COLUMN: Everybody Calls Me Jana Banana

I can remember the gas shortages in the early 70’s, with the long lines at the gas stations in Maine.

Some stations had hand painted signs in front proclaiming, “NO GAS,” with not much space between the two words.

I was a really young reader, so by the age of four, I asked my mother what “nogas” were. The gas prices are finally coming down and all the stations have gas, but like many of you, I’m still trying to conserve fuel by staying closer to home. And that is not necessarily a bad thing.

Just this weekend I spent a few hours at the Coker Farms National Landmark’s Fall Festival and saw many people I knew and enjoyed watching little children having a fun and educational time so close to home. The history of agriculture in Hartsville is such a wonderful legacy for this generation to understand and be proud of.

Shopping closer to home has always been a choice for me, long before the gas prices made the idea too costly to consider. Supporting local merchants insures that our pretty city will stay active and thriving, and fortunately, we have an eclectic variety of businesses to choose from.

I’m fond of things from the past. Drop me off at an antique store, and I’ll lose track of time. And honestly, my budget is not to the level of fine antique shopping, hence my love of “vintage.” My mother shakes her head and “cannot understand why anyone would want to buy someone else’s junk”- she’d rather get a root canal than stop at a yard sale.

Well, I love them. And I love two places in Hartsville to purchase gently used treasures, and love the thrill of finding a treasure or two. I’ve been a loyal fan of the Habitat for Humanity store behind Rite Aid on Washington Street for years, and for the past two years I’ve also been a big fan of Mandevilla Resale on Carolina Avenue near Burry Bookstore.

I can go into either place, and treasures just seem to find me. Habitat appeals to me because of the wonderful organization that it serves, and I can think of no better place to either donate items or purchase them. My mix and match bowls are becoming quite a collection, and my eldest son laughs when he comes home to see that Mom has found some more aqua dishes…and now I’m starting on a glass beer mug collection. Not for the beer though, I just like ‘em for juice and even for coffee. Finding some monogrammed with someone’s name is even better, in fact I drank my coffee out of a “SAM” mug just this morning.

What Mandevilla has that Habitat does not are my other loves, books and clothing. There is a special thrill when I can find an old book in there, along with some cool funky clothes. That makes my mother just cringe too; “why would you want to buy something that someone used to wear?” she’ll exclaim. Explaining to her that fabrics can be washed or dry-cleaned does not cut it for her. When I try to remind her that it’s the same premise as hand-me-downs (that she had no problems with for me as a child), she still shakes her head.