Harnessing the Diiversity of the Goodwill Store

I went to the Goodwill Outlet Store today.

Remember now, the prices at this store are determined by weight. So I paid $1.59 per POUND for what I purchased today.

I found quite an assortment of items.

Wanna see?

Some assorted cool greeting cards.

These paper things that appear to perhaps go on a spindle and the graphics will then "move."

I have a record player and some vintage Red Raven Records and the "Magic Carousel" (google this if you need to...) and that knowledge allowed me to see the cool art aspect of these.

The kid blows a bubble gum bubble...

The frog grimaces and dances...

This caught my eye.

(there is a joke here.)

It was in a plastic bag and I could see it had some photographs.

Turns out it belonged to an ophthalmologist - maybe around the 1950's - 1960's.

OK - so this kid has a little problem. I hope it got fixed.

But THEN! BUT THEN!!! There were photos of eye surgeries - graphic, oh LORD, G-R-A-P-H-I-C photos of eye surgeries.

I could not even look (another joke here) at them. I just tucked them back in the middle of the papers.

Some sort of rock climbing harness? I googled it to make sure that it is not some sort of uh, sex, harness?

It is not.

This one I think I can sell.

The kid is going to Outdoor School next week and taking my old camera. I wanted to find a case for the camera and Viola! There it was.

By the pound!

I picked this up and put it down a couple of times....but it seems like "something" to me - - - -

The bottom - or is it the top of the "something?"

What I like about the outlet store, is that it make absolutely NO sense.

What I did NOT buy at Goodwill Today.

I did not buy this.

I did not buy this jar with the lady doing a somersault.

I did not have to think twice about NOT buying this, even though I do like handmade ceramics.

I get enough gymnastics in my life about every 4 years.

This uh, handmade doll(?) was at the outlet store and just kinda creeped me out.

I think it was made by a sad child.

Did not buy.

Did not even want to touch it.

Made me feel uncomfortable to see the little heart drawn on it...

Just thought I would show a blurry photo of the "book" people scrambling to get the new books that just got rolled out at the Goodwill Outlet store.

They almost look angelic with the lights shining from above.

Note:

They are a tough group - and the riot control employee was on duty watching over them.

Is this for training young gang members?

Did not buy.

Did not understand.

To klene yur geer.

(did not bye)

Crack - Mushrooms and Pot at the Goodwill Store today!

I went to my local Goodwill store before I headed to lunch today and saw something for sale that I had no idea what it was.

It was about 4 feet tall with dark plexiglass panels and looked to be from maybe the 1970’s?

Reminded me of R2D2 or Dr. Who.

This had an electrical cord - I peered inside and saw light bulbs.

Now, I was quite intrigued. It had a name.

PHOTOTRON 2.

I looked that name up on my iphone.

HA!

It is a machine for growing pot in your closet.

The dark panels hide the light from peering eyes.

“No worries, Ma! I will put my clothes away myself. You work too hard, Mom. I am happy to help you out.”

I went back to the store after work tonight, just to see if anything worthwhile had come out in the hours since my last visit, and I wanted to take a couple more pictures of the pot growing machine for my blog.

Too late.

Apparently, the machine sold quite quickly at what I thought was a rather steep price of $49.99-

Dude…

*********************************************************************

I feel sorry for my brain some days - the sheer amount of STUFF that I have to go through to find anything of value can certainly be mind boggling for the uninitiated.

Plastic mushrooms and butterflies.

Plastic Plumber’s Crack.

Oy.

Folk Art and Volks Art - Drive your Doodle

I saw this parked on a very quiet street in the very quiet town where I work.

I had to pull up closer, just to check it out...

I adore spirals.

See the "V.L" ? Volkswagon Love? Very Last? Vibrancy Lingers?

OK - you caught me... you can see that I did not get out of my mundane van to take pictures of this one-of-a-kind van. I think I will tomorrow, though...

Oh, would it not be great fun to doodle so big?

And then to drive your doodle too?

I think so!

Cool as Ice and Very Nice

I found this art glass bear today at Goodwill.

Before I picked it up I was not sure if it was just like a Hallmark gift or something better.

It is something "better" for sure.

I turned it over and saw that it had a signature and that made me smile.

Signatures are usually a Good Thing.

I got home and tried and tried to read he signature.
That took a LONG time...

Finally figured out that the artist was Wallace James.

I have emailed someone who may have known the artist and hope to get some information about the maker of this bear.

I will update this post if I get a response.

This feels so lovely in my hand.
It is solid and smooth and rich feeling.

Not a big bear - just a good one!

The bear has a clear face and a frosted body that looks like it was made to subtly resemble fur.

Cool!

Really Cool...

What do Sarah Palin and Toilet Paper have in Common?

Every September, in my town - there is a sculpture contest (no prizes-just fun) and each year I hot glue something together.

OK- So what do you think this is?

To me it was fun and art and politics all rolled up in one project.

The theme was "Impermanence"

So, as always - I got out my trusty glue gun to create this sculpture.

At Goodwill, I found one of those lighted deer yard sculptures that goes out in yards at Xmas.

I took off the antlers and then started gluing toilet paper in layers on the metal skeletal form.

Since the theme was Impermanence - I could not think of a more impermanent item than toilet paper.

I thought that if it rained - it would even be more true to the theme of impermanence.

I was pleased that toilet paper could be hot-glued. Who woulda thought?

The theme for this next year is:
"Cobbled Together"

I am seeing shoes/sandals glued to something that I have not found yet.

Stay tuned...

* * * * * * Tea Time * * * * * *

I found this lovely Japanese tea bowl at Goodwill the other night.

I don't know much about Japanese tea bowls.

So my guess is that this is worth anywhere from $3 to $1500....

(most likely in the $24.99 range)

I like the way the glaze is not everywhere on the outside.

There is a wonderful "sparkle" in the center of the inside.

Speaking of tea...

I have become addicted to Trader Joe's Irish Breakfast tea.

It is strong and dark and powerful.

If I let it steep properly - I cannot see the bottom of my mug!

I add a little Stevia sweetener and cream and I am one happy gal.

Eighty bags of Wonderful in this box.

They come two bags attached to each other all wrapped in cellophane.
No string on these bags.

Strings are for tea wimps.

I bought this tea when I could not get to Trader Joes.

My mistake.

Twenty bags of this costs as much as 80 of the Good Stuff.

And, to me, this simply is not very good.

I can hardly wait to go to bed now, so I can wake up tomorrow and have a cuppa!

The University District in Seattle and me

I found this neat wall just a couple of blocks away from the hotel in Seattle.

I love love love all the shades and textures of gray on gray.

And this is a color photo!

The kid took this photo...

The kid has a good eye and does not even know it.

If anyone knows the meaning of a stencil of a turtle with a parachute - I would be interested to know.

Even if there is no meaning - it is cool.

Funky old sign.

"Flowers by wire"

Everyone probably orders flowers on the internet these days and not by the wire.

What was that wire, anyway?

Telephone wire?

Barbed wire?

Live wire?

It has transitioned into a vegetarian restaurant. The restaurant is named - get this --- Flowers.

I looked in the window and it looked so dirty inside that I felt sorry for any and all vegetarians who enter there.

Still, one dang neat sign.

I passed on this restaurant also.

I think this was a Thai food.

Every other restaurant was a Thai food restaurant.

Seriously.

I saw three on one block. How does that work?

Cream-puff.

How quaint.

Not Skunked in Seattle!

My hotel in Seattle is less than a mile from a Goodwill store. How could I not scoot over there at the first opportunity?

That opportunity was today.

There is not a parking lot at this Goodwill store and we found a spot a few blocks away.

Upon leaving the car, we were bombarded by loud obscenities from across the street. An irate irritated F-bombing local character. Wow. We ain't in Kansas anymore.

The Goodwill store was mostly clothes - no furniture and "hip" young and friendly employees.

I found an old picture from Missoula Montana with a nice frame for $3.99 and then this woodblock print.

I know what you are thinking when you see this print.

I know that your first thought is - "Hey, that is a skunk cabbage!"

There is a song by Melanie, that has a line in it something like - "Anything is phallic if it's longer than it's wide."

Aptly applied to this print, I do believe...

Either way, it is a vintage 1972 print by Dale De Armond. I googled her and her stuff is rather nice.

This is an early piece by her.

I guess if you have seen one skunk cabbage, you have seen them all.

If you have smelled a skunk cabbage, you know how it was named.

I was pleased to be out of my regular Goodwill store range and still find a good thing.

Yay.