One of the (few? many?) great things about getting older is that (almost) everything old becomes new again. No, I'm not regretting giving up my wicker furniture despite the fact that my VERY comfortable papasan chair from my first apartment, which survived over two years of daily (ab)use and then the 1,500 mile southern migration, did not survive longer than a month after being cat-attacked under what I still believe to be suspicious circumstances.
During our Fort Wayne road trip, Mari and I discovered a remarkable kinship in most other areas, however, including our musical inclinations and Sade quickly rose to the top of our favorites playlist (in an era before iTunes playlists when I still enjoyed creating mix-tapes). It was only decades later in August 2011, however, when Sade scored a comeback with her Soldier of Love tour that we were able to cross "see Sade in concert" off our list of life adventures. It had been seven long years since our last visit to a most beloved area of the country and Sade's upcoming concert at Chicago's United Center was perfectly timed to become both a special birthday present for Mari and to signal the end of our summer freedom, so this smooth operator decided to go for it.
It was late October the following year when another beloved-by-both and legendary diva (Barbra Streisand) from our life adventures list appeared at Chicago's United Center, too.
Mari had the good fortune to never fully appreciate
my late 80s Wicker Mod styling.
my late 80s Wicker Mod styling.
During our Fort Wayne road trip, Mari and I discovered a remarkable kinship in most other areas, however, including our musical inclinations and Sade quickly rose to the top of our favorites playlist (in an era before iTunes playlists when I still enjoyed creating mix-tapes). It was only decades later in August 2011, however, when Sade scored a comeback with her Soldier of Love tour that we were able to cross "see Sade in concert" off our list of life adventures. It had been seven long years since our last visit to a most beloved area of the country and Sade's upcoming concert at Chicago's United Center was perfectly timed to become both a special birthday present for Mari and to signal the end of our summer freedom, so this smooth operator decided to go for it.
Not quite a year A.B. (after Barbra) in June 2013 the American Library Association Annual Conference would be held at McCormick Place in (you guessed it) Chicago. It was a remarkable honor for me to listen to one of my most treasured authors (authors can be treasures, too, of course) speak and read from her new, unpublished book of essays. I barely remember the gibberish I muttered to Alice Walker when the hour-long queue finally dissolved in front of me and she handed me her freshly printed and signed book, but I remember walking away and finding a quiet corner to myself (difficult to do in McCormick Place, believe me!) to have a moment.Each Chicago event was a magnet drawing us back to where it all started for us.
Mari and I started our friendship together as collectors, too. I wasn't joking when I recommended fleamarketing or a visit to an antique mall as a date, even a first date. You really get to know someone while metaphysically digging through the past lives of others. It's like having a wingman and a bit of a buffer to help the conversation along. Plus there are so many potential conversation starters to be found fleamarketing that awkward silent moments never have a chance to get awkward or silent. Mari and I learned a lot about each other browsing at Picker's and we still do and still visit every chance we can.
However, there's certainly more to a happy life than one antique mall in Niles, Michigan.
Actually, less than a mile up the road (US-31 AKA Michigan-51) from Picker's Paradise is a second paradise for antique lovers (it's not the lovers that are antique, but we're well on our way, too). Hard to imagine, but there is a second antique mall just before you get to downtown Niles! No long romantic laundry-day-discovery story here, but the Michiana Antique Mall is still a favorite place and is always on our Chicago-Indiana-Michigan list.
Visit the site for lots of info, photos, and to search inventory.
The MAM is smaller than Picker's and is laid out differently, but is also beautifully browsable and an enjoyably pleasant place to spend a morning or afternoon whether you are on a date, with friends, or enjoying some alone time. Although MAM is also comprised of various varied vendors, the layout is cheerfully open and light with long display rows for easy navigation. Still lots of great nooks and crannies for your collector's eye to explore and lots of great antique furniture here to make you stop and give it a second (or third) thought.Mari and I have a few MAM items near and dear which we'll show (and tell, of course--lots of tell) next time and perhaps it's time to "link" you to one of my first collections/addictions.
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