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.

Tuesday, January 11, 2011

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Today we had snow.  Today it was 12 degrees when I got up and it never sent over 20 degrees.  Today was a very good day to stay home.  But!  My thriftsense was telling me to go to the Salvation Army.  I rarely ever go to the Salvation Army.  But, when my thriftsense tells me to go, by golly, I go!

When I walked in, I started my route.  You have a thrift store route, too, don't you?  I go in a certain path - it's different at each thrift.  Anyway, I started my route and came upon a huge plastic storage tub filled with huge wooden letters and numbers.  They ranged from about 6" tall to nearly 18" tall.  There were all sorts of scripts, fonts and sizes.  They were all cut out of wood and looked professionally made.
I dug in and found "SHARA" in nice big letters.  But, I figured I better inquire to the price before I got too carried away and before The Bean finished digging for his 11 letter name - so I had to go quickly.  I asked and they were only 25¢ each - no matter the size.  Woohoo.  Letters and numbers are everywhere right now.  I am in love with mixes of letters and different fonts. 
 
I started digging, thinking of words I could make, names of friends, words for holidays, etc.  Then I realized that I didn't know what to pick out.  I really needed them all.

So, I asked at the counter if it would be possible to just buy them all, or did they do that sort of thing.  (In the past, under different management, I would have been escorted off the property for even asking such a thing.  Right, Hope?  And, under different management, they would have been at least $1.00 for the small ones and up to $5.00 for the big ones.)

 
The checker told me to talk to the manager, so I asked her if she would sell them all for one amount.  She talked it over with the checker and then told her to name a price.  So, we walked back to the giant tub (it's like a tub you would put a Christmas tree in - huge!) and she stood and looked in it for the longest time.  Tick*tick*tick*  In my head, I was wishing for $20.00, but thinking she might say $30.00.  Guess what she said?  $10.00! 

When we paid, one other lady said, "I can't believe you sold all those letters for only $10.00."  Then another lady immediately said, "Thank God they are gone, I have been picking those letters up all day."


When we got home, I counted them and there are 189 total, which is nearly $50.00 worth at the 25¢ price.  Score!  I plan on picking out some to keep, selling some on Etsy and throwing a few in the booth.  I think they will be a lot of fun.  I've already made a montage of various "S's" by the front door. 

*The photos wouldn't load last night.  Now they load but they are washed out.  :(

9 comments:

  1. Nice! Can't wait for pics...and to see if you add any awesome Ms to your Etsy shop! Your title popped this song in my head and now I can't get it out!
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pr5er4ueWBQ

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  2. That is an amazing score! The pricing at that store always amazed me anyways. You just never knew. Books were cheap (and sometimes TOO cheap)but tacky old clothes were sky high. I also bought antique quilt tops for a song, but then an old tatty stereo would be almost the price of a new one. Go figure. lol

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  3. Melissa6:58 AM

    Why I would say you had a red letter day!!!
    Lucky, lucky you!

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  4. Score!!! Can't wait to see photos! I might see if you have A La Carte for sale!!

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  5. Great find! I had to laugh because I thought I was the only one with a "route"-LOL!

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  6. Eleven letters in his name? No wonder you call him "The Bean"! :-)

    You've gotta have a route when you thrift, otherwise you might mss something. I also have to cover mine two or three times in each store before leaving.

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  7. Wow, what a great find! You aren't kidding about a good deal - I saw 1 wooden 5" K today and they wanted $4 for it. I know you are going to have fun with them!

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  8. Forgot to say that I always have a route, too - and I must start and go counterclockwise from the door. Otherwise I just don't feel right!

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