Buying, Selling and Keeping

I’m back in Ireland. I’ve been going back and forth quite a bit since the summer. My mother in Roswell is slowly declining and I’ve wanted to spend time with her. Then I spent two weeks in St Pete alone just to finish clearing everything out. I should set up a shrine to Facebook Marketplace, because it made selling so easy. I met some nice people who promised to pamper my beloved antiques and put other odds and ends to good use.

St Marys, Youghal

I took out dozens of bags of stuff I sadly conceded was trash. I never realized it was trash until I had to decide what to do with it. Who really needs pots with broken handles and cheap prints in cracked frames? Two heaping truck loads of stuff went to the Salvation Army, and the coup de grace was a mournful visit from the Junk R Us guys. Everything gone... except the things in boxes that I can't bear to part with and Leah is holding for me. I do have some semblance of sentimentality about me.

My second day in town a guy came over to buy a couple of armoires. When he realized I was selling the house… he bought that too! It was that simple. Closing next week.

So back in Ireland we continue the project of fixing up this house. Having sold so much on Marketplace in St Pete, I decided to start shopping there for the things we “need” here. Dixie and I have a new “date day” tradition. We find something on Marketplace we can’t live without (okay, that I can't live without), drive across the county (or farther) to collect it, explore places we’ve never been before, have lunch at some quirky cafe that the seller recommends, and come home with full bellies and partially full wallets, feeling proud of the money we saved shopping second hand.

Can you see the people on the beach?

My favorite excursion so far was to the coastal town of Youghal (pronounced "ya’ll" appropriately enough). Quaint and historic, we found a graveyard walk around a 13th century Protestant church (although I guess it wouldn’t have been called Protestant in the 13th century). Stunning, the views from the cemetery and inside the church. The oak rafters are original and believed to be the oldest in Ireland. Who knew you could see all this and come home with a handmade side table that belonged to someone’s great aunt? Like me, the seller was glad he found a good home for a family treasure. Youghal come.

Table from Youghal

But my favorite gem so far is the fireplace. We had a nice contemporary fireplace already in place, but I have fallen in love with the traditional old cast iron inserts that have ornate canopies and tiles on either side. The surrounds can be cast iron, wood or resin, really doesn’t matter. 

Gotta love the river ladies

They are very common here and dismissed as just out-of-date by many. So you can get one cheap. I cunningly stalked Marketplace and Done Deal (like Craig’s List) until just the right one sprang up. Then I pounced and nabbed it. I paid for it (and the installation) with what I made selling the other one. OMG!  I’m sounding like my mother, the original wheeler dealer who used to embarrass me to death with her haggling! She would have loved shopping social media.

Of course, having an Edwardian style fireplace, I also jumped on an antique coal scuttle (it's the one Bob Cratchit used in Scrooge’s office, I’m positive) and solid brass fireside set. And since that look reminded me of a local pub, I also grabbed a fabulous old Guinness mirror to hang in the kitchen. Where will it end?

Sláinte

I continue to feel an affinity with the past, whether through ancient monuments of stone or small, interesting relics from the last generation. Something about that chain chain chain (not the chain of fools!) but of precious links that connect us all from Adam to Atom. Across time, across the miles, I imagine we are all the same. I know it’s a cliche but it’s true.

And for some reason I find great comfort and inspiration in contemplating the journeys and struggles of those who have gone before. In Roswell, it's my parents and grandparents, going through the great depression, the war and the often bittersweet days that followed. In Ireland, it’s LONG before. My ancient ancestors… here. 

Stuff gets bought and sold, comes and goes. But we cannot negotiate deals to swap our paths with others because they did not originate with us. We can only say "thank you" and hope to make them safer and more meaningful as we continue to carve them out for our descendants. It's deep but you get it, right?