Cheapskate Diaries

"Stand Back," said the elephant, "I'm going to sneeze!" Even as I laid my eyes on the title I knew it was going to be a good book for my 3 year old. The best part was I was paying .25 cents for it at our neighborhood garage sale. It is a 1971 first edition written by Patricia Thomas and my 3 year old loves it. In addition to the ‘elephant sneezing book’, I found “Oscar Otter”, Heidi, Thumbelina and a first edition Charlie Brown book, all for .25 cents each.
At another house I picked up a Mexican hand painted clay mask for .50 cents. The lady was also selling Hearthside Garden Festival stoneware in a box for $12. When I asked her about it she said the box contained eight 5 piece place settings (dinner plate, salad plate, soup bowl and cup and saucer). They were made in Japan in the 1970s and the pattern was hand painted. It was the cup and saucer that pinched it for me. I haven’t found a lot of cups and saucers that look nice or are the right size. They are either too big or too small. This were just the right size and I ended up buying the whole set for $10.
I am a cheapskate at heart and nothing warms my cockles than to get a good bargain. When I looked up the stoneware set online, it turns out a set of 4 dinner plates of the same pattern sell on e bay for $14.99. So I think I’ve got a pretty good bargain.