Friday, September 14, 2007

That. Again.

I took the kids for a walk today to get a red pepper from the grocery store. On the way to the peppers, I had to pass the magazines, and since the children were being extremely compliant, my eye had a moment to fall on two of my favourite magazines: Home Companion, and Country Living. I guess I needed an adrenalin rush or something- being a highly religious bargain hunter and buying a magazine retail really don't go hand in hand. I impulsively balanced a copy of each on top of the stroller and headed off to produce.

There was good reason for being compulsive about the magazine. I felt like I needed to compensate for missing out on some yard sales this weekend.

I've signed up for a church seminar that will take up my thursday and friday evenings, as well as all day saturday. That's not the difficult part.

Saturday also happens to be town-wide garage sale. Saturday just might be the day for that ONE garage sale... the ONE where the perfectly beautiful, perfectly affordable couch lies in wait.... for me. Its not that I haven't been taunted before. There was the time when I could see the absolutely perfect, red vintage couch and chair IN A GARAGE with an affordable price tag dangling temptingly off of it. I nearly drove off the road. I nearly stopped breathing.

Too bad the poor couch was shredded. It would have made the green one and the grey one look downright contemporary. But I digress.

Flipping through my overpriced copy of Country Living, I came across the above page. A gorgeous couch. Funky. Having recently walked through our local furniture store for the very first time, and realizing that I really loved nothing in it... I was pleased to see this avacado green piece in the magazine with the wide arm rests and fun patterns and felt relieved that these were being manufactured once again. Then I read further. Turns out that the woman had not only a stack of vintage chenille and beautiful old quilts in amazing textiles, but that she had found the couch and a matching chair for $35.00.


Which brought me back to the original conflict.
Church.
Versus Garage Saling.


Well, they said it would be a narrow road. They said that there would be sacrifices.

And now I really need to stay committed to the seminar.

Now I've got the whole jealousy thing going on, coveting whats in my neighbor's garage, whats in my neighbors handmaiden's garage, and maybe even whats in the shed they keep their oxen in.

I've got stuff to come clean on.

I may never find that couch that I just know is going to be out there on Saturday morning. Because now, not only do I have to work on my poor stewardship (buying that unnecessary magazine RETAIL) , I'll have to deal with my envious urges, my jealousies, my covetousness, and my compulsive bargain hunting.

But if I get all that dealt with and I'm no longer driven, then how will I ever find my vintage couch?!

12 comments:

mmichele said...

i'm totally willing to give you a big old vintage claw foot bathtub. it's as long as a couch. fill it with pillows and

voila!

you'll be in a country living spread yourself.

Anonymous said...

Hmmm, did I ever tell you my couch story? It is a God thing and you can see it and the story towards the bottom of my old House Tour post: http://www.gracedbychrist.com/?p=174

He provided us with an awesome couch, at least it is the type of awesome couch I like--it is not for everyone. :) Point is, pray about it, it is amazing how He will provide the perfect item in His time--no matter how many perfect yard sales you find. :)

Leanne said...

Ah, just go garage sale-ing... :)

it's a gong show... said...

my grandma klippenstein had that exact green couch from the magazine. i always knew she was ahead of her times.

don't feel bad about the "frivolous" magazine purchase, you have one extra redhead next week to make up the cash for it ;P

Judy said...

I have never once thought of a magazine purchased at retail as a sin.

My husband has, but not me.

No. Not me.

You will find your couch.

We found ours. About four times now.

So glad my daughter married a man with a pick-up truck...

(word verification is "unlap". can that thing SEE me?!)

Anonymous said...

I want to TALK to you but you're off at that church thing. And I've lost your phone number.And I'm having trouble with sending e-mails. Whine, whine, whine. I can SO relate to the couch thing. Have needed one myself for years, married a wonderful man in June with a furnished house, but his couch is UGLY! Comfy, big, but ugly. It was someone else's reject. Hmmm, is there a pattern here? Finally I'm back to checking your wonderful blog. Missed you. Laura

Mills' Memoirs said...

Joyce, I'm so proud of you! You made the right decision. And, just so you know, the garage sales weren't very great, and it was really windy and cold, and I didn't see any great couches!

Roo said...

hi joyce!

esther said...

oh man!?!?!
i feel your pain...tee, hee.

joyce said...

Michele- don't tempt me with old things....

Brand- where is that couch and why are you dangling that carrot?!

Judy- when you say you found yours, I assume your not talking about a furniture store. YOU I LIKE.

Becky- yeah, but YOU got to go!

Laura- are we a pathetic bunch, or WHAT? I don't know if I have the right e-mail for you either! and I'm horrible with the phone. phone me anyway. 388 5145

roofie and esther- you two together would be like a Goog from BDI. So much sweetness.

Nancy said...

Here in our weird little town we have something called "community email", which is exactly that - you can send 1 email and it goes to the entire community. The other day I sent out an email looking for a dog house for the stray cat we feed. 2, yes I said 2, minutes later I had a reply and voila, I had a free, insulated wonderful dog house for my stray cat. I also got a "new" screen door last spring.
I wish I could send out an email for you...because I just know there is a couch out there waiting to be moved to Niverville. But I'm afraid the moving costs would offset the value of the couch, and well, the free couch would no longer be free would it? Oh but wait, if I find the perfect couch...maybe you could have the perfect weekend vacation driving to the middle of nowhere Saskatchewan!

Valerie Ruth said...

check out www.usedwinnipeg.com we've found all kinds of treasures there!