Friday, I had the pleasure of doing a day trip up to Wisconsin to spend time with a friend and see Paoli Road Mercantile, a shop where my work is being sold.
It all started by picking up Linnea at her farm in the lovely rolling hills not too far from Madison. Now, I have very little knowledge of Wisconsin. Up until about 3 years ago, I had never had a reason to visit. So, Linnea treated me to a brief tour of the campus in Madison, a spin around the state house, and a great lunch at the Weary Traveler.
Eventually, we drove over to Paoli, which is a quaint, blink-and-you-might-miss-it little town. It’s adorable! And Julie’s store, the Paoli Road Mercantile, is doing a great job of setting the tone.
The business is in a fabulous stone building that used to be a cheese shop. To say it’s tiny doesn’t quite portray how cozy it is. Think about the space you’d have in an empty van and that’s pretty close!
Julie’s retail/display intuition gives the space a cool, funky vibe without ever feeling claustrophobic! And that’s tough! She has curated a fabulous collection of interesting gifts and accessories! Linnea and I chatted with Julie in the shop for probably a half hour and I constantly found new things to look at – it was great!
After we left Paoli Road Mercantile, we made one more stop before leaving – the creamery across the street. Yes to get the full impact of the Badger state, you have to experience some cheese! So we sampled some lovely sheep milks cheese and headed back the way we came.
It was such a great day making new connections and strengthening existing ones! Plus, I got cheese and some great stories out the deal – gold star day!
What kind of adventures have you had lately?
Song of the Day – AJR, “Sober Up”
