Finding a new record to take a spin on your wheels of steel takes time, dedication and heart to sift through piles of vinyl leaning on a fence, plopped down on the sidewalk or sitting in a milk crate. But, most of all, it takes luck and being at the right place at the right time. If you don’t catch a pile of classics right away, you’ll be the sucker watching a lucky man or woman walking away with an armful of vinyl with a wide grin. The key is to stop, squat and sift the minute you see records. Don’t wait. Don’t say, “I’ll look through them after I run my errands.” Someone else will find them…

It’s been a while since we went stoop-diving, but we have found a bunch of keepers. First off, we found two great records that will certainly wear down your needle: “No Parking on the Dance Floor” by Midnight Star and “Ice Cream Castle” by The Time, two classics. We also found a bunch of books that seem like interesting reads. The most badass paperback was, “Dynamic Nunchaku” by Tadashi Yamashita, a handbook about how to use nunchaku (or nunchucks in English). I can’t say that we have ever found a book that compares to this one. It can probably be found in Michelangelo's, from Teenage Mutant …

It was yet another week of stoop diving and we found some treasures. We cleaned up: a huge leather couch, some “vintage” personal computers, an old hot plate and an old Panasonic TV. The leather couch was the best, most comfy and cozy find. It was a smooth, nut brown in color and in perfect condition. I took a seat and it was worthy of taking home—but my “affordable” one bedroom apartment in Park Slope simply does not have the shear girth to fit this beauty.  A funny find was an old PC, made by Sun, yes that’s right, Sun. Next to it sat a Panasonic TV, that was spat on…yes, spat on.  A safe …

This week revealed a quirky, strange collection of stoop-side items. Possibly one of the most hilarious and surprising things we found, especially on a sunny day, was a giant, stuffed Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer. One of the most expensive things we found on the stoop was an Activision Drum Set with cymbals for Nintendo Wii’s Guitar Hero. It was sitting there, in perfect condion, for the taking.  An item also in perfect condition was a giant couch. It was not weathered or soiled. There were also a couple of books worth mentioning. We found “Berlin Noir,” by Philip Kerr and a scientific read…

This week wasn't too bad stoop-side. We found some fashion, some electronics and a DVD.  A Sloper threw out a 46-inch flat screen TV (I saw them tossing it and I asked how big and if it worked, it needed $250 worth of repairs), a couple of hats and a teach-yourself-Bob-Dylan-songs-on-guitar DVD.  The DVD has music arranged for fingerstyle guitar, taught by Fred Sokolow. The wool hat, which I wish I had taken, had a slight Navajo print and seemed to be in good condition. A box of great old book sat on Eighth Avenue. A great edition of “The Diary of Anne Frank” perched up top. In another book …

The Stoop found some treasures this week.  The best item was a toy RV, complete with detailed interior with a bathroom (with a toilet seat that could lift up), a kitchen with a stove and sink, seats and a steering wheel. In the storage compartment there was a red BMX bike. A collection of headbands we left stoop-side, with a beaded tiara, grey bunny ears and a pink and red sequence heart ear headband. Two practical finds were a box of GMAT flashcards and a how-to guidebook for Unix for Mac OS X Tiger. A pair of UGG-like boots sat on a brownstone. An interesting read, with the former President…

This week of stoop searching was a good week for bookworms. We found textbooks on chemistry, welding, business and investment.  We also found guidebooks for love and marriage. “What Really Works with Men,” by A. Justin Sterling, is appropriate for Valentine’s Day coming up. If there is anyone who needs advice, pick it up and start reading! Another appropriate read for Park Slope as a family neighborhood was, “The First Year of Marriage” by Miriam Arond and Samuel L. Pauker, M.D. This book helps newlyweds with what to expect, “what to accept” and what you, as a spouse, can change. Expecting …

This week the best treasures were all on one stoop. A Sloper put out three boxes, from toys for tots and to young kids. The sign, posted on their stoop, read:  “Take This Stuff, Please Don’t Make A Mess! (Bedbug free, promise)” The armless robot, or Stoobot, was probably the coolest toy in the collection. It’s eyes looked like camera lenses and had a general appearance not unlike R2D2. A practical item was a bag filled with five Crayola crayons, ready for a pocket and to be whipped out during dinner at a restaurant with paper tablecloths. On another street, a pair of Nike high tops in fair …

This week we found an eclectic mix of eccentric stuff from a sugar-rushing Sesame Streeter, two humidifiers, books and a really nice trunk. The trunk was by far the classiest, most intact and desirable item that was left stoop-side this week. The handles were sturdy, there was no mold and it suffered minimal wear-and-tear. A definite treasure. An item that gave me a laugh was a small Cookie Monster perched, with legs crossed at the ankle, on a fence. Some junk was a big broken dresser and two humidifiers, including the Bionaire Clear Mist. A great read was Gideon Haigh’s book, “The …

It was another week full of stoop-side surprises!  Some junk we found was a TV set with the tube burnt out in the middle, a single Adidas Samba (the only shoes fifth graders wear, remember?) and a few Christmas stockings. A golden gem was a pair of Gucci velvet slippers, which I almost tried on myself. There were two cookbooks by Jeff Smith, which appeared to have some killer recipes and were in good condition. The first collection of recipes was entitled, “The Frugal Gourmet.” The other one was full of international recipes and was entitled “The Frugal Gourmet Cooks Three Ancient Cuisines, …

  This week’s stoop search revealed a bounty of books: a witch’s spellbook, a lover’s manual and a guidebook entitled, “How to Be Your Dog’s Best Friend.” Other notable items included a cache of cassettes. One golden cassette was by the man who wrote the score of “Wizard of Oz,” Harold Arlen’s “Americanegro Suite” and another classic was the nine-time Grammy winner in Classical and Jazz music, Wynton Marsalis’ album, “Hot House Flowers.” So, overall Slopers were throwing out some valuable things. The most interesting stoop item was the “Modern Witch’s Spellbook Book II,” which promised a “…

This week we discovered a collection of vinyl that will wear out your needle.  Although some of the records may not be of your taste, with a pile of 20 you’re bound to find one tune that you like. But this week’s finds were classics. If Engelbert Humperdink doesn’t get you swaying with your true love, maybe Jose Melis does the trick…. Or maybe, you were thinking of  “M-M-M-M-My Sharona” from The Knack’s 1979 album. Who could throw out such a legendary track? But, you can’t throw away Mac Davis either. Can you guess which item I brought home? Submit your answer in the comments.

It was another week of stoop searching and we have a photo gallery of gold.  The best thing we found was a bunch of free balloons filled with helium and swaying in the wind. Their ribbons were tied to a fence and a sign clearly stated that they were indeed “free.”      Another treasure was a clock with an outer space scene on its face and a neon light bulb circulating its circumference. An iMac was flipped on its side, a broken wooden futon and a collection of movies on VHS, including the Peanuts classic It’s The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown.    Can you guess which item I brought home? Submit…

For our second installment of “The Stoop” we found some real treasure and junk.  Some highlights were two wet couches (with a sign that promised they were in “good condition”), a television from a past decade (with a sign that also promised it was in “working condition”), and a broken infant gate. Can you guess which item I brought home? Submit your answer in the comments.  

Which of these items would you pick up, make your own and bring on home? Let us know in the comments if any of these finds are junk or treasure.