Junk Heaven...

Where's your favorite place to go "junking"? I have a few places I have frequented over the years like The Flea Market at The Tennessee State Fairground,   my friend Becky's place ...Red Wagon Antiques off of Nollensville, Rd.out side Nashville , and of course  Grandma's Attic in Crossville, Tn, the back allies behind the houses in my neighborhood....literally !

Image by Foxgirl via Flickr

 However, the most amazing place i ever stumbled upon was in Pennsylvania outside of Lancaster in the middle of Amish country. I found it by accident and can't recall the name but it was the most beautiful field full of junk i had ever seen in my life! Surrounded by weathered wood and vintage metal, i wandered through rusted farm equipment and piles of slate till i discovered 8 large handmade primitive drawers. Like any good Junk artist, I had a vision of endless future creations. So, against my mother's better judgement, I drove them all the way back to Nashville in my little Honda civic. (I ended up turning them into pieces for a show at  Twist galley   called "My Bird's Eye View"... and they were worth every penny!)
As you can imagine, I was convinced i had found the mother load ..."junk heaven". So this past Christmas i packed up my car and drove the 12 hours home to go in  search of  "Junk Heaven" and i am sad to say... it is... no more. Where previously had stood endless art supplies....now stood a clean cleared field and another Amish bakery. I was gutted to say the least.. why must everything change? "He's gone out of business... closed the place down"... said a Mennonite woman up the road.

Image by Nino.Modugno via Flickr

Tears filled my eyes as the winter sun set on that cold December night. So, i consoled myself by turning on some Innocence Mission ....as i turned for home... singing "nobody knows darling... nobody knows how they are loved...".