Given the choice, I'd almost always rather have history than new and shiny. It's even better if the vintage stuff has been around longer than I have.
That blue cooler on the bottom? I'm sure my parents had it before I was born. When I saw it in Grandma's garage a couple of years back, destined for a garage sale, it came straight home with me. I needed something to sit on and keep drinks and snacks cold when I take the kiddos down to the river and having a cooler that conjures up vivid images of my own childhood summers on the family boat is even better than an estate sale find with a good story.
I don't know where Hubby got the red one, but it's been around for ages. Every time we needed to use it, though, the drain plug had fallen out and we had to track it down again. Last time, it was nowhere to be found. Luckily, Bi-Mart sells replacement parts and now we've got a plug that's actually tethered to the cooler.
The new plug probably cost more than a complete cooler from the thrift store, but I was on a deadline. What about you -- given the choice, would you go for a new cooler or an old one? (I've got a sneaking suspicion that the new ones might actually keep food colder, but I'm not relying on ours for actual food safety.)
3 comments:
Did you ever have a Scotch cooler? My folks did. It was round like a lard can with a plaid outside. Only held about a 6-pack so wasn't very efficient but sure kept things cold.
Many things I would choose to have a vintage one, but not a cooler, all the older ones I have seen are kind of smelly.
I generally do go for the vintage, and I wouldn't worry about using a vintage cooler at all. There are ways to keep them from smelling or getting moldy.
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