Antiques

   Yesterday Anne, Lynn and I met in Red Wing. It had been a few months since we'd seen each other. We decided to have lunch and visit an antique store.
   It was a nice,warm, sunny day. We met at a tea room for lunch. It was definitely my kind of place. Tea cups and pot everywhere with a good selection of tea. I was tempted to order a scone with cream, but decided that probably wasn't a good idea. Maybe if I was dining with serious tea drinkers, but not with Anne and Lynn.  We all had sandwiches and Lynn and I shared a pot of tea. I told Lynn that I would order the tea. They had a lovely orange spice with paired well with our sandwiches. I think Lynn was a bit amused by the fact that I paired the tea to the meal.
  After we had eaten and caught up on what was going on with each of us the last few months, we went to the nearby antique store. It was in a large two story brick building. The inside was filled with various antiques. I saw part of a milking machine. I recognised it from my days living with my grandparents out on the farm. The was a cane seat rocking chair, a couple of very tiny school desks and some things I didn't recognise.
  Then we went into the big store. Various dealers rent space and display their wares. I must admit it was a bit disconcerting to see things I knew from my childhood considered antiques. Am I really that old???
   I'm not a huge antique fan, but I do like to look. I look at books, tea pots and cups, hats and textiles. The first thing I found were books. I look for Cherry Ames books. That was a series I used to read when I was younger. The first thing I saw was a case of religious books. There were several Bibles and a Book of Mormon. Then I saw something I thought I'd never see again. It was a red hymnal. Could it be? Was this really a copy of the red hymnal I loved so much when I was young? I opened it up. It was! It really was! I paged through it carefully looking at the order of service and the various prayers. Underneath it was a green book. It was the green hymnal that replaced the old red one. I didn't like it at first, but came to love it was well. I paged though it too. There were all the hymns we'd sung for so many years. The hymn "A Mighty Fortress" was there with all the verses. I could buy these. Then I paused. We are trying to be careful with our spending. I could buy one, but probably not both. I reluctantly set the red hymnal down. I looked at the green one. I could use this as a dulcimer songbook. I laid it down. Do I really need that hymnal or did I just want it for sentimental reasons? I wasn't sure. I decided that I would move away from the section and if I decided that I would find it useful, I could always go back and get it.
  I continued to look. There were all kinds of dishes and glasses. There were old toys and knick knacks. I caught up with Lynn who was looking at a rack of hats. They were all vintage. I tried a couple of them on. None of them really fit. Vintage hats are smaller and tend to sit on top of the head. For me these styles don't look that good. Some of them were, well.... kind of ugly. I'm sure they were the height of fashion in their day, but now they just looked overblown.
   I saw a lot of teapots. Two of them had an interesting curved downward spout that was considered 'no drip'. I'd never seen a pot like that before. I looked at the price. It was a fair price for a teapot, but I didn't want to spend that much.
   I went upstairs. I found Anne, who was buying a plate to go with a set she already had.  I wandered around with her for a bit, then went off on my own again. I saw a display of teacups. Most of them were standard florals. They were pretty but not outstanding. I saw one set that was painted with small red hearts. The cup and the saucer were heart shaped. Very cute. There was another set that had a picture of Wile E Coyote and the Road Runner (Looney Tunes cartoons) painted in gold on the sides of the cup. Not really my style. My eye was attracted to a small cup in the front row. It had butterflies painted on it and the handle was a butterfly. I checked the price. It was below ten dollars. I wondered if it was a usable cup or a cup meant to be displayed. I don't buy cups that I can't drink out of.
  I found Lynn and asked her for a second opinion. She liked it to and thought that it was a usable cup. I carefully picked it up and took it to the desk to pay for it. It turned out that it was on sale.  I watched happily as it was wrapped up.
  Lynn and I met Anne who was waiting outside. We talked about what we had bought for a few minutes and then walked outside into the sunshine. After hugs,we went to our cars and drove away.
  Once I got home, I washed my new cup and set it with the others on the china cabinet. It looked right at home among all the flowered cups. It was a good find.