Ship Full o' Pirates

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When I woke up this morning I had no idea that today I would be getting a “new” book-shelf unit to replace my 40 year old unit I’ve been using for our school books.

As is our custom, lately, Hubs and I have been enjoying our morning coffee out on the front porch.  And since it’s our neighborhood’s turn for brush and rubbish pick up this week, we have a heap of junk out at our curb, and so do all our neighbors.  Tres white-trash!  No?

Anyway, I noticed that one of our neighbors, whose junk heap I had view of from my comfy rocker on the porch, had put out a couple of pieces of furniture since yesterday.  So, I sent Tex over there to  ”See if I’d be interested in them.”

So he asks me, “How am I gonna do that?”

Well, we had to have a little impromptu lesson on junk pickin’!

(Aren’t y’all relieved I have set the bar so low for “redneck white trash” standards?)

I told that cowboy what to look for and sent him off.  You know how to junk pick don’t ya?

1. still usable
2. at least clean up-able
3. all the important parts are there
4. doesn’t look like anyone died in it (only applies to recliners and the like)
5. is light enough to be carried by those folks as are available
6. will fit in my house (or car if I have to drive to get it)(that’s how I got my computer desk)
7. I like it/want it/need it

Since both pieces of furniture looked to be book shelf type items we didn’t have to worry about rule #4.  And when he’d inspected them carefully he reported that they both were in ok shape and seemed clean and usable.  Handy kid to keep around, huh?

So now I had to go see for myself.  Hubs had already declared one piece to be to large for our needs.  I had my eye on the smaller one anyway.

It was just an ordinary 3′ wide, 4′ high book shelf like you’d find at Target.  Not quite as flimsy as WalMart shelving.  The only problem was that it was missing a few of the little pegs that support the shelves.  I had a sneakin’ suspicion that the other unit might have some in it, and lo and behold, when I opened it up (it had doors and therefore could have been subject to junk pickin’ rule #4 after all)  anyhow, when I opened those doors the inside was fairly bristling with shelf support pegs!  So I snagged 8 of ‘em! (I sent Dusty back a few minutes later for the rest of ‘em.)

Now, lest you think that my junk pickin’ ways are akin to stealing you need to know that this is what folks do here.  It’s like a sport.  Folks from all over town will come in pick-up trucks and troll the neighborhoods where the junk piles proliferate (only when it’s officially their turn, otherwise setting junk at the curb violates some city ordinance).  I’ve gotten lots and lots of nice, usable items this way.

• my first double stroller
• Sally Mae’s high chair (a nice wooden one)
• my computer desk
• a table we use for another computer desk
• chairs galore
• mini trampoline
• rabbit cages (long ago)

And just in case you think I have now ruined the second piece of furniture for some other hapless junk-picker by removing all the pegs, hold your judgement and read on.

I had Tex and Hank bring my “new” shelf unit home and all during the getting of this nice piece of useful home furnishing I had been plotting.  Plotting to disasemble and replace the 40 year old book shelf unit that I’d been using these past 10 years for our school books and throw it on our junk heap, ‘cuz I’m NOT takin’ it when we move!.

I knew I had to make the change fast, the rubbish truck could come today!  I had to get my old shelf empty and out at the curb today!

So, I’m sittin’ there planning how to make the change, still before 8 a.m., and I have only procured my new shelf and hadn’t even begun to empty the old one when I hear that rubbish truck coming.

It’s too late!

Opportunity missed.

Now I had to plan just where I can store a busted apart old shelf unit for the next 6 months until it’s our turn again.  I was thinkin’ maybe I could just bust it up real small and put a few pieces into our trash can every week.  That might work.  Then it hit me.  The truck only did my side of the street.  A quick call to my friendly neighbors across the street and we’re back in business!

You never saw books fly off a shelf so fast!  Good thing I have a huge dining table so I didn’t have to set those stacks of books all the way on the floor, that would have hurt my back, and that makes me grumpy.

Bustin’ that shelf unit up was WAY harder than I expected, but I was motivated.  By that time the truck was comin’ back up the other side of the street!  All four of my (at home today) kids were haulin’ shelves and boards across the street while I was wailing on those side boards and the top shelf with the big hammer!  It was a big unit and falling apart, but still some of it didn’t quite wanna give up the ghost.

We finally got the last of it across the street and onto my friendly neighbors junk heap just in time for the truck.

I installed the shelf supports gleaned from the other piece (which is now on it’s way to the dump in case you were worried about it not being useful without it’s share of pegs), and tacked some staples to hold the back in place nicely.

It took some rearranging to fit all the books where I want ‘em, but I am so happy with my “new” school book shelves!

And I worked pretty hard at this, so I hereby give myself permission to not exercise today.

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