Month: September 2012

Cats I find in the garbage

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I went out last night to the Rosemont area of Montreal and found a few things, but my favorite part of my night was coming across this adorable cat.

I was biking past, looked over and saw this cat just calmly sitting in an empty box. Not much cuter than that I think. Next to the kitty, you might notice, was a record player and a graphic equalizer (which I originally assumed was an amplifier and just found out otherwise).

What I’ve found is that when you see more than one piece of electronics out at a time there’s a much greater chance that they are in working condition. I brought these back and they both seem to work, although I can’t test them fully. The record player has no needle, but the table spins and the arm operates as it should. The graphic equalizer turns on and the lighting on the front looks good. A pretty good find, and maybe worth a few bucks too, although I might like having a record player again.

Now, gratuitous cat photos in a transparent attempt to increase my following:





It was a really cute, playful and affectionate cat. I wanted to take it home, but it had a collar. Oh well…

Anyways, back to business.

This stainless steel kettle seems to be in perfectly fine shape. I already have one, but someone else can surely put it to use. I took it back in an attempt to redistribute it.

These women’s boots were in a bag of trash. They look perfectly new, maybe worn a few times so I took them with me. They were in a bag that otherwise looked average and uninteresting, so I think that maybe they were a gift and were just a bit too small or something like that. The brand is Blondo Canada.

Finally, I found this bizarre knife block that simulates a knife throwing show. It’s really clean and overall in great condition, so I took it back with me. There’s a little plaque on the bottom that reads “Throwzini.” This guy discusses the same product here. There’s also a cool (possibly staged? what do you think?) video here featuring the Throwzini.

I’m not sure it’s my future knife holder, but if I don’t end up using it someone else will!

As an aside, being on the wrong side of a knife throwing show must give you an interesting perspective on life.

A few things from Friday

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I figured I’d share a few things I found on Friday. There wasn’t too much, but there were a few things of interest.

First off is this angelic shelf. I found it with some old house decorations, so I figure someone was renovating a house that hadn’t been renovated for quite some time. The shelf is made out of a very light wood and it has a very odd texture. Does anyone know what kind of wood it could be made of? It’s in pretty good shape, though it needs a coat of paint. I imagine it’s fairly old as well. Overall, a pretty interesting piece which I took back home with me. I’m not sure if I’ll put it on the wall or try to sell it. If anyone has any information on the specific style or era this came from, let me know 🙂 If it helps, the area I live in was built up around 100 years ago.


Some of the old house decorations. I’m not sure what the first thing is, but it looks interesting. I think the latter is that decorative wallpaper you put on your wall up by the ceiling.

I found this container – mostly full – of citronella lamp oil. I doubt this stuff ever goes bad. I’ll try to give it away to someone on Craigslist.

Finally, a fishing reel. Missing the arm but otherwise seems good (according to my friend, who knows more about fishing than I do). I’ll try to give this away as well, although I’m not sure anyone will want it. We’ll see! Worst comes to worst it has a bit of metal, which I’m sure a scrap metal guy could salvage.

That’s all for now. It’s trash night tonight though, so maybe I’ll have some more stuff to post about tomorrow!

An atlas from 1951 and a book from 1841

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Hey all,

I got featured on the “Freshly Pressed” section on WordPress and so a lot more people are seeing what I find. It’s kind of exciting. If you’re new, welcome to the blog!

In this post I’m going to talk about a few things I found a while back but haven’t had time to post about yet. This post has a definite historical focus, and if that’s not your thing be assured that some more “present” trash will come soon 🙂

The back story: I came across this massive pile of stuff on the side of the road next to Montreal’s Jeanne-Mance Park, which is one of the most elegant streets in the area. Talking to someone revealed that someone had passed away and the executor of the estate decided to just throw everything out. Apparently a lot of good stuff was taken before I got there, but because people generally don’t open garbage bags (or don’t see what I see) I was able to bring home some great finds.

I’ve had a few other posts about the things I brought back from this place (the 1st, the 2nd, the 3rd, and the 4th).

And now, for the last chapter of things from this place.

This is an atlas published by the Canadian Department of Citizenship and Immigration in 1951. Other than the water stain on the front cover it’s in really good shape. I’m guessing that this would be something you’d buy if you were trying to get Canadian citizenship back in the day.



True to it’s name it’s very descriptive. Each province is described in several pages and a map is given for each, featuring not only the towns and cities but also the resources that are found in the area. The maps are a great look into Canada’s resource history. I think I’ll take a look through it later and learn a bit!

I was pretty excited when I found this. It’s definitely the oldest book I’ve ever found. It was published in 1841 and seems to be a first edition. You can feel the imprint on the lettering, which is much different from modern books.


It seems to be signed, or at least written on, by the author. The opening page is written on: the first line is hard to point understand, but the second says “avec les respects de l’auteur” (with the respects of the author). I found another 1841 copy of this online and that copy also had this sort of inscription written in it, so it was most likely the author.

That link also gives a nice historical background on the book. It comes from the post-rebellion times in Canada, when people were trying to figure out what went down. (I discussed this topic in greater detail in this post) From the link:

Quebec lawyer Charles Mondelet had defended and secured the acquittal of several Patriotes in 1838, arguing that they had committed political not criminal acts, that they therefore should be treated as political prisoners, and that an oppressed people should not be punished for acts committed during justifiable rebellions. After the Rebellion, Mondelet supported Union and devoted himself to law and education. The present work was “farsighted [and] greatly influenced the education act of 18 Sept. 1841 introduced by Sydenham [Thomson]. Mondelet proposed English and French public schools for the united province, financed by direct taxes and legislative grants. The system would be headed by a powerful superintendent, officials appointed by the governor but responsible to the legislature, several elected officials, and all resident clergymen as ‘ex officio’ school wardens. Thus in the control of public education there would be a nice balance between the people, the government, and the religious establishments.”

Sounds like quite a nice contrast to Lord Dunham’s horribly racist report that I looked at last time!

The book itself is in good condition for something from 1841. The cover is stained and battered and the spine is weak (though still holding together), but the actual inside of the book is very clean and in excellent condition. It may have an interest to a collector.

I love this kind of stuff. I imagine it’s a home-made card, printed off using a dot matrix from the 80s. It just feels like this simple print-off captures a certain time and a certain feeling very well.

That’s it for now. I lied: there might be one more post in this series. I also have some cool old maps from the 50s that are really beautiful, but I think this is good for now!