Charity Shops

On interrogating t'internet about three weeks ago I learned that Blenheim has 7 charity shops (well 7 that are engaging with search engines).

It was the week that much rain was forecast and I decided that a supply of reading material would be in order, so having planned a full day in town I did chores first (called at the hardware store for hardware) and started with the ReUse Shop. It's a fancy name for what used to be the 'tip' or the 'dump', only now they make a great effort to return as much as possible of it to the community, charge very little (or nothing) and send the money made to various sports and charitable enterprises.

My new enormous soup pot, a sealing lunch box, a handful of old spanners for cupboard door handles, some wine glasses and an armload of books set me back $10. The pot alone was labelled $6 so I suspect some manager's discretion was applied to the pile of stuff I loaded onto the counter.

"Free handbasin with every purchase". I passed on that, but know where to go and get the porcelain for the ensuite in the cabin when I get to the plumbing stage.

The Hospice Shop was next, is huge and very professionally run. They know the value of their books but the books are extremely well organized and they had a huge section of non-fiction. While there I also bought a decent porridge bowl, and some knitting wool (recycled from an unpicked jumpers).

Salvation Army shop in Blenheim is smaller and more quirky than the Ashburton one (which is rather like a department store) and dominated by a slightly odd selection of furniture. More books purchased along with a flattish bowl with a pleasing grapes design. 

I'm a sucker for handmade ceramics.

After a coffee at the supermarket cafe (and a lovely chat with a complete stranger who asked to share my table rather than take up another on her own when there was a queue behind her) I called at St Vincent de Paul - Vinnies. Vinnies can be relied upon to be inexpensive. More books, a grey velvet cushion for $2 and a much needed larger fruit bowl for $4, and I was off again in search of Blue Door.

This one had me stumped. What charity is that? It turns out to be a regular second hand shop, run by volunteers, that makes grants of its profits to any applicant that meets certain criteria - sport, social, educational, community, environmental…  More books of course, a dog bowl (Scully needed a water bowl at my place), and a cone of yarn which I am currently crocheting into a summer cardigan. I picked up and put down again many other items which I coveted but have no sensible use for right now.

By that stage of the day I couldn't face St Johns Ambulance or the Animal Protection place - all shopped out. It had been quite a marathon for a woman who hates browsing in shops. Even those I did visit were surveyed at a fast walk.

And of course the day's haul of books. By the time I thought to photograph them I'd read a few and dropped them at the bookswap cabinet up the road.

My haul has included some authers I should try to read (Atwood, Hemingway, Lawrence)

I've read the top 2 in this pic but enjoyed them enough to read again. Joanne Harris is an engaging writer.

The Man Who Ate the 747 is a sweet little story. The engineering maths book is just to exercise my brain🤪.

Peter Keeble's book about WWII naval salvage in the Mediterranean and Middle East is a great read.