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Exploring the I.V.: by Laura Mancuso

The nonprofit Main Street Cave Junction’s volunteers coordinated another second Friday Art Walk July 12 in downtown Cave Junction. Because it was so hot outside, the theme was “Ice Cream and Lemonade.” Although the high temperatures kept many away, I did see a number of people come in for some cold treats and to look at the art stations.
I was happy to see new faces in town, many families pushing strollers and holding little ones on their hips.
Although I didn’t make it to every station, in the time I had to explore, I did get my share of sugar and even bought some affordable new art for my home.
First stop was Pappy T’s Pub and Grub. I was starving after working all day and only having a granola bar for lunch, so I ordered some strawberry lemonade and ordered the hummus platter. It was very tasty and the plate was so big that I had to take a to-go box with me. The art on the patio from local couple Joe and Alex was fun to look at. The couple had completely different styles of art. One, did landscape and wildlife and the other did paintings of faces. I almost bought a sketch of a goose, but I remembered I already had a painting of geese that I bought at the Siskiyou Field Institute fundraiser Birds and Brews years before.
At Yeti’s Ice Cream, I bought some lovely nature-themed paintings from Mary Ann Clady. I can’t wait to frame the pieces and fill some bare spots in my world. I didn’t have ice cream at Yeti’s because I had already splurged there on a strawberry shake earlier in the week (which I noisily enjoyed during the city’s park & rec meeting Thursday).
Next, I went to see the paintings of Brandy Williams at Painted Rooster next to Sportsman Tavern. The art was amazing and it will stay on the walls for awhile if you missed seeing them. Looking at the art you could hear the soulful acoustic guitar and singing from Chalo Jules. While I was there I tried the home-churned ice cream. Behind the counter, Neil had hickory nuts to sample. They were delicious, so I chose a cup of the cherry hickory nut ice cream. It was delicious. I also got to sample the wasabi flavor and it was good, just a little strange on the taste buds.
Next stop was Umpqua Native Designs with Kylan Ledford outside of Sportsman Tavern. It was a family affair selling art and fixing Indian fry bread with strawberries and whipped cream. It was fun to watch a mother buy wood work art for her children to paint. I went inside Sportsman to say hello to friends and was just in time to hear my friend Renney Doser sing karaoke with DJ MisFit. He was singing “The Piano Man” by Billy Joel. Renney has such a lovely voice.
After chatting with Colleen and Anne for a while, the time got away from me and I realized that I should bring home dinner to my son Jaxon, home for the summer. So I went to Trillium Bakery and looked at the earrings made by artist Megan Clady and bought a pork elode bowl. While I waited, co-owner Katie Houston gave me a sample of her blueberry lemonade. It tasted amazing!
Our local businesses and artists have so much to offer. If you missed the July art walk, I hope you can come out for the August event. The date will be Aug. 9. If you are a downtown business or Valley artist that would like to participate, reach out to MSCJ President Amy Lusson at https://www.facebook.com/mainstreetcavejunction.
Be sure to check out the Soapbox Derby July 20 at noon on Schumacher St. You can read the ad on A-9.