Friday Fun: In the Neighborhood

My very best friend is having a baby!  Holy mackerel will it be a cute baby.  (It's a boy).  I can already see that I'm going to be one of those fake-aunt crazy ladies who buys/makes tons of things for her kid.  Luckily she's an only child, so there are no real aunts whose toes I'll be stepping on.  I spent the morning brainstorming an imaginary nursery for her.  She and her husband are about to move into a new place, so I have no idea what the space will actually look like, but I'm super familiar with all of her furniture and tastes, so I think I've come up with some good stuff.  Will share later.

After being on the computer all morning, I thought I'd take a quick jaunt out into the neighborhood to find a little fun.  (That's slim pickings down here... you'll see).

First stop the library, where I returned a couple of books and then skimmed the fiction shelves for a pile of easy reading.  Nice shallow chic lit and historical mysteries, perfect for the weekend.

Then I hit up the local Goodwill.  Thrift stores are usually pretty indicative of the demographic of that neighborhood, have you noticed that?  My neighborhood is not trendy.  Our local Goodwill is generally pretty terrible, but if you look closely you can find something here and there.

This is the only thing I bought.  It's a silk tunic with a watercolor flower motif.  It needs a little work.  Maybe shortening the sleeves, or cutting them off altogether?  Its already less dowdy looking just with a belt.

I did not buy this small chalkboard which is a great size for a kitchen or office or kids room, because I don't have any wall space in my kitchen.  If anyone else wants it-- S. Valley Goodwill, $5.99-ish.

Didn't buy this earth-toned ceramic lamp either.  It was $14.99 which seemed bizarrely expensive to me. That's part of my dislike for this Goodwill, it seems to have really random pricing.  If you had a really awesome Eco-California-Natural style going on, it could be great.  (Or you know, wicked styling skills in the manner of Emily Henderson, most recent Design Star winner).

Example of random pricing, this brass chandelier was only $7.99.  It would look great painted black, but I didn't buy it because my ceilings are low, and chandeliers don't work.

This hand-painted Virgin of Guadalupe was $4.99.  Seriously?  It should have been $0.50.  I might have bought it then.  (What?  Its New Mexico, we really like the Virgin of Guadalupe here.  I'm not immune.)

And that was it.  I told you slim pickings.  What was your Friday fun?