Not my Usual Saturday

Saturday is usually Brit Com mornings. Late breakfasts and British comedy. I have enjoyed this for the last 2 years as we no longer have any children who demand to play soccer. I do not miss having to be at a field at God knows what hour in the wee hours on Saturdays. I loved the games but it seemed like the whole day was pretty much shot after having to go to meets. At one point, we had 3 girls going all over the Kanawha Valley area to play and that is not a small area to travel plus having to split up if two games were at the same times and at opposite ends of the valley. This happened alot.
Today, we packed up and went to an estate sale near my mother's family home place. It was the estate of the neighbors, Thelma and Herbert, that lived between my grandparent's and my great aunt's homes. It was very sad to see all their things laid out for sale. I have so many wonderful memories from there. I didn't recognize a soul and that made me even sadder. The couple had two children. Both dead now and the estate was going to the bank. I find that even sadder. They had left it to a bank! Leave your estate to a charity or something but not a bank. It has left a sour taste in my mouth and made me wonder if the widow had been it the right frame of mind to put that in a will. I don't know. I hadn't seen any of the family since 1995 when my grandfather had passed away. I will admit I bought a few items. I scoured the home for things that reminded me of them and that wonderful childhood I spent over there. There was very little.


The sale had started yesterday and I had not felt up to driving so far on my own. I bought two pieces of Fenton Glass, Fostoria candlesticks, a Sheffield carving set and an old leather coat. All these things had a history but the coat was the big deal to me. I saw it in Thelma's closet. It was $2. It had to be hers. It smells like little old lady. Like a mixture of Oil of Olay and Camay with a hint of Youth Dew, maybe? She had a 50 year span of vintage clothing in that closet. Normal people would have donated these things but I suppose banks do not think much of donating.
The only thing that could have possibly topped this off is if I had found Herbert old notary sign. I looked. I went through the garage looking but it is gone. I had seen the sign everyday of a good portion of my childhood hanging from the bottom of his mailbox.
There's no one there now. All my family has moved away or passed on. All the friends have too. I almost didn't go. Al made me and I'm glad he did.


The fun side trip....I had Al's children walk on a swinging bridge. They had never seen one, and I will tell you Brenden was afraid. It is an old bridge. I used to run across it when I was a kid and never think twice. We had some thinking twice.... I have no idea when homes were put in across the bridge. When I was growing up it was all farm land with one large house further on across railroad tracks. The dogs at the other side were scarier than the bridge!