Goodwill, Garage Sale, & Grove

My busy life just does not allow me to write on my blog as much as I would like! 

Two weeks ago while I browsed at the local Goodwill, who should approach me but my second husband!  Now, I haven’t seen him for years but thankfully recognized him.  Thinner, different glasses, but still the same.  We talked children and, for him, grandchildren, age, work, and life in general.  It was actually a nice visit.  Most of all I was happy to be looking put together with acceptable make-up and hair.  Nothing worse than running into someone when you happen to be out browsing on a Sunday in sweats, second day hair, and clean-scrubbed face!

Last week son Jordan came home after several days away and announced he was moving in with his new girlfriend.  Candy.  39 years old.  Wow.  However, Jordan is a grown man of 22 and it is his life and his decisions to make.  He knows he always has a home at Mom’s and I wish him good luck and happiness with this new adventure in his life. 

Last Friday I had a wild hair and decided to hold a garage sale Saturday morning.  Thankfully Sam and his buds were available to help me organize the sale and price items.  You never know what kind of treasures may be in store when one is digging through archived odds and ends.  There is a big trunk in the garage which I knew contained a variety of items; however, it had been so long since I had last opened it that what treasures inside were lost in my recesses of my memory.  Carefully opening the lid, an abundance of books appeared – craft and decorating books, makeup and fashion books, and a variety of fictional novels.  There were also some school papers for Sam and Jordan along with a photo album from my second marriage when the kids were young.  Sam ended up at one of the trunk browsing through his school papers while I flipped through the scrapbook, which contained many photos from a Long Beach trip years ago.  We ended up having to shut the trunk because we were getting too far off base digging through pictures and books to focus on the garage sale items.

Friday night found me unable to fall asleep until 1am; I then woke up at 4:30am.  Ugh.  Roused Sam and his buds at 6:30am to set up the tables on the driveway then proceeded to flop in a picnic chair while I waited for the crowds to show up. 

It ended up being an ebb and flow of customers.  A wave would show up, browse through the items, and then depart, leaving a 15 minute stretch of nothing.  Although it wasn’t labeled for sale, we did get one bite on Sam’s Impala which hopefully will pay off.  The day began getting warmer and warmer and warmer.  I ended up closing the sale at 12:30, moving all of the items back into the garage for perhaps another day.  And my reward?  A whopping $27!!!

After spending my earnings on gas and groceries, all I could think about was a nap.  However, Saturday afternoon I made potato salad and visited with my good friends Stan and Susan, who stopped by about 3pm to view my garage sale items.  Once the salad was done and my friends had departed, a nap on the couch became my next agenda item. 

Sunday morning I again woke up early, this time due to allergies.  It was blue sky and sunny so I grabbed my little Stubbs and we took a road trip to Willow Grove to play on the beach of the Columbia River.  Nobody was around so we took a walk (no leash!) in the sand.  Stubbs was in heaven – plenty of things to sniff, smell, and pee upon.  After gathering up some shells and driftwood, we returned home where I made homemade biscuits for breakfast. 

After mowing the back yard, my Sunday afternoon then became a time of creativity.  I had a framed canvas beach picture that I thought would look cool painted with a neat sea turtle mosaic I found on Pinterest.  After about an hour or so of painting, it became clear there is no Van Gough, Picasso, or Matisse blood flowing in my veins and I was forced to come up with a better idea for the picture.  I ended up gluing several of my plain and painted sand dollars from Cannon Beach onto the picture to provide a 3D effect (but mainly to cover up the hideous turtle.)  I also made a driftwood, bead, and sand dollar wall hanging along with a larger piece of driftwood which I embellished with a clear “Blessings” decal.  The finished items may not be perfect but they definitely provided me with a relaxing outlet for my Sunday afternoon.

Sunday evening found me popping a Benadryl to rid myself of allergies then relaxing on the couch watching the boob tube, preparing for another Monday. 

My upcoming excitement for this week?  I’m looking forward to my annual mammogram Wednesday morning bright and early!  Nothing like having your boobs pressed and flattened to give you an experience to remember!