Tuesday, January 6, 2015

WHAT TO DO WITH CHINESE FORTUNES

OK, so for the last almost 16 years, I've saved, for some odd and sentimental reason, every fortune that 2nd Man and I have ever received from our fortune cookies.  Hey, what can I say, we enjoy Chinese food!





For awhile, I just dropped them into a small box we had, but after a couple of years, they started to overflow.  So then I started taking them, folded slightly...





...and dropping them through the top of this retro vase with a flower frog wire mesh top.





Then I just take the jar, shake it a few times so that they fall down into it and...
Jar of fortune cookie fortunes
Voila!  15+ years later and we have this jar full of fortunes!
Hmm...I wonder how many missed winning lotto numbers are in there?

I figure it will make a great crafty project someday, but of course, I don't know what we'll do.  I guess I'll figure out something in time, not that I need to do it now.  I just thought it would be fun to blog about.  

Either that, or someday, long after we're gone, someone will stumble across it in a thrift store and wonder what the heck someone was thinking, LOL!  Hey maybe it will inspire a mystery novel!

Do any of you have any silly things you collect that you hope to one day do something with?


33 comments:

  1. Mom used to cut obituaries out of the paper for people she knew and kept them in a box. It was pretty full by the time she passed on. All I save is rubber bands and bread bag ties.

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    1. My grandfather used to keep the obituaries of friends and acquaintances too. Not sure I'd ever want to do that. Rubber band and tie twisties? We have plenty of those ha.

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  2. i wonder how many of these came true? i collect too much of everything!

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    1. I would like to think most of them, ha. Of course sometimes, they are 'different' to say the least, ha. Is there ever too much of something if you collect it? :-)

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  3. I think my son is a bit obsessive/compulsive, if he gets two of anything it instantly becomes a collection.He cleaned out his room the other day and with great effort, and a little encouragement, toss his fantail wrapper collection. He was convinced that by the time he became an adult, they would be worth big money. My life won't be worth living if that turns out to be true!

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    1. LOL! When I was little I kept all my things I just knew would be 'worth something someday'. My parents humored me within reason, ha. I did get to keep my comic books and star wars figures, still ahem them, need to sell them because they ARE worth something now, ha. I had to google fantail wrappers to see what they were. :-)

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  4. Why not glue them on a backing board of a picture frame whilst trying to make a sensible sentence, then put the glass on the frame and hang in the guest loo. It'll give visitors something to read if required ;)

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    1. Now that's a cool idea!! Making them into something that's a story of sorts. Neat! Thanks!! And i like the idea of giving guests something to read, ha.

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  5. wow! a fortune in fortunes!!!!I like Dani's solution!! I only collect rocks,

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    1. A fortune of fortunes, love it! Dani has a great idea. I used to collect rocks and I still have a lot of them. I love to just hold them and remember where I got them.

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  6. makes me smile. can't help it. :)

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    1. Aww, thanks for that. Smiles are good things. :-)

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  7. You could disperse your collection by including them on gift tags: physically not of much value, perhaps, but the symbolism of the sharing of your accumulated good fortunes is sweet. My guilty secret collection is scrap paper . As in blank back sides of bills, envelopes, etc. Guess it's a hold over from the depression era..only I'm a few generations too young for that!

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    1. That's a nice idea too!!! Thanks!! I like the idea of sharing some in that manner.

      Scrap paper huh? I can understand that too.

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    1. Hey John!! Great (and appropriate) description! All good memories (and full tummies, ha).

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  9. JW and Dani have great ideas. How about putting some into clear glass Christmas ornaments? I try very very hard to NOT collect anything but I do have a small collection of Santas and Fairies. Hmmmm but no Santa Fairies. ..*slings off to Amazon

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    1. Oh my gosh!! Another brilliant idea. Several ornaments scattered around the tree. Hmm., maybe even as a hanging display of some sort. Thanks!!

      Santas and fairies? Those are neat things to collect. And I bet somewhere in the world, there is someone else collecting that too. And I bet a Santa Fairy exists somewhere too. :-)

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  10. There are some great ideas here for your collection. Another suggestion: Attach them to an outdoor entertaining table with a sealer - fun to recall good memories and unique conversation topics.

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    1. OOH! Good idea too. I wonder how long they would last in weather (even sealed?) I really like that idea in our outdoor dining area (future project). Hmm, maybe even down the center of a table, that would be neat. Thanks for the idea!!!

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  11. You have enough fortunes for several crafts. I would start another theme--cats maybe and decoupage a background of cats covered liberally with fortunes. You could use scenes from the farm or a picture of the farm and do the same thing by decoupaging fortunes on an angle over the whole. I can see three of these lined up from ceiling down....not all the way to ceiling...you know the look. Decoupage is quite sturdy with enough layers. My friend decoupaged feminist sayings, pictures and ideas on a chair that she first painted bright colors. You could put the fortunes on the seat and backs. One or two of those around the house would be another conversation piece.

    I have a headful of other ideas, so I will stop.

    Find a wooden box with a lid. Decoupage these on the box in neat lines but not too neatly. Put one on the counter to hold the rest of the fortunes...lol.

    I have fortunes too, about 10. After the health dept inspector walked into the Chinese restaurant here in town and they were cutting meat on the floor, that sort of turned me off to Chinese food, meat, people...just grossed me out. The really tasty one left town. Besides, I should not have msg too often.
    I have a collection of A&W Root Beer Mugs. However, it is a true collection, about 50 of them. They sit on top of my cabinets, so they do not take up valuable real estate. They just need dusting often. I don't let convention bind me since I have not dusted them in five years. Anyone who thinks that is shameful can come climb up to where they are, 8 feet up, take them down, wait while I wash them, and then put them back up for me. Any takers? Did not think so.

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    1. More great ideas! I've always wanted to decoupage, it looks like a fun craft to learn. We are lucky here in Houston, there are tons of Chinese restaurants and buffets and the competition keeps them all pretty honest and clean, ha.

      I used to know someone who collected the A&W mugs! A friend in college. cool!

      And hey, I'm of the mindset that if it doesn't bother you, it doesn't matter if it bothers someone else, ha. If I lived close by, I'd come take them down for you if you asked. :-)

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    2. 1st Man,
      It bothers me, a lot. But, it would bother me more if I fell off a six foot ladder. Thanks. I need to move...lol.

      Most of the mugs only cost me a quarter. Then, the antique and junk stores all raised their prices at once. $8 is too steep for me, especially when it happens all over in a one week period. I should check to see if prices have gone down.

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  12. Ok...confession time here. I saw the post title and started laughing. I was a die hard Friends fan when the show aired. Do you remember the in bed game with Chinese fortunes? Well back in my misspent 20's if I had a "good" fortune" it would get taped to my headboard. Good G-d...to be young and dumb again! What if you got one of the glass brick that you could add a light to and then put a piece of vellum paper on the front and add some of your favorite fortunes from the jar to? Just an idea!

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    1. Oh yes, I remember the "in bed" game. We still do that, ha. The fortunes have gotten strange over the years, used to be neat things now sometimes i read them and don't understand what they were trying to say, ha. You put them on your headboard? TOO funny! Ah yes, our young and dumb days...if we could know what we know NOW and go back, we could be young and not so dumb, ha.

      The glass brick idea is good too. Dang....so many great ideas....hmm...all of a sudden I'm getting a hankerin' for some Chinese food. :-)

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  13. I keep ours too. They are in purses and drawers and just fall out all over the place. I have good intentions to put them in a jar or box somewhere but just never seem to get them there. I have the same thought of a project somewhere sometime!

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    1. Great minds think alike! I was thinking about this post and I remembered that long ago, my parents collected matchbooks from everywhere they went. Not sure whatever happened to that collection.

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  14. I would stick them to the surface of a coffee table and cover with a sheet of glass.

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    1. Oh, that's a great idea too. I like the idea of putting it down and putting glass on top to cover it. Thanks!!!

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  15. How about braiding them? Just like the teens used to do with gum wrappers... Used my braids as bookmarks and it gave me something to do in study hall... :))) Have a good day!!

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    1. Dang, another good idea. I do 'vaguely' (ha) remember when that was popular. Ah, study hall. I remember those days vaguely, as well, LOL! Thanks!!

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  16. I once made a card from all my saved fortune cookie fortunes, and sent it to a friend who needed cheering up. Of course, I chose only the good or funny fortunes :) He loved it!

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  17. I collect fortunes too but not nearly as many. I need to get more serious about saving them.
    I collect rock-shaped hearts. I'm from PA but it started when I was visiting my boyfriend and we were in Gruene Texas waiting for
    Our names to be called to eat at The Gristmill. We wasted some time sitting
    On the side facing the Guadeloupe River throwing rocks and trying to hit targets. He went to throw one and saw it looked like a heart and gave it to me. I found another one within a minute and gave him my heart. Now we look for them when we are out. I like to put the date and place in sharpie on the back of them.

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