Sometimes the Finds Are For Us!

Yes, it's been a while since I've posted and I'm sorry about that. Things have been a bit up and down, so for today, things are a bit up and I thought I'd share that with you.

Remember those funky pink appliances? The hand mixer, can opener and ice crusher? They sold! Yeah...I couldn't believe it myself! We both thought they were cool and retro, but didn't think they'd sell as fast as they did! Amazed, I tell you...we were amazed! I put them in the space right before Valentine's day and they sold last week!

That hanging curio cabinet? Also sold! Excited to get in and use up the wall space I have left. I have a couple of shelves that will work out in the space, so we'll be able to put it to better use.

We've met our goal this month with the booth and it's only taken three months...I'm actually considering another small space in the shop if something comes open...not a room, but a small space with some floor room to put small furniture and maybe another case/curio. We'll see...that's down the road a piece, so for now I'm happy.

Joanne and I spend a decent amount of time trolling flea markets and thrift stores when the auctions are few and far between nearby or we're trying to save cash. So, this weekend that's what we did. It's hard not to come home with something for ourselves sometimes and this time around we scored BIG!!! I'll explain in a minute and tell you what I found.

I got into canning two years ago and through a food blog I follow called Serious Eats have found a woman who is pretty local - CC Phila. - who is my Canning Goddess! Her name is Marisa McClellan and she writes a blog called Food in Jars . She's phenomenal! What I discovered about canning two years ago was that you didn't have to 'put up' 30 pounds of peaches or several bushels of tomatoes. There's this new thing called 'small batch canning,' that allows you to preserve only a few pints at a time. Marisa's blog has made canning easily approachable and with her small space in a high-rise apartment building, she's well aware of the restrictions of storing home canned goods.

I invited her to come up and hold class with a group of friends, so we could all learn something about the process of putting the season's best away so we could liven up a dull winter meal. One of the hints she gave was using an asparagus steamer to can a small batch of whatever we were canning. How simple! No need to bring out the big canning pot and this is even tall enough to process a quart jar! Ironically, my canning pot isn't even big enough to do that!

Well, folks...SCORE!!! Joanne found a pot with a basket and glass lid! Calphalon, even!

We love it when we are able to cross something off our 'want' list!

Speaking of want lists...Marisa told me she's a pushover for enamel cast iron pots and pans and to keep my eyes open for them in my travels...here's her score from me!!! Awesome...I'm gonna have to start looking for some for my own collection!

Something you may be looking for? Certainly let us know. We can take photos and text you when we find something and let you know the condition and our price!

Moxie Update: He's holding his own. Skinny, but eating although I sometimes have to force with a syringe to jump start him. Otherwise he's doing as well as can be expected. Alert, sometimes even playful and always in need of cuddling!

Rollercoasters and the Economy

It’s been a while since I wrote anything here and I’m sorry for that.

I had a rough few weeks. After finally getting over the crud that had me down for two weeks, I and have been feeling an emotional rollercoaster over my lack of full time employment and the impending demise of one of my cats.

Moxie, who is about six and a half years-old has CRF, otherwise known as chronic renal failure. It’s a dreaded disease that many cats get when they are older. We’ve been chosen as a family that has to have one of our babies get this so early in his life that when he finally does succumb to the disease, it will be hard to say he lived a good life, because he’s barely lived.

I had him in the vet’s for a blood work up to see how he was doing as he hasn’t been himself lately. We come to find out that his kidney numbers are excruciatingly high and that my vet thinks he’s on the down side.

I belong to a Yahoo discussion group known as Caring for CRF Felines where we all get on and discuss such things as diet, numbers, vets, mail order meds, subcutaneous fluids, supplements, etc. I’ve been lurking now for about four years since we found this out. I don’t offer much in the way of the discussion, but I’ve gained a whole lot of info and for that I’m so grateful.

Right now my life has been taking care of this poor boy. He’s not in pain, but trying to get him to eat and cleaning up after him through the day has been pretty much a struggle. Under normal circumstances you can’t get a cat do something they don’t want to do, so when they don’t feel good, all manner of coaxing and prodding one does is simply to make them think it’s their idea, which sometimes works and sometimes doesn’t.

Never much of a litter box user, Mox has always used something else, but never does it behind your back or in a corner to hide it. An unusual cuss, Moxie is a male calico. Depending on the website you read, they are a genetic anomaly that occur 1 in 3000 or 1 in 10,000. They also find most to be sterile, so no testosterone to make them territorial enough to spray. He’s happy to just pee on the floor right in front of you. For years we let him go on small throw rugs I’d get at yard sales. Washing them continually was a laundry nightmare. After about three years I thought, “How about piddle pads?” So, now I line them in my bathroom and along a side of my kitchen. Cats with CRF drink enormous amounts of water, so that makes them urinate. On top of that, we hydrate him subcutaneously every day now to help flush toxins out of his system.

It’s also been a tough few weeks on the job front. I’ve now applied for 116 jobs; out of which I’ve had only a handful of letters sent me to say the proverbial, “Thanks, but no thanks,” one interview, one phone pre-screening and at one teensy job fair for a local car dealership, an in person pre-screening.

My unemployment will be running out soon and I’ll hopefully get an extension, but job prospects are few and far between. There’s so much competition out there. Reports of the economy getting better are all over the news, but the actual evidence escapes me right now.

I am, however, amping up my resume with an online website design course that I’m so surprised hasn’t done me in yet. It’s gotten a bit harder as the lessons come in, but I’m getting it. It’s not confounding me as I thought it would. I even got up the guts to go out and buy a Dummies book to get additional information to reinforce what I’m learning and I knew exactly what section to find it in, what to look for and bought the biggie that contained nine different books! It sits on my night stand right now and I’ve been reading a bit each night along with a novel I’m enjoying. Still a bit far off to be a geek, but I think I’m on the right path!

By now you’re wondering what’s going on and why I’m writing about all this personal stuff, when this blog is about our antiques & collectibles business. Well, other things in life pop up and I’ve been doing a weekly ‘Goals Challenge’ and last week didn’t meet them and this week didn’t even make any.

On a brighter note, the co-op space is doing well overall. I have a goal of what I’d like us to make each month and for January I was only a little bit off from that, so it’s catching on. Looking to sell our wall mounted curio and make better use of the space on the wall for shelves and additional items. The case is still great and we need some Lucite risers and some rope lights to finish it off, but so far, we’ve been pleased. Even February seems to be off to a nice start. So, I guess the economy is picking up after all, huh?