The Captains Log

The Challenge Coin

admin — Tue, 27 Mar 2012 19:34:47 +0000

This is the 238th issue of The Treasure Map. And for almost 20 years now, each month, one of us have attempted to sit down at the computer and type out our random words of wisdom for your knowledge, growth and entertainment. lol . This article has been called everything from “fodder for the fire” to my dads favorite, “I ain’t gona read that propaganda”. It must be popular though as I heard that Facebook had copied the idea from us and it seems to have worked pretty well for them. We have given you everything from new stores have just opened to examples of our collections and unique antiques finds of the month. But what seems to be the most popular is a lot of miscellaneous nothings about our families and daily happenings in life. Over the years you have heard stories from Connie, Virgil, Vickie, Mary, Dayna and myself. Believe it or not, much of what has been written about was true (with the exception of a slight embellishment here and there). Those of you who have read very many of my dozens of articles have by now long figured out that I can’t think of a thing to say this month. The magazine is 95% printed and still ….. no article…. The only thing on my mind today is our son Tim. Today Tim goes off to war. This is one time when I wish it was an embellishment. But no, by now he has been issued his weapons, they have had their ceremony and are awaiting transportation to Afganastan. As you may be able to imagine, emotions have been running a bit high at our house as of late. A mixture between pride and fear. I have to admit, sending a son off to war scares the living hell out of me.

So today, I talk about our son Tim. Tim was able to take a week of leave and to come home over Christmas. We stayed home together the entire week and was just a family again. It was by far the best Christmas gift we have had in a long time. Tim has a girlfriend now too. Sarah. It was our first time meeting Sarah and we found that she is a real sweetheart. Sarah is from Pennsylvania and even though she is a Colt’s fan, we all got along as if we’ve known each other for years. I think she could even have survived an Old Fashion Christmas at my dads. Where after one of our family gatherings, 4 out of 5 girlfriends/boyfriends would never make it to New Years Eve. Tim grew up in the technology boom. In fifth grade he showed his teacher how to hook up their first classroom computer. He loves video games, tennis, paintball, art and of course his country. Tim was seated number one position on both his freshsoph and varsity tennis teams. He graduated from Full Sail college with a degree in computerized animated science. He enjoys photography and good day out fishing. Tim is now an Aviation Electronics specialist in the U.S. Army.

photo[1]I am so proud of Tim and the man he has become. Look forward to the man he will be and pray for the day when we can once again pass the coin.

Gods speed my son.

Joe Bartman

editor

The lions of March

admin — Tue, 27 Mar 2012 19:26:57 +0000

I did not see much of a lion, but March sure has gone out like a lamb. We hit a record high of 86 degrees yesterday. I love it! The perfect temperature to go shopping and shake off those winter chills. The birds are singing with trees in full bloom and people are out and about. Many of the stores are in spring cleaning mode so sales abound. It looks like I’m not the only one with this idea as the traffic has been picking up steadily with most of our advertisers. So be sure to get out there while the picking is good and before the lawn mower and the green grass starts to call your name. We have several new advertisers this month. With a couple of them being new stores and a few old customers coming back again. One of the stores which I always liked to go to is Mary Ann-tiques in Sheffield. Always warm and inviting, just down the road from J&S Antiques which is on interstate 80, (Manlius exit). Look on page 36 where we have an aritcle on ElPaso Antique Mall. One of our long time advertisers. Check out our coin collectors too. Silver is up so prices are good now. Tell them you saw it in The Treasure Map and have a great day.

Leukemia Cup Regatta

admin — Thu, 03 Nov 2011 21:36:19 +0000

Last week we were finally able to have our leukemia fund raiser regatta. I am especially pleased that we were able to pull it off as it had to be postponed twice due to the extreme flooding. Last year a good friend of ours lost his two year battle with Leukemia and the club honored Bob by naming the event after him. The Bob Levin Leukaemia Cup Regatta raised over $45,00.00 this year and 100% of the funds goes to the Leukemia Lymphoma Society. There were over 130 sailboats racing this year on three different race courses. It was a beautiful site to see and a good time was had by all.

OCCUPY ANTIQUES

admin — Tue, 25 Oct 2011 14:12:54 +0000

Occupy Antiques

Tired of over spending for poor quality items that were made overseas? Then join the Occupy Antiques movement. The Treasure Map has hundreds of places where you can find unique, quality antiques and collectibles. Antiques look great in your home, they support local small businesses and are good for the environment too! Go to www.thetreasuremap.net to find a store near you. And be sure to tell them that you found them in The Treasure Map.

Squirrel Bandit on the loose

admin — Fri, 19 Aug 2011 21:03:04 +0000

Last month I promised some good fodder from my families camping trip. We’ll it seems that we have an outlaw squirrel on the loose here in the park. My sister Cris had decided that she wasn’t into tents this year and rented one of the parks small log cabins to sleep in. Something about the cold hard ground vs a bed to sleep in. I don’t get it, but any way, late one morning she received a frantic phone call from my 16 year old niece. (who shall remain nameless, right Tessa). She had just gotten up at the crack of noon to a horrifying situation. The cabins are on the other side of the park and all you could hear on this end of the cell phone was the screaming. What…what…. your being attacked!!! What…what…a wild squirrel. You’ve got to be kidding. OK… Ok… we’ll be right there. So my brother and I being the heroes that we are immediately rushed to her aid. It’s possible we stopped to fill our coffee cups first. We got to the cabin and you would have thought it was on fire. Tessa was cowered in the back room screaming like a girl. I guess thats allowed since she is one after all. So I rush over to one side of the cabin to look in the window and Mike heads to the other side with camera in hand. See how concerned we were for the damsel in distress. Just in time to see the cutest little 4″ baby gray squirrel clinging for it’s life on the window screen. We’ll we saved the squirrel and Tessa calmed down in an hour or so. The only loss of life was to a few cinnamon rolls on the kitchen table. Tim made up some wanted posters for Cinnamon the wild squirrel, but alas, he was not apprehended and lives to plunder and pillage bakery good once again.

Flood waters

admin — Fri, 29 Jul 2011 17:23:55 +0000

Well the magazine has been so full of shops that I haven’t had a story for a couple of issues (that’s my excuse and I’m sticking to it). So a quick glimpse of what has happened with us these past two months. First and most important, Tim graduates today from Aviation Logistics School! WAY TO GO TIM! I’m very proud. We are flooded again at the harbor. I say again because in May the Army Corps gave us the 24 hr evacuation notice. So we scrambled to get everything packed and to high ground. Spent 15 days in a hotel room with a cat and dog. Fun. Not. After that there was a month of clean up and putting things back in their places. Luckily the water stopped just a few feet short of getting into the house. Another six inches higher and it would have been real bad. We just had a few acres of all the stuff you never want to see floating down the lake in on our front door step. Things were cleaned up pretty good and in time for Jr. sail camp. It went great and the kids had lots of fun. They did not mind the few rain showersat all. And then the rain never stopped. It rained and rained and rained. Now we are flooded again. Not quite as deep as before. It was close, but we did not have to evacuate this time. But the water stays. It has not gone down for weeks. We now truly have lake front property. It’s a bit too close for comfort, but great to look at. My brothers and sisters are due down for their annual camping trip. Next month I’m sure I’ll have stories to tell about that. Most of them might even be true. Until then, have a great day and enjoy your shopping. We have many new stores this month so check out the magazine well as not to miss a one. And be sure to tell them that you saw it in The Treasure Map.

Joe Bartman

editor

Just heard…

admin — Fri, 24 Jun 2011 22:25:15 +0000

…from Claire at T&C Variety in Crest Hill that lots of folks are out shopping, Treasure Map in hand, making the antique circuit! Don’t forget to stop by your favorite store and pick up the July issue – it’s out there now!

Cameo Antique Mall and Kitchen Collectibles

admin — Tue, 08 Feb 2011 18:29:24 +0000

Kitchen Collectibles has been our topic of the month. So it just seemed fitting that at the same time we shoud do a story on Cameo Antique Mall. As the last time I was there they had a great selection of Vintage Kitchen Collectibles. One of the things I like best about kitchen collectible is that with them you can make some great memories. Memories that will last a life time. Of course there is much much more than old kitchenware at Cameo Antique Mall. As Deborah Skowronski now has all three floors open giving them 12,000 square feet of great treasures for you to sift through. Not only is Cameo an Antique Mall filled with booths from dealer all over the area but they have a nice selection of antiques and colletibles for sale themselves as well as many items on consignment too. Giving them a nice variety for you to choose from.

Deborah is a second generation antique guru as her parent used to buy and sell antiques. Her father refinished and repaired furniture too. Growing up around antiques and in her fathers workshop has helped to give her a deep appreciation for antiques, furniture and it’s construction as well. While many business have cut back during the recession, Cameo Antique Mall has grown. Here you can find well-built older furniture with character rather than spending the money for new out of a department store or settling for something that is less durable out of a big box store. The recession has also brought out many unique consignment items that you would not normally see for sale on the open market.

Cameo Antique Mall offers that small town hospitality with 12,000 square feet of Antiques, Collectibles, Vintage Inspired Gift Line, Large Reference Library and Restoration & Care Products. They also do Appraisals & Repairs and welcome Consignments & Estate items. The aisles are wide and the lighting is good. They are open year round, daily from 10:00 am to 5:00 pm. (closed Wednesdays).

Grab a complimentary cup of coffee or tea whileyou enjoy your shopping and be sure to tell them that The Treasure Map sent you.

Joe Bartman

editor

Crafts

admin — Thu, 28 Oct 2010 19:00:50 +0000

This month here in Treasure Map land we salute to crafts! To all of you who buy, sell, build and make those creative and often imaginative items that we use to decorate our homes and stores. I have to confess, I am not one of you. It seems that I lack that creative and artistic gene that must run in the blood of all who are good at this wonderful hobby. When ever I try to make something, it ends up as one of those things you see at garage sales. You look at it and you wonder… what in the world is that!…. So I have found that it is best for me to leave this to the experts. Now Mary likes to spend the winter months making jewelry. She has made some fantastic and beautiful gifts as well as a fine selection for herself. Our son Tim took every art class he could get in school and has a great selection and variety from pottery to wall hangings. My mom too seems to have the gift. She makes rugs, quilts and such. I figure it must have skipped a generation or something like that. It’s a good thing that I can go to one of our great Treasure Map stores and pick out a ready made gift. No fuss, no mess and it does not look like it belongs on one of the neighbors garage sales. For the creator and the buyer, we have both in abundance here within the pages of our magazine as well as on our web site too. www.thetreasuremapmap.net Give a craft for Christmas.

Joe Bartman

editor

A Vintage Holloween

admin — Fri, 17 Sep 2010 21:19:43 +0000

When putting this months issue together I never would have guessed that it’s almost October already. But alas, it’s just around the corner. Now don’t get me wrong, I love October. The cooler weather and the fall colors make it a beautiful time of year. Not to mention football season. I’m guess I’m just not quite ready for the summer to end. But I don’t get a vote on that so we just enjoy the season and have fun with it. Our theme for this months issue is vintage clothing. Vintage clothing, jewelry and furniture can be found in many of the antique and collectible stores in The Treasure Map. We picked the October issue to use for our vintage theme due to Halloween of course. No matter if it is your first time or if you are an experienced vintage collector. Halloween is the perfect occasion to try your hand at dressing up in a vintage outfit. Just be creative and go for it. Try dressing up as your favorite Hollywood star, or TV character. Not only can you have tons of fun with it, you are certain to be the talk of the party when you and your friends come in dressed to the 9’s instead of the usual off the shelf walmart #$%@. I mean stuff. One year our son and his friends dressed up as Harry Potter characters. It was a hoot. People were taking pictures of them all night long. We had some neighbors who really went over the top each Halloween. They always had the best vintage outfits. And did up their entire place with a different theme each year. No holds were barred when you went to their house. It was great just to watch the scared kids (and adults) leaving the house. One of my favorites times was watching a high school football star running from their house and down the street screaming like a scared little girl. He got about half a block away before he finally calmed down enough to get his bearings. Of course the first words from his mouth (after all the screaming) was, ” I cant wait to bring my friends here!”. Then there was the time a teenage girl came to our door after leaving the neighbors house and asked for candy for her 9 year old brother. As he was now too afraid to get out of the car. Even if you are not into Halloween as extreme as our neighbor, it is still a perfect time of year to get the next generation into your stores and promote your vintage items. Vintage also seems to be the “in thing” with some of the retro crowd. They are decorating their apartments and flats with vintage furniture, lamps and wall hangings. I’ve seen some that are very creative and look fantastic.

I’d love to see pictures of some of our readers dressed up in “vintage style”. Or even one of your store displays. Send or e-mail us the photo’s and you never know, you may be in a future issue of The Treasure Map. Would you like to see a feature story on one of your collections? Or on a subject matter that you are passionate about? I’d like to hear your ideas too.