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 :)

What I bought and sold.

1. Vintage Sunset Stitchery kit
2. Vogue sewing pattern
3. Alice in Wonderland rubber stamps
4. Anthropologie floral coffee mug
5. Vintage framed tropical painting
6. Vintage Men's bodybuilding brass belt buckle
7. Vintage olive green necktie
8. Vintage Valuetales book lot (19)
9. Christian disciples wall plaque
10. Men's shirt with horse heads on it
11. Vintage small orange Hanova dish

Interested in what I sell? You can see the whole list here. It's eclectic. It's vintage. It's boring. It's mine and I love it :)

Thrift Share - Estate Sales :)

Morgan Dennis poodle sketch on tile

Saturday morning, I went to an estate sale two hours north. I have found a company I really really like and have found that this is key to a good sale. Good professional people who know what they're doing make great choices. I love a good adventure, and have committed to being 'ok' with whatever happens. I'm not a crazy early-riser, so I like to give myself room to sleep as long as I need instead of waking up at 5am to be the first there. It's more important to me to take care of myself than it is to get the best stuff.

So Pretty eau de parfum from Cartier

There are a lot of different kinds of estate sales. Some estate dealers only want to sell to collectors, so everything is priced ridiculously high. I hate these sales. I think these people are fooling themselves (my not-so-humble opinion). Then there are others that go through everything and leave the remnants. These aren't even really "estate" sales. I can tell right away when I get there early and the house is empty. Then there are the super pros who have no interest in the love of thrift and recycling. They just want to sell stuff for as much as they can, have no interest in anything but money, and aren't typically very friendly or accommodating.

Couroc of Monterey 'Karate Cart' platter/plate

A good company is organized, knowledgeable, and helpful. This house I was in on Saturday was super-small and packed with stuff, so it was difficult to walk around and get to stuff. One of the employees helped me get a box so I could organize my stuff. It helped me so much. What a sweetheart. And when their iPad Square didn't work, they held my stuff for me while I went in search of cash, and remembered my name when I returned. Their prices were reasonable. The house was clean and well marked. They made it clear that they didn't accept deals on Saturday (pretty common, but I always ask).

It was a lovely morning. I found great stuff, and I was happy for the rest of the day. I got through a lot of the listings for the perfume I bought, and made a plan for the rest. I'm beginning to feel like I'm expanding. Maybe I'm just buying a lot of inventory ;)

Linking up with Nifty Thrifty and Sir Thrift a Lot :)

Salvation Army fun :)

I thrifted today for several hours. I woke up, got myself together, and got out the door. I had several packages to drop off at the post office, then got some pan dulce for a ridiculous $1.20. One of the stores smelled a little ripe, so I was hesitant to hang around too long. Smells mess me up. I can't handle bad smells. I spent a week at a landfill in Mexico when I was a kid, and I'll never forget it.

I wanted to see some jewelry at the Salvation Army, so I asked the lady next to me if I could look in front of her. She was a large woman, and she and her cart were blocking the whole case. Also, she isn't looking at anything. She's just standing there. So I ask politely, she replies "yes", and returns to staring blankly straight ahead. "Hm, okay", I say, and walk away. "I'm looking!", she shouts. Really, I didn't have it in me to deal with that kind of crazy this morning. I almost cried when I saw a guy, and I was trying pretty hard to act normal.

Last week, at another Salvation Army across town, there were two men in a dressing room at the front of the store. It was early in the morning, but no employees were around. One man was trying on clothing and the other man was making commentary. The door was wide open. An employee walked the thirty yards from the back of the store straight to the man and said, "Sir, you need to close the door." He didn't. "You need to close the door right now." He did. I tried to smile at her, but she's not much of a connector with customers.

Final winner of the week is the eighty-year-old woman trying on a string bikini over her clothing in the aisles at the first Salvation Army. I wished I could have documented that moment and then asked her for an interview. No shame.

Thrift Share :)

I've taken to buying perfume pretty much wherever I go. Sometimes I buy stuff that isn't worth all that much, but sometimes I buy stuff that is worth its freakin' weight in gold. Case in point: This Opium shit from Yves Saint Laurent is like crack for the people who wear it because YSL changed the formula and it's universally panned by critics. Bring in resellers who don't care to wear the stuff and you've got an interesting eBay siteeation.

I love buying bags of stuff, bags of jewelry, bags of perfume. I love the not-knowing, the waiting 'til I get to my car to ravenously dig through it to see what I've got. Of course, I only buy it if I see something in it worth buying, but it's all the stuff I didn't see that really excites me. Then my car and my person smell like ten kinds of cologne and perfume and I take the bag home and spend the rest of the evening researching bottles and how much I should list them for. The thrill is in the hunt, my friends.

My newest thrift store boyfriend is a bearded fellow who swears I look exactly like his friend Megan who works at Ruth's Chris in the kitchen, grillin' steaks. Now he doesn't seem like a guy who would hang out at such a hoity-toity establishment, with the hair and general swarthy demeanor, but he's kind to me, and has yet to totally creep me out, so I'm starting to be friendly back to him, show him what I find, make fun of the broken leaf-blower he has in his cart.

There are way more male resellers in town than there are females. I see these men all the time, sometimes every day, and I know I'm more like them than I care to admit. I don't want to claim them as my peers, what with all the talking about electronics, and jibber-jabbering with thrift store employees about how they run their business. I like to keep to myself, make smart comments occasionally, but generally stay under the radar. These men are not under-the-radar sorts. They're always talking to eachother and just generally gabby. I'm loathe to be besties with these guys. They're just so, I dunno, unpretentious. Listen to me. I'm such a hypocrite.

Linking up with Sir Thrift A Lot :)

Thrift Share :)

Jie Sweden Ceramic Traveling Couple

I think I'm getting better at finding things. These three selections from my last few days are a good representation of my awesomeness. I traveled an hour south today to hit three shops in one city, and bought something at every one of them, which made me feel like the trip was worth it. The Ferragamo pumps and Hug print definitely sealed the deal.

Salvatore Ferragamo Suede Pumps

I thought I'd stop on the way home, but I was extra tired from a long weekend. Friends threw me a housewarming, and there were over thirty people at my house on Saturday afternoon, on into the early evening. It was the perfect day for it. People mostly stayed outside in the backyard, under the big tree, and enjoyed themselves.

Fritz Rudolf Hug - Stretched Canvas Print

Sometimes it's hard to get up on Monday morning and hit the ground running. This morning was especially important for me. I needed to focus on my work after an especially emotional weekend. Sometimes life has the worst timing. There's something about work (thrifting in my case) that keeps me grounded. I need to work. I need to have purpose, even when life feels hopeless or scary or sad.

People brought me all sorts of lovely things for my housewarming. Some people even brought secondhand stuff. My bff brought me a round pedestal table and chairs that fits perfectly in my little eat-in kitchen. She found them at Salvation Army. The thrifting gods were shining down on me that day :)

Linking up with Nifty Thrifty & Sir Thrift a Lot.

Selling art :)

I think I sell art. I occasionally sell art. I've sold a lot more art in the past month or so, especially the week after Christmas. I feel good about my decision to sell art. All that being said, I know absolutely nothing. I have a good eye - this much I know. This helps. I rarely purchase anything I don't appreciate looking at. This is important.

Anything I know is because I have researched it for my store. My German friend learned about art in school. I had some art instruction, but I don't recall learning about styles. I wish I knew more about styles and periods of art. Sorry art-teacher-of-old. I'm sure you did your due diligence. I was a bit out of it as a teenager. I don't blame you.

So every time I find something I like, I start researching similar pieces to find a general pricing structure, but mostly I want to know how to describe the damn thing. Is it impressionist? Realist? Modern? Expressionist? How the hell should I know? Well, I make more money when I put the right words on, so I put the time in.

That's all I have for today :)

Silver everything.

I've sold a fair bit of silver in the past month or so. I sold a lot of odd-and-ends sterling jewelry. I sold a set of three sterling soup spoons. I sold a set of matching cufflinks and a tie pin. I'm a fan.

I bought the soup spoons with these knives. I couldn't believe that I actually found sterling spoons, as in, full size sterling silver spoons. I felt like I'd won the freakin' lottery. So when they weren't selling, I spent a couple hours really trying to figure out what the pattern was, since the pattern wasn't matching anything the manufacturer ever made in sterling. Eventually I was able to name the pattern, and that's when they sold. $150 for three spoons. Heavenly.

I'm off to a memorial service in the morning. My bff will be accompanying me for emotional support. I don't know what I'll be walking into, who I'll see from my past, who will be nasty (it's happened before). I'm right on the edge of feeling capable of staying in one solid adult-sized piece the whole time. I will likely be getting pan dulce for the road, with my favorite cafe con canela. Food is inextricably linked to my emotional health (thanks diabetes!). But really, food makes me feel capable in a deeper way than the provision of energy. Food gives me literal and figurative fuel for the journey. Isn't that weird, how something so primitive can become so inextricably linked to who we are?

Chew on that, yo.

Thrift Share :)

Vintage Clipless Cycling Shoes from Diadora

I have a new fun Monday activity. I drive about 45 minutes south, into the country towns, where there is a small town with great thrifting. I even did myself a solid and ate lunch instead of what I usually do: waiting until 3 o'clock when I'm done running around for the day. I was pretty proud. I got a veggie burger and fries. The people next to me had chicken fried steak platters with mashed potatoes, etc. When I left, I realized they had smothered gravy and potatoes with raisins across the plate. How did my Oakie family never teach me this? Anyhow, I got some great stuff and had a really good time.

Vintage 1950s Silk Vera Scarf with African Women :)

There was a lady with a toy yorkie in one store, and someone asked her how much she paid for it (seemed like a strange question to me). She answered without hesitation, "$500". Wow.

Hanova of Pasadena Candle Holder - Very Cool

I actually tried a new thrift store, which I rarely do, since they are usually pop-ups with no vision and close just as soon as they started. Anyhow, the place was great! It was cleaner than any other store in town. They didn't have a ton of great stuff, but they had great prices. I actually bought my first maxi dress which goes all the way to the ground (wow, and I'm tall!). I'm gonna wear it today. I'm pretty excited about it.

Please take a moment to read the most recent news about Syria, and consider making a donation to MCC, currently providing direct aid to Syrian refugees.

The big picture.

I'm so in love with this painting :)

I've sold a lot of stuff in the past few days, so I'm feeling really good. For a long time, I've had a goal of selling 50 things a month for at least $20 profit/item, and that hasn't been working the way I've expected it to. My new goal is $50/day, and it's working a lot better. I'm less concerned with individual item sales and more concerned with daily sales. It makes me more conscious of the bigger picture instead of being bogged down in the little things. I don't know if that makes any sense, but it's working for me, so I'm happy.

I tend to get really anxious about little things, and pulled down into things that may not matter in the long term. I'm convinced that little things are the most important things, like how my thrifting impacts the world, and how my riding the train keeps Amtrak sustainable. I don't think this is working for me the way I want it to. I think it's keeping me from bigger things, from having a bigger impact. I dunno. I'm still on my first cup of coffee.

I am surrounded by helping professionals. I'm a seminary graduate. I have a lot of friends who are pastors, theologians, professors, non-profit peeps. I love this. I love being surrounded by people whose mission every day is to make a difference in the world, in the community. This keeps me motivated and inspired to keep going, even when I'm having an off day. I think a lot of these people vacillate between two extremes, the big picture and the small details. I'm realizing, as I write this, how limited I've allowed my life to be, by getting so caught up in little things. Thought for my day, I suppose :)

Please take a moment to read the most recent news about Syria, and consider making a donation to MCC, currently providing direct aid to Syrian refugees.

Bag o' bling: Part 2

A selection of pieces from the jewelry bag

I don't think I'm going to do anything today. In the past three hours, I have already stepped into a sinkhole, plugged up a dog-dug hole in the fence with bricks, and ended a dog fight with a hose. Yeah, I'm a bad ass. I know. Also, I cooked and ate a stack of pancakes.

I'm still thinking about the jewelry bag I bought last week. It was so much fun to go through the thing after I brought it home. I spent most of the day going through it, examining each piece, selecting the ones I wanted to keep for myself. I can't wait to do it again. I unwittingly discovered another thrifting thing I absolutely love. I don't know why I chose that particular day to do it. I'd seen jewelry lots before. I guess I never felt the need to treasure hunt before. It was a blast :)

My new goal is for $50 a day in sales. My ultimate goal is $100/day, but I figured I needed some middle ground before that time. I'm trying to avoid low value items as much as possible, though occasionally I find something that I have to share. Anyhoo, I am at my goal right now for the month, so I'm feeling like a really good reseller. I'm also feeling like a really tired reseller, trying to work as much as possible when I'm able, housesitting all over town, and making sure the dog gets walked and I get exercise. I'm getting it all done, but I'm feeling worn down in general.

Please take a moment to read the most recent news about Syria, and consider making a donation to MCC, currently providing direct aid to Syrian refugees.

Bag o' bling: Part 1 :)

Six pound bag of jewelry from Salvation Army :)

On Monday, I went out to thrift just a little bit, because I didn't want to leave the dog alone for long, and it was a holiday so not all of the stores were open. Salvation Army had a 50% off all clothing sale, but I didn't buy any clothing. I bought some art and this here bag of jewelry.

Now Salvation Army employees are my favorite. They work really hard, and so many of them have told me how much they appreciate their jobs. Sometimes they recognize me and are a little too friendly, but this is not the norm. So Monday, I got in the only line available. All of the employees were taking the day to clean the entire store, so the only line available was with someone who I'd never seen before, selling fifty hardcover books to a well-dressed woman who appeared to be purchasing books for a model home or something.

Now the cashier was slow with the books. All she really had to do was count them, but for some reason she was ringing them up one at a time. The customer was being super patient too. Off to the side was a man with a scraped-up face, who smelled like cigarettes and looked like he may have been drinking. But he was smiling and not bothering anyone, just patiently waiting to buy a new shirt. So I got behind book lady, and the cashier starts to have an anxiety surge of some kind. She turns to face scrape man and says, "The line is over there!" and points to me. She says it several times because he doesn't move very quickly. He doesn't want to crowd model home woman, so he stands off to the side. The cashier starts yelling at him, "That's not the line! This is the line!" and points to me (we're dealing with a very small space, there are carts involved, and clothing racks in the way). I tried to be calm and encouraging to her. The guy was doing his best and not being a nuisance, but she was clearly disturbed by his face and smell and couldn't get over her fear of him. They reached some sort of detente when he started to get frustrated by her ridiculous demands, and she went back to the books.

In the middle of all of this, and a line of three people behind model home woman, a manager came over to get something and said, "Let me know if you need any help, k hon?" The cashier is in so much distress at this point that she can't even respond, and the manager walks away. Face scrape man yells "She needs help!" He rushes over to the manager, points to the cashier, and repeats, "She needs help!"

All three of us in line moved across the store to the other register. When I left, the cashier was still ringing up the books.

Please take a moment to read the most recent news about Syria, and consider making a donation to MCC, currently providing direct aid to Syrian refugees.

Goooood morning!

Art Nouveau Cast Iron Frame - Daydreaming Woman

It's 10:45am, and I'm just starting to feel awake. All my life, I have forced myself to be an early-riser, and now as an adult, I'm finding that that may not actually be who I am. I've just started watching this eBay shop for what they're selling, and have been enjoying looking over the art that they sell. I need to get a bunch of things together to ship this morning, and then I'm going to do some thrifting, see my Salvation Army pals.

I left pancake batter out for a couple days after I didn't use it all. After one day, it made good pancakes. After two days (i.e. just now, this morning), it was disgusting. Lesson learned. I may eat a lot of pancakes for a normal person who does not live in a diner. I'm okay with that. I decided a long time ago that if I want to eat pancakes, I will make them whole wheat/buckwheat, and I won't feel guilty. I will feel awesome for taking care of myself so well.

Someone confronted me about reselling over the weekend, and I responded without ire (very proud of myself for this). "Is that even legitimate?" "Yup", I responded, "without question". This is, at its essence, what all wholesalers do. Office Depot does not make all of its products. Junk warehouses make money from people digging through their wares. This is part of the economy. If you pay attention, it's happening all around you. Farmers sell their produce through stores. I'm all about buying direct, giving business to the little guy, and I'd like to remain in that role. I'd like to be the little guy who collects cool stuff to offer to people who happen to be looking for it, but don't have the time and energy to thrift constantly. I'd like to offer a service to people who love the hunt, but want to hunt on a larger scale (not everyone has thrift stores on every corner). Anyhoo, I was reinvigorated for my task at hand, and will enjoy the hunt that much more today (when I get off my butt and get down to it, of course).

I attend an amazing church that talks about refugees, and yesterday we talked about the Old Testament, the book of Jeremiah, and the realities of war refugees then and now. Please take a moment to read the most recent news about Syria, and consider making a donation to MCC, currently providing direct aid to Syrian refugees.

Thrift Share Monday :)

Vintage New Kids On The Block sleeping bag :)

I've been thrifting like a fiend lately, thrifting good art, bad art, pants, dresses, vintage shoes, and everything in between. I have a big pile of packages in my front room, ready to be sent out today. I haven't been blogging because I've had nothing to say. I've been housesitting and reading good books, swimming and combing warehouses for new and interesting things for my shop. But I need to be back out on the blogging scene again. I need to write, and find reasons to write. I need to work on my novel that I began over the summer (maybe none of this will happen, but I will at least post pictures of my finds).

I would like to post daily over the next month or so, to increase visibility to the reality of Syria and the needs of Syrian refugees. Please take a moment to read up on the most recent news, and donate to Mennonite Central Committee. MCC works to supply the basic needs of Syrian refugees through food, shelter, and the education of children. They are currently working towards raising $1.5M.

Thrift Share - Brass Edition :)

Vintage Apple Belt Buckle by BTS - 1978

One day, one completely normal boring day, I found two of these buckles. Two. I've listed them for the highest price they sold for in the past few months, and crossed my fingers. If I sell one, I'm going to visit my friend in Canada. Fingers crossed. I have "Best Offer" on it, so maybe someone out there, somewhere in the big wide world, will want it.

I'm willing to wait.

These Ernest Sohn Design - Brass Coaster

My fourteen-year-old friend and I went rummage sale-ing two Saturday mornings ago, and that pretty much fell flat. Rummage sales have huge ranges. My view of a good rummage sale is a lot of stuff to dig through. Anything less than a lot is a yard sale. When you see a lot, you just know.

Rummage sale-ing wasn't going so well, so we drove to a thrift store to make up for it. But on the way, we saw an "Estate Sale" sign, and it was a special sign made of wood and painted, so it was the real deal. And it was worth it. The house was full of stuff, and the estate sale was being run by a dealer. Every single freakin thing was marked and they weren't taking any offers, so I only bought a few things, but it was a fun place to walk through. Tons of vintage stuff, and hundreds of decorative plates.

Brass mice family - these are the kids :)

I found this little family of mice, two parents and three kids. I found the Ernest Sohn piece nearby. I've heard that bras is supposed to be cool right now. What do I know?

Today is Memorial Day, and I slept in late and now I feel drugged and maybe like I won't accomplish anything for the rest of the day, and I might be okay with that. Anyhoo, when I went to Hawaii a couple years back, I went to the Pearl Harbor Memorial, and the message was "Remember". I kept thinking about all of the people who have died, and all of the soldiers overseas in wars that few of them believe in, and I thought, "What are we remembering? What's the point of remembering if we never do anything different?"

Do something different today.

*Linking up with Apron Thrift Girl :)

Taxes make me crazy.

I think that these vintage Italian gold pumps (totally '80s) are hot :)

I have been having so much anxiety about my taxes this year. I have claimed my earnings since opening my eBay store, but this is the first year that I have collected sales tax, and I registered as a business. Suddenly, I'm paying business/retail tax, which I still haven't figured out, and I can't figure out how the fuck to pay my sales tax, and it's starting to drive me crazy.

So this morning, I finally sat down to do my taxes, and get through my pile of personal and business paperwork, medical bills, etc. So much money going away, but I haven't bounced a check in a long time, so I'm feeling really good about myself. I'm paying way less for inventory, and my February sales were awesome (and February tends to be a slow month). Wow, second paragraph has helped me feel better already.

Peace out :)

Mug share :)

Doesn't this remind you of truck-drivers?

I don't know why this mug thing has taken such a hold on me, but it has. It's my thing, and I like having a thing. Maybe when I have a bigger place, I'll have room for some sort of bizarre incongruous collection. I try not to get attached to things, though, so that keeps me from making collections of anything.

The mug only holds a little liquid - false bottom :)

Severe hoarding is a way to hold onto things that we have lost, a tangible way to hold on to the intangible. I've always been super reticent to hang onto things. I occasionally get rid of things, just to make sure I'm not holding on too tightly. That makes me sound somewhat paranoid, now that I think about it. Maybe that's not so healthy, the not wanting to hold onto things.

Somewhere out there is a matching mug that says "me"

I guess I try to walk a fine line between keeping and throwing away, but I don't think I'm very good at it. Just when I think I've figured it out, the pendulum swings in the opposite direction.

Anyhoo, let me know if you collect certain mugs, and I'll be on the lookout for you :)

Recycled bubble wrap :)

A reselling blogger sells these all the time - I have been less successful

So a part of being "The Recycling Ethic" is in trying to use recycled materials as much as possible. I'm pretty picky about what I buy for shipping, because I'm constantly using shipping materials, and so this is the area I have the most potential for creating waste (or lack thereof). So I buy recycled labels and envelopes. I use all kraft tape, no plastic tape. Blah, blah, blah. I'm so awesome.

For a while, I've been buying bubble wrap from someone across the country who recycles large bubble wrap. I don't know where the product originates, but it comes taped together with masking tape, so it even looks recycled. But recently, I found a new recycled bubble wrap seller on eBay, and it's only a few hours away from me (a couple hundred miles), so I don't have to wait as long for it to arrive. Somehow the seller saves this pristine bubble wrap from a large-scale furniture company, and resells it (at what appears to be a zero profit margin) to continue the waste-reduction cycle.

Anyhow, we're kindred spirits, this bubble wrap recycler and I. And though we are small, insignificant eBay sellers who sell trash on the internets, I believe that our awesomeness will somehow surreptitiously seep into our packages, and influence our customers, who will then continue the cycle, and on and on.

I've been wanting to buy this stamp for ages, but it seems too decadent. It does need to be said, however, since I'm expecting that my customers are kindred spirits. I shouldn't assume though. I should make it clear that in addition to the recycled product you are purchasing, I also want to invite you to participate by reusing the packaging.

All for now :)

Mug share :)

B. Kliban Cat skating mug

Kliban mugs are pretty popular. I myself am not very fond of cats. I've become less fond of them as time has gone by. Dogs are better. That's how I feel. Deal with it. Cats are selfish, self-centered, egotistical, etc. They serve no purpose. Rant over. However, if you live on a farm, and the cats take care of rodents, then I rescind my rant, and find them to be quite useful. Not hypocritical. Pragmatic.

Boynton beaver dam mug

I don't find Boynton mugs as endearing as a lot of people, but they sell well, and I enjoy sharing them with others. I'm pretty flush with mugs this weekend, got a good healthy stash going. Storage is always an issue, but they stack fairly well, and can be seen pretty quickly. I had a moment a few weeks ago when I thought about making my Etsy shop into a vintage mug shop, but that seemed to be too much work for the moment, and I'd miss the eclecticism that I've got going, so I've put it off for the moment.

Anthropologie initial mug

I have a coworker who always drinks out of this mug (with her initial on it), so I knew it as soon as I saw it. I'm not as fluent in Anthropologie brands and symbols as other people are, so I lucked out this time. Some people are all about brands whilst thrift shopping. Me, less so.

I am, however, having a lot of trouble dressing myself lately, which is anecdotal at best, but really important to my everyday functioning. Maybe it's the cold. I'm just having trouble with my current sweaters combined with pants, combined with tops, and then I feel like I'm a freakish color wheel with no sense of matching, and then I only have black tights which don't go with much, except black and then I look like I'm in mourning, but I don't want to wear bright colors, because then I'd look even more discombobulated. Or maybe observers think I'm a genius who's too brilliant to be understood. This lack of appropriate matching is only worsened by my hair, which has reached epic levels of fro-ishness, and it's making me have some identity issues.

I'm currently hooked on The X Files, which is awesome. All is well :)

Sterling silver :)

The ultimate thrifting problem: non-working watches

So I was out-of-town yesterday for a meeting and needing a thrift fix before I drove back home. I stopped at a large charity store en route, and was happy to see that they were open 'til 6 (it was already 5).

I wasn't very excited, until I remembered that I, as a reseller, actually look for specific things, and that I might find cool stuff (I know, I'm weird - thrift wandering is good on its own). So I walked over to the mugs, looked through the vintage ties, found a man excitedly looking through records, all with empty hands. I found some red Vara bow Salvatore Ferragamo shoes, but they were in bad shape, and they were size 7AA, so I didn't feel up to fixing them, only to have them sit in my shop for a year.

Behind the front counter, the store had small plastic tubs, filled with jewelry. I asked the employee to let me see them, which he gave me one at a time, and I slowly went through the hundreds of pins, earrings, and necklaces, all in small plastic bags, looking for sellable pieces. In the end, I found about 2 ounces (over 50 grams) of sterling silver jewelry for a little over $4. I can't quite explain it, but it made my day. It made me feel smart and thrifty and productive for the day.

I finished off this awesome day with a taco truck burrito and a crazy-exciting high school girls basketball game. The team I was there to see was up by eleven in the first few minutes, only to find themselves down by two, with two minutes left in the 4th quarter. A foul, followed by two perfect foul shots (Ack! One minute left!) and a three-pointer with 21 seconds on the clock. Booyah. Great game.