#spinlife
It all started with my refusal to replace perfectly broken-in sheets with crap polyester knock-offs.
By “broken-in,” I mean that one of us, tired of suffocating under 40 pounds of feline (multiple) bliss, probably attempted to shove some stubborn cats off the bed from underneath the covers and promptly put their foot through the rather flimsy inner bed coverings.
It was me, I was that person…but I can tell you that Adam laughed and shook his head when I broke out the sewing kit and carefully patched things back together. I’m the use-it-up, wear-it-out type of person. I’m also thrifty to the point of ridiculousness. I can’t stand throwing things away - especially when the alternatives are either over $150 or some awful static-inducing blend of plastic and god-knows-what-else. (By “throwing things away” understand that I mean to cut these sheets into strips and reuse them in a rag rug. Ahem. Thrifty.)
I’m not a shopper. I widely distrust Amazon anyway, but sheets are a tactile thing. I need to read what they’re made of and I need to feel the weave to even consider purchasing. Adam suggested we try the local TJ Maxx because he was pretty sure that was where his mom would buy their linens. Once my last set of cotton sheets gave up the ghost and the cheap replacement sets (bamboo and linen blend - my ass!) kept ending up around our necks, I finally realized I was going to have to relent. One field trip to TJ Maxx, coming up.
I really should have never been introduced to this place.
On trip one, we bought two sets of all-cotton, finely-woven sheets for about $50 each. One super long rug for in front of my counter (yes, I know I can make these but this was easy), bamboo spatulas and spoons (Roo has stolen all the other ones off the counter and ate them), and one really awesome coffee mug. The coffee mug section, as it turns out, has a LOT of fun stuff…and I love coffee mugs. Because I love coffee. And mugs.
Trip two, was another two sets of sheets (we wanted to make sure we liked the first ones) , some bath towels (also getting a little threadbare in that department) and something else I can’t remember. We did do the trip through the mug section and I cracked up when I saw the white mug with #spinlife written on the side. I know what it’s supposed to mean - but #spinlife has a whole different meaning to a fiber artist with an affinity for antique spinning wheels.
Alas. Trip one was costly, so trip two was just for necessary things. I put the mug back. Besides, Dustie had given us two lovely hand -thrown mugs for Christmas and I had scored another mug on the first trip. My house isn’t overly blessed with storage space, so at a certain point ALL the mugs aren’t going to fit even if my contrary sense of humor wants them to.
Fast forward another few weeks. Both of us were wanting some yoga mats - we’ve both been realizing that loss of flexibility is a problem. I also wanted to find some kettlebells. We had seen both in TJ Maxx - so back we went. This time, I walked out with the mat, bells, a dog bed for Mindy (who could not cope with having a new bed last night)…and the very last #spinlife mug.
Just so I could take this picture.
I seriously need to stay out of that store.
(Have I mentioned all the glass storage containers yet?!?)