What is a monkeybox?

When I was a little girl, we had a pet monkey named Amanda. My Dad worked in the produce business, so each night he brought home that days culls in a big box - spotty cucumbers, pithy apples, limp celery, moldy oranges and the like. We called it a monkeybox. It was really just trash, but my Mom would take each piece of fruit and trim it, pare it and cut it up to make a beautiful fruit platter for Amanda. Even though it was deemed trash by one, it still had life left in it and was good for the purpose we needed it. That's how I live my life - thrifting, yard saling, looking for another's trash to be my treasure.

Wednesday, April 29, 2009

I'm My Own Neighborhood Watch Committee

I consider myself to be the Neighborhood Watch Committee, but my neighbors might argue that I am the neighborhood snoop. I don't mean to snoop. It's just that our house is condusive to snooping. We have a big bay window the entire width of our living room. Because of this, I can see all the way down the street in both directions and all of the houses across the street. I usually know everything that is going on. Every thing.

Last Saturday I heard the ice cream truck coming up the street. (What is it about the ice cream truck that makes otherwise rational folks turn into kids? People were running up and down the block to the ice cream truck to buy $2.00 Bomb Pops. I have threatened more than once to open my freezer and make a killing off the neighbor kids selling my coupon purchased Popscicles. I could underprice the ice cream man by half and still make quite a profit.)

But, I digress. After the ice cream truck left, I did a little snooping Neighborhood Watching and saw this to my right:

The deadbeat neighbors who are moving out (Yea!) decided to blow $6.00 on Popscicles and eat them in their recliners on the trailer. I will add that the son was also taking photos of them, so even they knew they had officially entered Hicksville.

And, to my left:

A GARAGE SALE!


Holey Moley, I gotta look out the window more often! I never did go over there because all I could see was a lot of clothes and some TV's. later that night, I saw their truck pull out loaded with the left overs. On top of the truck was a cool potato chip rack with clips for hanging bags of potato chips. It was shaped like a bird cage and I am sick I didn't know they had that at their sale. It would have been great for my Postcard collection. Or an array of other junk.


I realize this post doesn't make me sound like too much of a snoop. That's because I didn't mention that the lady across the street was planting seeds in her garden while her son used the riding mower to mow her yard, the people that just moved in across the street were airing up the tires on the bicycles, the man on the corner was mowing his yard (he mows every day 365 days a year), there were five girls walking up the street and the mail lady was delivering three doors up. Yes, I am a snoop. A mighty mighty good snoop.

Before you think less of me - a few thrifty finds from yesterday and today. The pickings seem to be slim, but I am enjoying the hunt. I don't need to drag boxes of htings home, so a treasure or two makes me happy.

A great older tin from Sweden (maybe?) for $2.50. It is big - as big as a silverware chest.

Any ideas? I have forbidden myself to bring home any more tins as I have hundreds (literally) but I plan on using this one to store my craft supplies, so it is useful and not just clutter.



Linen cocktail napkins, embroidered with gray flowers and matching trim. 27 in all for 50¢. I am not a linen napkin kind of gal, but sometimes you just have to grab a deal, you know?

I love this jar with the red writing all over it. It reminds me of a 1980's Sun Tea jar, which I so do not love. But, this jar has character. Candy Flour Sugar Coffee Beans Rice Crackers Party Mix. It was only 25¢, but since it was missing it's lid, the lady at the thrift gifted it to me. I wouldn't have wanted the lid anyway, it was most likely red plastic and would have taken away from it's coolness factor. I plan on using it as a vase to hold bouquets of Zinnias this summer , so I didn't need a lid anyway.

There are quite a few sales in the paper in my small town and we have plans to go to an outdoor flea market community yard sale on Saturday. I hope the Junk Gods are smiling down on me!

4 comments:

  1. Snoop? I don't believe it. You have a community spirt :-)

    Can't believe you didn't go to that garage sale. Now if one of my neighbours were daft enough to have a sale at their house I'd be snooping into everything. Mind you I did see one of my neighbours at a garden party ie fancy car boot sale and was nearly sold a load of old tat.

    ReplyDelete
  2. That's a funny story! I'm the block captain for our Neighborhood Watch, and I TOTALLY take it as a license to snoop! I rarely ever go to a neighbor's garage sale, because then I feel obligated to buy something, don't you?!

    ReplyDelete
  3. way to go Shara!! you have your very own neighborhood watch program...that is not snooping! LOL...the shot of your neighbors on their trailer in the recliners...too funny! cannot believe you missed a sale right next door! have a great weekend *elaine*

    ReplyDelete
  4. Seriously. I would have been chasing that truck down for the potato chip rack...seriously.

    ReplyDelete

I love my comments. I'd love to respond to everyone, but if you don't have an email address tied to your ID, please sign your name so I will know who you are! It makes it nice to know who is saying what. Now, leave a comment! Please? ;o)

I Can See You!



Look at my Visitors!

Fellow Junk Followers