The BIG Show!

hey y'all!

as i'm sitting here this gorgeous sunday morning, with my usual get-me-going cocktail of caffeine and motrin, i find myself still floating around in a dreamy fog of a post-junking high. come on. y'all know what i'm talkin' about.

saturday was an ohmygawd, over-stimulated kind of experience. The Girls and i went to the county-wide garage sale at the expo center in belton. this was the 17th annual sale to benefit the bell county museum.

we've attended in years past and we knew it was huge. over 100 vendors packed the exhibition hall (a HUGE barn-type building with concrete floors ... just awful on your feet and knees and back!) and thousands of junkers just like us. well, not just like us. we're special. heh heh

anyway, aside from the crowds (ack!!) ... oh, and a few cranky vendors ... we did all right. only once or twice did i feel the need to run out to my car for a xanax. but i didn't. mainly because we had to park a mile away. anyhow, i managed the irritating, agitating, always-in-my-personal-space-bubble crowd by keeping myself busy taking pictures, browsing tables from afar and some good old fashioned cussing. always good therapy. cussing, that is.

honestly, i started the day with the notion that i was not going to buy anything at the sale. only look. seriously. i had to clean out my front living room on friday night to make room for the new junk that i knew i'd find at the sale. i got so hot and bothered (not in the good way, either!) that i finally snapped.

"this is ridiculous! i don't have room for any more junk!" i screamed to no one in particular.

that's when i determined that i would. not. buy. anything. at. the. expo. sale!!

so to keep me honest, i shared my resolution with the FAGs on the drive over there.

you could have heard the proverbial pin drop.

"hello?? did y'all hear me??"

nothing. just the sound of silence (but my words like silent raindrops fell).

"i mean it. i'm sick of this! i've got to stop buying so much junk, no matter how much i love it!"

one of them ... i'm not sure which ... muttered a very quiet and drawn-out, "ooo-kaay."

hmmph. those rats didn't believe me. perhaps because of the three of us, i usually buy the most (or biggest pieces) and they get stuck squeezed into the backseat or in the front with crap piled on top of them. yes, i've offered my trunk space for them to lie in, but it's always packed too.

alrighty. back to The Sale.

first booth we looked at had some adorable linens and what-nots. nope. i don't need any more linens or what-nots. the helpful vendor, however, felt the need to inform me that the what-nots i was looking at were only $0.25. ouch! a cute turquoise bunny that doubled as a cotton ball dispenser was only 25 cents?! it'd be a sin not to get it!



i glanced over at bonnie and sure enough, she was watching. busy body. i simply carried on and bought a sweet lil vintage chenille rug from the same lady ... for 50 cents!



at some point, we lost jannetta in the crowd, but bon and i kept a similar pace and path. at the end of the first row of vendors i hit paydirt on all things shabby yet chic. wow. this vendor had the goods! i bought an old, sweet turquoise avon bottle and a gorgeous turquoise table cloth with pink flowers. $2 each.



"that's it, bonnie. i'm not buying any. thing. else! i've gotten a few really cute, inexpensive items and i'm done. stick a fork in me."

she nods and smiles.

we move on.

and then i see this:



and right behind it:



it's an aqua kinda day, what can i say? these are both painted in a pale shade of turquoise/aqua and i love them. and after all, i need a shelf thingy to display all my lovely cups! the vendor and i cut a deal as she slaps a sold sign on both pieces ... and she even babysits my bag of other purchases while we continue to shop. i'm hands-free once again!

by then, the concrete floor had gotten the better of me and so i took a break to people watch while The Others persevered. let me tell you, there were babies everywhere!

on daddy's shoulders

asleep on makeshift beds

baby dolls in vintage sleds

when people watching at an event such as this, there's always plenty of entertainment. these kind folks were dressed up in civil war era costumes. mercy me. having an inquiring mind, i bit.





they were gearing up for and promoting their upcoming battle of temple junction civil war reenactment. click the link to read more about it. if you're into all that.

i asked if they needed a scarlett o'hara-type character, ready to offer my services. i saw one of the ladies shaking her head like i was a nutjob. lookit. I'M not the one in civil war get-up at a garage sale. still, i promised a plug so there it was. do with it what you will.

this is something you see every weekend at garage sales, right?

of course. a deer head sitting in a scooter chair. makes sense to me. poor bambi's grandpa has serious mobility issues. no legs.

uh huh. i want a vintage bedpan. please!!

sign, sign, everywhere a sign. blockin' out the scenery, breakin' my mind. do this, don't do that, can't you read the sign?

by the way, long-haired freaky people need not apply. just sayin'.

i'd finally had my fill of freakness and got up to find The Girls. we were getting mighty hungry and tired. and at least one of us was on the cranky side.

as we were loading up the camry with our treasures (yes, mostly mine since i'm a liar and promise-breaker) we ran into none ... other ... than ... dear MARTA, from for the love of junk!

we compared notes on our purchases, snapped some shots of each other and did the best we could to catch up while fighting the wind and crowds. soooo good to see you marta!! thanks for the lovely pink linen you gave me (she bought two of the same ... and gave one to me, a fellow pink-lover).

lovely!



after a minor showdown at the fork in the road, we headed south to salado (instead of north to belton) for lunch. we landed at cowboy's bbq joint.

yum yum!! just remember to ask for the lean beef brisket! killer sour cream and cheese potatoes.

after filling up on bbq, the sides, bread, iced tea and cobbler (peach for me, blackberry for jannetta and bon) with bluebell (what else?!) ice cream on top ... we asked a waitress to take our group photo. this is what happens when i let them stand behind me. juveniles.



we thought we were headed home after lunch, but one cannot be in salado and not do a little shopping. salado market days were in session, so we stopped in and browsed a bit. i found this beautiful metal paris-themed piece for my front room. looks lovely behind the candelabra, no? it's not vintage (have seen these at hob-lob) but still.



old red ice chest in salado. this is like the one my parents had when i was a child ...

and thus concludes the latest of our grand FAG adventures. y'all enjoy spring break and keep your eyes peeled for those bluebonnets!

love and hugs!
terry lee

took a pic of this poster 'cause it caught my attention. when i saw the $1.00 price sticker, i had to bring it home!