Garage/Rummage Sale Finds

North Webster, a small lake town about 15-20 minutes drive from us, had its Community Garage Sale in its community center. The ad said tools and lumber among other things. My husband wanted to be there when the doors opened at 8 a.m. Early Saturday rising; yawn.

Not much in the way of tools, lumber not what he wanted. I found the prices rather high for most things, or they were unpriced and you had to offer a price. I am not a haggler so unless I see something I really like and want, I just walk away.

I had seen Corian cutting boards before. There was a whole table of them in different sizes and shapes. Not a bargain, but I decided to buy one to try.

The board sure is heavy. I already see once home in better light there are some light scratches. I suspect that is one of the qualities of this type of board. I junked 2 discolored poly cutting boards. We'll see how this one works out.

My bargain was in the Senior Center room, not the gym.

25 cents for a puzzle. Maybe I will start on it next week.

Plastered near the entrances were signs advertising a rummage sale at a nearby church. We took the bait. Bought some peanut butter chocolate brownies. We had a 9:30 a.m. treat at home. A bit on the dry side. At lunch, I nuked them in the microwave. That softened them some; very tasty warm.

My big find of the day was at the church. Lenox Winter Greetings items filled one table. I bought a set of two bowls. They look brand new, still have the stickers on the bottom, and came in the box. They have lids for easy refrigerator storage; the lids also have a small vent to open if microwaving something in the bowl.

The sticker said $2 for the set. I really like them. They go well with my Christmas drink coasters which have birds on them; also, with my new decorative plates. I'm going to wash them, put them in the box, and store them away until next winter/Christmas. Something to look forward to at the end of 2017.

My finds cheered up a gray rainy day.

Tulip Tuesday

We drove to Peabody Retirement Community in North Manchester this morning. I had planned to visit Friday, but the weather forecast is for rain the next few days followed by markedly colder temperatures. Today is pleasant with sunshine so off we went through the countryside. Most of the tulips are blooming, but the flowering trees are just starting.

Colorful blooms are wondrously cheerful, a real day brightener.

It's not hard to understand why this is one of my favorite spring outings. This batch of tulips is about 2-3 weeks earlier than last year's. I watch the tulips in my neighborhood; when they open, I head for Peabody.

Not all of the flowers are open yet.

This retirement community has benches among the flowers.

Of course there are other spring flowers besides tulips.

Notice the stump next to the white flowers. There was a flowering tree there in the past. They have planted some small dogwoods instead.

 Lots of blooms yet to open on these trees.

The colonial brick architecture is set off nicely by the trees.

I think there is a fountain under the plastic tarp. I don't recall seeing it in operation previously though.

Peabody will have its annual tulip festival April 29th I think. Might be a little late for peak tulip flowering with our early spring.

Attuned to Nature

It is too easy to stay in the comfort of my home and only distantly observe the natural world. Yesterday we put the TV trays next to our front porch gliders and ate lunch outside. The blooming pear tree had been obvious through the windows, but what about its micro-world? Watching the tree as I lunched, I saw little butterflies flitting among the pear blossoms and from time to time some bees heading for the nectar. A robin perched on a limb.

I noticed on the way home from church today that tulips are opening in neighborhood yards. Time to drive to Peabody Retirement Community for my annual tulip pilgrimage. 

My sister gave me a devotional book by Francine Rivers for my birthday: Earth Psalms, Reflections on How God Speaks Through Nature. There are 52 entries each with anecdotes, Scripture verses, a Reflect statement/questions, a suggested application, and an ending prayer pertinent to the entry. All nicely illustrated.

I like that it is not a daily devotional structure. Some days I read something else. Some days I read more than one entry. I am enjoying it.

This afternoon I perused my decorating folders. The "outdoors" folder has some scenic views, but mostly patios, decks, gazebos, porches, courtyards filled with flowers and plants and with comfy rockers, loungers, wicker chairs with pretty cushions. All places in which I would delight to rest and to reflect and to read. My kind of places. Outside but with the comforts of home.

How do you enjoy the natural world around you?

A Slowed-Down Day

My husband had a scratchy throat Sunday afternoon which turned into a nasty cold. So far I have a few sniffles which I hope are spring allergies, but I am waiting for the other shoe to drop so to speak. No sore throat yet. We plan to attend a Good Friday communion service if he feels well enough.

My potted tulips were starting to lean far over away from each other. Tonight I cut them off the stems and put in a vase. They probably won't last much longer. I did enjoy them.

I played 3 games of online Qwirkle this afternoon. I kept losing so I had stopped playing for awhile, but today I had better success. The moves by the computer show me that I have a set way of looking at the possibilities and miss opportunities. I think I have learned some hints.

They mowed the lawn yesterday for the first time since autumn. We might get up to 78 degrees Saturday, but the warm southwest winds are also bringing rain, including for Sunday.

I keep putting off the next step in the Kon-Mari organizing/decluttering method. After clothes and accessories which I have finished, comes books. I look at all of my books and feel overwhelmed about pulling them all off the shelves and seeing if they "spark joy". I am thinking about doing a small sorting and folding of kitchen towels. That is an area that needs work. I know, it is a way to procrastinate on the books, but maybe it will get me going again.

Next week is collection week for the Swap Shop. I do have a small pile of things to contribute. It's fun to get something for nothing, though sometimes nothing appeals or is needed. I did get a table clock with large numbers a few years ago, and every day I am thankful for its place in my home.

I bought 6 books at the public library sale to add to Grace Village library. I should try to process them before tomorrow afternoon. I went to the library Wednesday afternoon around 3:45 after literary club finished to do some shelving. My heart sank when I saw 3 very large boxes on the table. Yep, unannounced donations. I did a quick glance, taking the Bibles and devotional books to the Give and Take table. I will be lucky if I keep 3 or 4 books out of the hundred or so that were dumped in my lap. I start to feel a little burned out when this happens. I have no idea who put them there.

A few weeks ago I bought 3 skeins of yarn at a moving sale which advertised yarn, quilting, and needlework kits. Most of the stuff was for quilting. The yarn was mostly small lots of different colors and materials. The 3 skeins I bought were $1 apiece; the price tag on them said $13 each. Wow! Wool yarn is expensive. I had mostly been using cotton or acrylic yarn from Walmart and Meijers. Since it is a small amount, I looked for a small project. I thought about a hat, but my one experience with circular needles didn't go very well. One of the hat patterns had a cowl with it. Aha! I would look for a pattern for a cowl. I have reached a point in the pattern where I do yarn overs and knit two together. I am painfully slow doing the knit two together stitch. It is going to take awhile to finish this project. When I get it done I will post a link to the pattern.