The last thing you might think of for exploring a city while on vacation is to go visit a store full of junk, however, that’s exactly what Bergen, my mother-in-law, and I did while we were in Oakland, California for Christmas.  After spending 2 days camping in Samuel P. Taylor State Park in their rustic cabins, we had just 1 day to relax in Oakland, where Slaed’s sister & her family call home. So while Georgia (our 1-year old) napped, we paid a visit to the East Bay Depot for Creative Reuse.

Shopping with a 4-year old little boy can be stressful at times, at least with my particular 4-year old.  I’m worried that he’ll break things or mess up displays, but shopping at a junk store with a 4-year old was a pleasure! Treasures to delight him were around every corner, and nothing (within reach) is too terribly valuable.

Drawers full of crayons, markers, and pencils!

Barrels spilling over with toilet paper rolls, milk containers, egg cartons, & random puzzle pieces! (Teachers use the store as a resource for classroom projects.)

Displays filled with buttons of all shapes and sizes!

One of the best parts for Bergen was getting to drive the mini shopping cart around the store.  Thankfully we had a limit to what we could purchase since as you might imagine prices are pretty low and it’s easy to go overboard. We had suitcases (that were already full of Christmas presents) keeping us from taking on too much.  Just a few things went home with us: a book on how to be a pirate, a couple of plastic snakes, and some pipe cleaners for amusement on the plane ride home.  Definitely more about the memories here at “the depot” than our purchases.

Facts about the Creative Reuse Store:

• The Depot is a non-profit that was created by teachers to provide educators with reused/recycled materials at a low-cost & keep materials out of landfills.  Proceeds go toward keeping the store running as well as funding art, educational & other non-profit programs.
• The Depot is located in the Temescal neighbhorhood of Oakland, CA:
  • Open 7 days/week
  • 11 am to 6pm
  • 4695 Telegraph Avenue | Oakland, CA 94609
• To give you an idea of all that you might find inside the store, here’s a list of the types of donations they suggest.

We’d love to hear about your winter travels and/or quirky destination visits! Chat with us in the comments.

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