Slow Start to New Year

In my neck of the woods 2017 has started off very rainy and dreary. When it’s like this day after day my motivation ebbs. I walk around the house sighing…a lot! (Ever do that??) And to be honest it felt like the holidays came and went in a blink and real life pressed in again too soon.

Despite the gray weather and my lethargy, I have worked a little on my “lose the excess stuff” initiative and now have six bags of stuff to give to charity. (With more to come!) And I’ve been adding interesting things to my store, though this past week sales have been almost nonexistent…alas, alas. I got spoiled by months of abundant holiday sales!

I haven’t been sourcing much as I need to keep whittling away at piles of unlisted inventory. (I envy those people who can just take stuff to a booth in an antique mall!) But I did venture into Goodwill a few days ago. Surprisingly (or not!) I deviated from my 2017 buying list by buying a vinyl LP! Honestly I wasn’t intending to buy a record. I was just killing time in the music section of my local Goodwill waiting for the check-out line to diminish. And there it was–a “J.R.R. Tolkien Poems and Songs of Middle Earth” LP, circa 1967!

Good grief…it features Tolkien reading and singing! As a Tolkien/”Lord of the Rings” fan I couldn’t resist buying this. I mean…could you??  There are a few currently for sale online mostly in the $40-$60 range. Mine has some wear to the cover, but the record looks scratch free, so I’m thinking I might list it at $40 or a little under. (Interested?)

And I really, really, really wasn’t going to buy any more vases for a while. Honestly. I have enough vases in my store. But I kept picking up this ceramic vase in Goodwill and putting it down…and picking it up and finally I put it in my basket.

Something about it appealed to me. But then I’m a sucker for handmade ceramics.

I also bought a few books at our library sale room including “Smile in a Mad Dog’s i” by Richard Stine. My oldest daughter is convinced it was written and drawn under the influence of some serious drugs. She could be right! It’s a tad weird.

So I’m plugging along. I’ve gotta take down our Christmas tree (Yes, it’s still up!) and take care of some other chores, but thankfully there is the promise of sun today! I know at some point I’m going to park myself in our Adirondack chair with a good book and my journal and soak up some rays.

How’s your year going so far??