Thrift Stores

I keep saying that I want to get things out of my house, not bring things in, but you know I hit Granny’s Attic at least once a week. There are certain people I see almost exclusively at Granny’s. It’s a social thing, and a time of relaxation and fun, browsing the second hand selection.

I was introduced to thrift store shopping by my friend Sonya back in 1967 in San Luis Obispo, California, where I went to college. She took me to the Salvation Army there and turned me on to the joys of buying used.

My mother was appalled that I had started shopping at thrift stores, which encouraged me to keep it up.

As I have mentioned in this space before, my friend Becky and I, and Sonya if she’s in town, occasionally make a trek over to the Kitsap Peninsula for an afternoon of girlish fun. Girlish fun involves thrift stores. Beck and I went over one day this last week.

The Port Orchard Goodwill is one of your largish mainland thrift stores. When you walk in you are looking straight ahead at miles of clothes sorted by size and the intended gender and age of the people who will wear the clothes.

If you turn left you come to the jewelry case, where I found a necklace I liked this trip. Walk past the jewelry counter and you come to the books. Categories of books are labeled on the front of the shelves: Novels, non-fiction, games and puzzles, sports, self-help, children’s, and so forth. These days books are most of what I buy second hand, and I always cruise the book section looking for cartoon collections. For some reason Goodwill shelves humor books with sports books. This makes no sense to me, but I will plow through dozens of sports books looking for that cartoon collection or graphic novel I don’t have.

I browsed most of the store’s departments and then realized that I was ready for my after-lunch nap. Paid for my necklace and went out to join my dog in the car and wait for Becky.

When we left there, we went to the St. Vincent de Paul down on Bay Street. I didn’t go in. I stayed in the car and dozed while Becky went in to check things out. I haven’t been in that store for a long time, but in the past I found it kind of – oh – frou frou, I guess. Prone to displaying things like lacy crocheted toilet paper roll covers shaped like the skirts of ball dresses, with doll bodies of Southern Belles on top. You don’t see those much anymore, but they were definitely a thing back in the fifties and sixties. I’m not a big fan of dressing a roll of toilet paper in a ball gown. When I see something like that, all I can think is, why?

From Port Orchard we headed to East Bremerton, where we hit their Goodwill. There used to be a Value Village a mile or two from the Goodwill, but alas, it closed. Moment of silence for departed thrift store.

The East Bremerton Goodwill is arranged similarly to the Port Orchard Goodwill, but has much less furniture, and it does not have labels on the book shelves. You’re on your own to figure out where to find a book you might like.

I walked around that store for a long time, found nothing I wanted, and eventually realized my right leg was going numb. That was enough browsing for me. Took my numb leg back out to the car and settled in with the dog again.

After that I scored the best deal of the day, gas for $1.83 a gallon at an East Bremerton gas station. Wow.

We arrived back on the island tired but happy. It was a great day of fooling around, browsing and not buying much. Look, we know the world is going to hell, but we still like to have a little fun now and then. Thrift stores are cheap thrills, usually, and sometimes we find things we really need.

I have been looking for one car floor mat for a few weeks now, but no luck yet. I look for it in confident expectation that it will show up. I love thrift stores.