East York Picker

"Hey kids, knock it off. It's shenanigans like this that's costing the taxpayers billions each year!"
I've been scanning the local paper, waiting for the Westview Presbyterian Church Bazaar. It's a good one and there's always tons of garage sales running the same day. Well, that day came today. And the weather was perfect.

A happy day with a happy soundtrack to listen to as you view my new treasures.

I first hit the bazaar. I did the initial desperate scan for Pyrex. I'm sure five minutes before I got there, someone loaded up a U-Haul with all my longed for pieces. After accepting that there wasn't even a dishwasher abused casserole dish to be found, I began looking for other interesting things that would put a smile on my face. The prices were rock bottom. Books were .25 and I got the funky cow creamer, the Made in Japan bird planter and tea cup stickies, along with a brand new science experiment kit for $2.50.

It's amazing what a lousy quarter can still get you if you apply yourself.
I love these tender old Golden Books. This one is to teach children about different species of birds.

The illustrations are a thing of beauty.

I bought a flower press a couple of years ago at Value Village for $1.99. I couldn't resist this homemade flower press. I got it along with the thermometer, picture frames, and hankies you'll see below for $2.00.



Here's the science kit that let's kids create stinky scents in test tubes.
This was from the Christmas Posy book at the top. I loved the title.
Off I went into the East York neighbourhood that lies behind O'Connor Bowl. These people are real meat-and-potato Canadians. No latté moms in yoga pants here. Look at the weird desk organizer I got for next to nothing. I had no idea why that picture was in it. I think it was probably the generic picture that came with it and they never bothered to take it out. For $2.00 I got the desk organizer, the very old English candy tin, the tube piggy bank that you can turn to give you computational number facts, Crayola markers and pencil crayons, and a cheese container from the Ontario Dairy Farmer's "Cheese please" era. I used to hate those commercials. I preferred the "Stop cooking with cheese" commercials from a few years ago.

At another house a I bought this compact chalkboard/whiteboard for $1.00 from a friendly mother who was clearing out junk. It will be used in my Primary classroom next year if I can sneak it out of the house without Duncan seeing it go.

This is why I'm Yard Sale Snoop. I had the exact same Woody Woodpecker nightlight when I was a kid. I have a feeling my childhood light came from a yard sale in the seventies. I got this light, along with a box of toy cars and a pile of vintage Fisher-Price toys for $18. The woman originally asked $20 for the lot. My jaw nearly dropped. I was thinking more like $10. For a moment, I turned into one of those American Picker guys and offered her $15. We settled on $18. She was elderly and she told me that her husband had recently passed away. On top of that, her adult son was in a wheelchair and they were HIS toys I was buying. I knew Duncan would be over the moon and the toys would be played with more than a newer toy that would cost more, so I swallowed my thrifty pride and forked out the dough.

Duncan was so excited when he opened the bag of goodies. "You were so generous, Mom," he said. I asked him what the word generous means and he said, "I don't know."

The motherload.

Fisher-Price brings on an ecstatic state of toy delerium.

The ambulance was cool. It comes with a stretcher and sleeping bag inside.
With the $2 I saved by haggling down the toys, I bought this Cardinal windchime foe $1.00 and still had change for Duncan's first tooth that came out this evening. We'd been waiting for two weeks for it to come out. Tonight, he was chewing on the head of his stuffed Ikea rat. I tried to pry it out of his mouth when "pop" out came the tooth. I think he'll get a toonie from the tooth fairy.

Let's hope this is the start of a bountiful yard saling season.

Calling All Bird Lovers

Last week, we had a surprise guest arrive in our humble East York backyard. It had the size of a pigeon, but it looked almost like a Downy Woodpecker due to the red marking on its head. It was pecking away at a dirt patch where raccoons had attacked our grass. Sigh! Does anyone know what this bird is? Sorry about the terrible film quality. I took the pictures through a dirty screen window.

Cheers,

Erin

Awkward Love

If you're feeling blue and you need a good chuckle, just visit Awkward Family Photos. You won't regret it.

She was always on his mind.

Whoa Nelly!

Happy Easter

Happy Easter to all my friends!

Easter 2009

Easter 2010 - Toronto

Easter 2010 - Nana & Gradpas' home in St. Catharines

Easter 2011 - How quickly kids grow up!

Forthcoming Election

I usually keep my political opinions to myself, but I just read in the paper that Jack Layton is gaining in the polls and I thought I'd do my part to rally thrifters in Canada to push him towards victory. Ha! I don't like Stephen Harper. He's our PM. He comes across as cold and overly controlling. Michael Ignatief is running for the Liberal Party. He's too much of an academic intellectual. Jack is a people person and I feel like I can trust him.

Anyway, vote for the person who will do good things in your riding.

Thing Called Love - Finally

Thanks to P who helped me find the embed code on YouTube. At long last, we can enjoy Dennis Quaid in Bonnie Raitt's "Thing Called Love" video. I remember enjoying this as a teenager, even though I was at the peak of my moody, gothy phase. That's the power of a well-crafted song by John Hiatt. Enjoy!

Lucky Thrifter's Awesome Finds

I was just visiting Lucky Thrifter's blog. You must see her fabulous treasures from a recent sale. Check it out Lucky Thrifter. You'll feel good when you read the story.

Erin

I was going to leave a song, but the embed code seems to be gone from YouTube. Does anyone know about this?

Just the Ticket

Last Thursday night, I hit our local Value Village, looking for something - anything good. This is the store with the scary manager with the bad perm. Not only was he not there, but I found these two Spring Blossom Cinderella bowls for $4.99 and $5.99. Not bad. Never throw in the towel with this collecting caper.

Have a fun and fruitful thrifting weekend.

Erin

For Love or Money? My American Pickers Post

Don't be too dazzled by Mike's matinee idol good looks. He's after your grandmother's ring collection for $2.

As a thrifter and lover of old timey treasures, you'd think I would have been following American Pickers from the get-go. Not so. I'd heard about it, but could never find it on the TV dial, until last night when I stumbled upon the History Channel. I guess I never watch the History Channel. If you're living abroad and not sure of what it is, American Pickers is a show that follows two funny guys around the sheds and storage facilities in America, looking for cool, old junk that they can sell in their antique store back in Iowa. If you're interested in Americana and vintage goodies, it's required viewing. Still, I found that my heart broke a little when I watched Mike and Frank offer an old widow rock bottom prices for treasures her husband had collected. They were practically rubbing their hands together as they loaded the van and drove off, calculating how much profit they could make. Sure, they've got the expenses of running a business and they're trying to make a living. Also, some of the sellers they encounter ask extortion prices for their decaying ephemera... but still, it's pretty cut-throat. I for one could not bring myself to not buy something that I love and want to keep.

Here is the perfect example of an old treasure that I'll never part with. My father is a real collector and he recently gave me this very old whistle. It's got the classic whistle shape and it's sturdy enough to survive a nuclear explosion.
Here's the best part. My father's Australian and look where it's from: Sydney, Australia. I love it. I'll have to ask him how how it came to him. How could I ever sell something like this?
It's called Aussie Thriller and if you look closely, you can still see the old cork ball inside.
On the other side of the love or sell debate, here are some vintage souvenir tea towels I bought at a garage sale in my neighbourhood a few years ago. The seller wanted $5 for each. It seemed a little steep given that it was a garage sale. You could tell she was a Martha Stewart-type who had done her research. "They're worth a lot more than that. They're collector's items." I'm loath to haggle over prices. I'm a take it or leave it woman. When you see how charming they are, you'll see why I gave her $10 for the pair. They make me happy. One day, I'll press these towels and mount them in frames.
I wish pickers would leave garage sales and thrift stores alone for the lovers, but it's a free world.

Anyway, I'll still keep on collecting for the love of it. I have no intention of ever opening up an antique store. For those of you who are amassing a collection of old things in your basement or garage, dust them off and enjoy them before it's too late. One day you'll be dead and the pickers will come-a-knocking.

Despite my mixed feelings about the way these guys do business, AP is a highly watchable show, so check your local listings. The History Channel has several episodes on AP's page. Canadian Pickers is starting this Tuesday. Ironically, the Canadian Picker guys look more American than the American guys, who describe themselves as "a couple of hayseeds from Iowa." The Canadians look like stand-ins from Bonanza.

Above: the Canadian Pickers. See, I told you they look like they're from Texas. This show is coming soon to a TV station near you - at least in Canada.