Hampden Disappointment

I picked up Jax at Chrissy and Chase's this morning and we dashed on down to Baltimore for a Hampden Junque garage sale going on from 9 til 2pm. (We were hoping to locate the little brown ceramic car that would go with our blue and yellow ones.) We arrived at 1, it wasn't raining, we found a parking space, located the alley where the sale was going on where we saw Michal and some friends moving boxes in and out of a garage. I was super excited to have the chance to buy once more at our fave shop in Charm City. That's when they dropped the bombshell that they actually closed out the sale at noon. Terrific. They didn't bother to mention this on their Instagram account and we drove all the way there for freakin' nothing. We were so disappointed. We scowled and walked back to the car then headed to Atomic Books, our new number one fave shop in Baltimore. Jax wasn't allowed in because he's under ten (grrrr....) but the nice man that worked there, Benn, kept an eye on Jackson and chatted with him about books while I picked up some goodies. Then we went to MOM's for a sushi bowl and snacks, drove to the top floor of the Rotunda parky garage and had a front seat car picnic. Our day didn't go as we had planned but we both made the best of it and had a great time together, as always.

Another Favourite is Gone

During the Coronavirus lockdown I've been worrying about some of my fave shops and was so unbelievably sad to find out that Hampden Junque in Charm City is no more. There is talk about moving it to be an online shop, but it's not the same. I'll never get to go in that funky little hole in the wall and see Michal, who will inevitably compliment my hair and strike up a lovely conversation. Why do all the things I love seem to go away...

The best was when Jackson saw this pic of Christ and said "Nana Rose has this exact same picture in her house." Umm....I wouldn't necessarily say exact...

BONUS! A photo I found of owner Michal Makarovich:

Hampden Junque in Fall

I never, ever grow tired of this shop and all it's goodies. I guess it's a good thing that they are cash only - otherwise I'd go bananas and buy out the joint.

Hampden Junque

Oh how I love this place. Kay and I discovered this fabulous lil' shop in May of 2015, but since it's a cash-only business I could only afford my Madrid postcard at the time. (Kayla and I had to search under the car seats to pool together enough change to make three bucks.) What I really wanted was the picture of Christ holding a cigarette in one hand and a martini in the other, but sadly, it was not to be. Hampden Junque is packed to the rafters with tons of unique and wonderful items, but the best part of the shop is owner Michal Makarovich. While browsing, there was an instrumental piece playing that was clearly from a familiar film, but damn it, I just couldn't place it. I asked what we were listening to and Michal said that it was from a mix a friend of his had made and dropped off that morning. It was a mix entirely featuring songs about James Dean or from his films. (The theme from Rebel Without a Cause was the song that was playing, by the way.) Michal then endeared himself to me when he said, " I love your hair. Who cuts it?" I pointed to myself, since I cut and colour my own hair, and Michal exclaimed, "That's a seventy-five dollar haircut!" We got to gabbing and introductions were made. He asked where we were from and told us about how much he loves Philadelphia and how his former partner, John Glover, performed at a charming theatre near Rittenhouse Square. On our way out, he recommended that we check out the Visionary Arts Museum down by the harbour. Funnily enough it was on my list of things to check out in Baltimore; the one that I left back home on my desk and completely forgot about. So we left Hampden Junque and headed straight to the Museum and had a fabulous time. Looking forward to my next jaunt to the Junque and more chit chat with that fab fella behind the counter.

(photo of the exuberant Michal Makarovich taken by Darren S. Higgins kidnapped from nytimes)

And here are the super fab old tins I bought - I actually have Prince Albert in a can, plus...

A Jimmy Carter pin!!! Clearly this will be displayed next to my McGovern/Shriver button.

Saturday with Kay

Today Kayla and I took a mini road trip to fabulous Charm City!! Our first stop was to hit Atomic Books (of course) where I scored big time!

Then Hampden Junque, where we met shop owner Michal who was an utter gem, but more on him and the shop in a later post. I really wanted the picture above the Kool cigarettes sign, but my walls are already crammed with photos and artwork.

Next we headed over to the Visionary Arts Museum, which was beyond funky and fun. 

Yummy vegan lunch at Land of Kush:

(Our wraps got mixed up and half of mine was a fucking mess and I had no way of repacking it, which was annoying, but at least the one half that remained assembled was delicious, as was the baked mac and cheese. The collard greens were okay.)

And lastly we stopped at Whole Foods for dessert then back on the road home. Meeting and chatting with Michal at Hampden Junque was the highlight for both of us, but nothing could beat the drive there and back when we gabbed nonstop about everything and anything. (With some Bruno Mars and Johnny Mathis playing in the background.)

Here are the best selfies of the day:

Flamboyant Gay Madrid

 

 

(I can't read the date of the postcard, but the stamp on it was first issued in 1972.)

Baltimore with Kayla

We finally made it! Kay and I have been talking about a day trip to Charm City for almost a year and we had such fun last Saturday. Walking Baltimore by Evan Balkan was wonderful to guide us around the city and there's still so much left for us to see on our next trip!

After hitting the Whole Foods on Smith to peepod and stretch our legs it was off to Atomic Books and to walk around Hampden. Next time I'm in Baltimore I'm bringing cash so I can grab some goodies at Hampden Junque. The gent behind the counter was so super nice that I wanted to take him home with me.

 

 

A return to Two Boots Pizza! This time I starved myself and devoured two slices of my favourite vegan pizza ever - V for Vegan. Yum-may!

  

After Two Boots we were off to Charles Village to check out the Painted Ladies houses. What a gorgeous street!