A great find

Have I ever mentioned that I love garage sales? This country does them so well. When we first arrived two years ago and needed a load of stuff for the caravan, I went out and found kitchen goods, electrical appliances, and a fantastic portable fridge freezer.

Over the last couple of years, I've had some amazing buys, some of which have been brand new toys and books, an unopened hand-made wooden baby mobile, funky chest of drawers for the boys and a 14ft trampoline.

I went through a phase before Kian came along where Saturday mornings were for garage sales. It's a lot of fun especially practising your bargaining skills.

So far on the Central Coast, I haven't had much luck. Mostly junk. Until I saw a sign for a garage sale in Wamberal at the weekend.

An entire table of cookery books. Almost new cookery books. It turned out the lady ran a catering business and had to quickly get rid of hundreds of her books.

I could have bought plenty, but I made a rule for myself a while ago not to buy unless I definitely definitely had room for it.

The books were all $5. I spotted The Accidental Foodie by Neale Whitaker, ex- Food Illustrated editor, and instantly picked it up. I thought I was holding onto it pretty tightly, but I must have looked unsure, because I then hear you can have the books for a dollar.  

A dollar. It was in immaculate condition.

It's a coffee table book, on the one hand (if you go for that type of thing). But on the other, it's full of tales of great cooks and writers: Nigel Slater, Tamasin Day-Lewis, Kevin Gould, Sybil Kapoor, Maggie Beer, Darina Allen, Jill Dupleix, Terry Durack.

I bagged another two books and came home.

Every moment I've had in the last two days I've curled up on the sofa with a cup of tea and that book. A garage sale gem.

Vanessa 

P.S. How do you pronounce it? Ger-AAA-j or Gar-idge? I wonder if it's similar to lounge and living room? You know.... If you say it one way, you're posh, and if you say it the other way, not so much?