A MEDICINAL THRIFTING HONEYMOON

Happy Thanksgiving to all my American friends. 

And please note that this post was created 5 days ago but I had some Blogger issues. 

A couple of weeks ago, I volunteered to drive my sister to her specialist appointment in our capital city of St John's (or as we Newfies say "Sin Jawns"). It's a 9 hour drive across the island! 

But as I was suffering badly from thrift store withdrawl, I suggested we stay a few days and do some Christmas shopping as well. We left a week after her recent marriage: "Have a nice honeymoon, you two!" said her husband as we drove away in their new lux vehicle with built-in seat warmers and GPS -- a necessity in Sin Jawns!

We booked an awesome Airbnb: a tiny little historic row house right downtown for an unbelievable price. We each had our own room and a little patio out back. And while we were there visiting the large malls and our 2 cousins, I met up with an old friend.

"Hello darling", I cooed lovingly as we arrived in the city and drove past on our way to our new digs. "See you tomorrow."  On the same street, we passed Previously Loved, another thrift store recommended to us as well as a large Salvation Army thrift store and the mall where we planned on shopping. 

(With my heart all aflutter, I thanked God for obviously placing all these shops in one convenient location!)

My sister was a total greenhorn to thrifting, but after our first stop, she was hooked. (We'll repeat our visit in the spring when she has her next specialist appointment.) 

Before I left NS to move back home into an apartment, I got rid of an awful lot! I foolishly thought I could live with only a few pairs of shoes in black, brown and tan. Well! Time told a different story. So at the top of my "To Find" treasure list was SHOES. I probably spent a total of $125 thrifting, but I bought 6 pairs of flats, a down-filled winter coat (an absolute must for our long, cold Newfoundland winters), 2 pairs of pants/jeans, 2 t-shirts, 2 sweaters, 3 scarves as well as 5 additions to family Xmas gifts, 6 items for my grandson, 2 pieces of antique glassware, and a slew of lovely other items. (I'll share later.)

Linda and I had a fantastic time together, getting to know each other again and bonding over glasses of wine and lovely food: rustic loaves of artisan bread (unavailable in rural CB) from Volcano Icelandic Bakery; thick slices of delicious, rich buttercream topped cake from Rocket Bakery; a carnivore's delight at Montana's (fuel for shopping) and skinny vanilla lattes from Starbuck's. We acted like tourists, visiting Cape Spear and just walking historic Water Street and chatting with the artists and musicians.

I love my new quiet, laid back lifestyle in Corner Brook. But this trip to the big city was a wonderful mini vacation:  soul-rejuvenating and full of fun and laughter. 

Now, back to my budget and saving for next April's trip!