The British Character

With a bright blue sky and a nip in the air, R and I picked up some friends and made our way north to a large outdoor flea market.  The kind that attracts all sorts of eccentric collectors of everything from the just about useless to the fascinating and everything in between.  Old tubes of Tinkertoy, wicker sewing baskets, massive hairdryers that look like brain-sucking pods and retro Corningware made us laugh along a route that felt a bit like we were visiting a museum collection from our youth.  I was like a moth to a flame every time I spied a cloth-bound book and my efforts did pay off in one particular treasure.

This red 1954 edition cost a mere two dollars and provided me with a delightful half-hour of smiles as I flipped through its 'musty but in a nice way' pages and sipped a cup of tea.  Speaking of tea, I loved the above image.

And this one.  No matter how many times a day I tell myself to restrain my exuberant nature it's absolutely no use so I'll just have to admire this trait from afar.

This illustration is the one that made me laugh out loud as I recognize the tactic when at movie theatres...minus the grumpy face, of course.  We had the strangest experience once when a woman walked straight up the stairs and plunked herself down next to my husband.  We were the first two people in the whole place but our new friend said 'It's just going to fill up anyway so I might as well sit next to you'. 

This book is an absolute joy, I only wish it were ten times longer than its 120 pages.