For all three of you who follow this space, you'd probably know that usually i'd walk around and bore each individual friend of mine with a tedious account of how I came across "the best ______ i've EVER found!!" at some kind of jumble stall/garage/white elephant stall/charity shop "on the weekend". To this i'd generally add "AND IT WAS ONLY $3!!" and a supremely smug smirk to top off the gloating experience.
Your response is often a pair of glazed eyes, a nonchalant "cool, man..." or another kind of look that reads: "Yeah? And? So? What??".
To make this an economical experience for all , i'll list some things i've bought the past 2-3 weeks in excruciating detail, while you, the reader, can keep your usual response intact.
OK. I'll tell you what. I'll sweeten the deal with a few photos for you. How's that?
So: I tell the story once (instead of multiple times); you respond as you would usually, and I get to gloss over the fact you likely aren't interested anyway, cos i can't see your reaction. Kapische? Let's roll.
A perfect mint set of 100 Wedding invitation cards and envelopes. $2. A minimal 1960's italian design and lovely textured carboard. Bride: Needs to be sorted... oh, um, smoker? non smoker? Not fussed. Must like retro stationary.
A perfect mint set of 100 Wedding invitation cards and envelopes. $2. A minimal 1960's italian design and lovely textured carboard. Bride: Needs to be sorted... oh, um, smoker? non smoker? Not fussed. Must like retro stationary.
A pair of 12" records; $2. One entitled "Stag Party" (from 1960), with a bunch of bawdy songs and an even better pair of boobs (retroboobs, at that) on the cover. PS. do you know how hard it is to find exploitative covers like this now? The other entitled "music for casual affairs", (no record inside however), just the cover which has 4 feet dangling off the end of a bed).
Note the record label for "Music for Casual Affairs": the kind of dad-joke I love.
A pair of 4 track reel to reel tapes; one blank, one a copy of Miles Davis' "Sketches of Spain". $4.
Brown Leather Jacket. $6. This is a 1978 jacket, made in China and sold through Woolworths. According to a man who wanted to try it on after i'd bought it. (I let him.) He knew this because he 'worked at Woolworths', and was wearing a leather jacket he bought for 'a fortune' from a man in Blacktown because it was 'worn by Tom Cruise'. Maybe it was, how am i to know? In any case, it didn't get him picked on a jury that day, which was why he was in a Parramatta charity shop at 12:30pm. He did advocate cleaning the jacket with the "lemon Mr Sheen", though I thought he could use Mr Sheen to smarten up his breath. Works wonders. Apparently on leather jackets too...
Grandpa Nylon Jacket. $6. Such a lovely shade of brown, eh? Colour was christened by parents as "Babyshit Brown". The jury is still out on whether any fashion qualities adhere to this one (mind you, the woven inlays around the shoulders are a nice touch), but it's a hell of an arsenal to have. Makes going undercover at a nursing home a cinch....
Girl Picture. $2. I'm sure i've seen a series of these around a bar in either Newtown or Brunswick. More specifically, the toilets at the bar. This picture reminds me of those toilets. Well - they were nice toilets!! Nothing regarding bedroom cleanliness can be inferred from the fact it hangs in my bedroom, either.
Blue Athletics Jacket, 100% synthetic. $3.75. It's an athletics jacket with some chinese inscription embroidered on the sleeve, and a bizarre patch on the front that looks like it's hiding something. Hopefully Chairman Mao's face? Since it's a sports jacket, only an action picture would suffice to model this exquisite piece. So here it is:
"This man is a dentist, so we can't show you his face...."
Until i find more things to gloat about.... keep working on your feigned interest.
HSL
An 8 Track cartridge of Serge Gainsbourg and Jane Birkin (including the seriously hottt track Je t'aime... moi non plus). $1. It should be noted, this item and the records above were from the same collection; the owner must've been one hell of a smoooth lizard.....
Now, why I would buy a bunch of formats I can't even play... is another blog. But let your ideas run riot.
A Moka Pot espresso maker. $4.Needed one for ages. Photographed here on its maiden voyage, and i'm pleased to tell you...... it works! Can't say much for my coffee-making skills at the moment, however. Give me time to practise. Does anyone know where to get new rubber seals for these things?
A Moka Pot espresso maker. $4.Needed one for ages. Photographed here on its maiden voyage, and i'm pleased to tell you...... it works! Can't say much for my coffee-making skills at the moment, however. Give me time to practise. Does anyone know where to get new rubber seals for these things?
A pair of enamelled ceramic dishes. $3. I thought they were pretty, and practical (especially the round one with lightly scalloped edges). I know what you think: "Can a guy think crockery is 'pretty'"?. Yes. Yes he can. B.t.w. they are in the dishwasher, so no photo. Here, have a picture of my sinister toy typewriter instead...
Brown Leather Jacket. $6. This is a 1978 jacket, made in China and sold through Woolworths. According to a man who wanted to try it on after i'd bought it. (I let him.) He knew this because he 'worked at Woolworths', and was wearing a leather jacket he bought for 'a fortune' from a man in Blacktown because it was 'worn by Tom Cruise'. Maybe it was, how am i to know? In any case, it didn't get him picked on a jury that day, which was why he was in a Parramatta charity shop at 12:30pm. He did advocate cleaning the jacket with the "lemon Mr Sheen", though I thought he could use Mr Sheen to smarten up his breath. Works wonders. Apparently on leather jackets too...
Grandpa Nylon Jacket. $6. Such a lovely shade of brown, eh? Colour was christened by parents as "Babyshit Brown". The jury is still out on whether any fashion qualities adhere to this one (mind you, the woven inlays around the shoulders are a nice touch), but it's a hell of an arsenal to have. Makes going undercover at a nursing home a cinch....Grey-aqua double pocket Woollen cardigan. $2. It's difficult to see the knit detail thanks to the camera, but it is nicely captured (cheers, Leelee). And modelled well too. This cardie comes with bonus Parfum de Convalesce*. Mmm.
Girl Picture. $2. I'm sure i've seen a series of these around a bar in either Newtown or Brunswick. More specifically, the toilets at the bar. This picture reminds me of those toilets. Well - they were nice toilets!! Nothing regarding bedroom cleanliness can be inferred from the fact it hangs in my bedroom, either.
F. Scott Fitzgerald's Tender Is The Night. $1. What Belle & Sebastian once sung rings true for me: 'I only buy a book for the way it looks'... I'm in love with this cover. By the way, does anyone think the protagonist's name in Tender..., Dick Diver, is a bit, well... gay? Surely being used as a porn name somewhere...
Blue Athletics Jacket, 100% synthetic. $3.75. It's an athletics jacket with some chinese inscription embroidered on the sleeve, and a bizarre patch on the front that looks like it's hiding something. Hopefully Chairman Mao's face? Since it's a sports jacket, only an action picture would suffice to model this exquisite piece. So here it is:
"This man is a dentist, so we can't show you his face...."
Until i find more things to gloat about.... keep working on your feigned interest.
HSL
