Sailing As Therapy

I cleaned my garage a couple of weeks ago. At least I gave it a good start. I threw out a bunch of stuff, boxed up things for electronic recycling, bagged up all the newspapers, and gathered things to get donated to the local assistance league people. It was a carload of stuff. I see the irony of going out every week picking up things I don't need when there's so much other stuff in the house to get rid of. But I can't help myself. I probably need some kind of therapy. But then I tell myself, "This is my therapy." Ahh...a vicious cycle. I still went sailing this morning.





And look! How can you not buy these pretty little molas? Five of them for $10. I have no idea what I'll do with them. The woman who sold them to me said, "I told myself I would make them into pillows and I never did." I get that. I'll never make these into pillows. But to me they're little works of art. And you just can't pass up beautiful artwork when it becomes available. Right?


I also bought two brand new 11 x 14 canvases. Here was my thought process: 'Hmmm. Brand new. $2 each. Great price. Will I ever paint something on these? Maybe. I mean, I have paint, right? Maybe when I'm retired. Maybe in the summer.' So I buy them and throw them in the trunk, & immediately realize that right now I'm completely hooked on "painting" on my iPad so I'll probably never use real paint again. But you never know. And $2 for brand new canvases, still in the wrappers. Great price. See? See how this works?


Also found two big fat David McCullough books for a buck a piece. And last, but definitely not least, this very pretty necklace of turquoise, silver, and whatever those little reddish brown beads are. $3. I figure that if it turns out that I never wear it, (a distinct possibility), someone will want it. And if not, my jewelry-making sister Terry can cut it up for the beautiful beads.












So...therapy is over for this morning. Now to house cleaning and yard work.

Saturday Morning Royalty

There is no place like Southern California in January! It's beautiful today!

Carol & I drove around looking for an estate sale on a street called "King's Row" this morning. We did not find the sale, but we did enjoy the fabulous view, which is truly fit for a king. The houses overlook Newport Harbor and on a clear morning (like today) you can see all the way to Catalina. Very pretty. (Check out the link to this real estate site...you'll see what I'm talking about.)

Here's the morning's haul: a gardening hat & book to serve as inspiration. Someday (when I'm retired) I hope to turn my back yard into a really great garden. $1 each. The hat came from a house that Emily & I visited last spring. These people live at the very end of Mariner's Drive, aptly named, since their house (and tennis court, garden, guest houses etc) sit right above the Back Bay. It's a really beautiful area, and they have a huge chunk of property all to themselves. Unfortunately, the house is completely tacky. It looks like a combination of castle and dentist's office. They had lots of stuff, but besides the hat...not exactly my style. We love it, though, when people open their house and invite you right in! Treasure-hunting and looky-looing all wrapped into one. (I know spell-check will not be happy with that one!)

I found a basket and filled it with kid books at another house, which turned out to be the home of a former colleague of Carol's. It's a rare Saturday when we don't run into at least one person that Carol knows! Basket & all these books: $7.

One other little find: an old tin Egyptian cigarette box. $1. Impossible to pass up.

And finally, I thought you might enjoy seeing the Beanie Babies in action. My third-graders are making their way through their multiplication and division tests. Here are the first two students to make it all the way around, each holding their little prize. The Steller's jay and a little blue chameleon (snatched up immediately by this lizard-lover) were the first to go. That's two down and twenty-seven more to go!

Warm Wind

We're having a Santa Ana this morning: nice, warm, dry wind.

It's a beautiful day. But, being January, still not very many sales.

I did manage to pick up some very nice things, though.

We are hard on things like kitchen utensils and tupperware-type-goodies. We tend to melt them or lose their lids. So I'm always on the lookout for any kind of kitchen goodies that look in better shape than the ones we're currently using. Found a few of those kind of things. Five items for a dollar. You can afford to melt them.

I also found that the resident jewelry lady was out this morning. Emily & I have bought things from her before. I'm not sure where she gets all this stuff, but she always has a really nice selection, and it's always changing. I chose a pair of tiny little turquoise and sterling studs, a new pair of moonstone & sterling drops, and an old pair of dangly silver & onyx earrings. They all need a better cleaning than I've given them this afternoon, but I'm sure they'll shine up nicely. The earrings and a silver chain cost me $25.

My only other purchase this morning is this lovely little wooden Buddha for $1. Very nice.

Now I'm off to work in the yard while the weather's nice!

Hello, 2011: Goodbye, Corporate World

Happy New Year!

The holidays are behind us, and the rain has let up temporarily. Time to hit the sales!

Carol & I were joined by Carol's good friend Gretchen this morning. She was lured out by tales of treasure! Unfortunately, being winter, the pickings weren't stellar today. But we did manage to pick up a few goodies. Gretchen found cast iron pans and two big boxes full of three-ring binders for use in her non-profit organization (which I believe has to do with historic preservation of buildings in Long Beach).

The gentleman with boxes and boxes full of binders (you know the ones: they usually have corporate team-building nonsense in their cover pocket) also had some very nice, freshly laundered (tags attached) business attire for sale. Carol's comment: "Looks like somebody is saying, 'Goodbye' to Corporate America!" I bought three Brooks Brothers shirts for Joe. $2 a piece! I think they're going to fit him perfectly, but if not I'm only out $6. (Check the link: those spuds are pricey!) The seller was a reader, too. A very eclectic collection of novels and classics, many of which I already have. I picked up a few more for a little bit of change. (Yes...Sophocles and Aeschylus...very classy. I recently came across a quote from Aeschylus somewhere that grabbed me...that's where that came from.) The book of poems by Jane Kenyon came from another sale. Carol got excited when she saw it and told me I had to buy it. Then the seller got excited because someone at her garage sale knew who Jane Kenyon was. She was herself a poet, (who isn't really?) just gleaning her overcrowded shelves.

The last little find was a total freebie. One of the sales we hit was in an alley. This little plant stand was sitting out with the trash two doors down. Too cute to pass up! And, as you know, I am not too proud to scavenge!

I hope you find many treasures in 2011.