Sunbury, Ohio is a painfully cute little town very near Westerville, Ohio, where I grew up. As a kid, back when Westerville was a sleepy, isolated village of 15,000, I used to ride my bicycle out the back roads and up to the sleepier, more isolated Sunbury -- there used to be a great little donut shop on the square for breakfast. Most times you could make it half the way there without seeing a car on the road.
I like to think I'm too young to sound this old, but I barely recognize much of the area anymore. In a few short years, suburban sprawl has gobbled up my beloved Westerville. Most of the roads around town have grown from two lanes to four (too dangerous for most cars, let alone a bicycle), and even the zip codes have grown from one to two -- in a town that had a post office no bigger than my living room when I was growing up.
But Sunbury, just a few miles up the road, has somehow managed to survive relatively unscathed. Sure, there's been change and development, but most of it has happened outside of town, out where State Routes 3 and 37 intersect. The town square still looks much the same as it did thirty years ago, and the houses within walking distance are mostly from the last half of the nineteenth century, with just a few built later than 1920 or so. The only change has been some of the old houses have been impeccably renovated, doubtless to suit the tastes of Columbus refugees who slipped into town quietly, seeking a simpler life.
Three times a year, for as long as I can remember -- Memorial Day, the Fourth of July, and Labor Day -- Sunbury has held an antiques show/flea market on the town square. Rain or shine, hot or cold, the spacious lawn that surrounds the old town hall (still the tallest building in town, if you don't count the lumber mill south of the square) becomes a city of canopies, tables and showcases. Some of it looks like the contents of someone's garage. Lately, there's been a disturbing increase in vendors of Asian knock-off purses, clothing and sunglasses. But there's also some pretty nice stuff, plenty to provide a day's entertainment if nothing else.
So three times a year, for as long as I can remember, I've made a pilgrimage to Sunbury. Janet and I met almost eight years ago, and she'd never been there before we met, but from our first Memorial Day together on, she's been right there with me. She even says, if we ever decided to move closer to Columbus for work, that Sunbury is where she'd like to live. That says a lot, coming from someone who has lived her entire life in Newark!
Last weekend was our Memorial Day visit to Sunbury, and it was a test of endurance. With near-record temperatures and bright sun for most of the day, getting through the show required both a snow cone and a large lemon shake-up!
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