...do you know what TODAY is?!

I'll give you a few hints...

(OUR TRUMPET VINE HAS F.I.N.A.L.L.Y. BLOSSOMED FOR THE VERY FIRST TIME EVER - YEH!!!)

(BERRIES ARE A BIT EARLY THIS YEAR... BUT THAT'S OKAY IN MY BOOK!)

have you guessed?

IT IS 'SUMMER SOLSTICE' FOLKS!

SUMMER IS 'OFFICIALLY ' HERE.

...a DECADE. ...Really?!

T.E.N. years ago, this Fall, 2 vehicles FULL of my favorite gal-pals gathered to celebrate my upcoming wedding...

In lieu of one of my personally despised 'stuffy sit-down traditional bridal showers', they took me on a wonderful Autumn in the FingerLakes Winery excursion with many 'twists'! It was a Beautiful Day that I shall never forget!

I think of that day, and the many friends that made the day special, often when I'm out in my Herb Garden. Today was one of those days! You see, one special lady gifted me with a few herbies that day -

a couple of which were the perennials TARRAGON and LOVAGE. Hearty, strong herbs that have been the center pieces to my herb bed (above to the right of the stump) for TEN FREAKIN' YEARS NOW!!

The Tarragon grows TALL, and requires pruning often - when left to it's own accord it will completely cover the stump, so it keeps the 'memories fresh' 8-)

THANKS 'C'!

...HAPPY! ...HAPPY! ...HAPPY!

"Unseasonably Mild"
When the weather station gives this report for Central NY, it is definitely cause for celebration! Every second of it has been maximized!!!!

Street sales are happening again!

(recently found the 3 NEW bottles of 'Happy' at an upscale street Sale for 25¢ ea.)

The trees are finally blossoming!
No 'stellar' finds while 'saling', but small finds ~ like this wreath tote, which is a perfect fit for my ornament heart wreath for $2, made my day 8-) ! (Made J's day too ~ now it will F.I.N.A.L.L.Y. come down off the wall, since it can be packed away safely!!)

J's little tomato & pepper seedlings have found their way into the garden

('grow babies', 'PLEASE GROW')

Evening walks are producing some fun 'curbside pickings'

AND

THE SPRING RUMMAGE SALE SEASON IS UPON US!!!!

Can you say VERA?

This week produced 2011 #10 - 16 (at an avg. of 25¢ ea.!!)

Okay, that last photo was a whole slew of ECHO, PAOLI and other misc. that I just couldn't leave behind... (YES, I KNOW I HAVE a Serious Problem!!)

Just so that you don't think that I have forgone buying anything other than scarves, here are a few of my other recent 'pickings'... PYREX w/lid & stand, copper bucket, feng shui books, hankies, 'that other Vera' purse, (4) Portmeirion Pottery ~ Susan Williams Ellis Cups & Saucers, Oneida seafood forks & Lobster cracker (got to grab them when I can for our summer party!), stray cat salt shaker, Onion River Pottery covered bowl, bakelite bobbin holder. How's that for all over the spectrum?!

...November resignation.

With the conclusion of October, I resigned myself to the fact that saling season had come to a close for another year.
Cold-weather time would now be spent...

...doing those procrastinated mundane indoor tasks of housework - cleaning, mending and the likes...
...completing projects from the 'someday to-do' list - like this wreath. NOT just any 'vintage ornament' wreath, but a Pittsburgh Steelers wreath! Okay, so maybe it started out life destined to be a Halloween / Autumn wreath that fell a bit behind, and was resurrected in the spirit of DH's favorite football team... (and yes, that 'wonky' bulb on the left side has been re-adjusted so it is more pleasingly aligned!).

...hitting the thrifts for desperate fixes (and if this conjurs the 'tame' image of a perfume-laden, community room run by church ladies - think again! - and read about my recent chance encounter with Barbara over at OODLES! (NOTE: for all you bloggers that covet Barbara's treasures... she works for them, trust me, you REALLY don't want to go to ALL of the places that she goes to hunt! and Barbara... It was wonderful to finally meet you! Personally I feel much safer on the second floor, of that fine venue, than in the basement, because my primary fear is not who may be lurking in the depths, but rather, the building collapsing on top of me!)

...and now is the time for the 'release' (of the 'catch and release' program) - loads of time to get stuff sorted, then shipped off for donation or listed on e-bay / etsy!!!

But, alas, just as I was settling in and getting the 'withdrawals' under control.....

My trailblazer made a sudden, unscheduled turn on my way to work Friday...

(In smaller print to the left 'FRI' was added in!!)


Bradford, PA Basket; Train case, hankies, mugs, new Holiday series Wade tea figures, VERA (solid grey?! but 100% silk!!); William-Sonoma Plate; Pampered Chef roller ....

Oh, I was a HAPPY CAMPER!

Then, I was glancing at the paper Friday night and saw that one of my favorite Church rummage sales was having their bag sale Saturday Morning! Am I dreaming?

...retro daisy cannister, green shiny-brites, Xmas pixs, bread pans, Italian coffee maker, lamp globes, vintage Christmas candles, salts dishes, junk jewelry, Syracuse China restaurant platter - 'Chez Greco', santa boots, red vintage savings bank, and ~yes~ a Royal Haeger 'Gold Tweed' ashtray... all for the price of ONE bag!!

I also picked these goodies up...

Folding solid wood shelf for storing Etsy stuff!! The exact black wool peacoat that I have been in search of (Old Navy, like new $2). Picnic basket (- it's a sickness, that's all I can say).

Now, I can start the withdrawal process all over again! I have to admit though, I am liking all that I have been getting accomplished the last few week without the regular Fri/Sat saling schedule! WHO JUST SAID THAT??!

Off to get some more goodies in Etsy!!

Isn't she a beauty? I generally end up with one in bloom for Halloween, Thanksgiving, Xmas, New Year and V-day!!

...LET THE FUN & GAMES BEGIN!

I have been a delinquent blogger... funny how warm weather tends to makes us "vacate the virtual world for the real world" - which is a GOOD thing in my opinion!!

So, what have I been up to in 'my' real world?

• The sale was a HUGE success (though, NO vases of cut flowers sold!!) ... six boxes were shipped off for a local church Rummage sale, leaving two for me to take to a consignment shop. That's it. ALL GONE!!
• The porch (in all of it's Hawaiian stylin') is ready for the partaking of drinks with little umbrellas!
• Our salmon Iris have finally blossomed!
• I have started 're-shelling' the stump in the flower bed (I had this completed a couple of summers ago... but then the bark started peeling off, now it is time to start over - no bark this time!!)
• 'REBECCA of the garden' has had her yearly 'concrete patching', 'new tubing', 'fresh paint' and is all decked out with fresh plants - WOW! talk about a 'high maintenance' girl!!
• I'm sure you are all a little concerned by now at my lack of 'stuffing it' (I think DH was even a bit worried about me - 2 weeks - NOTHING!!).... Rest assured, I was out bright and early Saturday morning!! The lure was a 'Street Wide Sale' and a 'Community Sale' . HA! Somebody needs to inform these people, that 'Two sales does not a Street Wide/Community make!'. Luckily, enroute I stumbled upon a Church Youth group having a sale at a private residence, just as they were opening!!

WICKER & GLASS & SILVER... (sombrero, Austrian Airline glass, 2 small Swanky Swigs (??), dark amethyst glass jar with tin deco cover and a carving set...

PLASTIC & POTTERY...

(ghost blow mold, Rumrill vase, 2 vintage sporting mugs, unmarked Shawnee-like pottery, NH studio pottery dish, glass fish ornament, yellow plant pot)

GAS MONEY...

(TWO!! Starbucks Mugs - been having very good luck with anything Starbucks on E-bay lately!!)

ALL of this 'stuff-goodness' for slightly over $2. - !! (yes, I gave them the $3, and told them to keep the change - generous person that I am...).

Hope everyone is having a great Holiday!!

...what HAVE I been doing?!

A little gardening...
Finishing up two 'mini' plarn bags so that round 4 & 5 can be freed of the 'clearing house'... I have one 'true' admirer of my 'plarn tote' creation - C - of course it's easy to 'awe' a 6 yr. old!!. But hey, if she has a tendancy toward 'thinking green', it is my obligation to encourage this... right?!?? Anyway, these two mini 'book bag' totes, filled with saling stuff of the educational nature are soon to be heading to their new owner's C and A in Jersey (Mrs. M., if you are reading this, don't ruin the surprise!!)

A little auction participating...

A little saling...
This 'bizarre' Toreador/Spanish motif 'ashtray/matcholder captured my interest - go figure!

And, last but not least...

Yes, this is a 'modified' sweaterclip - I'm pretty sure only the clip on the right was originally intended for this purpose, and that the sword tie clip is a 'fill in' replacement... but the price was right... AND ~ I don't have one like it!!!

Now, I'm off to market...

...gypsy affect?!

...and yet another Wayward Plant!

I was out running some errands, stopped into Real Deals Dollar Store (R.D.) to check out their scrapbooking supplies, and when I walked in I was greeted by this HUGE cart of GORGEOUS Cyclamen in blossom. Well, what was I to do, leave without one?! Not!! At that price I decided to risk that it would survive the ride home in the 20deg. weather. Now, to go through my Haeger surplus and find a 'fitting' pot...

Our Salv. Army was enroute, and try as I might, the car was on 'auto-pilot', and.... well, you know the scenario! I did find a brand new Rubbermaid shelf stacker-organizer for .39c (I actually had been meaning to pick one up!!) and two large rolls of Sasheen Ribbon for .29c ea. . Nothing earth-shattering, but for this time of year, I will take what I can get!

Recently an older contractor that was doing a measure-up at our house commented... "I kind of like the gypsy affect." Hmm... insult or a compliment?!

...ZEBRA & Elephant, OH MY!

Introducing my wonderful 'new' Zebra Plant - compliments of Lowe's and the amazing Miss Shara of MonkeyBox. The newest addition to my already overflowing menagerie of wayward plants earned a spot in one of my Haeger pots... kept company by a Royal Haeger elephant and mandarin ashtray - all sitting proudly on top of a VERA scarf... of course!