How often do you buy"pre-owned, repurposed, secondhand, used"? If you had the money would you always buy brand new? Why?

Thanks pearl! :)

In the olden days when my  son lived "up north"(before he moved to Honolulu) when I'd go to visit him we would haunt thrift stores. Salvation Army, Goodwill, you name it we visited it. We got some really nifty things there "on the cheap" that we loved! I have always been a bit wistful about it wondering what caused people to dispose of things that were hopefully well loved and well used? They have character and dimension to them that the brand new sparkly shiny thingies do not. I like stained glass and parquet floors and Oriental Rugs. I like beautiful things  that are probably far too costly now. I dislike structures that look like prisons or hospitals  or manufacturing plants. So cold, impersonal, antiseptic. Scandinavian design leaves me as cold as the design. Some homes are designed purposely to utilize that look. Why I have no idea. Thank you for your reply Lago and Happy Thursday. Oh. Once when I visited Carmel for a few days  I took one suitcase of clothes. I found a charming USED BOOK store there where I spent hours. I  bought so many books I had to buy another suitcase so I could take my clothes home. I found several First Editions of William Saroyan books. My second favorite author after John Steinbeck. I treasure those books and remember discovering them!  I guess I bought a couple dozen books! Long ago and far away! :) This post was edited by RosieG at March 23, 2017 5:50 AM MDT

A little while ago I saw a couple of employees looking thru a bin of used books at the local Goodwill. Not on the floor for sale yet. I asked them and they basically said they get first dibs on everything. I thought, well if I worked her I'd probably do that too. So now I walk straight back into the forbidden no customers allowed area and look for books myself. Eventually someone always shows up, and I always act the same,. Oh. . What,?. . Excuse me,. . .Sure sure. .I'm terribly sorry...And do it again in a couple of weeks.
I found a copy of Don't Quixote almost a hundred years old. I also came across a book with a WW2 rations card inside!
Once there was a letter to his priest from a soldier in Vietnam.
New things are nice, a car and electronics, but besides being new they are like  meh, you know?
Also, and maybe a little more morbidly, I wonder how much of that stuff got there because somebody died.. it gives the whole place a whole another layer of mystery, 
You know what I mean? This post was edited by Benedict Arnold at March 24, 2017 9:31 AM MDT

)

Sounds as if you found some REAL historical treasures Lago. I wouldn't do that because I'm not as brave as you but I certainly would like to be more daring. I do know what you mean. I like restoring/repairing/retaining historical buildings/homes. I don't do it personally of course but I support those who do and wonder why so many people put so little value on what came before? They have no problem erasing/destroying/demolishing all our tracks as they go off in new directions. We don't need to preserve EVERYTHING. But surely there are some things we will miss if we don't take care of them and value them. Thank you for your reply! I bet we'd have fun meandering through thrift stores and used book stores together! :)

I would have to warn you, I do check every book shelf in the place, since you can't really trust their cataloging, and it is mostly all mixed up, I always leave with a nagging feeling of . ..what if I missed that one find of the century... you know?....thanks Rosie.

In other words you're thorough. Why would I mind that? We could start off at opposite ends and say "hi" as we pass each other. You're welcome! Thank you for your reply. Who is your favorite author? I wouldn't want to have to arm wrestle you for an inscribed first edition book by John Steinbeck. I have a postcard he wrote to me that I treasure. It is dated 9 May '64. Let me know if you'd like me to share with you what he wrote to me. This post was edited by RosieG at March 25, 2017 4:15 AM MDT

The only writer I look for by name is Bukowsky, he wrote about women, and work, and the common man with a simple style, saying a lot with little words.
Sometimes I find tiny stacks of books hidden here and there in the corners of the shelves . ... some people  pick out a group of books to come and buy later, so they hide them.  I used to respect them and not mess with them, but then I'd come back, and they would still be there after some time, so now I don't anymore. 
Tip, don't put the books directly in your car, I don't know what kind of climate you have, but it gets pretty hot and sticky here, and sometimes there are bugs in the books waiting also for a new home. There's a whole set of rules to navigate thru when talking about buying books from the Goodwill.  )
Of course I'd like to see what he wrote!!!!

OK! I have the card right here just in case you were interested! Mr. Steinbeck wrote on both sides of the postcard in his own handwriting. Here goes!

"Dear Rosemarie: I know only three sure roads to contentment. 1. Lobotomy. 2. Senility 3. Incurious and uncritical self-satisfaction. Happyness  (sic) comes only in bursts and sexual love the same. As for accomplishment - it keeps ahead of you and the more you accomplish the less it is enough. The only fulfilled people I know are those whose curiosity keeps them too busy to wonder whether they are happy, fulfilled, contented or not.  Be sure that no matter what you do, it will not be enough to you. As for direction, there are millions of them and they are all the same one. And in human endeavor, the range between great and small is very short .  Yours, John Steinbeck". 

A little background of the why he replied (I'm guessing).

I was going through a difficult time in my personal life. I came home one day, poured a glass of wine and decided to write a letter to John Steinbeck. It ended up 28 pages long on 8--1/2 by 11 lined paper. Both sides. I sent it to his publisher and forgot all about it. One day I came home from work..I was living with my mom at that time after my divorce..and she had propped up the card against a lamp in my bedroom with the light on. I read it and cried. It was so unexpected, so beautiful and so perfect. I had written to him that I wished I had lived during the times and among the people he wrote so beautifully about in Cannery Row, Tortilla Flats,Pastures of Heaven,Sweet Thursday. That I was living out of my time in a complicated world that was more confusing than anything else and I had no idea what I should be doing with my life. That I loved  the simplicity of the people and the lives they led and how they related to one another. I had visited Cannery Row on vacation with my best friend a few months before that and so I was imbued with the feel of the real places he wrote about. I think the wildness and emotion of the letter must have moved him. I remind you I was drinking wine on an empty stomach so I was pretty open and informal! That's it. That's how I have the one thing from a stranger I treasure.

You know Ms Rosie,
Entre nos, I have a tendency to under represent myself, I find it a little distasteful when people enumerate all the books and authors they follow. Having said that, I have read quite a bit. I think that what makes a good author is not the being able to come up with convoluted scenarios a la Da Vinci code, or Clancy,but the ability to make us relate, to show us wisdom with only the magic of a few well juggled words.
Do you know what I mean?
After reading that note, I was like, Damm, if I could do that!!! Throw words up in the air and have them come down tied together like those Hawaiian flower garlands.
Every line in the note is a topic for discussion. I think it is a fantastic letter, you should have placed in a safe somewhere. You were very fortunate.
In case you are wondering.. . I just finished reading Peter Pan again, and I must say that reading it as an adult is a completely new experience. 
Im going to start on More's Utopia tonight.  You?

I have had surgery on both eyes. One has an intraocular lens implant and I can see at a distance but it is not the eye with which I read. The other eye has had catraracts and laser surgery. I read with a magnifying glass sometimes if the print is too small. I have glasses for distance. I read unaided generally. If my "good eye" goes I will no longer be able to read anything. So I am not the avid reader I once was. I scan newspapers and magazines.

Oh that's a bummer Ms Rosie.
Are these letters too small for you?
Is there a way to.make them bigger?
Would that be better?

Jim too. He is a yard sale enjoyer! Thank you for your reply Glis and Happy Friday!  :)

Gotta ask.

You like them too or are you the spouse that grinds their teeth and gets dragged along when he has to stop?  ;)

He goes alone! When we first got together almost 20 years ago we used to go shopping/lookie louieing together. I was the one that went in and out of the stores rapidly. He was the one lingering behind looking at everything. There were literally times when I was pulling him out of a store and dragging him forward with me as he kept looking longingly over his shoulder. So I decided that except for food shopping or other shopping that we NEED to do together he should go out and do his guy shopping alone. I wasn't being fair to him. He is a gadget guy. I'm not a gadget gal. He comes home with so many things he thinks I'll love. Most of them end up in a drawer or on a closet shelf or in the cupboard. I mean who needs a mushroom brush to clean mushrooms? A few things I do use and enjoy and of course I very much appreciate that he is thinking about me. So I don't become an albatross around his neck when he investigates yard sales and garage sales or goes to Harbor Freight or Lowe's or Home Depot or even Costco. I can go through a mall in 30 minutes! He can't get through one store in 30 minutes! Different strokes! I guess I over-answered your question didn't I? Apologies! :) This post was edited by RosieG at March 25, 2017 10:07 AM MDT

No worries,   that is a great answer.

((hugs)) Thank you Glis! :)

I say why pay more if you can get the same thing for less? Thank you for your reply Bez and Happy Saturday right backatcha m'dear! :)