Every town needs a Slater's.

 Well, after a few long weeks of not being able to blog with pictures, my Middlest figured out a way for me to do so, and I can get back to sharing!
We are less than a week away from closing on Salem House, and I'm ready to play!
In anticipation of the peaceful takeover, I have been amassing items for the new house, admittedly, not much, as I think I could easily furnish another house from what I have stuffed into Cowfeathers, complemented by the garage/basement findings at Wing and Wing (my parents home).
But last week, I made a trip to Slater's, in Lancaster,OH. Mostly to get a lamp rewired after a dog sampled the cord- hopefully learning a lesson, and evidently not getting fried in the process. Slater's takes care of most of my lamps, and they've rewired  a number of ancient lamps and old chandeliers for me....why buy new? They do it for a reasonable fee, and this means I don't have to rely on my electrical skills- one of the things I enjoy "doing" least. Plus, I get to rummage around Slater's.
Nominally, Slater's is a "hardware store".  And, they do certainly have hardware- plus plenty of stuff ya can't find at Lowe's!  
First, there is a few pit bulls that come with their owners to work. They are pretty good, but one had a problem with my lamp- it has crystals on it and made a noise. I find this unusual business practice. A cat wandering about? The elderly black lab thumping it's tail as you enter the store? Sure. Variably friendly pit bulls? Not too common in legal trade.Still, adds to the adventure.




This is a photo of your typical gathering of Slater's goods. Obviously, there are Gun Holsters for $12.00. Is that a good deal? I would guess. Right hand corner is a basket of garden seeds. The plastic table cloths and black nylon bag are ? and I think that is an oyster shell sitting on the black bag. There is some Scott's garden products behind the seeds and then in the row in the background? Cookie cutters.
Much of the store is thus. It encourages a good wander. I thought about bringing home an antique rocking chair, did buy two Pyrex baking dishes for Salem House, and got mucho filthy pawing through stacks of random "art" type things, finally settling on a small rectangular painting in a gold frame.

 I propped the painting up on my dining room mantle, behind my collection of nests picked up around the farm. Some of my favorite nests are made out of my horses' tail hair. I can identify Sammie's nest, and Oslo's nest, Peaches nest and the one in the center is crafted from horse tail and sheep wool. When I find eggs on the ground, usually cracked open and discarded by momma bird, I place them in a nest. The antler is a farm find as well. If you have keen eyes, you can see in the mirror, a shutter in the back of the room. This is my "closet". There are no closets in a 200 year old house, so I make do where I can. This "closet" holds all the 4-H stuff. PILES of it.



 Also at Slater's are these things:

 I thought they were very beautiful in an organic/shipyard kind of way. But had no clue what they were. So I poked around a bit and finally saw some pictures that explained it a bit more. They are weight lifting logs. Of course.

 I don't think the boys in my area are doing so with a kilt on, but it's the idea.

 After you get past the section with the excellent logs, and chains with links as big as my fist, you enter the land of airplanes. This is one corner, maybe, 1/2 of the airplanes dive-bombing the store.

If you need a cover for a Victorian light fixture, or a part for a door knob, a wing for a plane or a fixit for a widget- chances are you can find it at Slater's. If you're willing to hunt a while.
I think having a "Slater's" in town improves quality of life.
Do you have a "Slater's" in your town?