We did indeed rest and travel these last few weeks like we predicted.  We went down together to Shelly’s brother’s wedding in Iowa, I spent nearly 2 weeks in New Mexico and driving home, and I took the kids up to the Cities for their first-ever Twins game.  Millie and I raced each other through all seven Harry Potter books, we splashed in the above-ground pool in the back yard every day, and built fires in the firepit at night.

And we did one thing we weren’t predicting when we split for July:  We decided to get out of the thrift business. We’ve begun looking for someone else–A family?  An organization?–who can run Jumble and benefit from it.

Why? Lots of reasons, a couple of biggies.

My time at the Glen Workshop a few weeks ago reminded me I’m a writer, cleared out everything inside me that was in the way of living like it, and filled me with the resolve to do the work every day.   Jumble’s good, but I can’t give my best to both of these creative, hardworking lives.  I’ll have more to say about this in a few future posts.

Also, at home, many of our expectations for the store–a place to work together, find a creative outlet, live a stable daily schedule, and so on–came with more stress than we anticipated, more than I can help Shelly and the kids handle.  A little like taking home 50 emotional-bucks from our work there every day, but looking back and finding we had spent 60 or 85 or 110 to get the job done.

Unsustainable.  So, after praying, thinking, feeling, and talking about this lots, it seems best to get out. You all have been interested in Jumble and supportive of us all along–Thank you!–and we’ll keep you posted about the rest of the store’s story as we go.

That deficit is not the case with actual cash-bucks, though. Every month we were open, Jumble was in the black.  We’re proud of the job we’ve done creating the store, and it would be terrifically gratifying to find someone who would take Jumble, run it, and benefit from it.

It’s a great little place.  And it would be great for us, too, if we could simply shop there.  Of course we would shop there!

If you’re there walking or running the track, pause for a minute and take a picture of yourself with one of our signs! Bring the picture in to Jumble any time after we reopen in August.  When you do, you may choose any item in the store (up to $10) for free!

Have a great Relay!

No, they won’t be for sale when we reopen, but we can have a little fun with them before they hit the bottom of the dumpster!

Leave your captions in the comments!

A little something from Andy Crouch‘s keynote talk at the Glen Monday, for poets, thrift-shop-starters, and you.

From what I have found out on this website, the company, The Edwin M. Knowles China Co. was in business from 1901-1962. The numbers, 36-6 stand for the year it was made (1936) and the month it was made (June) 36-6.

Also, from what I’ve read, they aren’t highly valuable but do sell for a little moo-lah! They also made several different patterns, ie. Yorktown Shape. The Yorktown Shape came in different solid colors kind of like Fiesta Ware and didn’t have any pictures/designs on them. So, my guess is as good as yours as to the meaning or significance of the ‘M’ on the front of the plate.

Here’s another helpful site about the history of the company.

Thanks, Tab!

The guy who owns the antique shop in town ignores it, though, each time he comes in.

So maybe M is just for mmm…ordinary.

Here’s the mark on the back.  Says, “The Edwin Knowles China Co. Made in USA. 36-6 Yorktown Shape” up top, and “Platinum Finish” beneath.

If any of you feel sleuthy while we’re gone, see what you can learn about it.

We’d love to know.

Class this morning with B.H. Fairchild, then readings, talks, exhibits, concerts, Eighth Day Bookstore, and more the rest of the day.

Good times.

4.45 pm.  Veeerry slow afternoon.  Looking for reasons to bring the stuff in from the sidewalk, lock up, and go get my truck from the service station.

3.24 pm: Saving lots of links to thrifty reading material, this ‘n that to post right here so you don’t have to ignore the blog while we ignore the store the next few weeks.

2.00 pm: Anyone have an interest in a few boxes of 50+ year-old Christmas cards?  They’re used, so you can’t just sign and send them. But something crafty, maybe?  A customer called to see if I knew anyone who might want them.  Leave a comment, and I’ll connect you with her.

1.10 pm: Funnier thing.  He was right.  I was interested.  Just Googled pigeons and parachutes and found this article.  Did you know they didn’t even encode messages sent from the battlefield by pigeon?  That’s how dependable the birds were in the midst of gunfire and across the miles.  Huh.

1.02 pm: Funny thing.  Standing behind the counter of a thrift shop means people assume you are interested in hearing about their odd, old things. Like the fellow from Virginia who spent 15 minutes telling me about the old container hanging in his barn–originally filled with pigeons during WW2 then dropped to men on the ground who would send messages via bird-leg back to HQ.

11.30: Refilling the jewelry tray with a tangle of marvels from a very old woman who honked and waved me out to get them from the back seat of her Oldsmobile.  Must have been the Cleopatra of polished wood-beadery and shell-derived frippery in her day.

10.46 am: Observation.  We sell automatic 35mm cameras more quickly when we pile them with the toys than when we shelve them with other small, electronically useful things.

10.15 am: Finally putting up our photos from Jason Kovacs. The laundry one right behind the counter, natch.

9.48 am: Opening this morning one more time before a few weeks-long hiatus.  Shelly’s home packing us up for her brother’s wedding in Des Moines this weekend.  So, a liveblog! Drop in on this post a few times–I’ll be here all day.

Jumble will close on Friday 24 July for a few weeks of family travel and rest.

We’ll open again on Friday 21 August.

See you then!

Wait, is You sure make it easy to take our money! a compliment?

It must be–I mean it and feel thankful for how smoothly the transaction went.