Is there anything else worthy of my devotion?

Oh yes, lots of things and a few really fantastic people. Of course, I’m extremely biased because most of those few people are family; grandchildren are the cherry on top! But, I do honestly enjoy things of old. My eldest son is working on a project lately that would be more easily accomplished if he had an anvil. As crazy as it may sound I used to have one. My son was surprised to discover I used to have one. I had picked the monstrosity up from a swap meet for about twenty smackers. If I would have known one day he would need one I would have found room for it in my car when I moved. Alas, it is one of those long lost items from my former life.

There’s an awesome antique store in town. The old brick building used to be a sock factory. The town used to be the sock capital of world, but a little more than a decade ago the owners packed up and moved their operations to China. The economy here has since gone the way of the Dodo. Among some of the ancient relics I like are old buildings. This particular old building is no exception, and it’s filled to the brim with the most wonderful forgotten treasures one is to find. I once purchased an antique brush, comb, and mirror set from them. Another time I purchased a beverage set with tray made from bamboo. Those went to my daughter who absolutely loves them. I love browsing these repositories of antiquity and can get lost for hours in such places, especially when the owner has a layered arrangement that catches your eye.

It seems the original item that draws your attention catapults you to another item, and another, and another like Hansel and Gretel’s bread crumbs. One of my favorite antique shops is in a little community called Gurley; everything there is purely American made – makes my red, white, and blue heart skip a beat when I drive up and see the “American Made Only” sign. These owners know how to display their wares; again, Hansel and Gretel must have trained them.

My brother once took in an old wringer washing machine motor and traded it for an antique train; one American item for another. My brother was tickled with the exchange. Who wouldn’t be happy with such a sweet deal? And, this is the beauty of dealing with owners of antique galleries. It makes one especially giddy when the owner knows what he’s doing and what he’s dealing with, and if he doesn’t, well, he usually knows someone he can call who does.

I haven’t been antiquing in quite some time and miss it. Lately I’ve had the itch to go on a quest. I’ve been chomping at the bit and my only saving grace is I’m flat busted. I’ve turned my pockets out, emptied my change jar, and dug under the couch cushions and under the seats of my car; I simply don’t have the means to buy a darned thing. I should go anyway, but it would just shatter my heart to walk away from a treasure I must have. You know what I’m talking about, that one item that makes your heart skip a beat, makes your palms sweaty, and makes you wonder what you can say to the owner to lower that price just a little so you can claim the thing for your own. Though, I do think some browsing and window shopping is in order. Next Saturday I’m heading out and making the rounds. I absolutely must!

Like Hansel and Gretel I'll be trying to find my way home...home to that one, very special antique I'll fall in love with.