Something you won't want to miss

I'm excited for October, you guys!  I've always loved October.  When I was a little girl that was largely because of my Birthday, and Halloween.  I suppose those are still two of the main events, but the attractions are numerous:  cool crisp weather that allows for layers and sweaters; Fall leaves that look beautiful, smell kinda spicy, and swish and crunch underfoot; apples, apple cider and apple pie (more on that soon!); the return of my favorite earthy colors to clothes and home decor; the smell of wood smoke on the air; snuggling under blankets; unexplained bouts of nostalgia... need I go on?

But now there's one more thing to add to your list:  The Kenrick Antique Mall-sponsored Fall Flea Market, next Saturday, October 6th! 

Now, I've been to a few flea markets in my day, and I want to be clear.  Sometimes, when people say flea market, I've gotten all excited and shown up and it looks like this:

Or like this:

On the other hand I've also, in my days in Brussels in the 90s, had the great privilege to go to the Saturday market in the Place du Petit Sablon, which was like this:

Unfortunately, I can't promise you that next weekend will be like the Antiques Market in Brussels, but I can promise you it's not going to be just knockoff handbags and sunglasses, or three guys with some books spread out on blankets. There will be tons of vendors, this much I know.  And last time (in the Spring), they had food, so there's probably that to look forward to again.

I, unfortunately, will be stuck at work the day of the sale, but I've seen it twice now, and it's prety big, with lots of variety (Kenrick Plaza's parking lot is super huge, and much of it will be taken over by vendors.  I think the last I heard it was 80+, and the smallest vendor space is the size of a parking space.  Not bad!  And don't forget, the antique mall itself is open, and practically every booth inside will have a sale going for the weekend.  The 2ndhand Moon booth (78, as if you didn't know, 2/3 down the 3rd aisle, on the right!) will have 25% off every single item, no exceptions, so it's a good time to snatch up something vintage for Halloween, or a Treasure Craft candy dish or planter,or some cool vintage luggage, or a bit of Pyrex, or even the gorgeous Mad Men-esque chair, seen here if you missed it!  And as if the flea market and the antique mall weren't enough, don't forget there's also the huge Shrewsbury Value Village right there - literally next door to the mall, in the same plaza!

So if you go, let me know how it went?  I'll be stuck indoors away from the nice Fall air and all the treasures, so I need someone to give me the scoop!

Gettin' Crafty, part two!

Hey guys, remember Friday, when I told you all about my brilliant plan for a scruffy old stand-less globe I found at the thrift store, and some light-bright style colored pegs?

Globe

Pegs

The plan was to mark places on the globe that were significant to me with the pegs, and rig it up as a light, but all I could find around the house to poke holes for the pegs was a thumbtack, which was less than ideal, so I didn't get very far that night.  Well I worked 12 hours Saturday, so there was no time to go buy a better hole-poking tool, but I did have a screw loose somewhere (as you've probably already figured out about me!) that was about the right size to make holes for the bigger pegs, and the thumbtack made a good starter for the smaller ones, so I just kept poking and pegging last night.  Then this afternoon between lunch after church and helping my friend pick up my Dad's old weight bench and weights, we stopped by Home Depot and I bought a swag/pendant light cord/chain kit and a light socket, and I just spent the last hour or so rigging that up.  It's not completely finished; I need to hang another hook for the chain/cord, as it's currently just hanging down and dragging the floor, and the raw edge where I badly exacto'd out Antarctica could use some cleanup, and to be perfectly honest, I need to visit Asia and more of the Southern Hemisphere so I can make it look more interesting, but I'm pretty proud of it so far!

I used to have a candelabra thingy on this hook, but candles dripped everywhere
if I lit them, and my living room was way too dark.  Improvement!

I used the bigger, pointy-topped pegs to mark places I've lived: St. Louis, MO; Abilene, TX; Brussels, Belgium and Mauritius (I left out Columbia, MO because the globe is just not big enough for two big pegs that close together).  Then the smaller pegs mark other places I've been that are important to me, either because people I care for live/d there, or because I enjoyed them so much myself.  Here are a few close-ups, to give you a better idea:

Like I said, it's not perfect, but I'm pleased; my living room is brighter and there's a little bit of my wanderlust right here on display!  What do you think?

Found link-up to join for my little fit of craftiness - check it out!:
Craft-o-maniac's Craft-o-Maniac Monday.
Also linking to last Friday's Cap Creations Thrifty Love Link Party (where my fancy, fancy china was featured from last week's link-up!), Chic on a Shoestring's Flaunt it Friday and The Thrifty Groove's Thrifty Things Friday and Between Naps on the Porch's Metamorphosis Monday.

Cheapskates' Paradise, part the 4th

If you've been following along at home, you may recall that my satisfaction at learning that Kipplinger's online had named my hometown the top pick for cheapskates has lead to the only real ongoing series of posts I've ever done, unless you count droning on endlessly about my booth at Kenrick Antique Mall or bragging on my thrifty finds as series, but since that's pretty much all I do most of the time. I don't think that counts.  Anyway, you can find previous Cheapskate Paradise posts, in which I wax poetic on the topic, here:
Part 1: Didja Hear About the 'Lou?  Reaction to the news, plus the St Louis Zoo.
Part 2: Cheapskates' Paradise, Part Deux!  The St Louis Art Museum, aka SLAM.
Part 3: Cheapskates' Paradise Junior-Junior A trip to the county: Laumeier Sculpture Park/Poweder Valley.

And now we arrive at part 4 of my cheapskate love affair with my home town.  Today's topic? 

The St Louis Science Center!

Now, like the Zoo and the Art Museum, the St. Louis Science Center is also situated in Forest Park and is also - and you can sing along if you know it by now - Free To The Public (dun-DUN!).  It started out as a single, spectacular building on the South side of Forest Park - the McDonnell Planetarium.  An architectural gem on par with our gorgeous Gateway Arch, if you ask me (I love the crispness of the sweep of white against the sky), it was designed by Gyo Obata, who was later, not coincidentally, chosen to design the National Air and Space museum in DC (also free admission, by the way, but we got the better design for ours!):

The James S McDonnell (yes,of McDonnell-Douglas) Planetarium - sleek!

Other buildings were later added on the South side of highway 40, on Oakland Avenue, with an enclosed bridge linking the two (where you can look down on cars racing by, and even clock their speeds). 

The main building.  Image borrowed, oddly enough, from NASA.gov, here.

There are over 300,000 square feet of exhibit space, and much-to-most of it offers hands-on experiences to engage the visitor.  You can, for example, learn building/engineering principles in the Structures gallery, including building a replica of the Gateway Arch from soft blocks (an exhibit that's helpful for kids who are afraid of a trip to the top of our tallest national monument - they'll learn what makes it so strong!).  You can also marvel at the cheesiness of the giant animatronic dinosaurs, check out fossils and watch lab types perform science-y goodness for your enjoyment.  Also, you can design your own fish, which is kind of adorable, try out flight simulators, and play around with dozens of other cool exhibits all for free! And if you are lazy, tired, easily amused or probably also if you're one drugs, you could just watch the giant rube goldbergian Energizer ball machine for an hour or so:

One section of the enormous contraption, from the 2nd floor after hours.

Parking in the main lot does cost, but there is free parking available.  And if you simply must spend your hard-earned pennies, you can spend them on:

Planetarium or Omnimax shows, the Discovery Room (great for the smaller kiddies), or Lego MindStorms.  You can also fork over some dough to ride a Segway around the joint, enjoy whatever big travelling exhibition is on at the moment, or to raise a fork at the concessions.  But I've been going to the Science Center for years, and have yet to shell out for any of that, and it's still fun every time!

It's especially nice this time of year, when kiddos are off school and temperatures are outdoorsiness-limiting.  Tons of activities to keep the kids entertained for hours without making a dent in the pocketbook - nice! 

And beyond that, I wanted to get a post on the Science Center out around now because of two big bonuses currently in place to bless your cheapskate soul:

1. Drippin' Discount!:

If the temp outside is over 95, tickets to the main exhibit, and to any Omnimax show go for only $5.00 a pop - what a fun way to beat the heat!

2. First Fridays:

A great one for grownups who want to get their awe on.  On the first Friday of the month, the Science Center gets jiggy after hours, with discounts to the exhibits, free music, cheap Omnimax shows and Segway rides, free Planetarium shows and public telescope viewings, and at 10:00 PM, a free viewing on the Omnimiax screen.  August's First Friday freebie will be Batman:

The campy 1989 version - 40% less angst!

That's the main reason I wanted to get this post out now - First Fridays is a blast.  I went last month, which is why the above picture of the Energizer ball machine seems empty and dark.  I had to work until 9:00 pm, so I missed most of the festivities but I got there in time for the most important thing.  Last month's free Omnimax showing was of my very favorite 2-parter of Doctor Who: The Empty Child and The Doctor Dances.  

The only thing better than The Doctor is The Doctor, Omnimax sized.  See how happy it made my friends?

There's apparently a Doctor Who fan club in the 'Lou who turned out complete with Doctors 10 and 11!  I was way too shy to speak to them, but plenty creeper enough to snap a photo or two from afar:

11th Doctor had the look down pat.

10 was less convincing to look at,
but you should've seen him do the walk!

They cleverly chose this 2-parter as a tie-in, as the story features prominently some sub-atomic critters.  Fits nicely with the current summer exhibit: Amazing Nano Worlds, about nanotechnology.

I had a wonderful time last First Friday.  Check it out for yourself next weekend.  If you do, let me know what you think!

Cheapskates' Paradise Junior-Junior

It all started here, when I learned that St Louis topped Kipplinger's list of 10 best cities for cheapskates, and I waxed on about the wonderful St Louis Zoo.  Then there was this, where I revisited the topic to brag on the world-class St Louis Art Museum and decided this topic definitely merited a series.  Today, my friends, we'll be taking a mini-trip outside of the city limits to the St Louis suburbs, where the intersection of highways 44 and 270 afford us a two-for-one bounty of free recreation/edification, less than 20 minutes from the (mid-century lovers' delight) Gateway Arch downtown.  Our first stop, dear friends, lies just north of Highway 44, and just inside the lasso that highway 270 throws around the core of the St Louis area.  Along Watson Rd between said lasso and Lindbergh Blvd, you'll find two things: a large suburban shopping area anchored by a Home Depot, and an office park.  Google doesn't seem to recall, but I remember fondly that this area also once housed, during the days before Netflix and RedBox, a very cheapskate-friendly $1.00 movie theater that showed films that had long since left the regular theaters, but hadn't yet showed up on cable (remember those days?).  It was a very mom-and-pop operation, if I recall.  The lobby was populated by a pair of tie-dye sporting mannequins having a barbecue, and as a kid I saw Drop Dead Fred there twice.  And now you know I'm old, so I might as well tell you that since beginning this reminiscence, I can't stop humming The Kinks' "Come Dancing":

Anyway, after that long "Dollar Show" digression, let me tell you what's behind the shopping center and the office park.  This:

 


Giant eyeball sculpture

   and this:
  


The Way.  Significantly giant-er.

   and this:
  


Big smiley skull in the ground.

 

All three images above courtesy of LaumeierSculpturePark.org 

 The first of our two-for-one cheapskates' havens, the free-to-the-public Laumeier Sculpture Park was once the country home of Henry and Matilda Laumeier, and so boasts a beautiful stone house that serves as office, art gallery and gift shop.  The rest of the over 100 acres of rolling meadows and wooded trails is populated by dozens of modern/contemporary sculptures and what I would call collaborations with either natural features or ruins already on the property.  One such ruin is my favorite spot in the park.  A trail winding through the woods eventually leads to an old abandoned swimming pool, part of the long-gone Orchard Valley estate that neighbored that of the Laumeier family.  Artist Mary Miss, who's known for blending art and landscape design, built decking and trellises around the remains of the 1930s stone and concrete pool, leaving it intact and allowing for a quiet, peaceful place that at the same time teems with nostalgia and the feeling that at any moment the past will join you and you'll hear the splash of water, laughter and the tinkle of glasses.

There are lovely spots to picnic, including in the shadow of The Way, commonly known as the Big Red Thing pictured above, where you can watch or join in with fellow park-goers to play frisbee or fly kites in the presence of amazing works of art.  What more could a thrifty art and/or nature lover want?


Well... if the thrifty nature lover wants more, more can be had just across the highway!  Take Geyer Road just across the I44 overpass to Cragwold, where you'll find another completely free outdoor destination:  Powder Valley Conservation Nature Center, run by the Missouri Department of Conservation.  It, like Laumeier, offers something a little different from your average park.  Another 100+ acres of mostly wooded real estate, ribboned with short, shady trails that are family and even handicapped friendly.  The interpretive center houses a small gift shop, classrooms, and kid-centric exhibits relating to local wildlife and conservation.  The best bit by far to me is ahead and to your left as you walk into the building.  A wall of windows complete with comfy seating overlooks a wildlife feeding area with birdfeeders, salt licks and the like that attracts everything from tiny hummingbirds to big, beautiful deer. 




Birds high up on some of the feeders

 I've spotted fat wild turkeys, hawks stalking chipmunks, and dozens of other furry and feathered critters as well, and microphones are discretely situated among the feeders so that, while you relax after your picnic and trail walking, you can listen to the songbirds.  Lovely!

If you haven't had enough of the great outdoors at this point, you can always follow Cragwold a little further, across highway 270 to yet another nearly 100-acre park, along the Meramec River, but I'll let you discover the more traditional Emmenengger Park on your own.  Just know that all 3 of these wonderful, free outdoor destintions are nestled within about two square miles in St Louis County.  Just imagine all the fun you can have exploring the rest of the area!

Hello old friends!

Hi all!  I'm finally back with internet access - Hooray!

So this is just a quick note for now to let you know to 'watch this space'.  I'll be posting again soon, but in the mean time I have to get it together and get over to Booth 78 at Kenrick antique mall and get it spiffed up and add a bunch of new goodies for the Big Sale that starts tomorrow.

The whole mall is having an Independence Day sale, Wednesday through Saturday.  Booths can participate at whatever level they want, and it looks like lots of booths will have 20% off, but the Moon Booth is doing 25%!  Much better to knock off a full quarter of the price, dontcha thing?

So don't miss the awesome deals on all the pretty things!  Pictures of all the new goodies I'm bringing in today and all the changes I've made in the booth since last I had internet access will be coming in my next post. In the mean time, here's a hint at one of my very favorite new treasures:

Happy Independence Day all, see you soon!

Cheapskates' Paradise, part deux!

You might recall a few weeks ago I wrote about how Kiplinger's website named my own St. Louis #1 in their list of the 10 best cities for cheapskates.

At the time I waxed on about how awesome it was growing up in St Louis, where you don't have to have a lot of money to enjoy culture, science and the arts.  But due to my perhaps overzealous enthusiasm for the subject, I only managed to give details on the fabulous, free St Louis Zoo before my post got out of hand.  So I thought maybe it would be worth revisiting the issue to tell you all about other great things you can do in St. Louis on the cheap.  So since I started with the Zoo, there's no point going farther than right up the hill, still in Forest Park.  Folks, I give you the St. Louis Art Museum:

Picture courtesy of ArtKnowledgeNews.com

As you can read in the caption included in the above picture, we are once again in 1904 World's Fair territory with this building.  An altered photo, but a better view of the architecture, by Bill Haack at flickrhivemind.net:

See Saint Louis (Louis IX of France) on his trusty steed guarding the entrance there?  Good man!

A new addition to the museum, designed by David Chipperfield, is almost finished (on the outside.  Interior work is still to come), and is scheduled to open next year:

Artistic rendering courtesy of  e-architect.co.uk.

This new addition will allow the museum to keep more of its well over 30,000 works of art on display.  That figure includes everything from ancient Greek, Egyptian, and Byzantine pieces to  precolumbian Native American art to the Americana of George Caleb Bingham to the best collection of 20th century German artist Max Beckmann's work anywhere, to brilliant contemporary artists, photography, design and decorative arts.  I believe I shared with you here about one of my favorite pieces already, 17th century Spanish painter Francisco de Zurbarán's St Francis Contemplating a Skull:

A few other of my favorites on display at the St. Louis Art Museum:

Sadak in Search of the Waters of Oblivion, John Martin, 1812

One of Degas' "Little Dancer" bronzes

Van Gogh's beautiful "Stairway at Auvers".

 I love Van Gogh.  Partially because of the color and texture and intense life of his work, partially because of the heartbreaking story of his life and art and death, partly because of his self portraits with his gentle, sad eyes and partly, I fully admit, because of Richard Curtis, Tony Curran and Bill Nighy and the beautifully touching job that Doctor Who did with him in "Vincent and the Doctor".  

The above painting dates to July, 1890.  His tragic, still debated death came that same month, which makes it extra poignant.

You can see all of this and so, so much more at the St. Louis Art Museum, and you can see it for free!  That's right, like the St. Louis Zoo, the Art Museum is part of the Metropolitan Zoological Park and Museum District, a tax district which provides subsidies to help keep certain cultural institutions available to all, regardless of their financial status.  In fact, above the entrance is the inscription "Dedicated to Art, and Free to All", a motto that was emblazoned on a t-shirt I got my senior year in high school when I got a museum membership as a gift.  I stopped wearing it in college after meeting a guy named Art I wasn't particularly fond of.  Not sure what happened to it after that!

Anyway, with the World's Fair-built building being nearly as beautiful as it's varied contents, the warren of galleries can be fun to wander without direction, allowing for a surprise around every corner.  That in and of itself can provide hours of completely free fun (donations accepted), but wait, there's more!  The museum is situated in Forest Park, atop what's known as "Art Hill", a fairly steep hill leading from the museum down to a reflecting pool with fountains, providing gorgeous views and plenty of lawn for your picnic.  If you feel like spending a little money, rowboats and paddle boats can be rented at the nearby Boat House, where there is also a lovely restaurant alternative to your picnic.  In the winter, bring your own sled and more hours of free entertainment can be had.  Sledding on Art Hill is as much an institution as the museum itself, and most of the population of the city can tell you stories of fun times had speeding down that hill.

Didja hear about the 'Lou?

St. Louis is my home.  My hometown, and the place that keeps pulling me back no matter how far I roam.  There are a few things you might know about St Louis, even if you've never been here before: 

The Cardinals - 11 World Series wins!

The 1904 Worlds Fair, setting
For Meet Me in St Louis

Anheuser-Busch brewery

The Arch - Gateway to the West/
symbol of the Louisiana Purchase

If you're a foodie, or know a St. Louisan at all (we all brag these little fun-facts eventually), you may also know that we claim credit for the following:

-Hot dog buns, ice cream cones, iced tea, hamburger eaten as a sandwich, and cotton candy are all traceable to the 1904 World's Fair.

-Toasted Ravioli  (invented in St Louis's Italian-American neighborhood known as The Hill).

-Peanut Butter (or so I've heard).

-Whistle and 7-up sodas.

-Crab Rangoon.

-Pork steaks.

-Gooey butter cake.

And you can all thank St Louis favorite son Ted Drewes for the invention of the Concrete.  Some of you poor souls out there have only ever experienced the DQ Blizzard or the McDonalds McFlurry, but long before those behemoths started their poor copies, the original (made with real frozen custard, not soft serve) was invented right here.

If you're more of a newshound, you may know St Louis for less tasty reasons.  Like the fact that St. Louis is frequently listed as one of the most dangerous cities in the country, and holds the dubious honor of being named the third most dangerous city in the world for 2011.  I could explain how the data used to give us such a frightening distinction is misleading and in several ways inaccurate, but it's true that there is  a significant amount of violent crime, and, as in any urban area, you should exercise caution.

But what you still don't know based on all the blathering I've done so far, is what on earth any of this has to do with thrifting, vintage, or anything else you might have come to this blog to read about.  So allow me to (finally) inform you!  Aside from being a haven for lovers of artery-cloggingly delicious foods and a center of criminal activity, St. Louis recently earned the top spot in business and finance magazine Kiplinger's online review of the 10 Best Cities for Cheapskates!

According to the article, Kipplinger figured in obvious things like average income and cost-of-living, as well as (click the link and see for yourself - I swear I'm not making this up) the number of Dollar General stores within a 30 mile radius.  I would of course have preferred they count thrift stores per capita instead - then the list would double as a guide to road-trip destinations for yours cheaply!  From the article:

Like most people, cheapskates enjoy getting out.  They just don't want to pay a lot for the privilege.  All the picks on our list boast large numbers of public libraries and museums per capita, ensuring affordable access to culture.

So the number of public libraries and museums per capita was the other major metric for determining the cheapskate honorees.  What the article specifically tells you about St Louis' ranking in this category is pretty darn cool:

St. Louis isn't a huge city, but if we're counting per capita, it boasts more museums and libraries than any city on our list (and it beats New York and Washington, D.C., by a factor of 25).

Now that's something even I didn't know.  I assumed D.C., home of the Smithsonian in all its permutations, would have pretty much everyone beat in terms of museums per capita.  What I knew they couldn't beat us at was affordability.

Did you know that you have to pay money to get into most museums and zoos and musical theater venues?  I didn't.  Until I went off to college and was asked to pay a ridiculous sum of money to visit a puny little zoo, I had no idea how lucky I was to have grown up in this cheapskates' paradise.  Here in St. Louis, the world class zoo (listed as 3rd best zoo in the country for kids by Parents Magazine) boasts fantastic exhibits of all the usual suspects in gorgeous and historical setting.  In fact, if you go, you can visit the Flight Cage my great grandfather helped build for the 1904 World's Fair, and then visit Penguin and Puffin Coast, and soon the new Sharks and Stingrays exhibit.  There's a reptile house, there's Big Cat Country, there's The River's Edge, and there's my favorite thing in the entire zoo:  the prairie dogs.  Or as I like to call them, the 'Praise Jesus Prairie Dogs'.  Stop by some time, hang out and watch them for awhile, and see if you can tell why I call them that.  You can spend the whole day at the St Louis Zoo and never spend a dime.  That's right, folks, the Zoo?  It's free.  Granted, there are plenty of things you could pay for - parking in one of the designated lots, riding the awesome zooline railroad or the carousel, snacks at one of the concession stands or the restaurant, souvenirs at the shop or admission to the frankly awesome Children's Zoo, but none of that is required.  Even parking.  There is ample free parking within easy walking distance of the zoo entrance, throughout Forest Park, and hey, you're right there in Forest Park, who needs a concession stand when you can pack a picnic?  And if you don't mind getting up a little early, you can even skip the $4.00 a pop for the Children's Zoo if you get there before 10:00 AM.  Here, for your viewing pleasure are a few of the cutie pies of the St Louis Zoo from http://www.zooborns.com/zooborns/saint-louis-zoo/:

And now, having waxed on for Way Too Long, I realize I've only even told you about the Zoo.  There are literally dozens more great things to do in St. Louis for super, duper cheap (if not free), so I'm thinking this may become a semi-regular feature.  What do you think:  Cheapskate's Paradise?  More to come!

Strangers on the interwebs are luring me with vintage-candy...

Come around the back.

This is the first line of the instructions I received from someone I've never met or spoken to before, telling me where to be tomorrow.  It sounds so... clandestine!  The remaining instructions end with this:

Dress Warm 

Warm socks and good shoes

Be dressed to dig

Bring something to drink and snack on

Text or call when you arrive and I'll come get ya.

 I'm so excited you guys!  It's so old-school Mission Impossible, without the exploding tape recorder.  As far as I know, it doesn't require a pillowcase over my head, or a picture of me with the day's newspaper, so don't worry, Robert!

Bet you're wondering what I'm up to tomorrow.  :P

All will be revealed in due time.  If I ever return, that is...

Pondering a decision...

So I know I made a resolution-type-thing to get a dozen items posted to the Etsy shop by the end of January, but I'm pretty sure I also mentioned that I'm not very good at resolutions, generally speaking, so perhaps you won't be surprised to learn that I am currently considering abandoning Etsy altogether, at least for the moment, in favor of another venue entirely:

The Green Shag Market

Immediately upon returning from Chicago, I spotted a sign for an estate sale that miraculously was still going after 4:00 PM on a Sunday.  So you know I couldn't stop myself.  I had to swing by, at least for a minute.  And I'm glad I did, because I learned of this great new antique mall on Manchester, just east of Hampton Avenue, on the North side of the street.

What's so great about it, you ask?  A few things, actually!  First off, It's an antique mall, and it's new.  I realize all I've done there is repeat myself, but obviously a new antique mall in which to treasure hunt is a very good thing.  Also, they have this big consignment area that they obviously (based on how I found them to begin with) sometimes use to host entire estate sales, which is a very cool thing.  More importantly, they have a lot of stuff already that is more vintage modern than stiff-collared formal antiques or "country cottage" stuff, so it will attract people who like the kinds of things I tend to buy.  Along the same lines, there are already a few booths with vintage clothing, too!  There web site is pretty good, too.  It offers an "Items to Look for" section, with pictures of various items and booths, which I assume is changed regularly, and you can fill out a wish list, as well, which is provided to the vendors so they can keep an eye out for such things, and then you can be notified if an item you've requested shows up in the shop - I think that's a very cool feature!  Booths are very reasonably priced and they are only asking for a 3 month commitment, so my theory is that I could treat it as an educational experience.  If I were to look for a course in retail vintage/antiques sales, if I found that such a thing even exists, it would likely cost that much, wouldn't be a science anyway, and wouldn't carry with it the possibility of paying for itself and/or making a profit, like this will.   Oh, also, the place is almost directly next-door to a fire station.  That's good to be good, right?  So I'm praying about it now, and plan to make a decision this week.  Has anyone out there seen the place, have experience in this area, or thoughts or advice on the subject at all?  I'm very open, and would appreciate any comments, prayers or advice and consider it part of the education! 

Don't know why I love you like I do....

I can't really explain why I felt the overwhelming need, but I bought a rocking chair.  Not only that, but a rocking  chair curlicued somewhat like this one, being enjoyed by a very cheerful Pablo Picasso:

Pablo Picasso relaxing in his rocking chair in his studio.
The chair figures prominently in some of his work.

His painting called "The Rocking Chair"

But the one I bought, while curlicued, is not a classic bent-wood, caned rocker.  Oh no, that would be entirely too ordinary to catch my attention (although now that I've seen how much Picasso loved his, I fear I may have been missing out all this time).  Mine is a bright red tubular steel version with a rounded Windsor-style back and a white vinyl seat.  So if you should choose as the great artist did above to enjoy it in the near-altogether, you would not have waffle-skin upon rising, but you may well leave skin behind (or behind-skin!) adhered to the vinyl.

It's too late and too dim in my house to get a decent picture of the thing tonight, so I searched through 20 pages of Google images for a "metal rocking chair", but found nothing like what I've got here.  Fret not, it's not any kind of rare designer piece.  It has a label - made in Taiwan by Yu Wei Co., Ltd.  Googled them, too, and found pictures of cribs (apparently recalled for safety issues - uh oh!), but nothing of this chair.  So, in spite of the poor lighting and the fact that I haven't yet cleaned it up, here's a phone-shot of the chair:

Excuse the mess in the background - some of my
vintage clothing collection awaiting the new
hanging rack I have yet to actually bring home
from my parents' house from Christmas.

It's not likely to have inspired Picasso, but there was just something about it.  The small price tag, for instance!  And the fact that my Grandpa's rocking chairs (which looked nothing like this, but were also made of metal, and also do not appear in any Google images that I can find) have long been symbolic for me of blessed childhood memories.  And also there's the simple fact that it's a chair.  I kind of have a thing for chairs in general, and generally speaking, this is a chair!  Now if only it went with... anything else I own...

A note on Albert Pujols

Hi all!  Check me out, sticking to the blogging!
I know this blog is meant to be about my thrifting/vintage ways, but as a St Louis native and lifelong Cardinals fan, I can't help but toss in my two cents on the departure of arguably one of the greatest baseball players in history.  And my two cents amount to, basically, this:
Bummer.  Good luck Albert.  Let's go Cards!

I think it may have been a mistake for Pujols to take the Angels' offer in the long run in terms of quality of life.  Ask Stan the Man, Lou Brock or Ozzie Smith what it's like to spend your post-retirement years in a community that loves and reveres you.  St Louisans would defend Stan Musial with their dying breath.  It's an amazing accomplishment to be one of the Best of baseball's elite.  It's bound to be even cooler to also feel the love every day.  Heck, you don't even have to stay in St. Louis forever to get that love - we're that kind of town.  Ask Willie McGee, who received a standing O every at-bat when he was playing AGAINST us, and is still treated like a cross between visiting royalty and a favorite uncle every time he comes into town.  But Willie got traded (and he came back, before retiring back to his home town).  Pujols walked away of his own accord.  Away from the "best fans in baseball" to Southern California for a fat paycheck, and most Cards fans aren't going to get over that easily.  But you can't argue with the man that it was a bad move financially, or career-wise.  He's getting truckloads of money and flat-out guarantees for 10 years, and he can fall back to designated hitter when it comes to that?  He's 32 (or something).  He's probably already peaked. And he's only human.  I doubt it's all about the money, but it's not easy to turn down that many zeros.  And a guarantee of 10 years in the sport he loves?  I think he probably will have some regrets in retrospect.  I think the Angels are bound to sooner or later.  But I have none.  I'm glad St Louis didn't spend obscene amounts of money to keep him.  I'd like to see that money invested in some young up-and-coming talent, some solid team players, and/or maybe, just maybe, a start on Ballpark Village.  I wish Albert well.  But as one of the best fans in baseball, all I have to say is "Go Cards!"