A Blending of Passions

“If you can’t figure out your purpose, figure out your passion. For your passion will lead you right into your purpose.” —Bishop T.D. Jakes

Welcome to the inaugural addition of Finding Treasures!

I've been a writer since childhood and a blogger since it became the thing to do... I've written blogs on southern living, this crazy beautiful thing we call life, junking and up-cycling, the thrill of the hunt, the trials and tribulations of gardening and, most recently, on renovating my 1905 farm house.  Writing has always been for fun - therapeutic even.  Throughout the majority of this time my actual employment has been in the skies.  I feel its time to add a twist to my professional life by blending it and my passions and see if maybe I can make a career out of it... I don't want to leave the freedom of flying (call me crazy but I love flinging peanuts).  Today starts a new blog, a journey in which I hope I can reach more people than just my family and friends.  I've been told over the years that people live vicariously through my photos and quick blurbs about traveling on Facebook... so I'm taking it one step further.  I'll be writing about the treasures I find and that can be found while traveling.  These "treasures" can be items to purchase in specific areas of the world... places to visit such as gardens and beaches less explored...  and for those like me who love bargain hunts of the junking kind, places to go to fill your trunk with your love of junk...

For those who are just finding me, I grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area but currently live in the suburbs of Atlanta, GA.  I got the antiquing bug from my mother and the thrill of the find from my "frugal" grandfather (her dad).  I've been an antique dealer in both California and Georgia over the past 21 years.  My husband and I put that business on hold last year when we purchased our farm house renovation project.  Starting one April in the 1970's, my parents taught me to love traveling when we piled into a Chevy station wagon and drove across the USA for a couple of weeks.  The education you get when you travel is priceless.  Since then I have traveled to 49 US states, England, Scotland, Europe, Mexico, Canada, the Caribbean, Japan, Singapore, Bali and many more countries.  There are still a ton of places to go to on my bucket list, of which I average two to three a year.

This blog will cover everything from mussels in Brussels, to turquoise in the Southwest US, to hugging a redwood tree in Northern California, to Mexican vanilla, to ceramics and leather in Italy... and more.  While I write in the upcoming weeks, I'm also open for suggestions of places for me to explore and give feedback on...

My current shopping bucket list includes:

• Brooklyn, NY (Flea Market Every weekend) - attempting to go in the Summer
• Brimfield, MA - July 9-14
• Alameda, CA (Monthly Flea Market) - August 4th
• Roundtop, Texas (Marburger Antique Show) - October 1-5
• Netherlands - to join friends that live there and experience their flea markets... 

In addition to my dream Netherlands trip...  other countries I still want to visit include:

• Iceland
• Australia/New Zealand
• Africa
• Russia

My first "Finding Treasure" blog will be posted shortly, until then think about places you wish you could go to, or the unbelievable deals/food you've heard stories about that you want to know if they're true.  Leave me a comment and I'll add these thought to my list.  Stay tuned!

Follow me on instagram @junkingwiththecrows (antiquing & junking) and @skycheerleader (traveling, food and garden)...   Subscribe to this blog below!