Remember this fish from my trip to Bedford, VA last week?
As all good fish stories go, it gets larger with each telling.
It just goes to show you – NEVER EVER second guess just WHY something
is in an antique mall when it makes no sense to you – Read on, friends – read on!
It just goes to show you – NEVER EVER second guess just WHY something
is in an antique mall when it makes no sense to you – Read on, friends – read on!
I had posted the above photo to my social media, both Instagram and Facebook as the funniest thing of the day – and in comes this frantic message from Peggy in Michigan asking for the info on the shop because she NEEDS that fish!
Bonnie,
It is amazing what happens through your blog!
When I saw your "Antiquing for a Great Catch" blog, I knew this "Weird Thing of the Day" catfish had to be mine.
It is the perfect Christmas gift for my Hubby. We own a fish camp in coastal Mississippi, and he will look wonderful on the side of the camp.
I contacted the Liberty Antique Shop immediately, negotiated a price and then went about figuring out how to get him home to Michigan before we head to Mississippi.
Here is the most amazing part, my stepson Justin hauls loads all over the country.
I had no idea where he was, a quick phone call was made. Miracles do happen! Justin was currently in SC, hauling a load to Midlothian, VA. which is 2 hours and 15 minutes east of Bedford, VA.
What's the probabilities of Justin being in the region?, better than winning the lottery!
I sent him a picture of the catfish, he was immediately on board to get this fish for Dad.
Details worked out, phone numbers exchanged, check is in the mail. Catfish has been caught!
Shown with Tara Jones from the Antique Shop, the previous owner of the catfish.
The "Catch" will be brought to Michigan, gifted to Hubby on Thanksgiving at Justin's house. The Catfish then will get a ride to Mississippi on the new pontoon we are hauling down.
The Catfish measures 67" long and 25" wide, it was a big catch!
I'll send more pictures when he is mounted on the "fish camp".
Thank you so much for being you and all you do for the quilting community. You touch peoples lives in ways you can never fathom.
Forever your Biggest Fan,
Peggy K
It just goes to show that you just never know! That one weird thing that has you shaking your head could be the perfect thing someone would dream of having, gifting – and going to great lengths to obtain!
This has been the most fun venture of the past week. And to think – I almost didn’t stop at that antique mall. What if I wasn’t in search of “The Weirdest Thing of the Day” and had stuck to just quilts and sewing machines? What if I hadn’t posted that dang funny fish??
To those who have ever said “I thought this was a quilting blog – please stick to quilting.” Do you see what you miss out on?
Another curious question was answered during this trip as well:
Is this a creamer? Or a plant waterer??
It didn’t look like any creamer I’d ever seen before, but it came as a gift for the Inn. Pretty hand painted flowers – delicate gold detail. Obviously a very fine piece of SOMETHING – but what?
At the same antique mall as “The Big Catfish”
Invalid Feeder??
The answer to my burning question was confirmed about an hour later after arriving in Roanoke and checking out another antiques venue – this on the shelf:
Invalid feeder. Who knew?
But it makes sense – trying to spoon broth into a patient may be difficult – when a patient can sip through the straw-like end of the feeder?
So my pretty flower one? For a fine and beloved elderly grandmother maybe? INTERESTING!! NOT A CREAMER. Now wondering where I'm going to put it, and what I'm going to do with it at the Inn?
I am touched by the thought that while "Someone" was bedridden - perhaps for a long period of time back in the day when medicine is not what it is now, that "pretty things" were still made to ease the life and gladden the heart of those who required the use of such items.
I am touched by the thought that while "Someone" was bedridden - perhaps for a long period of time back in the day when medicine is not what it is now, that "pretty things" were still made to ease the life and gladden the heart of those who required the use of such items.
I also found it interesting that the one at the “Fish Mall” was $27.50 and this one in Roanoke was $8.00 A fish story indeed!
Yesterday’s drive from the cabin home.
A little stop on the Blue Ridge Parkway.
Borders ON the basket quilt!
I’m hitting the ground running this Monday – Two more sleeps until MYSTERY INTRODUCTORY POST!!
A week’s worth of mail order will go out the door today – and I may be quilting on this by nightfall.
Our Quilty Box Gift-Away is still gathering entries! Did you get yours in ON THAT POST? Entries close 11:55pm on October 31st, Halloween Night!
Quiltville Quote of the Day.
Get in there like a warrior with things you CAN change!
You will only know what those things are by trying.
Have a great week ahead, everyone!
40 comments:
I love your antique jaunt posts! And, you may not believe this, but we have an invalid feeder that was in my husband's family. They called it the gruel feeder as it was sued when people were sick and could only eat gruel. Hope we never have to use it! Love the border on your basket quilt!
I had no idea - thought it was a weird creamer at first. LOL! Sure is a pretty one - whatever it was used for. Makes me wonder whom it was purchased for.
I think I would use it as a gravy boat.
Me too, LOL! :)
Love your fish story. When I saw the picture of the catfish in the blog I thought, being from Mississippi and loving catfish, that I would love to have the catfish, but no place to hang it or sit it! So glad it is going to live in Mississippi! Several years ago, in 2003 I think, the Mississippi Commission for International Cultural Exchange presented a project, Mississippi Catfish on Parade. Several entities adopted these larger than life sized catfish and did some fine artwork on them. They were placed in downtown Jackson for a year or so and they were a delight to see. I even have a beautiful book and love the pictures and information. The artists were so creative in the decoration and naming of the fish.
What a great story! Thanks for sharing. I too love your antique shopping adventures as well as all photos you share. ♥
I just googled Mississippi Catfish on Parade. Check it out everyone, you will crack up! Five foot tall fiberglass catfish with wild paint jobs - I especially liked "Blues Cat", guitar and all.
I grew up in Owensboro, KY, on the Ohio River between Louisville and Paducah. The Green River is also nearby. Cat fish could and did grow that large in the rivers! Lol! Those Invailid Feeders look like the netipot I bought to clean out my sinuses during allergy and cold seasons. I am excited for the mystery quilt colors/yardage! Thank you for all you post! It is my first read every morning!
I love the fish story! That was really cool! I wish there were more antique malls near me. Happy Monday1
I am always happy and interested in your antique sights and finds. I have been an antique mall lover for years. Caught the bug from my Dad. I can't go much now due to mobility issues. Thanks for these wonderful stories!
Isn’t it amazing how things work out and lives are entwined, whether we know it or not? I love stories like that...when things unrelated fall into place and it turns out to be an unbelievable tale! I grossed out when I saw the catfish on your original post, because in the lake I grew up around in Texas, there are catfish the size of a man lounging at the bottom near the dam. They are so big, they really can’t move to feed, so they stay there and food just comes to them due to the currents produced by the power generators at the dam. Scary to think about when you’re swimming in that water!!! But you never know how one person’s nightmare is another person’s treasure.... Thanks for sharing all your escapades with us, and the ensuing sagas that follow! It always makes my day to read your blog!
It the fish that didn't get away! I love the fun things you find in Antique shops. It looked like a gravy boat to me, but an invalid feeder makes sense. I'm feeling the need to go junkin'
Hi Tammie
just curious, are you speaking of Dam B or Sam Rayburn?
I was thinking that fish would be a great addition to either park their LOL
or Needmore Tackle where i used to work
the invalid feeder reminded me of a gravy boat.
You could turn the invalid feeder into a pincushion.
Oh Bonnie, Life would be so boring and you would be so average if you only posted about quilts. Instead, you are an Adventure in Living! I absolutely love hearing about your adventures. The Catfish story is the absolute best. Let me join the rest in saying Thank You for being you!
Loretta McGinn
LOL The fish photo the other day made me chuckle, and the story today made my morning.
Odd thought - those invalid feeders look very similar to neti pots, for washing out your sinuses. Maybe the feeders and their spouts are too big for that, but the shape is nearly identical. I can see how those feeders would have made an awkward task much simpler. Interesting! Thanks for sharing!!
A similar project was done in Anchorage, Alaska (i live nearby) with salmon.
Oh my I have never seen an invalid feeder. Love the catfish tale.
Love this story! And I love seeing what you find at antique malls, I love antiqueing and only get to go about once a year. Hub doesn’t like it...”we don’t need anything” and “this is all overpriced” , so when I do get to go, it’s a burn through to look for machines and “little black boxes”. I’m thinking about going with the grandkid and making a game out of it to get her hooked. Who doesn’t love a treasure hunt! And to teach her the “old ways”!��
Your pretty thing reminds me of a neti pot. Not sure I would use it to feed anyone anymore, but it is pretty! Maybe with flowers in it :)
Great post! Made me smile!
In Oklahoma City it was done with Buffalo statues!
Your fish story is awesome!! A great pick me up after listening to the news of the day. It is always uplifting to see how people pull together when there is a grand idea for someone you love. I would have guessed nettie pot too. I like the idea of an invalid feeder. I’m going to keep an eye out for one. Very interesting and I don’t think I have ever seen one before.
That's one of the best stories I've heard lately. What a happy ending!
Two more sleeps!
Good idea!
Great post Bonnie! I love your adventures....made my morning:)
Don't ever stop the non-quilty stuff, Bonnie! I love reading it even more than the quilty stuff.:) I don't want to put a damper on the beautiful invalid feeder piece, but if you use it for food, be sure you have a brush for cleaning out the 'straw' part of it.
Here in Guernsey Channel Islands they have done this sort of thing twice once with glassfibre cows which schools and locals artist and shops decorated hey were the auctioned for charity, and then they did it again with glassfibre donkeys. Both animals are special to the island we are known and nicknamed Guernsey Donkeys by our neighbouring Islands and Guernsey cows are known for their creamy milk a fun story
Bonnie I love the interest stories and finds on your blog, it’s nice to learn the history of areas you visit and see all the wonderful pictures. This is an amazing story and your wonderful blog played a big pert.
Just showing how much you touch other people’s lives.
Love and quilty hugs
Anne xxx
I'm so glad you don't limit your posts to quilts only. And the idea of an invalid feeder is so sweet and sensible at once. Think of all the nursing duties women had, with far less equipment. To be able to hold it by the handle and slowly dispense the contents into the patient's mouth, depending on the angle--so much less messy than spoon feeding at a time when doing the laundry began with "first you make the soap". Thanks for this bit of history, Bonnie!
I have gravy boats that look just like this. I also have a netti pot but on a smaller scale. I visited an antique row of shops in Livermore CA many years ago. I got one plate so I could say I got something and it has been nearby since then. It reads "As I was wandering ore the glen not knowing where I went, by chance I saw a pleasant scene the cottage of content." I have it in my sewing room now where I am most content.
When I saw the "Invalid Feeder", I thought it looked like a neti pot. Learn something new every day! Thank you for sharing the Catfish story. Love how your blog ripples across our lives. Thanks for all you do.
Everything deserves to be "loved" by someone, so very glad the 'fish' found his someone. The 'fish' was much more attractive in the second set of pictures than the first ones. Maybe he got cleaned up a little. I agree with the earlier statements that a beautiful pincushion made from the invalid feeder would be great addition. A good conversation piece and a great purpose for keeping it.
Love your finds! Waiting for your beautiful mystery colors Bonnie!
Piece, Debra
The catfish made me so happy when I saw it!!! And then when you told the story of it finding it's forever home - I got really happy! What a cool thing - the whole thing - you, the picture, the find, the pick up, the surprise! It's all just so good! Bravo!!!
Actually Mansfield on lake Travis, believe it or not. I’m sure there are some on Buchannan too, as deep as it is. My dad used to dive Travis and saw them...yikes!
That was my guess when I saw it.
I'm chronically ill and spend a lot of time in bed. I have a set of coffee mugs with two handles and spouts, so I can easily drink coffee in bed without spilling it everywhere. They are available at mobility stores (the same places you'd buy walkers and wheelchairs has loads of small devices for making life easier for the disabled!) And I looooove that catfish story! It makes me so happy to think of that glorious fish finding it's forever home! 🐟
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