Foster City Lions Club Misses the Boat

Foster City 4th of July Festival, Foster City, CA

We were told by Phyliss Moore, the President of the Lion's Club that we would not be allowed to drive our vehicles close to our spaces to unload and load our things. We would have to cart our things (canopies, grids, boxes, merchandise, etc.) in and out 75 yards to and from our vehicles parked on the curb. We managed to get there early Sunday morning and drive up to our space to unload.

However, we would need people to help us haul our stuff out and she promised me that she would have loads of kid's to help when we closed down and I took her word for it, but doubted it. The show ended at 5:00 and we had begun packing around 4:30. One of my friend's had found her and was able to get some kid's to help him haul out. After he was finished, he talked to Phyliss Moore and explained to her that my wife (disabled) and I (trouble walking and lifting things) would need help. She replied "I am off duty."

I went looking for her and she told me that because I wasn't ready at 5:00, I would get no help. Nobody told me that. The papers said that the show ends at 5:00 and we were to be out of there at 6:30. Nothing about being ready at 5:00. She was terrible. She began walking away from me and I chased after her. I asked her again for help and she told me that everybody was busy and I would have to wait. She was very snotty over this. One of the other sane Lion's Club members stepped in and said that he would get people to help me and that he did, thankfully. However, this lady had told me that she would have 'loads of kids' to help me and was reneging on this. I had explicitly explained concern for my wife and I, telling her that we had health problems. Furthermore, when all of us applied for this event, we were not told that we would have to haul our stuff in and out until we had received paperwork and only by looking at the map, did I determine that it was a long ways to the booth and a phone call to her brought me the bad news that we would have to haul in. Try to get vendor's for your show next year, butthead!!! Such abusiveness toward vendors and crippled people. No mercy with this woman. I AM OFF DUTY. Yah, right. And you are President of the Foster City Lions Club. What a joke. OFF DUTY. I think we might be able to do that.

Gosh, what does on between the scenes of these events. People would be shocked to hear what we have to go through. You can read my story about this event on my famous web site:

Starving Vendors

Better yet, I hope you get to read my book which I am writing about exploits at these festivals and how difficult it is to survive. Hopefully, coming out in October. Keep you posted on the Starving Vendors website

Foster City 4th of July Festival

Return to Foster City. We shall be returning to the 4th of July Festival there after a six-year absence. I hope that it is as nice as it was back then. They have a number of vendor and food booths along with entertainment and fireworks. One of the few places around that do provide fireworks.

I am highly disappointed that we will have to haul in our things. We have a canopy,16 grids, 6 heavy buckets and around 15 sacks and numerous other things we need to set up. We are 60 year's old and this is quite difficult for us. Year's ago we were located alongside the curb and there was no problem. I guess that if I would have known this beforehand, than we would not have signed up. Seems like a completely different show. Family health problems are preventing us from going to Mt Shasta where we have been for the past 6 years ago. You think that we want to haul our stuff in with our health problems. Disgusting. I am certain other vendor's do not like this also. Please be sure to check out my website Starving Vendors for more info on shows and other things.

International Lao New Year Festival 2009

2009 INTERNATIONAL LAO NEW YEARS FESTIVAL
Civic Center Plaza, San Francisco, CA

Saturday, April 11, 200 910 AM - 5 PM all day - free event
Civic Center Plaza (link to googlemaps)between Asian Art Museum and City Hall San Francisco, California.

vendors: • Main Entrance Booths $1,500• Food Booths $1,200 2nd booth $600 (does not include health and food permits from City of San Francisco) • Businesses $900 • Arts/crafts/textiles $700
• Non-profits/public service $350

Buddha Image Procession and Parade
Suukhwan/Baci New Year Welcoming Ceremony
“Buffalo Roaming” - Story Writing on Life Size Herd of Water Buffalos
Kato Lao Championship Demonstration
Tam Maak Huung/Green Papaya Salad Contest

Kite Making and Kite Flying

New Year Water Splashing Activities
Khene Music with Master Bounseung Synanonh
Lam Folk songs with Mr. Khamta Mounisay
Jonny Olsen
Traditional Music and Dance Performances

click here to see program listing

Contemporary Crafts Market - San Francisco

2009 Contemporary Crafts Market. March 14-15, 2009.
Festival Pavilion, Fort Mason Center, San Francisco, CA.
View their website for more info and listing of vendors.

10:00 am - 5:00 pm, DailyAdmission $7, Children 12 & Under FREE(San Francisco, Calif.) The Contemporary Crafts Market will return to San Francisco’s historic Fort Mason Center March 14-15, 2009, and will showcase over 230 of the nation’s finest artists and their distinctive works.

As the premiere event for one-of-a-kind functional and decorative crafts, the show will present a broad range of pieces including intricate jewelry, unique glassware and ceramics, hand-painted textiles, custom furniture, mixed-media creations and much more. All items on display and for sale have been jury-selected for their exceptional quality.

All the work in these shows is made by the participating artists. All the artists are residents in the United States. The participants have undergone a rigorous screening process to qualify as participants in this show and we are proud to showcase them.

34th Winter Fancy Foods Show

January 18-20, 2009. Moscone Center, San Francisco vendor/exhibitor show info

With 50+ years of history, the Fancy Food Shows are North America's premier showcase for specialty, ethnic, natural and organic foods and beverages. Join us in San Francisco...taste new products, discover trends and get ideas that will differentiate your business and keep you competitive. Plus, you'll save time and money--all the products you need are under one roof!

North America's Premier Marketplace for Specialty FoodsThe National Association for the Specialty Food Trade’s Fancy Food Shows® are the premier marketplace for specialty foods…where retailers, restaurateurs, distributors and others discover innovative, new food and beverage products.

Recent Fancy Food Shows have attracted up to 24,000 attendees from every major food buying channel, influential members of the trade and consumer press and other related businesses.

These attendees come to see thousands of exhibitors from around the world; most are passionate entrepreneurs who created their recipes and started their companies. These trend-setting businesses showcase more than 250,000 innovative products at our annual Shows.

The Great Dickens Christmas Fair

The Great Dickens Christmas Fair. Cow Palace Exhibition Halls, 2600 Geneva Avenue, San Francisco website

Four Weekends including the Friday after Thanksgiving, November 28, 29, 30, Dec. 6, 7, 13, 14, 20, 21, 2008; 11:00am - 7:00 pm General Admission: $22.00 Student/Senior/Military: $19.00 Children 5-11: $10.00 Children Under 5 are Free Groups of 15 or more: $17.00 ($15 for Senior Groups)

The bustling streets of London, immortalized for all time by the mighty pen of Charles Dickens, form the living backdrop of your excursion into Christmas Past. You are a living part of a Victorian Christmas card come to life!
A Bay Area tradition for 29 holiday seasons, the Great Dickens Christmas Fair returns to the San Francisco Cow Palace Exhibition Halls for four weekends , including the Friday after Thanksgiving in 2008, from Friday, November 28 through Saturday, December 21st from 11am 'til 7pm. Created in 1970 by Ron & Phyllis Patterson, the fair is now produced by Kevin & Leslie Patterson & Red Barn Productions, who continue the family tradition of theatrical excellence through authenticity, participation, and playfulness.

Come wander the lanes of Victorian London, as the glow of twilight settles upon the city. With the scent of pine boughs and freshly baked scones floating in the air and the sound of carolers and holiday merrymakers accompanying your stroll

Eco Holiday SF

Eco Holiday San Francisco. Sunday, December 14th, 2008 The Galleria, SF Design Center101 Henry Adams St, SF 94103 (SOMA/Potrero) 11:11AM - 8:08PM
$5 admission / $3 if you ride a bicycle / Children under 12 FREE
Free Bio-Fuel Shuttle to/from Powell St BART / Union Square every hour

A Local Shopping Experience!
A glorious Eco-Mall set in a spectacular 4-story atrium
80 booths of Green Gifts ~ Fashion, Art, & More! See listings
Live Entertainment & DJs all day long
Support Locally-owned Sustainable Businesses. More info here

KPFA Crafts and Music Fair

Dec 13-14. KPFA Crafts and Music Fair, Concourse Exhibition Center in San Francisco.

The 38th Annual KPFA Crafts & Music Fair, the largest weekend holiday craft fair of its kind in Northern California, to be held December 13 & 14, 2008 at the Concourse Exhibition Center in San Francisco. Every year, more than 10,000 collectors, craft enthusiasts and holiday shoppers attend this signature event that features 220 craftsmakers and artists from throughout the country , a gourmet food pavilion and live performances by some of the area’s leading world musicians – all in a warm and spirited ambiance that reflects the Bay Area’s great diversity.

Website VENDORS: This event is listed in Craftmaster News and I would believe they are filled up. For informational purposes. booth fees range from $475-900 with 200 booths.