The Whistler Re-Use It Centre

Today I went to the Re-Use It Centre, looking for things to use in the new house. The Re-Use It Centre is Whistler's thrift store, and there are always good things to find because people are constantly moving in and out of town. A high turnover of residents means a high turnover of goods at the Re-Use.

We got our cable, home phone, and internet installed today, but we had no phone. I went down to Function Junction (the industrial part of Whistler, where you can buy car parts, plywood, paint, wedding materials, hot tubs, and order cement) with the idea of finding a second-hand phone at the Re-Use.

I spent quite a lot of time there, and I found some great things! Here is what I found:



A set of four cordless phones, all with call display! The main unit also has an answering machine in it, so we don't have to call the silly number and enter passwords. We just press play, and hear our messages. We also don't have to pay a monthly fee to hear them, which is nice.

I'm pretty impressed with my find. I was looking for only one phone, but this came as a set of four, so I figured I might as well take them all. Our house has four rooms...two bedrooms, a bathroom, and a living room/kitchen. So, one phone for each room!

This was the highest quality phone in the pile, and I had to sort through everything to find all my components and cords. I noted that I didn't have a power source for the main unit, so I figured that I could just use one of the small sources that was meant for each of the three docks.

As I browsed the store some more, I saw my missing parts! I found my big power source, and the third and final dock. They were sitting over with the VCRs in another part of the store. It's a good thing I found it too, because the main unit seems to need a bigger power source than the smaller docking stations.

My set of four phones, complete with all necessary cords and plugs, cost only twenty dollars! What a great price! I'm pretty excited to have a land line again, and to be using it with a bargain set of phones.

Onwards to my other purchases:



In the book section, I found The Diviners by Margaret Laurence. I've been meaning to read something written by her, but I figured her books would be like an old worn out couch: loved by some, but terribly out of date, irrelevant, and likely possessing a stuffy, musty odour. I read the first page, and this book seemed OK, both in the writing and olfactory departments. We'll see if I end up liking it.

I also picked up Tom Wolfe's A Man in Full. I've been meaning to read something written by him as well, but never have. Like The Diviners, the first page was good, so we'll see how the rest of the book turns out.

I also found a folio that I'll use to keep my papers organized while working. It says PriceWaterhouseCoopers on it, but that's OK. It cost me $1.50. It's pleather I'm pretty sure, but at least it's not plastic or vinyl. It even comes with an embedded calculator!

In the kitchen wares section, I found a slotted spatula of sorts, for taking perogies out of the boiling water and transferring them to the frying pan. I've been enjoying my frozen perogies lately, but have been struggling in the preparation process without proper tools. No longer!

I also found a plastic corkscrew. I didn't know if the house needed one or not, but I figured I should buy one now, instead of being caught short without later, while entertaining my legions of lady friends.

The books cost me two dollars and four dollars, and the kitchen implements cost fifty cents each.

Finally, the most exciting purchase I've made in quite awhile...

wait for it...

keep waiting...

here it comes...



The Chronicle!

Excellent! I was actually looking on the internet in the past few months to see if there is an updated one published, but there isn't. This is a hard to find book, unless you know where to look on the Douglas St shelves.

I'm really excited I found my own copy of this book. When Mom brought a copy home during Christmas one year, I found myself always leafing through it and exploring the different news stories. I did that for years, and am excited to continue on doing it. The book is thousands of pages long, and weighs about 25 pounds, so I don't know how long I'll be able to lug it around with me. But I sure am happy to have it!

The book cost me twenty dollars, and was probably the most expensive book in the library corner of the Re-Use. It's worth it though, and I'm very happy I found it.

So, all in all I had a very productive visit to Function and the Re-Use It Centre. I spent about 54 dollars, and got all kinds of great things! I even got a plunger for free, because it was all dusty and didn't have a price on it. Again, I figured it was better to buy it and have two, then find myself in need while entertaining!