Tuesday, January 28, 2014

Old Stuff

I admit I like old stuff, I like old cars, trucks and motorcycles , I like old guns and knives, I like old cast iron and old coffee pots. I even like old people (well most anyway....come to think of it....well never mind I will refrain from making derogatory comments about my good friend Stephen)
Now I am sidetracked......... Oh I remember, as I was saying I like old stuff, preferably American made old stuff.
A couple of Sundays ago I went for a afternoon drive with my wife and ended up in St Augustine, and for someone who likes old stuff the oldest city is pretty neat.
On the way back we were traveling along the Kings Highway (US-1  for you people born after the early 1800's) and passed an antique mall I have visited before, anyway something made me do a U-turn and go back. It was only a few minuets before closing so I made a quick walk through (by the way something quite impossible for my wife to do nevertheless I tried)
I came across an old US made Dietz, Little Wizard Lantern which I instinctively picked up to inspect, it seems most I see nowadays are severely neglected and the few you find which are worth having are expensive. The price was marked as $18 which is usually only reserved for the ones in the worst shape but this one seemed different, it had fuel in it and appeared only very dirty so I quickly decided it was worth having. Usually antique malls will give a small discount if you ask however after we had made them late for closing and seeing as the price was below that of a Walmart, Chinese made lantern I really didn't have heart to even ask so I paid the sticker price and left....after I coaxed my wife out the door with a promise of a stop for coffee.
Upon arriving home I lit the lantern and it worked perfectly just as it was found in the store however due to it being extremely dirty and full of soot I carefully cleaned it and discovered the original paint was still in good shape as you can see from the picture above. It goes to show bargains are still to be had if you keep a look out and old lanterns like this are worth having for a number of reasons including survival situations or times of power outages plus they are cool just to look at as well.

 Why do I like old stuff ? ...... I don't exactly know because it makes me sad. It reminds me simpler times and how things change, sometimes not always for the better I might add. I am very nostalgic and the last few mornings I find myself sitting on the front porch, in the dark with my old lantern lit beside me, it is cold and the little flame it seems gives off just a little warmth to my soul and as I sit and drink my first cup of coffee for just a little while I imagine being back in time. I watch the headlights of the cars passing by presumably of people on their way to work most of whom don't have a clue as to what they have lost.

22 comments:

  1. That's the best piece of writing I've read in a long time, and if I may be so bold, the piece you've written, ever.

    And, since you were a smart behind I'm stealing the lower picture.....it was nice chatting with you today.

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    1. Hey what else is new, BTW that picture of the old Ruger Mk I on your blog looks my gun. Anyway thanks for the kind words.

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    2. What Ruger? Umh, ah, cough....oh that well you see I found it one day, a long time ago. Sold it this morning....

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  2. What Stephen said about the writing. Old stuff & the old ways of doing things ... we've lost so much, and seems only a few of us remember what's gone.

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  3. Huh. I lived in St. Aug from 2008-2011. Out There was my favorite antique mall there. I acquired several hand tools, and a few pieces of pottery there that I still use regularly. Some of those old tool vendors had great stuff. I have a claw hammer from the 20's that looks brand new that I bought there. Think I paid 12 bucks for it.

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    1. Good deal, I like looking around there. Thanks.

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  4. in this post, Dear Duke, you have captured the feeling of nostalgia, and sadness, that many of us feel regarding the direction our world is going. i love old things, too, and for the same reasons. especially old books - i have tons of old books that i hold and read and wonder who read them before me.

    jambaloney loves old things as well. jam got a beautiful 100% oak table with 4 chairs, a hutch and a buffet from his stepdad about 20yrs ago - the set is about 70yrs old now...anyway he spent a long time stripping and refinishing it - it is beautiful! once we moved here to the Manor, we gave away a whole honkin' pile of pier 1 imports furniture to a variety of our friends because we love that old set so much. even though we don't have a dining room and it takes up most of our living room. and our living room is small to begin with. but we love that set so much!

    i love your old lantern and am glad that you gave it a home, and it gave you a place to start the morning. i understand the nostalgia...i, too, am sad for all that we have lost.

    thank you for a very beautiful post. your friend,
    kymber

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    1. Thanks Kymber, I also would rather have good quality antique furniture, it has more class than newer stuff.

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  5. I like the old stuff because it still WORKS!!! :-) And that's a great find!

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  6. awesome find ! and a useful one at that. I love looking at things like this and try to figure out their back story. Makes me wonder who owned it, and where all had it been.....

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    1. JUGM, Thanks, If stuff could talk there would be some amazing stories.

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  7. Old stuff wasn't designed with built in obsolescence. They were built to last.

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    1. FrankC, You are correct about it being built to last, we now live in a throw-a-way society. Nobody even fixes a TV nowadays.

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  8. Great tale, I loved the last photo. What about some info on the stag handled revolver?

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    1. James, You give me an idea for a blog about the revolver. Thanks.

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    2. Yep, good idea...bring it tomorrow.

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  9. Duke,

    What a beautiful lantern my friend, you did good!!!

    I can imagine this lantern has history behind it. And while it sits with you on the front porch you're creating another story in history.

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  10. Sandy, I guess we all make our own 'history' .....all the more reason to try and do it right. Thank you my friend.

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  11. Well said, Duke, well said.

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