A Review of St. Vincent de Paul Thrift Store April 27, 2008

St. Vincent de Paul Thrift Store, 461 W 7th St, Saint Paul, MN 55102, phone 651-227-1332

Today we went to the St. Vincent de Paul Thrift Store on West Seventh in St. Paul.  I like this store.  I have not really checked out their clothing, though today they had 50% off on certain colored tags.  What’s really nice about this place is that it is extremely organized.  For the crafty side of me, I enjoyed searching for my sewing notions in well-labeled drawers that actually contained what the label said they would.  The greeting cards were organized just like if you were buying them new.  Also, they have everything.  We found two boxes of vacuum bags.  Those are expensive!  If you had the time and knew your vacuum number, you could find a bargain.  In this store, be sure to search in every nook and cranny.  For example, tucked in one corner there were several ironing boards in excellent condition.  It’s not so obvious, but they do have a back room.  The only two drawbacks to this store is that it is kind of musty-smelling in the back room, and parking can be a little hard.  I didn’t ask or scope out the situation on dressing rooms.  However, if you want to support charitable work directly and would like to experience an extremely well-organized and well-stocked store, it’s worth a visit.  According to their website, there are also stores in Minneapolis and Duluth.

Why I love the Saint Paul Public Library April 21, 2008

The library is the ultimate! When I lived in Mexico, I came to appreciate that libraries are a privilege and not everyone just has one. We all know there are books, but you can also get movies, magazines, online learning, programs, and probably more I don’t even know about. It is the pinnacle of frugal and green: lots of people sharing materials, rather than all buying copies – and all for free! How much more frugal can you get!?

I love the convenience: At the St. Paul Public Library (I’m sure at all of them, actually), once you have a card, you can search the whole catalog online and make online requests to pick up at the branch of your choice. I always choose Sun Ray so I can stop by on the way home from work, saving gas.

On top of that, there are a ton of services. One that is close to my heart is the online Rosetta Stone language learning access for patrons of SPPL. Using your card, you can access this service to learn Mandarin, English, French, Spanish, or Russian.

There is also the Electronic Library for Minnesota (ELM), which I have not played around with but looks awesome. Especially for kids, there is a ton of info here, and any resident of Minnesota can use it. As a teacher this is going in my mental file.

SPPL also offers a ton of free programming for people of all ages. I personally think the most fun one looks like PawPals, where kids read with “dog and human teams.”

Of course, you may be thinking, “Well, it seems free, but the money has to come from somewhere.” If you want to do your part, you can become a member of The Friends of the St. Paul Public Library. I just joined recently, feeling like since I am able to pay something, I should. If there’s a moment where I can’t, I’ll be overjoyed that this rich intellectual service is free for all.

What do you love about your library?