He didn't know what hit him.....

As you know by now, my retirment date is looming on January 28th and I won't be working with group health insurance benefits anymore; just Medicare on a very light basis. That said, I decided to clean out my office in preparing for the new chapter in my life of writing. With three books finished, a drawer full of embryo manuscripts and a genealogy research project that will take me to Spain in the Fall of 2010, I wanted a bookcase.

So, being the budget-minded person I try to be, I checked Craigslist and found three posts; one intrigued me the most: a lawyer's bookcase. It wasn't new and needed some repair but I've always looked twice or three times when I see one. This one, I felt I could afford and J.D. knew where the house was, an hour away. So, Friday morning, we took (I promised him breakfast at Hardees and he hit the ground running) the pick up and found it. Well, I was delighted it was a stacked affair (I hadn't realized how they worked) but J.D. noticed quite a few things...and mentioned it looked in need of TLC as he rolled his eyes at me. The man pulled the front glass (2 out of 3 glass fronts were missing) up and the wood came loose. Oops. I looked it over and said, "Yes, I'll take it." J.D. didn't say a word...until we closed the doors and backed down the driveway after a nice chat with the owner. He said he thought it was a piece of junk but J.D. thinks all antiques are junk. Me? I LOVE antiques and thought it delightful.

Then, we had to stop at Lowes. J.D. likes to have time on his own in that warehouse of a store and I can always find something to buy. So, he wandered and so did I. Down Aisle 14, I stopped in my tracks when I saw an oak-veneer bookcase 70" high with five shelves for $68. Huh.

My cell phone rang and J.D. wondered where I was. "Aisle 14 and you are going to think I'm out of my mind. Come join me." I could see him walking toward me, curious. When he rounded the corner and I pointed to the shelf, he looked at me and shook his head dramatically. What? With a flummoxed look on his face, we hauled it into the basket. He didn't know what hit him. Huh