Happy Supermoon!

Hello all!  If you haven't had a chance to check out the supermoon tonight, I suggest you run outside and take a look as quick as you can.  I have to say, it's not as super as last year's was, but it's still pretty darn super.

If you're scratching your head wondering what I'm talking about, check here for information.  Or just know that the one night a year that the moon is full and passes closest to the earth in its rounds, it's known as the supermoon because it appears bigger and brighter than any other night of the year.

Like so:

The bigger!

The brighter!

Friday, The Cure style

I hope everyone's having a lovely Friday night.  I know I am!  I finished my class, and went for a wander in a different direction tonight.  Checked out another thrift store, this one on a cool little small-town-mainstreet looking drag in Brookfield.  For the first time on this trip I didn't find anything there I couldn't live without, but it was a beautiful drive, and when I came out of that shop and looked across the street I had to smile:

Wonderland Multivintage - you MUST go to their site and play with the scanner - SO cute!

I walked in the door and I have to say, there's still some truth in advertising.  It wasn't a very big shop, but it was full of wonder.  It was musty, I admit, but it was also packed to bursting with so much stuff it almost hurt to look.  When I went inside, I didn't see anyone at first, then I heard a little voice and out from behind a counter popped an adorable little girl of 4 or 5, and if that wasn't cute enough, she was followed by her even younger sister (I assume), playing among just piles of vintage toys.  You know how you see that stuff sometimes, all pristine in a shop, and it seems like a shame that they're not getting played with and loved by children?  Well this stuff is getting loved!  It may not be pristine, but it's packed with nostalgia.  I didn't stay long, but I did find a treasure!  I assume I purchased it from the girls' dad.  Its still down in the rental car, but here's what I just had to buy for $4.00, in a pic from Ebay, in case you want one too:

Rocket shaped commemorative glass. 
You can buy this one, I think I'll keep mine!

Then I wandered in a different direction because I had it in my head I wanted Chinese food, but I ended up going with my instincts and stopped to have dinner at Marquee Restaurant in Broadview.  It looks like a dump, but that kind of dump that's full of locals and has one of those pie carousels.  I had good luck at a slightly more upscale version of that kind of place earlier in the week (amazing cream of chicken soup at Mother's Day on Cermak), so I gave it a shot.  I was greeted by a very spry old gentleman who seated me with a smile.  As I settled down I heard him talking to a woman behind the counter, I'm guessing in Greek.  Then I was greeted again by a friendly waitress who seemed like she enjoyed her job, like she was among friends there and having a good time.  The menu was nearly as much of a wonderland as the shop I'd been in earlier, so I asked her what to get, and she suggested the pork chops.  It was some sort of special and it came with soup too.  This was also cream of chicken, and it wasn't quite as good as the stuff at Mother's Day, but it came with a whole  plate of little grilled ciabatta rolls, which I like better than soup anyway.  Then the pork chops came and OH MY!  They were cooked Greek-style, with olive oil and lemon juice and they were covered with what I thought for a moment were nuts, but turned out to be big crunchy chunks of roasted garlic!  So that's when I fell in love with a pork chop.  But I could only eat one of them, so the best part is, I have two more to eat tomorrow, and there's a big old piece of lemon meringue pie, too!

So what I'm trying to say is - wander often, and give a dump a chance. 

Bowling!

Saturday, to celebrate the birthdays of two dear friends, our whole big crew of goofballs went bowling.  The whole idea of bowling is awesome, isn't it?  It's probably not a particularly thrifty activity, but for someone who likes scouring thrift stores for vintage finds, it has quite the retro appeal, even if I'm not good at it.  At all.  I scored 80 points in the game Saturday, and felt good about it.  I even got two spares!  But the real point of telling you all this is to share the pictures!  I posted the pictures of people having fun on Facebook already, but I saved all the kitschy goodness for you all!

The moon through the window of the van on 70 north of
downtown, on the way there.

Crest Bowl, in Florrissant, MO has an awesome
old mid-century sign.  LOVE IT!

And look, the moon made it into that shot, too :)
So you know I had to give him some up-close attention!

Look how handsome he is!

Check it out - a bowl-relièf!

I don't know what the key is to, but I LOVE the keychain!
And look- tiny pencils!  They play a part in the two kitschiest
family activity/sports in the world.  I heart tiny pencils.

Concession stand, and the bar/pool-hall entrance.

Look at all the colors!  Why don't they make
footballs and baseballs in lots of random colors,
with swirls and sparkles and stuff?

The Glow Machine was not old - it's a vending machine
for glow-sticks and whatnot.  But  it LOOKS fantastic.

Cute mural.

I love bowling shoes!  You have no idea the amount of personal
restraint I have had to exercise not to sneak out with them in the past.