Thrift stores across the nation

One thing I learned traveling across the country from Virginia to Oregon is that every little town you encounter is unique from the next. Something I’m into that expanded greatly during that trip was thrift shopping for clothes, records and other hidden gems.

I’ve always been interested in finding old shirts from the ‘90s or a vintage hat that just needs a new home. As an avid sports fan, nothing gets me more excited than discovering a baseball shirt from the past or a random college shirt at the next stop in the road. Moving to Oregon, I’m now decked out from Beavers coffee mugs to Ducks baseball caps.

Another thing I love to do during a first-time visit to a thrift store is to sift through their bins of cheap records and look for some diamonds in the rough. I had to leave a lot of my record collection behind in Virginia to fit everything in my car, so a big mission since I’ve moved to Oregon is reloading the stockpile of vinyl.

My favorite part about going to thrift stores is seeing how the items reflect the town you’re in. What you find can be really telling about the people who have lived in that area for a longer period of time.

— Davis Carbaugh, reporter, La Grande Observer