The Pigeon Project

Every year, I have a couple of pigeons arrive who like to set up a maternity ward in my small, lean-to barn. They have a nest up in the rafters, and usually I don't even know there are babies till I hear peeping or see one wandering around that has fallen out of the nest. This spring was pretty uneventful, with 2 babies born, raised and finally perching on the beams and rafters, begging for snacks from Mom and Dad.
They seemed to have stayed around a little longer than most of the other young 'uns, and, like so many kids these days, refused to go fend for themselves. I guess Mom got tired of waiting for them to leave the comfort of the nest, so she just decided to lay a NEW batch of eggs on the floor of my stall!

There was no "nest" - just a few shavings and a handful of old hay. It was under an old chair, near my pile of junk that was going to the dump. Scared the bejeebus out of me at first - I reached down to get something off the floor and the Mom leaped out and flew up right in front of me. We got used to each other, though, so I piled up some more savings and straw around the "nest"so the eggs would stay in one place.

I really didn't give them much of a chance - I figured a rat would snag those eggs right away.
The parents took turns sitting on them, and eventually they hatched!

 It was pretty neat watching the babies go from egg to full grown bird.. you don't get that chance very often! Of course I couldn't keep my hands off them, and picked them up and gave them a little cuddle a few times as they grew.

(yes - that's a ring o' poo around their nest... shortly after I took this, they moved to another spot about a foot away, and squished themselves against the wall behind a broken bucket)

Finally they learned to fly, and flew up to the rafters.

 I couldn't find the Mother bird for a couple of weeks, and thought she had died or flown the coop. But, no - Dad bird fed the children, and I found Mom on her original nest in the rafters, sitting on MORE eggs - which just hatched this week. I'm curious to find out if Mom will lay another batch on the ground again, now that the second batch of "kids" have gone on to make their way in the world, and the newbies are born.


Don't forget our feathered friends this summer - especially as it gets hotter and food and water are less abundant.  You can find some lovely things at Onlineauction.com!

Like this beautiful orchard Oriole bird feeder from neatstuff333

And this charming Peacock bird bath, also from neatstuff333

From blueracer, you can learn all about birds!

And from kornkountrytreasures is a delightful pigeon!!

Strange but true . . . . these are for sale!!!

Okay, checking out the oddities at OnlineAuction.com today and found some very unusual things!! 

 

For instance, TJinTX has a gold tooth for sale!! Now, given the price of gold, this may be a steal!!

I am not sure exactly what this is, but it appears to be some sort of a "positive" session. It is called a Distance Reiki Session from TrustBirth.

This shelf stocking service kart looks like a handy item!! Lots ot business things here!! From

Picso!

Raevenhow always has some wonderful collectables!! Like this nested penguin set!!

And never have I seen a sailing flea!! This is a nice little sculpture signed by R. Bruce Salinger which is on sale in GoldBee's shop!

And, of course, this post wouldn't be complete without our contribution!! A new/old stock Speaker for a Civil Defense Geiger Counter!! Remember "duck and cover"??? We have this listed in our store at KornKountryTreasures!

So, whatever it is you are looking for, stop in and check OnlineAuction.com out!! We are making some great changes!! We have great sellers, good prices and most of all, we each run our store the way we want, WITHOUT paying through the nose!! Come and see!!

Flatbed Bodies for Pickup Truck owners becoming the new trend.

Hi, Tommy from Iron Mountain Iron & Equipment, llc here to enlighten you on the benefits of a new Flatbed Body for that used or new pickup or commercial truck in your driveway.

First, let's start by saying that the pickup truck is obviously a well know item to most of us as being the tool of choice for countless businesses, vocations, and private owners down to the individual wanting one for personal use. Henry Ford captured that fantasy quite well back at the turn of the century with the Model T pickup, and obviously the concept has continued to grow slightly since it's inception.

For many, life without a pickup truck would be impossible. Just the slightest little task such as going to the lumber yard becomes daunting, without the cargo carrying capabilities of a truck of some sorts.



See what I'm getting at here??? lol. (This guy's in dire need of a pickup no doubt.)

The basic pickup truck bed is very stylish, useful, and has been the norm for many years. Within the past few decades however, the FLATBED body has seen a huge increase in presence due to demand for higher capacity payloads, or a more utilitarian useage for everything from farm work to oil field transportation. In the heartland of this great country, chances are you'll see a higher ratio of flatbeds on trucks than the OEM (origional equipment manufacturer's) beds for commercial work than anything. That phenomenon has spread to all 4 corners of the country, and for good reasons.

#1; Ease of use for commercial workers to carry, reach into, and load to capacity.

#2; Durability. Flatbeds are much more ruggedly constructed than a factory pickup truck bed.

#3; Cargo space. Much more room on a flatbed, boasting on average of 56 square feet based on an 8'L X 7'W floorspace as opposed to the standard 8' pickup bed with lost space for the wheel wells at approximately 32 square feet.

#4; Resale value. Selling a used truck in the commercial market especially, maintains a higher resale value over a standard pickup truck.

#5; Longevity. Steel flatbeds generally (if built of quality materials) will outlast a pickup bed extensively for years to come, even in the harsher climates of the country due to thicker steel used in the costruction of them.

With that said, let's touch upon the materials used in building a flatbed compared to a pickup truck bed.

Pickup beds are mass produced with thin gauge sheet metal, highly prone to rusting out prematurely from the harsh chemical treatments used in wintertime on the highways to control slippery surface conditions. We all would love to have our vehicles last forever considering the prices of them, but as Merle Haggard once said in song, "I wish a Ford and a Chevy would still last 10 years like they should..." That not being the case especially in the northern regions of the good 'ol US of A such as Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine, etc., without continuous maintanence and proper undercarriage washes to try and remove the salt and calcium chloride products sprayed up underneath them constantly...it's kind of a losing battle. We all know too well the sinking feeling we get when we discover the beginning stages of body rust around wheel wells, rocker panels, etc., and have about 24 more payments left to go.

Here in Vermont, we have a saving grace of a process known as "oiling", or oil undercoating. There are a couple of EPA approved treaters in the state that use NEW motor or hydraulic oil, heated to approximately 100 degrees F, and spray it under pressure, atomizing the oil, applying it to the underneath of the vehicle in strategically placed drilled holes that they later plug with rubber plugs after drilling. This process GREATLY prolongs the life of a vehicle in simple terms. I know of several vehicles having been treated once a year for the past 40 years that look like they just came from the showroom. But you have to be dilligent about getting this done or it's useless. The process is incredibly affordable, at around $120.00/year. A cheap insurance policy indeed.
  It's simple....Either THIS,

 Or THIS...

Getting back on course about FLATBEDS again, the construction of them again is critical. Some mass produced flatbeds have the same characteristics as an OEM pickup bed in that they are built of FORMED steel mainframes, or thin gauge steel components that are put in a machine and pressed into a shape to form a "C" beam or channel to use as crossmembers, main long sills, etc. This process is cheaper and creates a lot of parts a lot quicker, but the end result is usually an inferior quality product as the structural integrity is indeed not as durable as a structural-steel built mainframe. Structural steel can be defined as "steel that is manufactured to a specific dimension by heating, forging, etc. at a steel mill..." This material no doubt is far stronger and expected to last much longer than "formed" components in a body structure. Not to mention the thickness which will again, outlast thinner materials.

If a pickup truck is indeed you're vehicle of choice, and you're proud of it as most of us are, then maybe it's time to think about removing the OEM bed and installing a new Cadet Flatbed body from Iron Mountain Iron & Equipment, LLC. It's simple to do too. You can go to the website:

 (http://www.ironmountainiron.com), IRON MOUNTAIN IRON.com

or to our favorite online auction site,

(http://www.onlineauction.com/index.php) OnlineAuctions.com

and view all the things there too, while you're at it.

Remember...it's either this with 24 more payments to go...



or THIS well after you've paid off your investment...

Thanks in advance for taking the time to read our blog. Hopefully your eyes didn't glaze over within the first few sentences...

Iron Mountain Iron & Equipment, LLC
9271 Molly Stark Trail
Woodford, Vermont 05201
(802) 375-3061
OPEN 24/7 online.

Dedicated to serving the hard working folks that are interested in purchasing a new steel flatbed body with old fashioned, family-oriented service like we would expect to get ourselves. It's not difficult, it's NATURAL.

We offer FREE delivery of these Cadet bodies within 100 miles of our location. Give us a call, or email anytime of the day or night. We'll get right back to you ASAP.

G is for Glass

G is for Glass

Today, I am writing mostly about decorative glassware, the kind one acquires and collects.  There is a type of glass for every budget; old and new, plain and fancy, decorative and functional.  If you are a glass collector read on.

There are a number of definitions for Glass, but for the sake of antiques and collectibles, I will go with the combination of a couple from my favorite dictionary:  Merriam-Webster.  Glass is a hard material, often transparent or translucent, made by melting silica sand.  Much of the early examples of glass have a greenish tint, because the silica with with it was made contained iron impurities.  Glass examples have been found dating back to 3500 BC in Egypt and Mespotamia.  There have been some glass beads found in Egypt that date to about 3100 BC.  The first glass however, is believed to be black volcanic glass called obsidian (hardened magma).  Even though the process was extremely slow, ancient Egyptians and Mesopotamians made tools, weapons and some decorative items out of glass.

The art of glass blowing (began in Syria, around the first century BC) made glass production easier and more simple.  As technology does today, the knowledge of glass making spread around the ancient world, and more uses of glass were found and invented.

Early Obsidian tool

Online Auction dot com (OLA) has eight auction categories for glass in addition to the general antiques collectibles categories:  1950s to Present; Art Glass; Carnival Glass; Crystal; Depression Glass; Early American Pattern Glass (EAPG); and the General Glass category.  Below are some OLA Glass auctions that caught my eye today.

 1880s Northwood Custard Glass Sugar Dish (no lid)

Pink depression glass bowl

Green Depression Glass Serving dish

Thanks for your interest in collecting...and for shopping on OLA!

Until next time, happy shopping!

Chloe

F is for FAKES!

F is for FAKES!

As a seasoned antiques & collectibles dealer, I wanted to spend a bit of time writing about the myriad of FAKE items found for sale on the internet.  Pictures often do not tell the whole story about an item, so if you are looking for authentic antiques (or collectibles), it's a good thing to educate yourself about how to spot the differences between the real deals and the ones that are not so real.  I am not implying that all dealers who present fake merchandise for sale are attempting to exploit buyers.  My point is that I want buyers to be aware that not all dealers know the differences between the authentic or genuine and fakes or reproductions.  Some sellers may, in all honesty, present a FAKE or reproduced item as authentic because they don't know the difference, either.  This is a major reason why the phrase caveat emptor prevails in the antiques and collectibles business.  

First, a couple of definitions:

• Did you know that to be a genuine antique, an item has to be at least 100 years old?  A century.  That's a long time.  Generations. 
• A reproduction is a copy of something.  There are lots of reproductions offered online, and that's fine--as long as the sellers accurately present them as such.  (One of my concerns are sellers who do not do this, either due to inexperience or lack of knowledge.  I am disturbed when I see auctions presenting reproduced  antiques as being authentic period pieces.  
• A FAKE is something that is not real; "a worthless item passed off as genuine."  A FAKE is something that was made to intentionally deceive potential buyers.  People have been doing this for centuries, so be aware, that sometimes FAKES can be real antiques (over 100 years old), too.

So, the main difference between a reproduction and a fake seems to me to be intent.  A reproduction of an item is a sincere copy; a FAKE is intentionally made in order to deceive or exploit someone (usually for money).

There is not enough space in this blog to list all categories of antiques and collectibles and to write about all of the differences between the authentic and FAKE items, thus, I will offer some general advice to the novice collector.  

1. Educate yourself about what you collect.  Talk to experienced collectors and dealers.  Go to museums.  Visit antique shops.  Make good use of your local library, and/or build your own collection of reference resources (there are tons of books about antiques & collectibles). Read history books.  Watch Antiques Roadshow, History Detectives, Pawn Stars, and any other educational TV show.
2.  Examine any item that you are considering purchasing using all senses.  (This is where buying online becomes a bit tricky).  If possible, look at the entire item.  Look for any distinctive maker's marks or signatures, feel it with your hands and fingers, smell it.  Remember that it is often the imperfections of an item that indicates authenticity.
3. Ask the seller for provenance.  Ask the seller if there is a return policy in case you find that the item you purchase turns out not to be authentic.
4. Know that no one is perfect, and not all antiques & collectibles sellers know everything there is to know about an item.  Most sellers honestly want the folks who buy from them to be happy with their purchases.  So if you have doubts about an item, always ask questions.

I hope this blog has helped create some awareness about the FAKES out there.  This topic is one of great interest to me, and I will probably be writing more at a later date.  

Until then, I wish you Happy Shopping on OLA, the online place where buyers & sellers meet!

Classic_Chloe

The E of Collecting: Ephemera

The E of Collecting:  Ephemera 

Merriam Webster's online dictionary defines Ephemera as:  1.) something of no lasting significance —usually used in plural OR 2.) ephemera plural : paper items (as posters, broadsides, and tickets) that were originally meant to be discarded after use but have since become collectibles.

In the collecting world, the word Ephemera usually applies to items made of PAPER, because paper ages and disintegrates over time.  There's lots of things that were originally not meant to be saved or collected and which have had lasting interest to collectors.    Things like menus, matches, invitations, diplomas, certificates, postcards, envelopes, advertising brochures and pamphlets (recipe booklets for one), and magazines can be considered ephemera.  Collecting ephemera can be fun, inexpensive and educational.

There are lots of items scattered all over OLA that fit into this category of collecting.   Here are a few that grabbed my attention this morning.

1939 World's Fair Menu autographed by Jack Dempsey

Squeaking Alligator Post Card

Paper Dolls

1927 Calendar Page

Fruit Crate Box Label

1952 Recipe Booklet

State Planter's Bank Christmas Carols Booklet

OLD Brer Rabbit Recipe Booklet

1912 Domino Sugar Recipes Booklet

Old Instruction Booklet for Maple Flooring

Collecting Ephemera can provide hours of recreation!  Collecting Ephemera can provide tons of knowledge.  Follow your interests.  Explore OLA's many categories for lots of ideas and collecting possibilities. 

Ephemera can make inexpensive and thoughtful gifts (often, a small ad item can fit into a birthday, congratulations or holiday card).

I hope you have enjoyed reading about the Ephemera category of collecting. 

Until next time, when I will write about the letter F and collecting, 

Happy OLA Shopping!

Classic_Chloe