Around the corner from us - with better sidewalks, we could walk there - is a fabulous thrift shop. It's run by a church, and at first I had some trepidation with checking it out because I worried there might be proselytizing, when all we really want is a place to donate things we no longer need, and find useful, often fun, afforable things we do. (Thankfully, they recognize that moral people may be of other faiths.)
Also, I have a thing about stuff, so thrifting has become a hobby of mine recently.
Here are a few of my favorite things about this shop:
They have a food pantry, and cheerfully accept whatever we can donate - right now, mostly garden produce but as we get into winter, any baked goods we make will be doubled for the pantry. Math and helping the less fortunate, all in one!
We've found some amazing buys there - a complete Discovery Toy marble track for $1, a Magic 8 Ball for 25 cents, complete play-dough play sets, miscellaneous toys, clothing, shoes...
But best of all are the books - 3 for a quarter! I've found dozens of children's books, and a few 'great idea' books for homeschoolers, when I happened to arrive soon after a newly retired teacher dropped off decades' worth of books for elementary school-aged children.
I'm not sure why, but this shop has an ever-changing, interesting collection of Greek mythology for children. When we found a not-too-scarily illustrated Perseus and Medusa, Owen put on his knight stuff and went off to "fight the Gorgons." The first one we found on the Trojan Horse made little sense to me (they tried to pack too much in, it was badly written and insensible), but both Luke and Owen loved it. This week, though, I found the piece de resistance: The Adventures of Ulysses, otherwise known as the Odyssey, in simple words and many pictures - we're reading it about 10 times a day, and talking about it all the time. Tonight at dinner, Luke said, "someday I'm going to find out the truth about the Greek gods and goddesses, I'm going to climb up Mount Olympus to the tippy top!"
Maybe all thrift shops are like this, I don't know; we sure feel fortunate to have this one, and so close by.
3 comments:
Not all are - sometimes we just get lucky -
When I lived in Corvallis, Oregon, the Goodwill there rocked, in Albuquerque St. VIncent de Paul. In Chicago, well that one's gone now, but there are others. . .
Where I live now, we have an ARC. It's sometimes okay, but never the best.
You got LUCKY!
Love the thing about donating food there.
I wonder if anyone ever puts a place on those Best Towns to Live In Lists because of an appealing thrift community?1
sarah
A great idea, we just need to figure out a way to set it up!
K
that thrift shop sounds fantastic! Where in MA are you located? I live in Peabody (go to Salem State) and I would love to check out that shop if its close by! I love collecting childrens books for my future children!
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