Curtis Jere :) :) :) :) :)

I'm sure there are at least a million gifs out there that could mimic the reaction I had internally when I found this in a bathroom during last weekend's estate sale. I'm sure you can imagine it.

There are two leaves that have fallen off (I bought it that way), and they are included with the listing. Initially, after purchasing it, I asked a friend to weld it for me, but this was before he'd actually looked at it, and I saw that the green wasn't a metal patina, but paint on the metal. I decided this morning to list it as-is, and allow the next owner to decide what to do. The welding options didn't sound safe enough to me. It was too risky to harm the piece irrevocably and I wasn't going to do an amateur epoxy job. I'm just not that kind of girl.

Speaking of which, have you ever noticed yourself more as you get older, realize how you are unique in the world? I'm noticing lately how much of a "big picture" person I am. I'm the person who finds things well, but I struggle more with the small details of my business. I'm not inept or anything - I can learn new things - I'm just recognizing that I naturally gravitate towards big ideas and less towards putting a plan into action. Little things scare me. They trip me up. They make me think I'll miss something huge and get trampled for it. I don't know if that makes any sense. I struggle with it most in romantic relationships, when I worry that I'm missing something huge (hugely bad).

But there was no way I could miss these owls. I was prepared. I knew what I was looking at. I'm awesome that way :)

Taking better pictures :)

For the past two years, I have been limited in my ability to produce quality photographs for my listings. I have improvised in ways that have been appropriate to my means, and my abilities, but I have known that certain listings have gone unnoticed because of the quality of the photographs in them.

Van over at Thrift Core posts regularly about the quality of her online shop as connected with the quality of her photographs. It took me a long time to get the hint, but in the past couple weeks, I have had some extra energy to spare, and the photograph you see here is an example of what I came up with. I'm pretty proud of myself right now. I like getting better at things.

Taking better pictures means taking them more than once. It means getting the background right, getting the lighting right, and editing appropriately. This is all time consuming, and I'm not one for time consuming tasks. I like the searching and the finding. The photographing and listing are more difficult for me. I've come to a point where I can make it happen, and do it well, but I still struggle sometimes. I have yet to make any clothing look as good as this giraffe looks :)

Megan's Thrift Hotline :)

Vintage Better Homes & Gardens Magazine: Fun Outdoor Play Structures :)

Wouldn't it be great if there were a thrift store hotline for your city/area? You could call it if you were looking for something specific, and then make a more direct route to your goal. Some places are just not good "vintage" places. Some places have no jewelry. My hotline will be popular because it will save people time and it will make secondhand goods more accessible because they'll be easier to find. Or I'll just say "check eBay". Sometimes that really is your best bet. Thrifting is a consummate art.

I was thinking of this today whilst thrifting, and some cops came looking for watches. I pointed them in a better direction only to find a farmer (i.e. overalls) looking for "a 1920s suit" ten minutes later. He also needed pointing in the right direction, but in that instance, I didn't want to intervene, reminding myself that sometimes I need to mind my own business. Well, most of the time.

I've been acting like a turd lately, a real ass hat, a tool. I'm trying to stop doing that, to stop apologizing for it, and to just keep being better in general. I fail a lot, fall down a lot, and generally just get into ruts and feel stuck. I keep thinking that I've reached some state of adulthood where I stop making stupid mistakes, saying the absolute wrong thing, and pressing send when I'm angry. But being 30 does not an adult make. Being an adult requires hard work, determination, and a hell of a lot of humility. Unfortunately, I'm oftentimes missing the latter.

Peace out.