Every old house has that one corner everybody keeps promising to get to someday. For the couple behind @our1834home, it was the attic. After moving into their historic home, the homeowner says two boxes had been calling out to her ever since, so she finally climbed up, started opening them, and kicked off what she calls an official attic exploration.
What came out of the first boxes was a mix of old paper, a few household odds and ends and a card game most of us have not thought about in years. It also came with an unexpected visitor.
@our1834home
The First Box: A Mystery Game
In the first box, she finds what she takes to be a board game. She says she has never heard of it. The box reads that Flinch is a card game for everyone, a special deck of 150 cards with rules for playing five unique games. As she looks closer, she realizes that it is not a board game at all, just cards, and she jokes in her caption that she apparently decided it was a board game. She mentions the date 1963 and says she is not sure whether that is when this particular set was made, but the cards are in great condition.
It was while she was holding the card game that something crawled up her sleeve. A spider had joined the exploration, and she let out a yelp. She later wrote that a spider crawled up her sleeve while she held the cards, and it is safe to say it made the moment memorable. She also admits that sometimes the place stresses her out, and at one point says she hopes there will not be bones. Instead, she finds cards.
Paper, Scissors and a Radio Sheet
According to her caption, the rest of the first two boxes held pieces of old newspapers, an old radio time sheet showing what was playing and when, and a pair of old scissors. One container turned out to be empty, and she says she expected there to be a lot more stuff than there was.
She then found another box, which she nearly wrote off as trash. It was not. She teases a Part 2, saying she has learned she needs to stop assuming anything in this attic is trash.
A Little About Flinch
Flinch is a real classic. It is a card game that first appeared in the early 1900s and became a family favorite for decades. The deck is made up of numbered cards, and players try to be the first to get rid of the cards in their own stack by playing them in numerical order on shared piles. It has been produced by several publishers over the years, including Parker Brothers, which is why different editions look quite different from one another.
Because it was so popular and so portable, it is not unusual to find old Flinch decks in family homes. The value of a set depends on the edition, the condition of the cards and the box, and whether the deck is complete. A deck that is intact and in good shape is likely to interest collectors of vintage games, though it is wise to look at recently sold listings to get a realistic idea rather than guessing.
How to Explore an Attic Safely and Smartly
Her afternoon provides a good opportunity to talk about how to tackle your own attic or storage space. Many of us have boxes tucked away from relatives, and sorting them can be a joy. A few simple habits can make it safer and more rewarding.
- Dress for the job. Long sleeves and gloves are a good idea, as she can attest after meeting that spider. A dust mask is smart too, since old attics can be dusty.
- Bring good light. A flashlight or work light helps you see where you are stepping, and also helps you read dates and labels.
- Watch your footing. Attic floors can be uneven or only partly floored. Step only on solid surfaces, and do not go up alone if you can avoid it.
- Do not assume anything is trash. Her closing note says it best. Something that looks like junk can turn out to be paper, photographs or small objects that tell a story about the house.
- Open boxes one at a time. Set up a table or a clean sheet nearby, lay out what you find and take photos before you move things.
- Handle old paper gently. Newspapers and printed sheets can be brittle. Support them from below and avoid tape or folding.
- Record where things were found. A quick note about which box or corner something came from can help you piece together who lived there and when.
- Watch for pests. Spiders are the least of it in some attics. Shake out boxes outdoors when you can, and wear gloves when you reach into dark corners.
Why Small Finds Still Matter
It is easy to feel let down when a box is not full of treasure. But an old radio time sheet, a stack of newspapers and a family card game can say a lot about everyday life in an earlier time. The radio sheet, for example, hints at what the people who lived in the house listened to. Even a plain pair of scissors can connect you to the hands that used them.
If you find something like Flinch, you can also try it out. Playing a game that was once played at that very house is a lovely way to connect with the past, and it makes a great activity for grandchildren too. Just be careful with delicate cards, and consider a modern replacement deck if you want to play it often.
It also helps to decide ahead of time what you plan to do with what you find. Some families keep a single box of keepsakes, others photograph items and pass along copies to relatives, and some donate or sell duplicates. Having even a loose plan keeps an attic project from turning into a pile of boxes that moves from one corner to another.
The best part of her story might be that it is only the beginning. With a second box that nearly got tossed and a promise of more to come, this attic exploration shows how a little curiosity can turn a dusty chore into an adventure.
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