Guest column from Molly Ellen

Rather than flail at the keyboard and try unsuccessfully to marshal my thoughts into a semblance of an entry, we'll hear from my friend Molly Ellen:




Subject: Tea Party and thinking about your blog...

A few weeks ago, I held a tea party for my daughter's fifth birthday. She and 11 of her closest friends had a fantastic time. Planning the party really got me thinking about second hand 'stuff.'

We know I'm not following the buying only used items as you are, but I generally try to spend wisely and not get sucked in to over-the-top trends. I did buy a few pink plastic tablecloths, craft supplies for the young ladies to each make their own crown, and best of all feather boas for each guest (found online at http://www.facebook.com/l/f7cec;halohaven.com). But since it was a tea party, I really felt we needed cups and saucers. Having been raised as a tea drinker at a very young age by my dear Irish Grandmother, these were a necessity. Gram would sooner drink her tea out of her shoe than a paper cup.

I have a collection of tea cups & saucers that was left to me by Gram and quite a few that I've added on my own. Selfishly, I wasn't sure I wanted 12 five-year-olds sharing this collection just yet. I thought of purchasing a new cup & saucer for each guest, but it was cost prohibitive. Then came the AHA moment - I could buy them used. And I did. For several weeks before the party I searched thrift shops for these cups & saucers and was pleasantly surprised at my finds.

At first I felt a little odd about giving our guests a favor that had been previously enjoyed. But as I got to thinking about it, every time we leave our homes we are using "used stuff." Chances are we are not the first ones to sit at a table at a restaurant or eat of off the plates. We are not the first to push a shopping cart or play on the playground. We are not the first to sleep in the hotel bed, sit in the movie theater or ride a ride at an amusement park. You can see where this is going...

Somehow as a nation, we value new and not used. But I'm thinking that depending on the item, used can be a whole lot better. Perhaps we need to think of things as 'classic,' 'antique,' or 'vintage.'

To borrow from the Mastercard commercials from a few years back:
- paper cups left at the store -$8.00
- quality china cups and saucers for 12 - $6.00
- teaching my daughter the value of good friends, good times and a good cuppa tea - priceless.
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