Just Another Day................

Busy day today- met with friends in the morning to rummage thru the old mill (see earlier post about this adventure).

 I forgot to bring a snack, and after an hour or so, was about near collapse, when the owner of the mill came to the rescue with a bottle of butter pecan Ensure!! YUM!!! Note to self - don't leave home without food!!!

One the way home, I had to stop for a last visit with a pet client, whose owners are returning today. Hugs and sloppy dog kisses all around.

Then, with my Ford Escape filled to the brim with rusty bits and treasures from the mill, I headed home.
Next stop was to grab a quick bite, feed my horses, and run to a friend's to socialize some lambs.

Yup, that's what I said!!!  The friend's daughter is raising the lambs for 4H, and they are out of town. Their housesitter can't handle the lambs, so, in order for them to not be totally wild when the owners return, they need daily attention and human bonding of sorts. I play with them M-F and their former owner takes over on the weekend!

I was almost home, and happened to see some birds dive bombing something in the center of the 2 lane road. As I approached, I realized it was a crow - and saw it was still alive.

I pulled over, ran out, and picked up the crow, and put it in the bushes off the side of the road, thinking nature would take its course. As I drove away, and looked in my rear view mirror, I saw the birds were still dive bombing him.
Soooo, I rushed home, got a crate, went back, picked up the crow- who, by this time, had a few more of his wits about him, and was feebly cawing at me. He was not in a position to offer any  real resistance. I put him in the crate, which was a bit too small- crap!  I drove down the road, holding the lid gently closed, so as not to crush Mr. Crow's tail!

I called the vet to see if I could get some help for him or have him euthanized, if his injuries were too serious. The one bad thing about living in the boonies is that the appropriate animal services are usually a great distance away.

I took the crow home, went over to the pole barn, and opened the crate. His wings were fine, as were his neck and legs, no blood anywhere - he appeared to be stunned by a head injury. He walked away from me, and promptly did a somersault, landing on his back, looking very perplexed.

 He righted himself, and staggered over to the round bales, giving me the evil eye- as crows do so well!! LOL

 
I decided to leave him for a bit -all this activity was stressing him out alot. The pole barn was a safe haven- no cats, dogs, or dive bombing birds.

 Some birds who accidentally fly into windows and don't do serious damage to themselves, just need a bit of time to come around. This crow may have swooped too low, trying to avoid his attacking mob, and been nicked by a passing car. In any event, if he was not better in a few hours, I was planning to take him to the Va Wildlife Center.

Checked again when I came back from lambie play time, crow still there. Another hour passed, I went out to check on the horses, and the crow was gone!!!! YAY!  I searched behind the bales, and in the tall grass surrounding the barn, but he was nowhere to be found.

Had I left him in the road, the crow would have surely been run over by an oncoming car or pecked to death by the angry mob!! I know most people would just drive by, but I just couldn't.

He was a gorgeous bird - surprisingly light for his size, with glistening blue black feathers. Since we live not far down the road from where he was found, I have no doubt the crow is winging his way back to his own territory.

Tea and Treasures

Well, I missed Tea on Tuesday- forgot it was Tuesday (the holiday threw me off) and planned to do a late afternoon tea, but the hellacious thunderstorm here took out the electricity. Soooo, there went any thoughts of the post!

But, since I have tea every day- figured I'd have a cup, while I  share some of the treasures brought home from the Quicksburg Mill.

Yesterday's tea was home grown sage, in my English Denby mug. LOVE this mug, found on a thrift store shelf. (Today's tea is a lemongrass green tea combo)

There were soo many things brought home from the mill over a period of 4 visits this past weekend- from buttons, to boxes and rusty bits of this and that. Lots of rusty bits of this and that!!!!! Too many things to list in one post.

                                                       I'll just tell about a couple!

One of the last finds,( and this was great to stash all my other treasures in!)  was a mop pail on wheels - the perfect planter!! I am hoping a vintage white enamel washbowl I already have, will fit perfectly in the top (less dirt to have to fill up the whole pail with!)

              Goes nicely with my old wash pail filled with basil and dill, don't ya' think?

Bucket full of vintage horse shoes - (oh, wait - not from the mill- but from a yard sale I stopped at on the way to the mill !!LOL) There are some good old and large, and hand made ones, that I don't already have in my collection. And, the bucket full was only $2!!!

A group of 3 vintage cameras- had to run down to Fulks Run Grocery (they have an extensive collection of old cameras on display) to find out how to close the Polaroid without breaking it !! Thanks, Ron and Peggie!

These old Polaroids are heavy!! But very cool- slides out with old fashioned bellows(?)behind.

                                 In perfect working order- despite the dust and cobwebs!!But, I don't imagine we can get film for these anymore - in this age of digital cameras.......The Polaroid weighs 4  1/2 lbs!!! Equal to 9 of my digital Canons!

This Brownie has some film inside - back to the grocery to find out how to rewind and view it!!!

Also got a 35mm circa 1918 b & W silent film docu- so VERY cool!!!!!! In the original canister, from Brayer Productions of the pre-talkie era !! Now, to find an 35mm projector (that I could afford!!) to view it on!!

In honor of my grandfather, Joe Caldwell, who worked for Con Edison his whole life, a vintage volt meter/tester. This may be a keeper, but may end up on Etsy after a while. I'm assuming it works, but electricity is not my forte- it just looks cool!!

Assorted goodies below- local wooden hangers (which I use- no wire!!), an English ceramic retail jewelry display, a horse, (of course), a cow horn being mailed to a nephew to turn into a powder horn for his Civil War re-enacting, one of several vintage pin cushions - this tattered one with lamb's wool stuffing, and a metal '60's address book, never used..

Cool box pin cushion - the two parts found quite by accident in different boxes- the padded lid slides off.

                    The tattered (mouse eaten) 5 sided wool filled and a silky apple pin cushion.

Assorted miscellaneous - check out the cool watch and sterling pin. Click on for closer look.

                                        

                                       More bits and bobs and rusty things!Love the RR spike!

I LOVE this rug hooked Scottie pillow - velveteen backing and hooked on burlap-sorry, blogger again won't rotate the pic. He will either be in my shop at Shenandoah Valley  or on Etsy- so cute!!!

There was so MUCH more - but I won't bore you anymore in this post. There was a very cool church whatsit (that might have been used to light candles or gas lamps), a wood walking stick, a puzzle of little dovetail box pieces to be put back together, another wooden box for a planter, a hand hewn lap desk, an Alice in Wonderland pj sack, a rather vicious looking rusty 3 spiked whatsit (maybe for hanging meat?), some vintage wood clipboards, little doll baby carriage spoked wheels, dinnerware for upcycling and way too many mid 1800 books for my collection, and so much more, to be saved for another post.

Hope you enjoyed looking thru my treasures!!!

Hot Time in the Ol' Mill..........

                 When the temps hit the upper 80's- where would you want to be???

Ordinarily, I would say "in the A/C", but 3 days in a row, I have been rummaging around in a circa 1908 mill.

At one time it was an operating seed mill, but now, it is a fabulous catchall for all manner of antiques, junque and cool, needful stuff!!!

           It's a place the American Picker guys would LOVE to be knee deep in!!!

Owned by Ann Austin and her husband, Sandy, the mill appears to have all of its inner workings intact.

It even has an outdoor light fixture that has been glowing almost continuously for at least (if not more) 35 years with the same bulb!. That has got to be a Guinness Book record for a light bulb !! Ann was told by the previous owners that they always left the light on, because when they turned it off, it was sometimes hard to make it go back on. So, they just never turned it off- and neither has she!!!

When I first pulled up to this building, next to the railroad tracks, in the tiny 120 mailbox town of Quicksburg, Va, I was intrigued. Not only by the vista spread out before my eyes across the railroad tracks, but by the pile of STUFF  on the porch and outside of the mill ! It is a packrat, dumpster diving, junquer's DREAM !!!!

You must be prepared, I discovered, with good shoes, a bottle of water, sometimes gloves and a flashlight. Altho' there is ample lighting within the building, quite often, there is a dark and hidden corner chock full of treasures that you might miss- without that flashlight!!!LOL

It is almost overwhelming- a place you cannot cover in just one short visit! 

Not that it's a huge building- but, just that it is crammed full of everything imaginable. Anne told me one man came and actually hung around for 5 days, just so he could make sure he did not overlook anything!!!

You can find Civil War era sheet music, bound periodicals from the mid and early 1800's, furniture, fabric, old porcelain doorknobs, tools, honeycomb frames for beehives, common yard sale junk, and more.

                             The book section is a bibliophile's dream!

As jumbled as the interior is - Ann Cain Austin knows exactly where everything is!

A kind and entertaining soul, Ann used to own a business furniture store in northern  Va- in Arlington and Vienna. Her business started with furniture, she kind of segued into selling fancy, vintage fountain pens, which led to her to collecting and selling antiques and more antiques, and widening her inventory.

 Quite impressive, Ann Cain was a VietNam War widow, running her office furniture business on her own. She  told a story, of a movie producer coming in to her shop one day, offering and paying her $700 ( a princely sum at the time) to close up shop early, so his movie company could come in, and  use her shop as a backdrop for several scenes in the film they were shooting.

Ann's equally colorful cohort and now husband, Sandy, is a WW II veteran and a retired sheriff of 40 years.He even wears a sheriff's star belt buckle!!

Oh, the stories they can tell!!! It's as much fun to sit and chat with them, as it is to rummage thru' the mill!

I first went on Thursday, after hearing some ladies talking about this little treasure of a shop. It was closed, but there was a phone number on a chalkboard outside the building. I took a chance and called - Ann kindly said she would be right down - she lived a few doors up from her mill.

One thing led to another, I mentioned the place to  some friends, and they met me back at the mill on Friday! Several hours later, and a car full of treasures later, sweaty and exhausted, we left Ann and Sandy, with promises to be back on Saturday- and maybe even Monday!!!

I think I have blown most of my discretionary income for the month, at the mill - but, I know there are more treasures to be found. Since most of my money, lately, has been spent on horse feed and vet bills, I felt I was due for a little antique splurging!!! (pics of my finds,and some I had to leave behind (!) will come soon in another post!)

The mill is really only open twice a year - Memorial Day weekend and Labor Day weekend. But, I bet, if you call the number on the chalkboard, Ann will be more than willing, if she is home and able, to come down and open the doors and welcome you in!

Estate, Tag, Yard, Antique, Junque Sale-ing Galore!!!

Could there be a better way to spend the Fourth of July weekend, than rummaging thru' historical items from the past, and sharing a modern American dollar bill or two or three, to own part of that American history!?

I say there is not a better way to spend the weekend (other than bar-b-ques and fireworks, and rereading the Declaration of Independence ).

And, it's a good thing, because around here - this 3 day weekend has a plethora of sales to choose from!
Tomorrow is the Ruritan's big Flea - and I hope to get there at the crack of sort of early - before the July heat renders me faint and useless!

But, yesterday, and today (I had to go back) was a wonder-full sale at a lovely place called Busy B Farm!

 

Busy B is the home of a very busy "B" named Bobbie, who is an avid collector of vintage treasures.

I met Bobbie a year or so ago, at the PO,(where everyone meets everyone, sooner or later) and had seen her at a sale or two, peddling her wares.

When I saw the flyer for this sale, I was unaware that this was the same lady.

She put this whole thing together, with the help of her sister, mother, and a friend or two.

Her property is gorgeous, the staging of the sale was perfect, and so was the weather, for the most part!

To get to the sale, you have to drive over this little creek.

 

It is hard to see in the photo(click on any photo to make them larger), but even in this hot, low river, weather, a bit of water does run over the road.

I asked her what happens when it really rains- well, she stays home!!!! During the last big snow storm, she was basically home bound for 2  1/2 months- except when she could get the 4 wheeler thru to the main road (in another direction) and have a friend pick her up!!

On to the sale!!

I took SOOOO many photos- here are just a few to make you drool - probably too many, but it was hard to choose!!

With a bigger pocketbook, and more room in my own house - I probably would have bought quite a bit more!!!If you are looking to decorate your house in vintage - this was the sale to hit!!!

If you're in the neighborhood, the sale will be going on again tomorrow!!

After parking in the field, this was a first peek into the side barn door....

A plein air painter recreating a scene...Martha Henderson has quite a pedigree. She was manager of the Mickelson Gallery in Washington, DC for 39 years! Her artwork has been shown in galleries in the tri state area.

 

This sale could give The Farm Chicks a run for their money!!

Tons of guy stuff too!

                                                                     ....... the magic barn..........

                                                                                    

                                                  
                                                                            OMG!!

                                                                         

                                                                 Dressers, anyone???

                                                                               

                                                                             
                                          The little print rocker on the left came home with me on the 2nd day.

                                                             
                                Upstairs in the cavernous barn, as if there weren't enough treasures downstairs!

                                                                         
                                                           NFS- any of the kerosene lamps
       

I love old pump organs - I remember my Great Uncle Henny used to have one in his cabin on the mountain in Rhinebeck, NY. I could be down thru the woods at my grandma's house, and hear Uncle Henny pounding away on his pump organ, serenading the valley below. I won't divulge what Bobbie paid for this one at auction - but I may have to start going to auctions!!!LOL And, yes - it works!, and I believe it sold!!!!!

                            A felted wool artisan had her gorgeous creations on display, in the shade of an outbuilding covered in trumpet vine. From W. Va, Sharon Music's business is called  Creations from Harmony Hill.

                                                                                

                                                       The 2nd day of the sale, Bobbie was handing out paper fans, and neck coolers. They swore neck coolers work - soak the muslin strip in cold water, wrap stylishly around your neck, and voila- you are cool!! When it starts to get hot, just shake it out, refold and put back on - still cooling........

     After I hit the Ruritan Flea tomorrow - I will post more photos - I promise!!!!