Lincoln Logs, cool vintage toy that doesn't require a screen or batteries!

Among the several things hubster has given me to sell on Ebay from his childhood are these wooden Lincoln logs. So far, all I've done is photograph a pile of them but I'm thinking I should build something with them and photograph them so as to add to the number of the photos that one is allowed to put up with item for sale.  They seem like a lovely vintage toy and easy to play with for children of many ages. And they don't require a keyboard, a screen or batteries or a wall outlet to plug into. Hmm.... Should be posting these up on Ebay soon. 

Teddy Bears for Grown Ups

Car bear

Bears I  nearly bought recently

Cute bears

I don't know why we like teddy bears so much but there's a lot of them lying about my house and, actually, in both of our cars. Sometimes someone we are giving a ride to will inquire about the car bears, as in "Do these belong to your children?" or, upon seeing two or three on the back seat, asking "Do you know your kids left their toys here?"  Most of the time the car bears are just something warm and fuzzy to look at but they have done occasional duty as window wipes and fly swats when nothing else is at hand in busy traffic. (Of course, they get washed in the washing machine occasionally, in case you're thinking EEW!)   I'm sorry to say there's six -- maybe seven -- little and not-so-little bears in our bed also;  they get used as pillows, such as to prop up an elbow when you're reading at night or to keep out the draft around your neck or as extra support to the middle of one's back when lying on one side. And then, there's half a dozen little bears sitting on a table upstairs, just collecting dust and they have a miniature tea set in front of them and appear to sip tea when we're not around. I don't want to think about the other dozen or more teddy bears that got stuffed into a suitcase and stored in the garage in a recent anti-hoarding binge. Nor do I really want to think about the number of bears we've given away in our sporadic urge to purge ourselves or to share with others. And, now,  I'm recalling there's a bear in the kitchen with a chef's hat and there's a giant bear in the man cave upstairs (seriously!), not to mention the keychain koala bear that hangs off my bag. I consider it a good day if I don't see a bear and buy it.  So we're bearing up pretty well with our toys. How about you? Ha ha.

Union Station Being Upgraded

Drapes and scaffolding in the station

Ceiling being repaired

I haven't been in Union Station for a while and I stopped by there for lunch today and was surprised by several things. Firstly, there's all scaffolding and drapes and screens over the ceilings and some walls. Apparently, last August's earthquake caused some damage to the surfaces, especially in the roof, so there's a project to assess and fix the arches and other elements. Hopefully, they will also do the other repair work on the ceiling as in the past I'd noticed some places had water damage. Then, I noticed that a lot of stores -- which sold stuff like ties, toys and toiletries -- had left and been replaced by new eateries. For instance, there's now a Chop-T there and the Station Grill -- where my husband and I first shared a meal! -- has been replaced with a Chipotle Grill. While I like the food at this chain, they've covered over the old stamped tin ceiling.  And the liquor store, where you also buy lottery tickets, has moved downstairs to be replaced by Pret a Manger (more food to eat). The shops have also changed over in some cases with a Svaroski crystals place, a shaving equipment place and a Citibank as new business. In fact, Citibank has about a hundred ATMs now sprinkled everywhere.  There's also more stands selling stuff such as those flowers glazed over and made into pins or necklaces and earrings.  I also did a quick look downstairs and most of the original food joints have been replaced with newer, smarter food services.  Of course, the movie theater has NOT been replaced but there's more food places there; and thank goodness, Johnny Rockets is still cooking fries and burgers. Also new is a US Post Office and it looks like a new sushi place is moving in too.   Overall, it looked like a massive Food Hall throughout the place, with far less shops. Due to the repair work some of the passageways were blocked and one is almost compelled to walk through the Godiva store to get to the Center Cafe, which is still there, but seems to have upped the price of its martinis.