I get a kick out of the fact that the festival's mascot is the flamingo, and the town of Southwest Harbor really embraces this mascot by decorating yards and businesses with pink flamingos of various sorts (many of them plastic). Why? Mainly because I know that my Grandma, Faye Atwood, finds plastic pink flamingos to be hideous, especially as lawn decor; and also because my Mom, Joni, and my cousin Misty Page, have been known to adorn Grandma's lawn with flamingos in clandestine fashion in times past.
On Saturday, July 11, Julia and I paid a visit to the Harbor House grounds to see the art exhibits and other booths that were part of the festival. At one point, while were taking a look at some nifty pottery, we met a retirement-age fellow named Don Featherstone. If you follow the link you'll see that he's the inventor of the plastic pink flamingo. I learned that the Harbor House invites him to the festival every year. (I also learned from some of the locals that his wife is a seamstress, and that they've worn matching outfits - made by her - every day for the last 30 years. Believe that or not. They were wearing matching outfits the day that Julia and I met them...) I met Mr. Featherstone because someone was asking him about his involvement with the festival, and he was telling them the story of how he made the first plastic flamingo in 1957. I had heard this story before. I interrupted and asked him, "Haven't I heard this story on NPR?" As I struck up a conversation with him, Julia seemed surprised by my enthusiasm. "I've never met anyone I'd previously heard about on the radio before," I explained. It was good for some laughs.
Here are some photos of the flamingos on display around town on July 11.
Here's a couple of photos from the festival's flamingo art galery.
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