(A behind‑the‑scenes look at how I lose my mind every month.)

If you’ve ever walked past my booth at the Palm Springs Vintage Market and thought, “Wow, this looks so put‑together,” please know that I am lying to you with my entire body.

Market week is chaos. Not cute chaos. Not “organized chaos.” Just… chaos.

Let me walk you through it.

📦 Step 1: The Inventory Panic

Market week begins with me realizing I have no idea how many pieces I have, how many frames I’ve prepped, or whether I remembered to add tails and whiskers to anything.

I start counting. I lose track. I start over. A cat sits on the pile. I start over again.

By the end of this step, I’ve invented new swear words and found at least one painting I forgot I made.

🎨 Step 2: The Painting Marathon

This is where I convince myself I can finish “just a few more pieces” before Sunday.

I cannot. But I try anyway.

I paint in silence — no music, no TV, just the sound of my own questionable decisions echoing through the room. The cats take turns interrupting:

• Noah walks across the wet paint

• Tessy supervises with disappointment

• GG appears silently behind me like a Victorian ghost

It’s a collaborative environment.

🖼️ Step 3: The Frame Frenzy

I lay out all my frames by size like I’m running a tiny frame dealership on my bed. This is also the moment I remember I sleep in this room.

I match frames to paintings. I match paintings to frames. I match nothing to anything because a cat is now sitting on the exact frame I need.

Eventually, I get everything paired up. Or I give up and say, “This is fine,” even though it’s not.

🏷️ Step 4: The Price Tag Meltdown

Price tags. So many price tags.

I always think I have enough. I never have enough.

I print more. I cut them. I lose them. I find them stuck to the cat. I start over.

By the end, everything is tagged, even things that shouldn’t be tagged.

🧹 Step 5: The Final Inspection

This is where I check:

• Are the canvases secure

• Are the frames clean

• Are the signatures on

• Are the tails and whiskers actually there

• Are the cats done “helping”

• Am I still sane

The answer to the last one is always “no.”

🚗 Step 6: The Load‑In Tetris

I pack the car like I’m competing in the Olympics of spatial reasoning.

Frames. Bins. Tables. Displays. Vintage cat items from Susan. Actual cats trying to climb into the car.

It’s a miracle anything fits.

🌞 Step 7: Market Day

And then… somehow… it all comes together.

The booth looks great. The art looks great. Susan looks great. I look like I’ve been through something, but in a charming way.

People stop by. They smile. They laugh. They buy art. They ask if I do dogs. (I pretend I didn’t hear that.)

And just like that — the chaos was worth it.

Meow for now,

Jeffrey