This weekend, Austin has been overrun with even MORE musicality than usual. It’s the famed and celebrated Austin City Limits Music Festival, or ACL, because who really calls it the “Austin City Limits Music Festival”?
I’ll tell you what I call it: Austin City LAME-est. (Although the logo rocks my life. Hello, little birdie!)
Not because I don’t think the whole festival is awesome. Because in theory, it is. Music? Food? Fun? I’m there.*
*Except I’m not. Due to logical reasoning and the price of plane tickets to the East Coast for Christmas.
But in practice, ACL means that there are cars parked randomly around our neighborhood in haphazard form, with no notice of yellow curbs or No Parking zones (or our driveway). There is a burgeoning commune of future-hippie children ever-growing next door involving numerous picnic tables and what appears to be finger paint and T-ball, while I presume their parents are attending the festival. And every time I return home, there are new empty bottles of “adult beverage” scattered in the kitchen and gatherings of random friends and visitors [granted, some of them were quite personable and attractive] who smell strongly of sunscreen and humidity.
I’m saving my money for South By [Southwest]…because I have decided that South By Southwest = South By SouthBEST. 
Now that I’ve got that little rant out of the way (said entirely tongue-in-cheek, because you know if I were there I would be praising the festival’s merits to the high heavens), we can move on to what I did to escape the cluster-muck that was downtown this weekend.
Duh! What does Sarah do when she’s stressed and/or bored? She goes FOOD SHOPPING!
Katelyn and her friendboy, Chad, had made plans to go to the Sun Valley Farmers’ Market, and since I have shockingly lived in this city for coming upon four months now without going to a farmers’ market, jumped at the chance. [Not really, because I was driving. Perhaps my heart jumped?]
After finding cutie-pies Katelyn & Chad…
…both Katelyn and I immediately acquired the only thing we really needed: COFFEE.
This was delicious…sadly, the vendor only does wholesale to local restaurants, so I cannot make this every morning at home.
We meandered through the stalls…it wasn’t a huge market, but I kind of liked it that way. I wasn’t overwhelmed with options, and could instead enjoy being around beautiful, locally grown produce and flowers….
…locally harvested eggs…
…and samplings of delicious grass-fed beef sausage, as well as locally-made cheese!
We also perused Sgt. Pepper’s Hot Sauces….
Yes, those would be blackberry balsamic and picante pumpkin hot sauces you see below. Awesome.
…and homemade pestos! (Including a delicious Chipotle Pumpkin Pesto…I know, right?!?)
I discovered a goose-shaped squash…
…and we apparently had a very befuddling conversation.
And I took him home. So we were both happy. 
We were serenaded by local musicians:
And we also tried fresh dates for the first time!
Much less sweet (obviously) than dried…not as crispy as an apple…very subtle flavor…I contemplated purchasing, but I wasn’t sure what I’d do with them.
…and seaweed?
The coolest thing about this market, was that GO Texan sets up a booth where you can go ahead and sample produce from various farms at the market side-by-side, so you know where you want to go and what you want to buy from each farm.
Those peppers and basil were incredible…but the best thing about the Tecolote Farm?
PERSIMMONS!
Some of them were so soft and sweet that you cut them and they spilled out like jelly…
Oh my GOLL, so scrumptious. I’d never had one so ripe and terrific!
All in all, a lovely way to spend the morning. 
Bonus event? I met an underwear model. That’s right. Of course, I don’t have a picture to prove it….but I did get his card. [Telepathic high five, ladies!]
I do, however, have a picture of this cute little cow, whose owner sold fresh milk and told me this little cow lost his horn in a battle with an elk.
I’ll let you decide on that one.If you think that was the end of the food shopping and market adventures for the day, you are sadly, sadly mistaken. Stay tuned for part TWO of “Sarah Spends Saturday in the Grocery Store.”*
*or outdoor market, if you want to get specific
