Solo Fun

All my buddies were otherwise occupied Friday morning, but I always enjoy solo garaging. Sometimes it's nice to go at your own pace, blithely driving on by minimal sales as the spirit strikes you.

(Using that word ‘minimal’ makes me wonder, though – with the seemingly growing minimalist mindset among young folks [a new book on minimalism seems to be published about every 20 minutes], what will the yard sales of the future look like? Okay, there’s your writing assignment for the week – describe a minimalist’s estate sale!)

I saw what I considered to be the most ridiculous item of the day at my very first stop.

A board book version of Moby Dick. I believe it was actually a counting book using the Moby Dick reference as a gimmick, but come on. Board books are aimed at toddlers, Moby Dick is considered one of the milestones of American literature. Think how confused the kids who were exposed to this thing at an impressionable age are going to be when they get to high school or college and find out that Moby Dick is about something other than counting sea creatures.

Needless to say I did not bring this non-classic home with me, but I did find a few other items to add to my non-minimalist lifestyle. Like an ornate metal frame for a 1909 postcard Judy gave me recently

 

and a beautiful little Wedgewood demitasse. I don't drink coffee, but this will be perfect for sipping tea.

I didn’t think these painted shoes would actually fit, but they do. When KK saw them her comment was, “Those are SO you.”

I've been watching for a spring-loaded ice cream scoop, and have passed up several because the prices were too high. This one was fifty cents – the price was just right.

These aren't the greatest for scooping ice cream if it's very hard, but perfect for scooping muffin batter. Much neater than using a spoon.

My favorite find of the day came from the annual sale of a couple of ladies over on the posh side of town. (The governor’s mansion is a few blocks away; that kind of posh.) They always have interesting textiles, and one of them this year was an $8 king size quilt of probably hand-printed cotton from India. 

It's stuffed with thick cotton batting, and the fabric is very soft. And it's reversible, so twice the wear before needing washing.

But of course the important thing is, the girls love it!