Friday, June 10, 2011

Ashes to Ashes

 Have you seen this story?


  
Knowing the polices of Goodwill, I'm half surprised that they didn't put the ashes in their "collectibles" case and smack a huge price on it. And could that investigative report have been any more vague?  I like how they let the comment from the police lieutenant trail off into oblivion: 

"We'll hang on to it for six months....

Hello....And then what?  

It will be interesting to see how this turns out.  I hope that whoever is inside of that urn finds their way back to where they should be. It makes me think of the times that I've joked that when I die, I'd like to have my ashes sealed up inside of a beautiful Pyrex casserole dish and set up on the china cabinet. Maybe I'd better tape my home address to the bottom just in case. I mean, I do love the Goodwill but am not sure that I want to end up there for eternity.


I read in another story about the urn that the store manager said that it "ranked in the top one or two strangest finds the store had ever seen." Once again, people - could the reporting be any more lax? What was the other item that could possibly land Grandma's urn in the number two spot? Tell us more!

All of this leads me to wonder: What is the strangest thing that you have ever found in a thrift store, junk shop, or tag sale or in an item when you got it home?  I'll spare you the details about mine but let's just say that there is a valid reason that you should keep antibacterial gel and hand wipes in your car during junking excursions.

So readers...do tell!

Until next time (oh the places we will go...what we will see -  nobody knows!)
x's and o's,
Eartha

11 comments:

frecklewonder said...

GAH! dying!

trail off into oblivion! this is insane!

erin said...

i worked in the back room of a thrift store for 7 years so i have stories a plenty. top strange/creepy find has to be the suicide note i found, with lots of pictures of the person who wrote it from childhood until adulthood (i could tell it was him because some photos showed him at a reunion or something wearing a nametag with his full name on it - weird)
i found the obituary in the paper from the week before so the note checked out...much like its author :(
i still have it because i felt wrong throwing it away...

Barbara said...

Goodwill has polices?

I'll bet they found an actual body in something.

PS: Had to come back to say my posting word was ecoli.

Anonymous said...

In a sewing pattern I got at an estate sale I found a stack of VERY naughty pictures of the departed lady taken sometime in the 50's. I am so happy I could spare her family from finding them. Poor woman probably completely forgot they were there. I feel this weird obligation to hold on to them so they don't end up on ebay or something...

Eartha Kitsch said...

Frecklewonder: Isn't it?? We've got to know!

Erin: Oh wow, I can't even imagine how you felt finding those. I think that it's cool that you're keeping them though. Very cool actually. Who knows what he was going through to want to leave that way but I am sure that he'd be touched by your respect.

Barbara: Not so much but they DO have them on speed-dial. I honestly want to call that store and find out what the number one item was. Ecoli - wow, sorry about that.

bettycrafter: Oh my goodness...I bet she'd be relieved to know that someone like you found them! You are SO right that a lot of people would have put them on eBay for the whole world to see. Wow, what a find!

Sara In AZ said...

I guess I need to dig around A LOT more, I haven't found anything that crazy yet.

I sure do hope they get that urn back in the right hands. How sad.

monogirl said...

The other day at Goodwill I was looking through the purses and felt something in one of the pockets. It turned out to be a photo wallet with not only photos but someone's Social Security card and blood type card. I took it up and turned it in at the counter. Undoubtedly that person has passed away, but I still hate to think if someone used the SS card for nefarious purposes.

Amber Von Felts said...

I followed the link on the video to the news website. There was a another story there about the urn. The police took it to a funeral home and they opened the urn, which had cremains in it (surprise!) and they were clearly marked with the name of the person. Apparently they are working on getting it back to the family. Creepy and cool, sad & fascinating....you never know what you will find in people's 'unwanted' belongings!

Miss RM said...

Oh gosh! I can't imagine! I have really never found anything crazy at the thrift store. Perhaps I'm not looking hard enough!

I'm glad that they've discovered who the remains belong to! I hope she gets home soon!

Bronwen said...

I came across an old fashioned douche bag, in its original box among the BOARD GAMES, of all things, at a thrift store. Granted, its box was close in shape and size to a game, but anyone could see this was not Monopoly. It did give my friend and I the idea to create a board game called Douche Bag, which we will do one day I'm sure. Coming up with the object of the game and its rules entertained us the rest of the day.

At the estate sale of one of my parents' neighbors I found this poor deceased lady's vibrator, also in its original box, for sale in the bedroom. It was quite old, and the box was so funny with its mysterious euphemisms about "self massage" and pretty pink flowers. But that poor lady. And I'd known her my whole life. Ewww.

Anonymous said...

Working at an estate sale setting up once I found a stack of papers from marriage counselling sessions in the 60's and again in the 70's where the father talked about how he didn't feel loved, could never do anything to please her and more details about their sex life as well as how she was a neglectful mother. She didn't have much to say and didn't deny anything he said. Her adult children had told us how loving and happy their parents were so I quietly discarded them....wrong on some levels, I know, but I did it for the right reasons. Both parents were dead so why shatter their illusions.