tico Times will be there, too. Since it’s an all-day event, you’ll need some lunch and a place to rest. Easy enough, because there will be a dining area with sandwiches, light food or a plate dinner with lasagna and a salad, and since everyone there is in a friendly mood, it’s okay to share a table.
And for really good taste, try the bake sale with homemade, melt-in-your-mouth, irresistible delicacies. Imagine yourself chewing on double chocolate brownies while looking at your new books. Heaven descends.
Before leaving for home, check back at the book table, because prices plummet for a closeout sale and the book you had doubts about in the morning may be more appealing at ¢100 (about $0.20). Then, be sure to thank the ladies in red, members of the Women’s Club who make it all happen. You will know them by their red T-shirts and lovely smiles.
As you head home with all your purchases, you’ll discover something else: a positive feeling from helping others, and that’s exactly what the holidays try to stress, isn’t it? You’ve just helped 112 students from poor, mostly rural homes make it through another year of high school. The stipends supplied by the Women’s Club through your support will help buy uniforms, shoes, workbooks, geometry sets, pencils and pens, photocopies and the necessary snacks to keep kids in class.
The bazaar opens at 10 a.m. and goes until 3 p.m. Come early, stay late, help educate 112 students and have a fun day. From the center of Escazú, signs will direct you to the school. The Bebedero bus that leaves from Calle 14, Avenida 6, behind San Juan de Dios Hospital in San José, stops near the door. And since this is an open secret, tell all your friends.
See you there. I’ll be the one juggling boxes on my hips as I bump through the door at 10 a.m.
