A few random thoughts and updates

I went nine days without antique shopping. That is my longest streak since...the start of Barn Chic perhaps? I was happy to break that streak today, and I found some good stuff and saw some fine sights along the way. My favorite picture of today is this cotton field just before the combine (is that what you call a cotton tractor?) came through to harvest it. Heck, I don't know if harvest is the right term; I grew up surrounded by corn and beans, but I have never lived close to cotton (or so I thought). This picture was taken just east of San Marcos, so I guess Alabama was right - those fertile fields are never far away.

Since tomorrow is the first day of school in Texas, lots of kids will be climbing the steps of the school bus tomorrow morning. You will see lots of yellow dogs out and about, but sadly you will not see the Cool Bus around here anymore. You can read more about the Cool Bus here.

Despite all of you who wrote me saying I should buy the bus, it already had a new owner. I know this because I called to inquire about it. Yes, I was curious. I wonder if all the PR I gave it on my blog led to the new owner? I mean, I do have 16 followers. I should get a finder's fee or at least a free ride on the bus.     

So the story behind the bus is that this guy bought it and ripped out all the seats. He then installed bunk beds, which were bolted to the walls and floor as well as attached as hanging beds that could be dropped down from the ceiling. His plan was to take his buddies skiing and it would be their mobile camper. Interesting plan. Not really sure what happened to the plan, but the bus sold to a man in San Francisco. How the bus was getting from here to San Fran is beyond me. Imagine the gas bill on that. 

Another random picture to share with you today:

I recognized this little lady from the second I spotted her neck. I used to work with a lot of her friends. See that little heart? That's the late 90's signature symbol of the store now obsessed with the word 'pink' : Victoria's Secret. I will confess that I worked there throughout a good chunk of my college years. Speaking of chunking, I spent countless hours 'chunking' underwear excuse me, panties there. Since it is impractical to fold each one, the sizes would all chunk together to look neat. I would get all OCD about making the tables look perfect. This retail gig started as a side job in Georgetown when I was making zero money interning in Washington, D.C. one summer (shout out to my roomies Karen and Brooke with whom I also worked), and then I continued the job in my hometown over breaks and in Nashville while at college. I waited on farmers, country singers, and even cross dressers throughout my years there. Working at Victoria's Secret made for some good stories to say the least. Thanks to Glenn and Joe at Curious Boys for the little trip down memory lane (and for all the new goods I found today!). 

In one of my most recent posts, I wrote about my attempt to strip the pink paint from my front door.

Sorry V.S., but pink just isn't my color. However, its removal from my front door wasn't going all that well due to all the molding. Thanks to a suggestion by my great dad, a wire brush helped scrap the paint off all the nooks and crannies.

A lot of sweat later (thankfully no blood or tears...yet), I am happy to announce that I am about 1/4 of the way done. Doesn't it look better already?

May you all have a smooth back to school transition (or traffic pattern for any one not directly connected to school). Remember to watch out for all the kiddos getting on their Cool Bus!

Have a chic week!

~Sarah