Jane's kitchen sink picked up by the side of the road | Jane Boursaw Photo
Feel free to share this post...

To view or leave comments on this story, click HERE.

Remember that #RealityWednesday post a while back about my plywood floors? Here’s another one of those. When we built this house 25 years ago, Tim dragged home a sink he picked up for free by the side of the road. It looked like it was probably in someone’s garage or shop at one time.

We planned to just pop it into the kitchen so we’d have a sink until we got a better one. Guess what? It’s still there.Guess what? It still does the job. And guess what? We don’t really care if it’s not straight out of House Beautiful magazine.

Old Mission Gazette is Reader Supported.
Click Here to Keep the Gazette Going.

Jane's kitchen sink picked up by the side of the road | Jane Boursaw Photo
Jane’s kitchen sink picked up for free by the side of the road | Jane Boursaw Photo

Next to the sink is a cool old cart-type thingie (probably found at a garage sale) where we keep the coffee pot. And beyond that is the stove my mom and dad got us for a wedding present, along with a refrigerator you can’t see in the photo. All still work great (knock wood – and we have plenty of that because the house is made of logs).

You’ll also notice we have no counter space. As in, none. No worries, though, because we have my grandma’s awesome Formica table that was in her house some 60 years ago. It’s still in perfect condition. You couldn’t mar this table if you took a chainsaw to it.

Grandma made the BEST apple pies on this table. The wooden chairs are hers, too. Also 60 years old. This table is basically the center of everything in our kitchen, and also the spot of many happy family dinners, kids’ craft projects, homework assignments and great conversations.

Grandma Stella Johnson's awesome Formica table and wooden chairs | Jane Boursaw Photo
Grandma Stella Johnson’s awesome Formica table | Jane Boursaw Photo

In the photo of the sink, you might notice the piece of cardboard in the window. That’s the window that was broken by hail in the August MegaStorm and removed to be taken into DeWeese’s new screen and door shop, next to their hardware store on the corner of Carver and Garfield.

They did a great job for under a hundred bucks, and I can report that the window is happily back in place. Oh, and look! A deer walked by in the driveway right as I was taking the photo!

New kitchen window and, look! There's a deer! | Jane Boursaw Photo
New kitchen window and, look! There’s a deer! | Jane Boursaw Photo

So what are the takeaways of this #RealityWednesday post?

1. Your house doesn’t have to be perfect in order to be happy.

2. Never throw anything away. Or if you do, put it by the side of the road for free, so someone else can get 50 years out of it.

3. Some things are more important than a new sink. Like groceries and school supplies.

4. My Grandma’s apple pies rocked.

SUPPORT YOUR INDEPENDENT LOCAL NEWSPAPER: I started Old Mission Gazette in 2015 because I felt a calling to provide the Old Mission Peninsula community with local news. After decades of writing for newspapers and magazines like the New York Times, Los Angeles Times, Family Circle and Ladies' Home Journal, I really just wanted to write about my own community where I grew up on a cherry farm and raised my own family. So I started my own newspaper.

Because Old Mission Gazette is a "Reader Supported Newspaper" -- meaning it exists because of your financial support -- I hope you'll consider tossing a few bucks our way if I mention your event, your business, your organization or your news item, or if you simply love reading about what's happening on the OMP. In a time when local news is becoming a thing of the past, supporting an independent community newspaper is more important now than ever. Thank you so much for your support! -Jane Boursaw, Editor/Publisher, Old Mission Gazette

To keep the Gazette going, click here to make a donation.

To view or leave comments on this story, click HERE.

Bay View Insurance of Traverse City Michigan

3 COMMENTS

  1. Hi Jane,

    I just discovered your Reality Wednesday series and read them all! So nice to know that I have a soul mate who also doesn’t have a ‘House Beautiful’ home and saves everything (sometimes from the side of the road!). It was very heartwarming to see that I’m not the only one with stuff that has built up over the years from kids, unfinished projects, hobbies and my personal nemesis, paperwork and records. You are so brave to share your world with those who happen to stop by online to visit. Best wishes for a successful year of decluttering. And I am totally jealous of your organized desk!

  2. Thank you for the note! I’m pretty geeked at myself for managing to keep my desk clean since I cleaned it a couple weeks ago. But today I noticed there’s starting to be a little paper-buildup going on, and once that happens, all bets are off! Must.Be.Vigilant. 🙂

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.