THE BOOKS I BOUGHT

What's with the yard sales this year? Generally speaking--they suck warty pickles! With so many people in financial difficulties, you'd think that the sales would be full of stuff as people scramble to come up with money to pay their bills.

Apparently not so.

But I did get a couple of good things this week--books, probably the last thing I need--but something I always want.

As far as I can remember, I only read one Little House book by Laura Ingalls Wilder. That was in third grade. While I remember liking it, I didn't know there were any more in the series (apparently our school library didn't have them), and I was clueless until the TV series. By then, I was more into mysteries than "family fare."

When I had my booth at an antiques co-op, I sold a LOT of used books by Ms. Wilder. They seem to speak to children, or at least to parents or grandparents who wanted to share those stories with another generation. But I never kept any for myself.

Saturday, I came across three of the titles for 50 cents each: Farmer Boy, The Long Winter, and These Happy Golden Years. I may not read them until I get the rest of the series and then read them "in order." But they are now in the To-Be-Read pile.

The other book I got was "The Clue of the Broken Locket" -- a Nancy Drew book, a 1943 edition with, alas, no dust jacket. (But I found a copy of it on Wikipedia--isn't it delightful?) Confession Time: I have never read a Nancy Drew book, but I suppose there's still time.

What's in your TBR pile?

Time for tea?

Almost a month ago, Martha Stewart was making tea out of cow manure. I know it was before June 12th, because that's the last time I saw any daytime TV. You know, that's the day when TV signals went digital and that was the end of all my TV watching in the kitchen. (We do have a TV hooked up to cable, but we watch DVDs on that one.)

But I digress.

I'd heard about manure tea for the garden, because my parents had done it years ago. (Here's how.)

(Have you heard the really old joke: Do you put manure on your strawberries? No, we put whipped cream on ours.)

My folks had some work done in the yard last year, and the workman just about killed their beautiful clamatis. So in an effort to bring it back this year, they gave it some manure tea. Hot-damn! It said, and did come back. My mother also put the tea on the coneflowers. Holy crap! Did they love that tea. (Have you ever seen 4 foot coneflowers before? I never have.)

My bean crop is suffering. Between not enough rain, hailstorms, and too much rain, some of my plants are stunted.

Can you guess what is in their future? Yes! Cow manure tea! I'm also going to give my cosmos a shot, too. They've been in the ground for six weeks and they've hardly grown at all. Other people have cosmos and they're tall, willowy, and FULL of flowers. Not mine. Not ever.

Yup, today's the day for a nice cup of cow manure tea.

HAPPY 4TH OF JULY

Catching up

Last week the sales were really terrible. Maybe it's the continual wet weather we've had. It's been so bad, even my cat Fred has been hiding under an umbrella.

In addition to the flamingo, I did find a couple of other items. Man, you can't go wrong for a quarter. (Total expenditure this weekend: $1.75. I think I spent at least three times that much in gas.) I got a couple more nice baskets (no pictures of them) that I'll use at Christmastime. I like to make up gift baskets with edible treats, DVDs, books, etc. aimed at the victim . . . er, I mean recipient. They're more fun for me (although not necessiarly less expensive than some other gift), and lots of fun for the person getting it.

But I did get a couple of things for me. I love things from the Arts and Crafts movement from the early 20th century. And one of my favorite places to go for lunch is East Aurora, home of Elbert Hubbart. (Go for lunch or dinner: the Globe Hotel serves the very best fish fry in the USA.) I found this little Roycroft butter pat at my favorite little (church) thrift shop for a quarter. It was made by the Buffalo Pottery Company and is dated 1925. It probably came from the Roycroft Inn (which I believe burned in 1938). I've got a tiny plate hanger I got from Vidler's (a wonderful five and dime still running in East Aurora) and I'll hang it in my office.

The other quarter steal was this wonderful rooster newspaper stand. I often can't read the newspaper (no cracks about bifocals, please) and thought -- what the heck! Fold it up, put it on the stand and I'll have it handy (and taking up less space on the breakfast table, too).

As it's a holiday weekend, I expect there'll be less sales. I sure hope the ones scheduled won't get washed out.

In any case--have a Happy 4th of July!

SUMMER FUN

What is with the garage and yard sales of late? I've found very little to buy. But Saturday was a bit different. I finally found something I wanted and needed. And at 75 cents, what a bargain!

What fun thing did you find at the latest sale?

Mini Spinach Quiches

The sales this week really, really STANK. I went to at least a dozen sales and spent exactly $1. Nothing was worth taking a picture of--or blogging about. Last week, I mentioned that I bought a mini muffin pan so I could make mini quiches, and I promised to post the recipe. Well, here it is.

Mini Spinach Quiches

1 cup butter or margarine, softened
1 package (3 ounces) cream cheese, softened
1 cup all-purpose flour
3 slices bacon
¼ cup chopped green onion
2 eggs
½ cup half-and-half cream
½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
¼ teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 (10 ounce) package frozen spinach, thawed and well drained (use your hands to squeeze out the water)

Preheat oven to 350º degrees.

In a skillet, cook the bacon until brown and very crisp; drain. Saute the onions in the same skillet with the bacon drippings, cook for 5 minutes, or until tender, stirring constantly; drain. Place the onions in a medium bowl. Crumble the bacon into small pieces, and add in with the cooked green onion. Add the eggs to the bacon and onions; beat well. Stir in the cream, salt, nutmeg and the Parmesan cheese. Add in the squeezed spinach; mix well to combine. Divide the mixture into crust-lined cups (do not overfill).

In a small mixing bowl, cream butter and cream cheese. Add flour; beat until well blended. Shape into 24 balls.

Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until puffed and golden brown. Cool in pan on wire rack for 5 minutes. Serve warm or cool. Store leftovers in the refrigerator.

Makes 24

And another summer treat . . .

Grapes.

Simple Summer Pleasures

Ahh . . . simple summer pleasures -- simple summer fruit.

Another great adventure

Junking is always an adventure.  We started the weekend thinking we wouldn't find many sales, but it seems in these trying times people are foregoing an ad and just tacking up YARD SALE signs.

The first thing I found was a Queen Elizabeth II Silver Jubilee cup, saucer and plate.  I may already have the cup and saucer--I collect all kinds of royalty china (think plates, mugs, cups and saucers), but I don't have a sandwich (or is it a dessert?) plate, and the price was right at $2.50.  What's interesting to note is that although it was the Queen's Silver Jubilee (back in 1977), the cup and saucer are rimmed in gold. 

It was a great day for finding roses.  My first acquisition was no doubt a ceramics class project.  It probably went for cheap (a buck) because somewhere along the line the bowl that went with it was broken.  Will I find a bowl to put it in?  Who knows.  This picture is deceiving;  the pitcher stands about 9 inches tall.  For now, I think I'll use it as a vase.

Next up, I got a bone china, pink roses cupt and saucer.  Someone at the co-op (where I used to have a booth), told me that either Loblaws or A&P had a china giveaway during the early 1960s and this cup and saucer (with a number of others) was one of the items.  I've sold a number of these over the years, but this one I'm keeping for me.  And at a buck, it was a bargain. At the same place (where I took pictures of the farm animals) I got a cute little bone china, yellow rose creamer.  I seem to be amassing a lot of bone china, but as long as I can fit it in the china cabinet, I figure I'm good to go.

Next up was this little beauty.  Back in my co-op days, I'd sold a number of similar prints like this, but they were much bigger.  I like the fact this this little beauty is only 4 x 5 inches.  I'm not keen on the frame (which is even more tacky than the picture) so I may have to spend some bucks to find it something better.  But in the meantime, I'm hanging this over my desk (along with the rose print I got a few weeks back).

I took a break from pretty stuff to get some useful stuff, too.  Okay, only one thing was actually useful.  It was a mini muffin pan.  I sometimes make mini quiches, but I only had one pan, which is a pain, because the recipe makes 24.  I saw this for a quarter and decided that it was time to make more mini quiches.  If I get my act together, I'll post the recipe sometime soon.

I love a bargain, and I got these bath salts, honey-almond soap, and a candle (with an old-fashioned Watkins soap label) for 10 cents each.  At that same sale, I got loads of blank note cards (of sheep, teddy bears and lace, fairies, and lots and lots of cats, for $3.50).  No doubt about it.  I won't have to buy note cards for a L-O-N-G time.

All-in-all, a great junking day.

WEEKEND GETAWAY

One of the sales we hit last weekend was at an RV camp. We liked this little trailer and especially the sign out front, pointing the way to Margaritaville. (Although, actually, it was pointing West, not South.)

ON THE HOOF

You never know what you’re going to find when you’re out junking. One of the things I found this weekend was . . . a pig.

Yes, a real, live, large-economy sized (1,100 lbs.) PIG. His name was Rosco. He wasn’t raised to be a pork dinner—he was the family pet. Mostly he just nuzzles around looking for something to eat.

At first I missed Rosco. I went into this little barn, which SMELLED really BAD. But, there was lots of neat stuff inside, and I poked around and found a few things to buy. I’d already gotten in the car when my husband said, “Take a look at that pig.” I thought he was being rude about one of the sale’s customers, and was about to berate him when I spied Roscoe. Whoa! I’ve seen pigs before, but never close up.

I grabbed the camera and asked the guy running the sale if I could take a picture. “Sure, go ahead!” So, I walked up to the electric fence, which held not only Roscoe, but a cow (who was happily munching hay) and a goat. (Never got their names.)

Of course, that got everyone’s attention, and the next thing you know there were kids and a woman who once had a pet pig (same size as Roscoe) in the pen petting him. He seemed to like it.

The guy also said they had a miniature stallion, but I didn’t get his picture. (Too bad, he was really handsome—and he didn’t look like a pony, either.) They also had two donkeys, who didn’t seem that interested in being photographed—but they didn’t complain, either.

Along the route, we saw a snapping turtle crossing the road (whew--yes, he made it!) and a wild turkey ran in front of our car. (Oops! we almost had a fine dinner.)

It just goes to show you, you just never know what you’re going to find when you go out junking.

STREET SALES GO BUST!

Thursday I visited a street sale that was a favorite of mine during my "dealer" days. Back then, I had a day job, and often didn't make the sale until the second day, so I was psyched to hit the trail early. Unfortunately, there was very little trail to hit. Unlike other years, when there'd be up to 100 homes participating, this year there couldn't have been more than 20--if that. Big Disappointment.

But I did find a few things. On the utilitarian side, I found a small Tupperware container (since there's just the two of us, these are great for our meager leftovers), an all-in-one grater, an old box of Christmas ornaments, and an ice cream scoop. (YAWN!) I was getting pretty desperate when I found a Blue Onion teapot. It's not exactly a total match to my every day china, but it'll do--and the price was certainly right at $1.50.

I was running out of sales to visit when I came to one where I'd bought stuff before. I’m a sucker for linens and found six damask napkins for 25 cents each. Of course, they were stained, but after soaking them for a day in Oxyclean and Dawn, they came out beautiful. (Yes, there are only 3 pink ones and 1 white one in the picture —the other two (one pink, one white) didn’t require soaking.) I also soaked an old yellow doily (free from an estate sale in April) and a stained, crocheted dresser scarf from last weekend. Both came out beautifully. I also came away with this pretty little rhinestone Christmas stocking pin for $1.

At the best (and last) sale of the day, I debated about buying a rather large gold-framed mirror. I wasn’t sure I had a place to hang it, and I wasn’t sure the husband was going to like it. But I talked the guy down to from $5 to $3 and in the car it went. Husband and I agreed that it was either very girly or very tacky. Until we hung it in one of the guest rooms, we were leaning toward tacky—but it seems to look okay, so I guess it has found a new home. (Now what do I do with the picture that was hanging there before?)

Along with the mirror, I got these two sweethearts in gold frames. (I did mention what a sucker I am for pictures and/or mirrors in gold frames, right?)

Friday I only hit one sale that had tons of stuff that was either priced just right (but I didn’t need it) or too much, which was offputting. I got these two gold-framed pictures for $2 to go along with the ones from Thursday’s sale. (They were selling silver-plated cutlery in bunches of 5 or 6 for 50 cents each. Too bad I don’t need silverware!)

It was with much anticipation that I went to the second street sale of the weekend, a one-day only affair on Saturday. I’d done well at this sale before, and had high hopes. Alas, the very first sale of the day was the best. But now that I’m no longer in the “business,” I have to be a lot more selective. I only bought a 1950s Made In Japan Christmas candleholder. I have a number of these, but she was cute and only 75 cents. I wanted to buy a Beefeater Gin bottle (in the shape of a beefeater) for my husband’s bar collection. He was a beauty, and the price was right, but he was too tall—we have nowhere to put him. (I wish I’d taken a picture.)

Oddly enough, one home wasn't selling anything except food. And sure enough, there were people waiting in line at 9:30 for hot dogs and sausages. (My husband among them.) While he ate his hot dog, I came across a guy with a professional popcorn popper selling the stuff for 50 cents a bag. You got it—I ate it. And after that, one of the neighbors was selling fried dough dipped in sugar and
cinnamon. (I think that was my best purchase of the sale.)

My second purchase of the day wasn’t something fun, but a mini ironing board that can be set up on a tabletop. I’d been looking for one for a couple of weeks, and this one fit the bill—especially as it was only $1. (I used it to iron the damask napkins.) The only other thing I bought was a box of cocktail napkins. (A month or so ago I bought a cocktail napkin holder—so these will fit in well with it.)

We stopped at another sale along the road which had only toys, kid clothes, and a few potted jade plants. I picked up a bugle jade plant for 50 cents. It’s not exactly the most beautiful one I’ve ever seen, but I felt sorry for it and figured what the heck.

That was it for the day. Okay, not quite. We hit the nursery and dropped more money for the garden. Now to plant them all.

And how did you spend your weekend?

This Week's Treasures

After the wonderful sales over Memorial Day weekend, this past weekend felt like a bust. The sales were few and far (and I mean in distance, too) between. But I did find a few things I like.

I've been seeking the perfect popcorn bowl for quite some time. I had one, but dropped it. (That was a sad day.) Last week's one was okay, but extremely heavy. (I can see it shattering in the not-too-distant future.) I found this week's contender at a sale for only a quarter. At first took, it's not at all pretty. It's pretty stained, but I liked the look of it. I image that someone's Aunt Sally used to make mounds of whipped potatoes and serve them to the whole family in this bowl. But the thing that attracted me was, of course, the rim decoration of little roses, which you can see in this blow-up. I haven't tested it yet, but will let you know.

For the past few weeks, I've been looking for items for the tiny shelf that I bought a few weeks back. It's about two inches high, but looks much taller in this cropped photo. I guess it's supposed to be a vase (maybe for forgetmenots?). I like Made In Japan items, and this was marked Japan, so that sealed the deal. The nickel price wasn't too hard on the wallet, either.

At the same sale, I found two vegetable bowls for a quarter. Not a quarter each, two bowls for one quarter. When I asked the woman about it, she said she was motivated to sell everything. What didn't sell was going in the trash. That's my kind of sale! Of course the clincher was the fact it has (lets say it together) ROSES on it!

For years I was a big fan of Mary Engelbreit's Home Companion magazine . . . until they changed focus and now it looks like every other decorating magazine on the market. Not that I have a lot of (or any) ME stuff -- but I saw this little metal cherry basket and thought it was cute, and reminded me of ME. Don't know what I'm going to do with it yet, but I'll think of something.

At the very last sale I found this little square enamel box. I guess it was probably used to store food. It's majorly cute, and I thought I might use it to put odds and ends in -- like loose buttons, etc. It'll probably end up on a shelf, but it was only a dime and I couldn't leave it behind. (Okay, do I have SUCKER written on my forehead, or what?)

If you remember, a few weeks ago I bought a wooden shelf. I knew when I bought it that it was not going to stay natural wood, and that I'd paint it. So I got out the sand paper and roughed up the surface, and then painted it glossy white. I let the paint harden for about a week before I hung it, because in the past I haven't waited when I've painted and ruined books, and the paint peeled, etc. It gave me another couple of weeks to find stuff to put on it, too. I'm sure it'll evolve over time.

And what treasures did you find this week?