musings: Lately I have been....

So the past couple days I've been thinking how badly I need a new blog post, but I haven't really taken pictures of anything too much lately, and I just didn't seem to have anything. Today however, I realized my error.

I got a new schedule at work and I have Wednesdays off. I've dubbed it Sleep-in Wednesday (and I SO relish sleeping past 5am and staying up late on Tuesday night). My mom and I usually do something together after I finally wake up. We had the loveliest day today. We went to run into Sam Weller's bookstore for 10 mins and got lost in the dollar section for 45 mins, shared a yummy sandwich and fries at Tony burger (where we got a delicious table tucked in the corner right by the window with the sun streaming in), then we went to Smith's and bought make-up and bath bubbles and chocolate, hand sanitizer, and other sundry items. It was a lovely mix of spontaneity and productiveness and just the right blend of feeling like you splurged on spending, but didn't have any buyers remorse.

So...that made me realize that what I have been doing a lot of lately is SHOPPING. And I have been enjoying it. It's all been enjoyable shopping (lots for myself, some gift hunting). So I took pictures of the thinks I've bought in the last couple weeks. ...and as there are a lot of pictures I should probably put a rein on the spending soon. :)

My Mom and I took a silversmithing class 6 or so months ago and though it discovered Harbor Freight. It is a tool store and we've been a couple times. It's fun to go wander around and see the totally random things they sell in addition to tools (wheelchairs, noise hair trimmers, knives, some kids toys, polisher complete with ground walnut shell polisher.) You just don't know when you will stumble into something unexpected. And as we are not the most tool savvy people you have ever met we have fun trying to figure out what some of the things are for. Also in general the prices are really good.

This is what I got at Harbor Freight I'm trying to get into making stamped jewelery and have been collecting tools. Find of the day here was the Tweezer set, which was only $6 ish for all of them! I'm stoked!

So a couple weekends ago we got an email about an Estate Sale. I made a firm public declaration that I was not going. Because I have a bad habit of going and buying stuff. ...but Saturday rolled around and I had realized it was in this building that we used to go look at their fountain when I was little, so of course I couldn't miss the opportunity to see inside. :)

I got a bag of random odd and ends. I got it because they had clip-on earring backs you can glue things on (refer to above jewelery comments). It also included such random items as a bunch of those metal bars that attach leather watch straps to watches and some doll house hinges.

Little bud vase ($2)

Cigar box (wood, surprisingly only $1 I bought it to put my drill polishing ends in, but I've decided it's too cute for that and so now am still deciding it's purpose.)

Silver-plated salad tongs...I'll polish them someday. Were supposed to be $3, but he gave them to me for $1, which I thought was funny because he reduced these, but charged me full price for the bag of junk, which were both originally $3.

I didn't have anything to do the other Saturday night, so I decided to look in at Nordstrom Rack...yeah, did some damage. I did need some heels and some shoes to replace my old cute sneakers that are hashed. And though it felt like a lot to spend when I wasn't planning on buying anything that night I am totally tickled with my shoes and will admit to being ridiculously in love with those heels.

We got this new version of Emma from the Library and watched it a ton. It is really well done. I went to Costco to look for RED, but I saw Emma so I grabbed it. Definitely worth owning. I then went to Smith's and bought RED. (Which I keep watching while I clean my room. I just really have fun with a lot of parts of that movie.) Please note no prices here as movies always cost way too much unless you take the trouble to buy them online.

For one of the birthday gifts I was looking for my Mom and I seized the opportunity to go to the farming store (IFA). We also bought this seed corn so we can make some of those heat up things you put in the microwave. It made me want to go to AA Callister's or Smith and Edward's again to see if I can find a cool belt.

And last, but certainly not least....Sam Weller's. I hit the dollar rooms with a gusto. The check out guy's jaw hit the floor when he saw me coming. Almost everything I bought was solely for the cover art. I have a couple different ideas for the uses of these, but I won't expand on them here . Even if they never get used for anything it was just too fun to buy them. I delight in how awful the awful ones are. I don't know why but they just tickle my funny bones to no end. I have previously tried reading a couple of books of the type that I've bought before, but they are pretty painful, so not sure if I'll be reading any of these. But they are OH SO CLASSIC! I heart.

(We went into Sam Weller's for the 1941 Relief Society Magazines, but that's a whole different story).