Saying there are too many thrift stores in midtown is like saying there's too many shots of vodka in your morning smoothie, so of course it's good news that Good Pickins (802 N. 4th Street) has opened for business near Capone's. Whenever I make my thrift rounds and can't find any treasures at a particular store, I always complain that the place was “totally picked”, so hopefully the name of this place is a good omen. Looking at their facebook photos, I'm not betting on it. Yes, I'll give them a break since they just opened, but from what I can see, the place is pretty barren/OrangeTV, Get Out! North Idaho. More here.

Question: Which thrift store do you enjoy browsing most?

What the %*@# was a Medidi Monkey anyway? I never did venture in that bad California-lady acid trip of a furniture boutique with the silly name, which briefly held existence in the old Ponderosa motors building on in Midtown Cd’A. Something much better is moving in, or rather moving on up. The Idaho Youth Ranch Thrift Store is relocating one block north on 4th street somewhere toward the end of this month. Their current spot will become a pile of rubble to make way for some “affordable urban” condos. Hm. This is a little sad for two reasons. One: I’m enough of a geezer to remember when that building was the mighty Sears Catalog Store, before Coeur d’Alene was actually big enough to merit an actual Sears store. The Sears catalog was a massive and delightful tome, and the Christmas “Wish Book” was an annual event for the whole fam. I remember poring through them for hours, picking out school clothes then going in that store with my mom to stand in line and order, returning in a few days to stand in line again and pick up our order in grey paper packages. Seems like they had a ton of washers and dryers and maybe a TV or two on site, but that was it. I’ll miss being able to visit that space/OrangeTV. More Random Bits from Get Out! North Idaho here.

Question: Which Inland Northwest thrift store is your favorite?