Ebay is pretty darn cool!

When I first discovered ebay a few years ago, I was living in New York and working as a freelance writer for Scripps Productions in Knoxville, TN. The online mega-marketplace was a great distraction for a TV writer with a nasty case of writer's block or boredom or temporary lack of focus and discipline -- two necessary elements (there are more!) for someone contracted to write on deadline for a major cable network. Scrapbooking ideas, anyone???? I have a few :)

I was intrigued with every aspect of the site which propelled its founder to riches a few times over. He was 31 years old. (That's another incredibly interesting story for another post perhaps.)

I think I first perused ebay looking for an obscure item, probably something vintage for my then husband, who spent hours of his free time searching for retro, truly one-of-a-kind pieces to add to his colorful wardrobe. I did not "get" his seeming obsession with this activity -- until I dove in myself.

Almost immediately, I was drawn in. I bought a set of antique, apple-shaped metal canisters -- something I really needed -- and then (it's bound to happen) discovered all the countless other treasures ebay has to offer. Like a fabulous hard plastic, canary yellow serving tray that spells out the letters D-I-P. It's a conversation piece both when each letter is filled with its own colorful tasty dip and in its usual state leaning atop my cabinets as an art piece. I love it and will probably keep it forever and envision my children fighting over it one day :)

Fast forward a few years --- when I bought a record for my music lovin' man who likes to hear jazz or soul or funk from the imperfect scratchy sounds of a good ole' heavy stereo -- the kind that plays 8 tracks and albums and takes up one entire wall in our living room. It's space well spent.

And then tonight, after Adventures in Banana Bread Making, I decided to see if I could possibly find the large mixing bowl that would make my vintage Sunbeam MixMaster the kitchen tool it was meant to be! The makeshift bowl I was using with my late great aunt's mixer just wasn't fitting the bill. Oh, I could make it work. It just requires constant moving of the bowl. None of this fancy $300 modern-day mixer that practically does the work for you. Oh no, I was hands-on! Moving the bowl around so that all the dry ingredients properly mixed with the wet. Because you know, baking is an exact science (I have found this to be an inaccurate statement -- but that's for another post)

So, while I was scraping down the sides of the bowl with one hand while moving the bowl around with the other, I had the notion: I bet I could find the actual bowl that fits in these little grooves so that my mixer would work properly and circle around on its own! ... just like it did when my sweet Aunt Mildred would make her quick breads and cookies and other goodies from her clean little kitchen in Johnson City, Tennessee, oh probably about 50 years ago.

I was determined to find that bowl!

My obvious first choice ... ebay! And what'ya know! I found not one but three that I'm fairly certain are the bowls! The most interesting thing about my discovery -- all three sellers are from Australia. The shipping cost and delivery time will probably be a little higher but for around $10 (including shipping) I can outfit my Sunbeam MixMaster 1000 :) and be most happy in my mixing moments for years to come.

I've always had an affinity for old things. For things that were used by others oft generations passed. Things that rev up my imagination. Things that sometimes require a little extra work but have oh so much more soul. Things that, though old and some may say "outdated," still do the job and don't take up space in a landfill when they still have so much more to give. (Now, don't get me wrong, I love a good piece of technology like anyone, (the typewriter vs. the computer, for instance. A handy-dandy dishwasher versus washing ev-er---ry thin----g by-----hand. It can get tedious and make your hands unnecessarily wrinkly!)

Thank you, Aunt Mildred for leaving behind your trusty mixer AND it's charming plastic cover pictured with an industrious red bee. "A better mixer I will bee," it says .... And it is! :)

Now, time to taste that banana bread :)

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Thank you, Lord, for generations past.
For what they taught.

So many, many lessons. They ought
forever last.