Adventures in Thrifting

thrifting. Verb: shopping for or buying used goods especially at a store that specializes in secondhand merchandise.

thrifting. Purpose: to find and purchase things you didn’t even know you needed.

thrifting. Fun: experienced alone or with a friend, an enjoyable way to spend a morning.

My friend E and I go to lunch every month or so to catch up and discuss our current writing projects. Last week, we decided to mix things up and meet at a local thrift store before lunch. An “artist date.”

According to Julia Cameron in her book The Artist’s Way, an artist date is a block of time especially set aside and committed to nurturing your creative consciousness. I was long overdue for some inspiration. What treasures would we find?

We arrived shortly after the store opened and the checkout line was already backed up to the housewares section. A sign proclaimed it was “Christmas in July” and all holiday merchandise was half off. Many shoppers had their arms full of decorations, gift wrap, and holiday nick-nacks.

Except… One man shifted from foot to foot as he waited in line, trying to balance two large, orange, gasoline cans in his hands. (The kind you use when you run out of gas and have to walk to the gas station. )Hopefully they were empty. I’m sure there are laws. I’d found my first story and I hadn’t even started shopping yet!

E stopped to look at a display of Christmas cards, boxed in original packaging. As it’s over a hundred degrees here, I’m not in the mood for Christmas. I moved on.

A Portuguese bowl painted with colorful stripes and playful fish caught my eye. It reminded me of Dr. Seuss…One fish, Two fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish. It had to be authentic because the hand printed tag taped to the bottom makes it so…and a bargain at $12. But I don’t need it . I said as much to E. “Ok, but its really cute,” she said. I walked away and continued my search.

Things that ended up in my basket:

• Three blank journals, unused. (But wouldn’t it be fun to find secret notes in them? There’s another story idea!)
• Three packages of vintage floral notecards. I wasn’t surprised to see them at the thrift store. Most messaging is done via text or email these days, but I still like to send notes or include them with gifts.
• A pristine copy of Writing Down the Bones: Freeing the Writer Within. The copywrite is 2005, but I could tell it had never been read. The cover was still tight and there are no notes, highlights, or coffee stains. Perhaps the original owner already knew everything about writing, or thought they wanted to write, but never got around to it. This will be a good addition to my writing library.
• A red, t-shirt type dress was in my basket temporarily. I had high hopes it would be a good addition to my travel wardrobe, but after I slipped it on in the dressing room, no. A definite no. Seasoned thrifters know you win some, you lose some.

E had her hands full too. On the way to check out, the Portuguese bowl I didn’t need called out, “Pick me, pick me! ” I couldn’t resist. This was my favorite purchase of the day. It prompted me to make a nice crisp summer salad for dinner that night, inspired a blog post, and makes me smile.

As it turns out, impulse buys, those things you weren’t looking for but tug at your heart, are the best part about thrifting! Something is waiting for you out there!