The Wayback Files: Service Merchandise

 Today I thought I'd do something different for a blog post.  For the last year or so I've been looking on sites like Newspapers.com finding all kinds of things that most people aren't searching newspaper archives for.  I look for advertisements, comics, wrestling articles, sometimes trading cards that newspapers would include in their pages, and at Christmas I created a Christmas newspaper from my family and few friends.  It consisted of all Christmas related items found in newspapers from years past, like news stories, comics, advertisements and other items.  My plan was maybe 4-6 pages and it ended up being 16 or so pages.  I had a lot of fun compiling it and I got rave reviews from those that read it.  The idea was it would be a one and done deal because first and foremost I only had a subscription for 6 months and I had other projects I wanted to do.  Also because after you do one issue directly related to Christmas, most of the articles are redundant and the comics and ads are pretty much the same.  However getting a little bit of positive feedback I have been working on maybe a smaller issue for this year.  When my subscription ran out though I had to find other avenues.  I was hoping to get the free weekend that newspapers runs on Mother's Day weekend but they didn't do it this year.  I hope those aren't done.  If it is I might be able to get a free week once in a while, but otherwise I might pony up 20 bucks for a month.  The good news is they did just release a bunch of newspapers from my area and I hope a few more are added before my next trial/month.  In the meantime the State Historical Society of Missouri partners with Newspapers and they have some on their site as well and its free access so I have found stuff on there.

Another avenue I've explored (I've used it many times but never for this reason) was the Internet Archive.  For many years I've used the Wayback Machine to look up old websites, and sometimes even explore the Archive itself for items ranging from old wrestling magazines, music, or even films.  However I decided to look up newspapers and found a few results.  Not enough to impress me, but since I was on the site I explored more and found more magazines.  Then I decided to search for catalogs.  I mean I love the old through the mail catalogs from the 80s and 90s, so maybe somebody preserved them.  Turns out, a lot did.

So in a new feature (at least until I forget about it or run out of material) I'm going to thumb through the Internet Archives and feature and old catalog and show a few items from it.  At the end I will link you to the page if you want to explore more.  The first one will take us back to the Summer of 1976 thanks to the Service Merchandise catalog.

Two things I want to note before I begin.  I have never shopped at Service Merchandise, and I wasn't even born in 1976.  That said I am aware of Service Merchandise only because in the early years of Wheel of Fortune (the good years), you could shop for prizes on the show and the prizes were supplied by Service Merchandise.  I always assumed they went out of business in the early 90's, but they stuck around long enough to actually have a website and possibly allowed you to order from the site.  I'm not sure what the closest store was to me, but I was in my teens when they died out so I can't tell of any experiences.  However it doesn't prevent me from going down the rabbit hole of seeing stuff I would have wanted at some point in my life, or items crazy enough that I hope I never see in person.  So before we dig in, lets look at what they sell.

I did't really read this, I'm a pictures guy!  Just kidding, well, sort of.  No need to look for the page number when I'm browsing through the entire thing and there is no way of actually ordering them.  However if anything is of interest and I don't show it, again at the end I'll share a link to the page to browse it yourself.

Now we begin.

While never having that brand of "garden cart" we did have a similar one when growing up, and I really liked it.  It held a lot more than a normal wheelbarrow, but then again I'm not sure what exactly I used it for.  Maybe to pick up sticks a few times.

Now I'm a lawn mower guy.  A garden tractor, a yard tractor.... whatever you wanted to call it.  With my parents I remember mowing many summers.  Not just yards, I mowed lawns at a nursing home, a few churches, and even a cemetery (I remember even hitting a few tombstones and feeling real bad about it).  The go to mower in our family was Craftsman.  Later on my dad joined a garden tractor group and they would pull them (think Tractor pulls but smaller).  I never got into it, but he pulled mowers like Cub Cadet, Dynamark, and an old Wizard (the kind sold at Western Auto).  He also had a Case or two he would sometimes use.  Saying all of this, I know of a lot of brands of mowers, probably up to the current kinds that use handles instead of a steering wheel I guess zero turn is the name of them.  Even still I know of brands like Bad Boy.  Toro also makes a kind you can stand on and I watch a Youtuber called The Boring Channel and that is what he uses to mow lawns (lawn mowing youtube videos are actually soothing).  The reason I bring all this up is because Until a couple weeks ago, I was never aware that Service Merchandise made their own brand of mowers.  I have never seen or heard of one.  I just assumed they'd sell Homelite or Dynamark or some other brand that may seem like lower quality but still suitable to use.  Looking at this mower, this would possibly be perfect as a pulling mower, and even if it wasn't it looks pretty cool. I miss the days of mowing because it allowed me to clear my head and actually got me outside.  I don't miss the hot summer days though so maybe I'm better off not having a yard or at least one I need to tend to.

I don't know why but I still enjoy box fans.  They always seemed to provide a good amount of air and never seemed too loud.  I never had one on a stand though, so this would be pretty cool to have.  Though I would like an updated version of a box fan.  Maybe its not nostalgia but more because my fan conked out on me a few weeks ago.  Though luckily I did have a smaller fan that works fin for now.

The bottom fan reminds me of one my dad used to have next to his bed.  It was right by his clock radio (just like the one I showed in my last post).  I would love to find a similar one to this to display next to it.

Don't get me wrong, I love air conditioning, but I think I could survive off a fan if I needed to.  In fact until the temperature hits 90 or above and the heat index is over 100, I prefer to keep the windows open.  I have had to use the AC the last week because of such events, but I'm hoping it will cool off for a few days to get some fresh air circulating.

For a lot of these I tried to include the write up and the price, but I didn't want a bunch of other write ups and pictures to delude what I was showcasing.  I had a few Tonka trucks growing up, and may have had a very similar dump truck.  $8.97 sounds like a good price for it.  Having said that, I didn't pay a lot of attention to pricing but did include it to get a glimpse on how prices were now compared to then.  I think 9 bucks would be a steal, but then again, I'm not sure I'd really need a Tonka truck today.

Another drawback of not having a yard is not being able to play outdoor games.  Sure I could go to the park but I'd then need to drag all the stuff there and back.  I really would love to have a croquet set and play again.  It's been probably 20 years since I last played, and it would be so fun.  I'd even settle for horseshoes as well.  I was never a big fan of tetherball, but it would be fun to play again.  I think it would be fun to one day organize a weekend Olympics of sorts of lawn games.  Have like 8-10 events ranging from Croquet, Horseshoes, Washers, Cornhole, and more.  Have two divisions, one where you pay to enter and can win money, and another where you just play for fun.  If I ever got a yard again, I would buy a croquet set for me, and my mom seems to think she'd enjoy cornhole, so I'd get that too.  I also have a set or two of the original Lawn Darts (Jarts) and would play that when nobody is around or around people I would trust not to poke other people's eyes out.

I liked those old coolers, the kind that weren't plastic.  These days I don't have much use for them, but I still miss them.

Something else I would probably/maybe partake in if I had a yard or at least a good pasture would be archery.  I remember a couple weeks in high school we learned about it and it was pretty fun.  I don't think I could use a compound bow or anything, but just doing it as a hobby would be a bit fun.  I would never be at the level of Olympians, but they were quite fun to watch.

If I'm being honest, I don't miss old cameras.  Anything before digital I have zero interest in.  Even instant cameras which were cool at the time, I just don't miss.  I like knowing what I took a picture of immediately so I know if I got a good shot.  While I was hesitant to using a camera on a phone (and still am a bit), I do enjoy not carrying around a bulky camera.  I included these because these look different than the Polaroid's I remember and thought it would be fun to show off.  If I found these today at a garage sale I would probably pass over them without much thought though.

I realized there isn't a lot of toys and games in this catalog or this post, but if this catches on I have a few future posts that might be a bit more fun.

SPEAKING OF FUN!!!!!  These clock's are a HOOT!  Seriously, I just thought of my grandma when I saw these even though I have no memory of her having anything remotely similar to these clocks.  I do remember she had like decorative cast iron spoons and forks or something.  Though these were different and I thought I would include them.

The toasters made me think of a fire hazard waiting to happen.  They just look so.....old.  Though I am curious if the Toastmaster one on the left was made in Boonville, MO where they had a plant and is the next town over.  One day maybe I'll get a 4 slice toaster, but it won't look like these.

Ahh, ye olde dinnerware sets.  I never cared for designs on my plates, though I remember having a similar one to the letter C on the top right.  In fact we might still have some of the set.  These days I just prefer using a plastic plate I replace every few months, or on special occasions, much nicer ones but nothing that stands out like these.

For someone who rarely travels, I have a strange fascination with luggage.  Samsonite always reminds me of Dumb & Dumber for a scene where Jim Carrey tries to remember a person's name and realizes it might be on the briefcase.  "SAMSONITE.... I WAS WAY OFF".

My mom did have a very similar Beauty Case like the letter L, and she might still have it.  It was in blue also.  I look at luggage these days, but usually I'm more interested in getting it just to use it for storage.  Then again, I've never had a real nice luggace set.  Maybe one day.

I thought I had more to show, but that appears to be it.  I admit it was a bit of a lackluster debut, but if I do more of these, they will be more interesting.  I know I have another one I might do soon somewhat also related to summer, then a couple for Halloween and a few Christmas ones, so at the least I should have some to last until the end of the year.  As for these items, I'm not sure which item I'd want the most.  Maybe the fan so I could display it next to the clock radio, and also use it if I need to. 

If you would like to see the entire catalog here is the link- Service Merchandise Summer 1976.

So that will wrap things up for today thanks for reading and I hope you have a great weekend.  I'm not sure what my plans are beside staying cool, but I have a few projects I'm working on and I have even completed a few.  I'm proud of the progress I've made on a few things.  So if I can keep that up, I'll be happy.  Hopefully I'll have a another post in the next week, but if not, have a fun and safe Independence Day (if you live in the U.S.), or have a fun and safe month of July for those Worldwide.  Thanks again for reading.

Garage Sale-ing! Am I A Fuddy Duddy?

 A couple weeks ago I was excited at the notion to hit some city wide garage sales.  A few local towns were having them, and I thought about going. The first weekend had 2-3 options, yet that Friday came, and I wasn't really feeling up to it.  I'm not sure the reason, but I just didn't want to go.  It wasn't motivation or anything, I just didn't want to go.  So I stayed home and worked on a few projects.  Fast forward a week and my town as well as other towns were having city wide sales.  On that Friday I was waiting to find a map online of all the sales.  Off and on rain however and a lack of sleep caused me to lose interest.  So I figured I would go Saturday, and I did.  Though things weren't as they seemed.  More rain was forecast so I was hopeful it would hold off until the afternoon.

So that Saturday my mom and I left the apartment around 7:30 AM only knowing of two garage sales both of which were clothes heavy and didn't seem too appealing.  I should note that for the first time in a long time I didn't have much that I really wanted.  The only real thing I had an eye out for was maybe a bookcase or some other type of wood furniture.  Some wood furniture especially the crappy kind sells cheap, and I have no worries about tearing them apart to reuse the wood.  Though I just realized I have a bunch now in storage and could possibly build a bookcase, hmm... ANYWAYS!

So on this day we didn't know where to start, so after driving a bit we found our first sale.  It was at a former grocery store that has been for sale for a few years and one I showcased here a couple years ago in my town's 150th Anniversary.  Since then it was used as a type of thrift store for a nonprofit which I never checked out while open.  Anyways, we stopped to check it out, and there wasn't a lot to choose from.  In fact it was mostly houseware odds and ends and clothes.  Nothing really caught my eye, but my mom tends to spend a bit more time looking than I do, so I have time to take a closer look.  As we are browsing the workers are busy doing whatever (they had a bunch of stuff behind the tables but a lot in boxes, not sure what was really happening, and I didn't want to ask).  So I looked at this one table and one of the workers mentioned "everything is half price".  How nice, now first I have to find something I have an interest in.  As my mom was about to show me something in the "eh, might as well get it" category, I found a couple things that "eh, we kinda wanted them anyways".  So she found something and I found something.  That was it, and it set us back 2 dollars.  Big spenders we are!  So what kind of bargains did we find?

Curtains and a home plan book.  We have no interest in building our own house, but we've always been fascinated with blueprints and layouts of houses.  So much so that I show my mom a Youtube channel of a guy who tours mobile homes.  We have a couple other similar books, but at least this is something different to look at.  As for the curtains, for a couple years I have been wanting to get 1-2 more curtains.  Nothing fancy, but black out ones are the ones I'm looking for, and finding these while not the most exciting find, was something that I did have my eye out for.  I'm excited (or at least happy) I found curtains.... CURTAINS!  What have I become.

So we cruised around a bit to look for more sales.  We hit a lot of nothing.  Not as in nothing at the sales, but no sales.  We stopped at one other sale and it was pretty much all clothes.  It was a neighbor and we talked about 10 minutes but that was it.  She said she sold a lot of stuff the day prior, so thats good, just not for us.  In total I think we saw about 5 or 6 sales, and we passed on a couple because they didn't look like much except clothes.  We also might have forgot about another one, and the last one we saw much later in the day when we weren't in the mood.

The day wasn't a complete bust though.  My mom needed to get a prescription refilled and planned on going to Walmart on Sunday, but I remembered a subdivision on our way to the Walmart was also have some sales.  They claimed 15 or more sales, and while the threat of storms loomed, we figured why not.

In the past we've had a bit of luck at these sales, but they are also hit and miss.  Some sales have nothing, others are way too pricy, but a few have real good cheap stuff.  So we decided to got, storms be darned!

We got to the first area as the skies were starting to get a bit darker, but we persisted.  There were two sales on this one cul de sac and parking was a bit tough to find.  So my mom parked closer to one and we decided just to split up, and I'd go to the one further away.  She went to the closer one and found a couple good deals, I think one might be for a friend.

The box on the puzzle was crushed, but for 50 cents it was worth the gamble.  Plus I do like having options for holiday and Christmas puzzles.  While puzzles haven't been something I've done lately I think later this summer I'll get back in the swing of things.  We are a bit backlogged on puzzles but at least by the holidays we will find time for this one.  The best part though was after we got home, my mom found out that it was still in the bag, so its a brand new puzzle.  Not bad for 50 cents. As she was happy with her finds, I was just as happy, because I found something that I have low key wanted for a few years, but never put effort into looking for it.

My dad had this same exact model for many years.  As I get older nostalgia kicks in and I wish we kept his.  However I think his started to break down so that's why he either tossed it or we just didn't keep it when we moved.  This set me back 2 bucks, but it was the best 2 bucks I spent on that day.  After getting home we tested it and it works flawlessly.  My mom has hinted that she might want to use it and honestly, I don't have an issue with it because I have a clock on my chromebook and I have a stereo by my bed so I'm set.  So she might use it until she finds something better.

So far we spent 5 bucks.  Big spenders we are, but looking back.... did we really just buy housewares and puzzles and books?  What have I become and why am I so happy buying housewares?

We went to about 10 more sales but it was a real crapshoot of high prices, items bathed in cigarette smoke, and a whole lot of nothing.  My mom did spot a bookcase for 5 bucks, but it didn't look that great.  Cheap wood that while sturdy, already had chips in it and would fall apart easily.  Also I didn't want to carry it down the driveway.  Though looking back maybe I should have.  Not so much for the bookcase but at the chance to bundle it with an item I also passed on.  They had a Food Saver vacuum sealer, which is something I've wanted for a while, and it was pretty cheap- $5.  What stopped me from getting it was I wasn't sure if it worked, it didn't come in a box or even have instructions (which usually isn't a big deal, but I don't know how to operate on), but most importantly it was drowned in dust.  I think the dust might have even been vacuum sealed onto it.  Again, 5 bucks was worth the gamble I guess, but maybe if they'd take 5 for both the food saver and the bookcase I'd do it.  Oh well.

That was the last sale we went to as the rain looked like it was about to begin, and my mom isn't a fan of driving in the rain.  So we called it a day and went to Walmart to get her prescription and to Dollar Tree.

Besides the clock radio I think Dollar Tree was what made me the most happy.  There is a drink they have that I enjoy sometimes, which isn't something I'd normally drink.  Anyways for the last 2 months or more each time I went they were sold out.  So this time they had a ton.  I wanted to buy a case of 12, but settled on 4 bottles (1.25 each so $5).  The reason was because I don't drink it all in one setting and one bottle can last 2-3 days and its not something I drink daily, so 1 a week will last a while.

I won't claim its good for you, but its probably better than other stuff I drink or have drank in the past.  No caffeine and 10% coconut water, makes it a unique drink, but I like having a glass during breakfast.  Strawberry Banana is my favorite but last time I did get the Mango (maybe Mango Orange or something) and it wasn't too bad either.  Between that and occasional V8's, I like to have a variety of drinks during breakfast since I usually drink sweet tea (not crazy levels of sugar) or Kool-Aid.  I also drink Orange Juice and Apple Juice but not as much lately.  So finding this made my day much better.

I also found a pair of socks.  I have temporarily stopped buying socks because I forgot what I have and don't have anymore, plus I am in the process of moving them since I ran out of room to display them.  I also don't want to hang them until I can bag them better (to prevent dust).  Its the reason I want a vacuum sealer.  Anyways, I still look, but only buy a pair if I know I don't have them or don't want to run the risk of passing on them then realizing I didn't have them.

The last few months, some socks have come in two packs, such as this one.  It makes it harder to display the back ones, but it makes it more tempting to wear them also.  Chester Cheeto on the front pair made grabbing this a no brainer, and even the back pair looks nice to display.  So much so that if I find another 2 pack like this I might even buy it again to display both sides and then have the choice to wear a pair.  Once I get things decluttered, I will do a new post showing all my socks again.  Its crazy to think 2-3 years ago I had no socks, and now I have probably 70 or more pairs.

By the time we got to Walmart and did a bit of shopping, we were a bit tired.  After we checked out and headed to the car we noticed the rain had started but nothing bad.  We headed home and was quite surprised we actually did so much stuff and it was only 10:30 AM.  All in all it was a fun day, and the only concerning part is I got excited buying curtains, socks, (semi) healthy drinks, and a clock radio.  I'm either getting old, or just in a weird spell.  Maybe I'm a fuddy duddy.

To make matters more interesting a few nights ago I did something I never do.  I bought into the hype of a "super rare once in a lifetime (weekly event)".  I kept hearing about a "Strawberry Moon".  These sun and moon events are always overhyped as a rare instance but seems like they happen every month.  Anyways I was up and they said around 2:30 local time was the best time to get a shot, so I decided to go out and take some photos.

My photography skills have regressed but it was also it was 2:30 AM and I never have gotten good pictures with my camera phone.  I have thought about getting a monocular but also wonder how often I'd use it.  At any rate I was happy with the results and it actually felt nice outside.  I don't plan on taking more pictures like this but maybe I will if I remember.

So I guess that wraps it up for today, I'm in the process of cleaning up around the house and even cleaning up files as well as working on a few projects, so I'm staying busy with stuff.  Thanks everyone for reading and I hope everyone has a great weekend.

Avon Calling

 You know the drill by now, I don't post for a few months and I ramble on why.  This time, eh.  I just haven't felt like writing.  So today I figured I'd show off some recent acquisitions.  Since my last post, I believe I've made two or maybe three trips to my local second hand store- Savvy Seconds.  I haven't been in the mood to buy much lately, especially since currently I'm helping my mom in what I'm calling the great book purge of 2025.  She has said for a while she's wanted to get rid of books, so I kinda have been pushing her so she can have some more room in her bedroom.  It allows me to catalog what she has and get rid of stuff she doesn't.  I have also purged some books as well, some I've read, others I haven't and have no desire to.  Though I think I've set aside some books my mom had so I'm not sure I've made progress.  So far she's cut about 1/3 of her collection down.  So book hauls haven't been a priority for a bit.  Anyways on our first trip to Savvy, I found something the brought back memories.

My grandma use to collect Avon.  My dad even had quite a collection, including I think this one.  My mom while never selling it, was I guess you'd call a liaison for the local seller for a few years.  While that was partly the reason I got this, the other one was because in the late 90's and early 2000's my dad had a mail jeep.  It was blue like this one, though it was all blue (and no markings).  He bought it because for a couple of those years I had a paper route and it was the perfect vehicle for it.  Load the papers in the back, and easy-peasy.  He would drive (with the steering wheel on the right side instead of the left) and I would hop out and get the papers on the porch.  So seeing this it brought back a flood of memories.  The Jeep didn't run half the time though and by the time I stopped delivering papers it didn't have much life left.  It sat stored in our garage for a few years until after my dad passed, then a little while more before we sold it.  At least once I get organized I can display this and have the memories.

In a rarity on this trip, I actually bought a movie.  One I kind of already had.

My nephews had this on DVD in the early 2000's and they wore it out.  The problem though was that it was with two other specials, and this was the last of the three on the disc.  It was one of the Disney Christmas Classics.  Years later they would release this special and honestly its been one I've wanted for a while.  Before the old disc got too scratchy I was able to rip a copy so I could watch on my computer, but finding this I may not have to do that anymore.  Not only did this have the DVD but it still had the digital code inside.  Now since this is a second hand store, its hit or miss on whether the code would work or not.  So for a buck I got the DVD at the very least.  After I got home, I found out the code actually did work, so now I have a digital copy as well.  I'LL BE DOG GONE!

Having mentioned a book purge earlier you'd suspect we didn't get books.  However you'd be wrong.

More Cookbooks!  I don't know what this obsession came from, but I don't hate it.  I enjoy the local ones more than the hardback nationally published ones, but you get what you get.  The United Methodist Women one we aren't sure where its from.  We believe its from Iowa, but not positive.  Space is an issue now with our cookbooks so I'm trying to figure out the best way to store them.  I'm hoping to find a bookshelf during our city wide garage sales next week, and if not I have a couple ideas.  Right now we have two kitchen cabinets full (one regular one and one small one like above the sink).  So maybe after our book purge we might do a cookbook purge. The lone non-cookbook.... book was one my mom found interesting. I've been to St. Francois County a time or two but not enough interest to read it.  Though I do need to find a new book to read since I just finished my 6th book this year (a book a month is quite an accomplishment for me, someone who as recently as 3 years ago read 6 books in maybe 20 years).

So when purging out books, we had to find a way to do it.  I mean we could donate them to Savvy Seconds, but then we run the risk (a good one for my mom) of rebuying the same books we just donated.  There is two little library's in our town now, one at the school that rarely gets used, and another we just found out was food items like cans and such.  So we have one other option.  Our local recycling center has a section that has stuff people doesn't want anymore.  So for the last couple months we've taken maybe 50-60 books up there.  We don't want to take all of them at once because not only would it take up all the space for stuff other people donated, but also a good chance that someone might just decide nobody wants them and tosses them.  So we take a few at a time, maybe 20-30 and get rid of them.  Which we might do again tomorrow.  I think we probably have 200-300 more to donate,  I also considered sitting up a free box for people to look at during city wide sales next weekend.  Which I still might do.

When we go, we see what other people have decided they no longer need, and the last couple times my mom has found some puzzles.  At first I was a little apprehensive on getting stuff feeling it was for the needy more than us.  Then I thought about it more and realized hey, we just set out 50 books I think 2-3 puzzles in return isn't a bad tradeoff.  Plus if we don't want them when we get done with them we can always take them back.  We have some puzzles to donate too, so we'll be purging for a while.

The top two pictures was our first trip there.  The bottom two I'm sure we got from there too.  Maybe we got them from Savvy but I doubt it.  I have posted many finished puzzles lately because I haven't worked on puzzles in a while, and my mom has been redoing old ones.  We have a stack of ones we haven't done, but right now we are waiting to clear some space before we spend time on those.  Some are like 2000 pieces so we need a bit more space.

On that first trip to Savvy Seconds, I found a shirt I really liked while my mom was checking out.  Now I could have quickly added it to our stuff before she paid, but I didn't want to pay the price they had on the shirt.  I'm conflicted on their pricing the last 5-6 years, especially on clothing.  All items are donated, but they are trying to raise money for funding of projects they do (Savvy is one part of Unlimited Opportunities which helps people with special needs).  So I get they do need to make a profit and such, but at the same time 25 bucks for a button up shirt is a bit much.  Just being honest, and sure that same shirt is 50-70 bucks on Ebay, but I don't go to this store to pay Ebay or high prices.  If they sell it for 10 bucks and someone turns around and sells it for 50 bucks, then yeah they could make more money, but they also just made 10 bucks off something they got for free.  Anyways, the shirt was 25 bucks, and I wasn't willing to pay that much.  I told my mom about it after leaving, and the whole day I pondered if I should have got it.  The next day they posts all clothing was buy one get one free.  I wouldn't save money on the shirt, but my mom was eyeing a dress which was 8 bucks.  So we considered going back, but ultimately didn't.  The next day they extended the sale.  Again, we considered but passed.

The next week they had buy two get two free on all clothes (which in a way shows they are overstock with donated clothing).  Now they are teasing us, but again, we passed and even did it again when they extended that sale.  By this point I was over it.  I didn't need the shirt, and I was okay with it.

Yesterday we needed to make a food run, and we decided we would go to Savvy to look at things.  Now the day before they had the best deal yet- half off all clothing!  So it would be 12.50, a price I could be happy with.  This was 3 weeks since we last went, I bet there's no way its still there, so we didn't go on Friday.  On Saturday before we left, I noticed they did extend the sale.  So if its there I'll get it and if its not, I won't.

We stop there first.  The place somehow had more racks of clothes, and was literally busting at the seams with clothes.  It prevented me from really looking at CD's.  So I looked at the books.

If I'm being honest, the Campbell's book was the only one I really cared for.  The paperback book was one my mom was semi-interested in and the Life's Simple recipes we got because if we needed space to put index cards of recipes, this had space to add.  The first book about post 9/11 was there last time but I passed on it.  Liking to get books in multiples of 4 (25 cents each) I decided to get it this time (even though I showed 7 previously, we did get 8 books the previous trip).  After books the store was also a bit crowded with people but we looked at puzzles.  Again we are use to paying the $1 or so they use to sell for so we have more restraint for $3 used puzzles.  Nothing caught our eye, but they are next to board games, and one stood out to me, one I've been looking for.

This was a game I remember from childhood and I still have it.  The problem is the cards are in really rough shape and some might be missing (I think I even bought that version used at a garage sale).  So for the last 15-20 years I've been hoping to find a better version of the game, and I found this for 5 bucks.  If it was used I doubt I would buy it, but it was still sealed.  Its a fun game and I hope to play it one day soon.

Now of course your interested on if I found the shirt or not.  I'll be honest, it was the first place I looked when I entered the store, and.... it was not.... in the same spot it was last time, it was just down the rack.

I was really excited to find it and pay only 12.50 for it.  We had a discount card as well, so for about 17 bucks we got 4 books, a still sealed game and a nice button down shirt (not my size, but I can't be choosy- I don't need to button it up to wear it).  Not bad.  So why am I, a Kansas City Royals fan so happy buying a St. Louis Cardinals shirt?

Because around 15 or so years ago my mom and my late sister was looking at this store a couple towns over that had overstock clothes and such and found the exact same shirt, but in my size (at that time), and of the Kansas City Royals.  So seeing this Cardinals shirt (which the Cardinals was my sister's favorite team) brought back a lot of memories and joy.  It was why I really was torn on paying 25 dollars for it initially and each time they had a clothing sale I had to restrain myself.  Getting it at half price was something that I won't later regret (like many other purchases I have made), and shows that I have some restraint.  The only real issue is when and where am I going to wear it? I don't go out much and if I do I don't want to rep the Cardinals over the Royals.  Though I had a funny idea.  Maybe one day I'll buy a ticket to a game between the Royals and Cardinals right behind home plate. Every half inning while they are in a commercial break, I can change the shirt to which team is batting.  I think it would be funny people watching on TV thinking "Didn't that guy have on a Cardinals shirt last inning?"  Then again I have only gone to a handful of games, but the last 2 times I've gone to a Royals game (one was rained out, or thought to be until we left), I have worn the Royals shirt.  I even got asked about it while looking at the Royals Hall of Fame in 2015.  It seems to be somewhat rare with a worker mentioning they've only seen it 1-2 times.  I even did some digging and found a pic of a guy sitting next to the dugout wearing it during the World Series in 2014 or 2015.

Anyways I am so happy with some recent purchases and even happier that my mom and I have started to purge items we no longer want or need.  I hope that I can do the same with more stuff in the future, and as I say that, there is a possibility I might try to purge some of my unwanted trading cards later this month.  There is a card show in the next town over and I'm thinking of loading the car up and seeing if anyone makes me an offer.  I don't think they have much value (a lot of "junk wax era" and bent corners) but there is some 82/83 Donruss or Fleer that might have a little value.  At this point I'd rather just get rid of it then try to make a profit on it.  I'm not getting rid of all my cards, these are just 10-15000 cards that I don't want and taking up space.  Maybe this is the chance to do it.  I'll let you know if I go through with it or not.

Anyways I think I'll wrap things up from here, thanks to everyone for reading and I hope everyone has a great week.  As for me, I think some storms are coming, but otherwise I think I'll spend time doing more cleaning and purging and hopefully next weekend can find some good deals at city-wide garage sales.  Have a great night!

New Inventory and Updates

 It's been almost a week since as Les Nessman would say the "godless tornado" stuck my hometown.  A lot of local media coverage and a lot of cleanup later and things are starting to return to normal.  I did look at some of the damage three days after the event and it was still pretty bad.  The main road leading into town looked devastating on TV (I didn't make it out that way the first couple days), and even after countless telephone poles replaces and many helping community members it still looked a whole lot worse in person.  A house that was once hidden by 10 or more trees was now shown out in the open, heavily damaged and all the trees bare.  Not just the leaves, but most of the limbs gone too.  In my last post I explained my first thoughts, and I considered many people lucky and some that weren't.  Looking at more damage on Saturday I have to say I stand by it being potentially worse.  The way the tornado shifted as I said in the last post, was crazy, but looking at the main road it shifted even more sparing many more houses that were in the direct path.  Even when it lifted, it was in an area that it could have caused much more damage.  I-70 by that time likely had many motorists, and even a slight shift before lifting could have struck the overpass to our exit which is usually a haven for many truckers resting for the night.  I didn't take more pictures, but what I saw with my own eyes will be etched into my brain for a long time, if not forever.

A couple days ago I looked on Youtube to see if there was more video of the events from that day or the aftermath.  A station in Kansas City did do overhead coverage which I think I linked in the last post.  A station from St. Louis (over 150 miles away) even had a reporter cover it.  While I'm a bit surprised it didn't get more coverage outside the local area (and even some locally from some newspapers), I'm also glad it didn't.  The town does help one another, and what awareness it brought to the town did bring in more help, and that's all that matters.  Since I don't get out daily, I haven't seen what has happened in the last couple of days, but I have seen more cleanup outside my windows, and there are a couple more dumpsters for debris.

*PRE-PUBLISH/POST-EDIT: My point in that last paragraph was actually pertaining to the advanced warning.  Our tornado siren did not go off due to it being old and running on electricity.  The power went out a minute or so before the tornado hit.  As I watched a livestream days later of a storm chaser the only warning we had was a severe thunderstorm warning issued 5 minutes before the tornado hit.  About 2 minutes before the tornado hit this Youtuber wondered why a tornado warning was not issued for us.  The tornado touched down about a minute after we lost power, so no time to warn us.  It was maybe 4 minutes after the tornado touched down that the tornado warning was issued, maybe slightly sooner.  The warning was issued based on radar and they didn't even confirm a tornado did touch down at that point.  After watching it in realtime replay, I might have to give some Youtube weather people a shot next time.  I'm not saying they are better than meteorologists, but some are highly educated and are more than just "storm-chasers'.  This one in particular had a few maps and was going all through them. It may not have prevented anything, but it was interesting to see him predict the warning before it actually happened.

So with that I think I'll move on.  I don't want to keep dwelling on it, and honestly my last post I didn't even link anywhere. It was just more of something to clear my head some.  As I mentioned above, on Saturday I did look at some of the storm damage, but I also went to my local second hand store.  It wasn't really a planned trip, but my sister visited and wanted to show us around.  I made a quick run into Dollar Tree, but left empty handed.  I was only looking for a hydration drink, and the flavor I liked was out.  We also checked out Walmart, but nothing real exciting there either.  So Savvy Seconds was the place.  I wouldn't say we hit it big, but we did make some good finds.

The Michael McDonald CD is for my mom, she really likes him, and from what I heard, it wasn't a bad CD to grab.  The Lucinda Williams CD was for me, and while it doesn't have her best songs, if you enjoy her music, its good.  I enjoy her music, so I was happy to find it.  Usually I like to buy 4 CD's since they are a quarter each.  I grabbed 6 CDs, 2 were empty cases, and one was really scratched so I put them back.  The last one was a fun find.  My grandma always said she was related to Leroy Van Dyke (as I mentioned in a post long ago).  So when I found this one I was happy to grab it.  It has his one hit The Auctioneer, and other songs, which.... well, he tried, lol.  Nothing bad, but some just don't really fit his style.  That said I was happy to find it and like with all CD's I open the case to see if they are in there and to see if they are scratched.

Turns out it was signed.  That made me real happy, and even if scratched, I would have bought it.  He is still local and occasionally pops into the local record store (local as in Sedalia).  Overall I was pretty excited with just these items, but we also found more.

Still on a cookbook kick, we found a few more.  The only one I would have got was the last one, but my mom says the foil one is pretty good.  I really need to find a way to organize all the cookbooks one day.  In the meantime, I am pretty sure I will have a project on here soon showing them off.  Then again, projects on here don't always work out.

Another project I have in the pipeline involves puzzles and my mom found a couple more.

The top one she was a little less excited after she got home and noticed it was only 300 pieces.  It's okay, the price was right and its good to have a new puzzle.  The bottom one looks blurry, for some reason my photo taking skills have gotten worse recently.  Anyways its a painting puzzle, not a photo, so it doesn't interest me as much, but my mom liked it.

Overall, I think some very solid pickups.  That wasn't all though, because my sister also brought more books for my mom.  A few weeks ago there was a massive book sale, and we almost went.  My sister and her family did go, and got some good stuff, and some for my mom.

My mom was very interested in all of them, I might check out the Crook & Chase one at some point, but I have a lot of books of my own to read first.  There was one other book she got that was pretty cool.

My mom already has this book, but not signed!  One day I really should do a post on all the signed books we have.  I think it would be a fun post.  The plan is sometime this spring my mom and I are both planning to purge some of our books.  Either ones we've read, or ones we don't plan on reading.  We had an idea of donating books and puzzles to a huge church garage sale this month, but we forgot the date and it was last weekend.  Now we might clean our storage unit up real nice then next summer during city wide sales, just have a big garage sale.  My mom just wanted to sell books and puzzles, but after I mentioned a few bigger ticket items we had that we could sale the idea shifted to having a larger one.

As for other ventures, I haven't bought a lot of socks lately, just because I want to display them better.  Until I do, I need to find a way to not buy ones I already have.  I also want to clear up some space and reorganize, which I hope to do soon.  One project I tried to tackle yesterday didn't turn out quite as I planned, but also worked out.  I'll explain in a second.  A few months ago I mentioned buying a remote from Big Lots.  Well I finally tested it out yesterday.

I bought this VCR a couple months ago and needed to test it out.  It works and so did that remote I found.  There was only one problem- the reason I bought it was because I thought the front panel had a digital display.  It does not.  However this morning I realized I already knew that.  Because I bought the same exact VCR a few months ago, and likely at the same price.  That isn't an issue because I'm glad I have a few working VCR's.  I just need one with a digital display so I can rip commercials from old tapes.  I have an even older Montgomery Ward VCR I bought maybe a year or more ago and finally tested it yesterday too.  It works.... I think.  It didn't eat the VHS tape, and it appears the channels change, I just can't really get a display.  Its an issue on my end that I just get forgetful at times on how to connect stuff.  This VCR is 39 years old, and I either need and RCA to HDMI adapter or just need to figure out what I'm doing wrong.  I have a digital tuner but also can't find the remote.  I do know it works currently as a pass through, but I just need to figure it out.  On the bright side I have 4 VCRs that all seem to work.  That is good.

Since I am cleaning up my photo files, I guess I have more to show, so let's take a look.

On the previous trip to Savvy, we found more cookbooks.  These are the kind I like, local or at least community ones.  As my mom thumbed through one she was caught off guard... WHAT KIND OF CHEESE?  I have to say I never heard of it either, but it appears its still made in Australia but around 2020 they renamed it Cheer Cheese.  Who knew.

There were a couple other books, one we got the same day, and another I won on Listia.  I rarely look on Listia these days, but I won a book cheap and one I really had an eye out for a while and currently reading.

The top book was at Savvy, and while not on my wishlist, it was one I've heard about for a while and might give it a try.  My mom didn't seem impressed with it, but after reading it a bit, she says she is intrigued by it.  I have a few other books to read before I get to it though.

The bottom book is the Listia win.  I was surprised how cheap I won it for, it somehow slipped through the cracks.  I really liked the Moneyball movie, so much so that I had an eye out for the book, even before I started getting into reading books.  So far I'm about 1/4th of the way through and it is different than the movie, but not in a bad way.  My only critique so far was this last chapter I read about Bill James.  A lot of the Moneyball concept is based on Bill James and so I understand devoting a lot of space to him.  However, it was a chapter explaining who he was, and almost an advertising section to get you inside the mind of Bill James.  My thought is they could have cut about a third of it out, and still got the point across.  He was mentioned a few times in the movie and it was enough to convey that his concepts were what helped in the evolution, and that was enough.  Otherwise the book is pretty good so far without diving much into what was presented in the movie.  I read about the 2002 draft which I the draft was never really talked about in the movie.  So I think I'll enjoy it and glad I am reading it.

So far this year I have read 3-4 books, and I'm quite happy with that.  I finally made a list of what I've read on Library Thing and maybe at the end of the year I'll talk about it on here.

Let's see what else is in my photo dump bin.

The Reese's cupcakes were at Dollar Tree.  They weren't too bad but also not sure I would want them too many times.  It was good to have since we haven't had cupcakes or cake in general in a while.  The puzzle is really nice, but I haven't worked on puzzles in a bit.  Partly because its a bit crowded in here and we haven't worked on the puzzles on the main table.  Hopefully that will change soon, as I will be rearranging stuff soon.

The bottom two photos are the progress on a Quiktrip convenience store across from the Pilot Travel Center.  It should open by the end of the month, and I will check it out when it does.  I've heard good things about it, but I don't plan on going much. 

The top item was an egg I got while on a trip to Savvy.  I entered to win an Easter basket and I got to grab a free egg.  Inside was some spiky ball which I have no use for but still it was something.  Speaking of something, that View-master sure is something.  I think my eyeballs almost fell out when I saw the price though.  If that's the going rate, I might be rich.  I have more than a few of them, a couple exactly like that.  I don't take many pictures when out shopping but had to show that off.

The DVD is the second one from WDAF TV that I own, both are still sealed.  I like local TV history, so this was a nice fine.  My friend says he actually has the same one so that was cool.  The Hot Wheels car was just something I randomly saw and decided to get.  I have a DeLorean or two in Hot Wheels form and once I get organized I think it will display well.

As for my displays, like I said above I plan to reorganize, and part of it is deciding to get rid of a few things.  I think I want to purge some stuff or at least store it before I can organize it again.  Once I do that I will display stuff again and I will take pictures.  I also hope after I do that I might start scanning a few things again, including some cards.  I actually have a few things to show off so I need to do that.  My current plans don't really involve cards or card collecting, but I'm not closing the book on it.  In fact once things seem to get organized here, I might even start going back to my roots of this blog and showing off my collection again.  Its not just acquiring new items, but its about enjoying what you already have.  So maybe the return of my card Hall of Fame, or Maddux Mania, or Complete Sets.  Maybe that will even inspire me to start creating custom cards again.  At any rate I have plans for this blog this year and maybe if I can get organize better I can start writing more.  As for now, I'm not promising anything but we'll see what happens.

As for now, I think I'll wrap things up for today.  Thanks so much for reading, and I hope everyone has a great week.  I hope the weather gets better soon and I can open some windows and do some spring cleaning.  Cleaning up old photos on here was fun, maybe I can dig deeper and find more that I should have posted 5-7 years ago (they actually do exist).  But for tonight, I might just take it easy and figure out the VCR situation.  Have a great day.