24 Hours Around the Ridges

Last Friday I drove to the Sunshine Coast to attend the funeral of Jo's lovely Dad, whom I have known since about 1970. Jo, you will recall, was one of the participants in The Great Op Shop Road Trip.  Jan, the other participant, lives west of Cooroy at Carters Ridge, so I headed there first with my trusty suitcase.  It was a glorious day for driving with an excellent musical soundtrack all the way up on the radio. And I noticed the Ridgewood Hall was a having a fair the next morning.
  
Jan and I decided that lunch in Cooroy plus a bit of op shopping was the best possible lead-in to the funeral that we could think of.  Cooroy has four op shops, and Jan volunteers at the Lifeline, so she gets staff discount!

We didn't have a lot of time, so it was a bit of a rushed exercise.  Endeavour first.  It has lovely leadlight windows.  It is a small, thin shop, but beautifully presented. However, I only managed to find a book there, a gift for my brother.  Next was the Hospice Shop, which raises funds for the beautiful Katie Rose Hospice at Doonan, where Jo's Dad was cared for until his death. It is rather well hidden behind the main shopping strip. It has a good bric-a-brac collection (unlike the Endeavour shop, which doesn't have the room). I was impressed that every item of clothing has a size-marking hanger, which makes life so much simpler.  I tried on a couple of things here that didn't quite work, but Jan found the tray she was looking for.

Onwards to Lifeline, where I was introduced to Jan's co-workers and found the treasure of the day, a pair of purple crushed velvet pants!  The perfect thing to wear to the launch of my cousin Lorelei's book Dress Memory next week (the book tells her journey through her twenties, relating it to her love for vintage fashion). Now it was time for a lunch break, so we headed for the Thai restaurant, where we sat out on the footpath in the main street and shared two $9.50 specials. Good value.

We realised we still had time to do op shop no 4, the Bloomhill Shop. It is the prettiest of the Cooroy shops, and has a brightly lit, but cottage-feel interior.  Here I found the two extra plates I needed for our picnic set (bright red), another knife for our everyday kitchen set, and a pair of dangly shell earrings.  Not a bad haul for a quick visit.  Jan bought a beautiful red and black velvet skirt.

It was time to head to Tewantin to the funeral, where we cried and reminisced. We then headed back to Carters Ridge for our own private wake and an early night.

Next morning Jan asked if I would like to go pop in to the Hall, as she had entries in the photo competition and was feeling hopeful about her orchid. A country fair? Of course I would!  After we checked out Jan's three highly-commendeds and one second-place photo, we were doing a slow loop of the hall, checking out all the entries. As I stood on tip-toes to photograph a beautifully crafted little model WWII truck about 10cm high, I felt my worst-ever cramp in my right calf, and crashed to the floor like a sack of potatoes.  People came running from everywhere with skilful massage fingers and kindly advice, and after a few minutes I was back on my feet.  Suffering for my art, I finally successfully photographed the truck.  But as my calf was improving, my foot was starting to hurt.

After about half and hour, I was worried about the drive home, so left Jan and her friend Frances at the second hand stall, and carefully applied foot to accelerator.  The trip home was OK, despite my nervousness, until I hit the brakes at Carseline, and I knew I had a problem. Now braking with my heel, I headed to the butcher to buy sausages for the Father's Day BBQ, and as I limped slowly from the car to the shop and back, I knew I had a BIG problem.  Off to the chemist before they closed to hire a set of crutches, then home where help was available.  Car emptied, stomach full, then off to the hospital.  I have a fracture of the fifth metatarsal, to go with the fractured third and fourth that I suffered in 1999. So no driving, no work, no book launch...but the crushed velvet trousers look good with my moon boot, don't you think?

We Did It!

Happy Op Shop Week to all.  

To celebrate, I will describe the 4WD club Op Shop Crawl that happened on the second attempt.

I planned it on the Brisbane Show Holiday Wednesday so that Brisbane workers could come and because shops in the Moreton Bay Region would be open as they have their show holiday on the Monday.  The numbers were looking good, but gradually I lost the two passengers in my car; Heather lost the three in hers, and the one person I thought wouldn't actually come, dropped out.  So in the end, Heather came in with me and we had a convoy of three vehicles.
The plan was coffee at Westfield Strathpine, followed by a sacking of the RSCPA shop opposite, which had served me so well during the eight years when we had a shop at Westfield.  As the clock ticked slowly towards 9 o'clock, I noticed that said shop was looking suspiciously tidy outside.  Close inspection revealed disappointment but not total despair.  It appears to be being renovated (but not closed down). Phew!

We piled into our vehicles, checked out UHF radios, and headed for the Lawnton Trio: Neighbours Aid, the Sallies and Vinnes, side by side.  There were good buys made here.  I picked up three pairs of pants at the Salvos, for example.  And in Vinnies, is the biggest bra I have ever seen. If you wear a 48I, there is one in pristine condition just waiting for you. Also in the Sallies is a beautiful old piano.

This shop is very new, and has nice little shopping trolleys at the front for your convenience.

In Vinnies, we discovered that there is nothing less marketable than a former politician...

It was time for morning tea.  We had to make a stopover at the Lawnton Bakery for those who had not bought morning tea supplies (as per instructions); and then it was off to Bullocky Rest picnic area on the shores of beautiful Lake Samsonvale.

This is a historic photo because on the table is the McBurneys' Stanley thermos flask. This was Telecom issue when Michael was a backhoe operator in their camps in the late 1970s. It has had a rough life, including falling off the back of a truck.  Now it has entered a new phase of its history, because I left it on that table. 

I actually saw this tall thing on the table from a distance just before we drove off, and thought to myself 'It is getting busy; someone has bagsed our table already.'

The next stop was Redcliffe, and on the way the convoy lost Kerry for a while.  She thought she was behind us, but was actually in front. Anyway, we made it to the carpark behind the shopping strip, only to discover that everyone in Brisbane had decided to spend Show Holiday beside the water, and parking was at a premium. 
The vintage/retro shop was sadly closed, but the wonderful old haberdashery was open, as were the two small op shops that face each other.  In one I found the worst souvenir mug ever, complete with its own cave and ugly stalagmites, and in the other were pineapple holders from the Big Pineapple at Nambour.  We did the shops, strolled down Bee Gees Way and then headed for Margate.

Here there are two big shops side by side: Save the Children and the Lifeline Super Store. And big it is. 

At the former, I found an MCG tie for Michael, and at the latter, an office chair for $10.  The photo at left hows the McBurney and Blacklock loot for the day, including the forementioned items plus a second tie, FREE hairspray and soap, a ramekin to replace the chipped one in my set, a small pyrex bowl to complete that set and a steak knife that matches the ones we have (that's my lot).

Heather acquired two books, a brooch, a pair of earrings (which I may steal), a shoulder bag, and three items of clothing.

With the shopping done, we headed along the Redcliffe and Sandgate waterfront to Upper Moora Park at Shorncliffe for a late lunch.  On the recce day, there was no-one there. On this public holiday, there were people everywhere.  We all eventually parked, bought takeaways as required, and congratulated ourselves on a successful expedition.

I had given the participants a challenge for the day, namely a scavenger hunt.  Each needed to find a non-souvenir teaspoon, a hand-crafted object, a pair of knitting needles, a Christmas item and a baby names book.  In the end, only Kerry collected all five, so she was the winner of the grand prize, a glass bowl purchased at Vinnies, Lawnton, during the recce.  There was also a Trip Leader's Encouragement Award, namely a Sydney Olympics souvenir spoon featuring a map of Australia (including Tasmania) containing all three mascots.  It was purchased at Endo's at Stafford.  This award went to Graeme, who not only picked up the latest Tom Clancy novel for a fraction of the price is is currently fetching in bookshops, but was the only man brave enough to take part.

It was a beautiful day, and we all had a ball.

Bookarama

My daughter needed to buy a book that she could destroy for an art project. I knew just the place.

May I introduce you to Lifeline, Everton Park, possible the best op shop for books on the north side of Brisbane.  You park behind it in the eccentric, meandering carpark of the Everton Park Shopping Centre, away from the chaos of the main road.  (There is a basic-but-nice little coffee shop there as well.)

The whole shop is big and tidy, and the book section has its own large corner room.  All books, I repeat ALL books, are $2.

There are lots of CDs as well ($1 each), DVDs ($3 I think) and heaps of children's books.

While Heather was choosing her victim, I had a ramble and a random look.  The first book I laid my hands upon was all about epergnes.  Yes, those wonderfully eccentric table pieces.  It was called Elegant Epergnes and chock full of pictures like this.

At $2, I actually wanted this book quite badly, because it was so beautiful, but resisted the urge.

The next one I resisted was Chambers Biographical Dictionary, about 5 centimetres thick, but biographies are what the internet is for. 

The books are beautifully catalogued, so I strolled over to the cooking section, where I found this.
 

It is a beautiful collection of biographies and photograph of migrants, both individuals and families, each accompanied by a recipe from that family's tradition.

I nobly resisted this one as well, as I could not possibly fit another cookbook in my house. But, $2...

I then moseyed over to the novels, which were not only in alphabetical order but had little alphabet stickers on them, so that you could see instantly if a book was in the wrong place.

As in all op shops, I noticed multiple Stephanie Meyer, but no George R R Martin.

Heather had by now made her choice, a huge hardcover collection of aerial photos of Sydney.

It seemed such a shame that it had to be mutilated, but $2...?

I was spared from any more temptations, as we made our way out into the clothing area...wait, I just might try on that black top.  Yes, we did each buy clothes.

Meanwhile, on the subject of books, The Cystic Fibrosis Book Shop at Nundah is in the third and final day of one of its everything-in-the-shop-half-price sales and I have resisted going there, too.  It has something to do with a cash-flow problem.  However, this is a great little shop, tucked down beside the railway line in a back street, where old Brisbane City Council library books go to die.  I sincerely recommend it.

Op Shop Shock

Today I had a list of things to do including dropping off a bag of donated goodies to my favourite op shop, the RSPCA Thrift Shop in Edinburgh Castle Road at Kedron. I had parked the car and was halfway across the street before I realised that empty windows were gazing at me.

The welcoming flag was no longer flapping on the footpath,and the old, peeling Adept Party Hire sign from the previous occupants of the building had reappeared from its hiding place behind the RSPCA signage.  I searched in vain for note explaining that they had moved to a new location, or why the door was shut.

There is a photo of the shop in all its fully functioning glory in my earlier post 'Dressing Up'. I was planning a future feature blog on this shop. Rats!

Undaunted, I retreated to my car and searched for answers in my phone.  No success, but a reminder that the RSPCA sorting centre was only a few blocks away at 46 Kate Street. There I learnt that the Brisbane City Council has resumed not only that building block, but the business next door 'and I think a couple of houses too'.  Hmmm, what does this mean?

Anyway, the good news is that the shop will reopen somewhere, sometime, but no details are finalised yet. Phew!

The Recce

Inspired by The Great Op Shop Road Trip, I decided to organise a social trip for our four-wheel-drive club. It is to be an Op Shop Crawl on July 10.  I figured I would start this - my first ever solo trip leader effort - by sticking to what I know, namely, the op shops of the north-east Brisbane area. And where better to kick off the tour than my beloved RSPCA Strathpine, opposite Westfield, where we had our shop for eight years. 
 Heather and I recced the trip a few weeks ago.  The trip plan was a cuppa at Westfield, off to the RSPCA Shop, then hit the road.
There are two big good stores side by side at Lawnton. The first is Neighbours Aid, where I found the suit for my son David's school formal many years ago. Pity they can't spell!
Right next door is Vinnies.  I decided I need a competition for my trip participants, so we devised a scavenger hunt along the way, and I found the prize for it here.

I figured this heavy glass salad-or-whatever bowl would appeal to most people's tastes, and it set me back $8.
Heather bought a piece of 1970s artwork here, which delighted her (you will see it later). Everyone to their own taste, I guess; but I fell that only those who didn't live through the 70s would value these images.

Now it was time for morning tea, so we headed for Bullocky Rest on the shores of Lake Samsonvale.  On a weekday, we were almost the only ones there. And a koala walked right past me, moving from tree A to tree B.
While weekdays are inconvenient for many, the opening hours of op shops make a trip like this almost impossible to organise on weekends.  The shops that do open on Saturdays often close at lunch time, and forget Sundays.  And Bullocky Rest is chockers on the weekend. 

We now headed for Redcliffe, parked one block back from the waterfront, and found ourselves neatly positioned next to two op shops and a retro shop. Inside, I found a wonderful unused 1970s floral teatowel for my friend Jo's collection, but look at what was in the window!  By the time we returned to the car, this reel-to-reel tape recorder had been sold. 
Up the street a bit, there is a big old-fashioned haberdasher, so it's a fun area to explore, and if you nostalgically inclined, you are right beside Bee Gees Way as well.
I was actually back in the same area a few weeks later, with my Great Op Shop Road Trip buddies, Jan and Jo, and Jan found this water jug in one of those two op shops.  We love its simple lines.

  A bit further south down the Redcliffe Peninsula is Margate, where there are two BIG op shops side by side, the new-and-improved Save The Children store, and the Lifeline Superstore.  This photo shows one half of the 'outside' section of the latter.

It was here that Heather spotted and I bought a heavy-based 28cm Tupperware frying pan. Who know that Tupperware made frying pans?  I didn't.
 

I had a look on the Tupperware website: $249 with lid.  No lid?  For me, no big deal. I have lids that size anyway.  Cost to me? $5. And it has been in almost constant use since.
Now it was lunch time, so headed back over the Ted Smout Bridge to Sandgate and Shorncliffe where we had lunch at Cafe on the Park, overlooking beautiful Upper Moora Park and Bramble Bay.

The plan for the trip is for participants to either picnic in the park, with the cafe as backup (especially for those who want coffee), but we though we should check to see if the food is edible. It is.  The final stop was the collection of four op shops at Geebung, where the obligatory 4WD Club trip icecreams are obtainable, prize presentations would be made, and people could shop further if they choose or drift away in their own time. In all, a most enjoyable day.

This is Heather's haul for the day: the 70s art, jeans, shirt, shoes and a box/easel which is perfect for her artwork projects.  She had a great time.
And now the big question, how many club members have signed up for the trip in two weeks time? None.

What We Bought: What We Learned

Here is my little collection of goodies (sans clothing). I now own two of my favourite design egg beaters (one in the dishwasher and one out); my picnic set is enhanced by a good sharp knife; I have a sugar bowl that matches my favourite casserole; Mum has another teaspoon in her room; my one-handed camping whisk has been upgraded; the camping cutlery set has grown; I have some new jewellery and I can listen to K T Tunstall in the car.  I bought 23 items of clothing and 15 of bric-a-brac for a grand total of $103.10.

Jan hasn't sent me a photo of her loot but here is Jo's.  My particular favourite is the little glass two-handed sugar bowl centre back.  Jo bought 12 (I think) items of clothing, 17 or bric-a-brac and 9 books. Not sure of her grand total expenditure. Jan's total was 26 items of clothing and 17 of bric-a-brac for an outlay of $97.95.


What we learned: 

• Not all op shops are listed on the website opshops.org  If you know a good shop, please go onto the website, see if it is there, and if not, add it.  Others may thank you for it.
• Local knowledge is a wonderful thing. Ask the locals. About anything.
• Check the opening and closing times of the shops you plan to visit; if necessary via a phone call.  Sometimes when it is quiet they may close a little early.
• When you 'do' several shop in a row, looking at clothing, you develop a condition we dubbed 'op shop shoulder' from holding your arms up high to work your way through all those hangers. Be warned.
• If you like it, buy it. You can alter it when you get home (because I am a short-ass, I had to take up six tops!).  There is no going back on a road trip. If it doesn't work out, recycle it via your local shop.
• Never judge a book by it cover, or an op shop by its external appearance!

To end, here is a photo of me at work, completely dressed by The Great Op Shop Road Trip, including accessories (except my crummy watch). Not bad, eh?

Theebine and a Telephone Call

The Dickabram Bridge was built 23 metres above the Mary River in the 1880s when Dickabram was a thriving township (the population now appears to be about 10).  During the 1893 flood, it was under water!
It is one of only two road&rail bridges left in Australia and is heritage listed.  It's a rickety old drive across, believe me.  I am particularly impressed with the way it goes up in the middle.

On the western side there is a little camping ground with toilets, and when we arrived, there was a family there who seemed to resent our intrusion.  If you were camped there, you would be pleased that the road goes nowhere, because the sound of vehicles crossing the bridge would keep you awake at night.  On the loo wall there was a sign advertising a fete at the nearby Theebine School. How's this for a school badge?

We headed back east towards Theebine and stopped to photograph a wonderful rusting old tractor in a green field that we had spotted on the trip to the bridge.  While I was lining up the shot (with my phone) the phone rang, and I was so excited, I accidentally started videotaping. On the audio, you can hear me panicking.  Yes, it was Tony Mammino on the line and he had my camera.

It turn out there is a Mammino shop in Childers shopping strip as well as the farmhouse outset, and that is where I had called.  When the shop spoke to the farmhouse, the confusion was revealed and the camera located.  Tony offered to mail it down, but dear Jo nobly volunteered to drive up to Childers the following week and collect it.
 It was time for drinks all round at the Theebine pub, another well-known watering hole I had yet to set my eyes on. And what a beauty!
We could hear music so headed out the back where there is a large covered barbecue area with a small stage called - funnily enough - Backstage at Theebine.  A group of students from Gympie High School were getting some practice in front of a live audience, and naturally Jo know one of the teachers.  We sat out in the sunshine, ate up and drank up, congratulating me on my good luck and us on a brilliant concept well executed.  Our thoughts then turned towards home.
  
We continued down the back roads towards Imbil, unloaded my stuff and Jan's stuff into my car; I dropped Jan at Carters Ridge and drove back to Brisbane through a spectacular storm near the Glasshouse Mountains.  Up until then, it hadn't rained at all during the whole trip. We had been smiled upon by both the op shop gods and the weather gods.

Childers and a Crisis

You can't pass through Childers and not have a Mammino ice cream.  They are thick and rich and wonderfully yummy.  They are made at the Mammino farmhouse in Lucketts Road, just east of town.  There is a big parking area, a small shop and a big undercover area where you may lick away to your heart's delight.

 
I managed to take a photo of the three of us by positioning the camera on the corner of our table.  I chose Passionate Passionfruit and I know one of the others was Ginger and Macadamia.

With tummies full and nervy teeth jumping from the cold, we left Mammino's, Jo turned the car onto the Bruce Highway, and we headed homeward past countless op shop untouched.  The only one I know that actually opens on a Sunday is in Imbil, Jo's home town.

As we approached Tiaro (which I must report now has a set of traffic lights!), Jo asked if anyone would be interested in a diversion through Gundiah and a look at the Dickabram Bridge. Would I what?! The Dickabram Bridge is famous in our four-wheel-drive club since a trip many years ago got lost and found it by mistake.  So we turned south-west and our first stop was the Gundiah Pub. It is a little cutie and as I reached for my camera to photograph it, I realised I had a problem. Where was the camera?  We just about turned out the car looking for it.  Then I remembered the group shot at Mammino.  

Luckily, there was a phone tower nearby so I had reception. I googled 'Mammino' and rang the number. No, there was no camera there. A second phone call: no, it isn't in the car park.  I left my mobile number with her and grimly photographed the pub with my phone.  'You are incorrigible!' says Jo.  It was time for the Dickabram Bridge...

Rest, Recovery and Recreation

Once were were settled in at Woodgate, we had a chance to show off our purchases, which we hadn't been able to do for a while.

Then it was off to the bowls club for dinner, where the menu included 'Fragrent' Thai Green Chicken.  The place was packed.  I wish I had seen it full of bikers, though.  Anyway, we were seriously impressed by the decor.  I have long been intrigued by the carpets installed in clubs, and wonder if there is a special factory coming up with startling designs just for them. Anyway, at Woodgate Bowls Club, they not only have high-viz circles in their carpet but high-viz multicoloured chairs to match!

By now we were a little hysterical and giggly and an equally giggly waitress took our photo.  She was lovely. We ate our dinner and headed home for the evening's game.  We hadn't played one the night before in Miriam Vale because we were out being glamorous.  Otherwise it would have been Pictionary night.

This game was Jan's and was all about Australian geography.  We began to get even more hysterical when we discovered that the answer to every 'where is it?' question seemed to be Queensland. If not, we could find a Queensland connection.  Sampling some Bundaberg Rum Distillery purchases (eg 'Smooth and Shifty', which is Bundy & Sars) may have made it seem funnier than it actually was.

Next morning, we packed the car, checked out, and it was time to hit the beach.

Our beachcombing revealed a high-viz crab shell, plus a cowrie shell. Mum now has that shell in one of her plant pots in the nursing home. It was so lovely to just stroll along the sand after our hectic previous four days.  When we reluctantly headed back to the car, we had a chance to have a better look at Woodgate and discovered that the interior designer for the bowls club seems to have been involved in painting the local houses as well!

The next item on our agenda was Mammino ice cream...