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There's not much marking the entrance to Junkstore Cowboy—just a few arrows and a sign reading, "You never know what you'll find."
That's mostly true of the tiny vintage store in the basement of Mississippi Records. But four days a week, there is one thing you can bet on finding down there: Portland punk legend Toody Cole.
Cole—bass guitarist for Dead Moon, Pierced Arrows and the Rats—opened Junkstore Cowboy in August, two years after the death of her bandmate and husband of 50 years, Fred Cole.
Related: Fred Cole Lived and Created Entirely on His Own Terms, and Portland Followed His Lead.
"I love thrifting, and it was very cathartic for me to be able to go out and do that the first year after Fred passed," says Cole, 70. "This was an idea Fred and I talked about for years. We were going to 'retire' and do something like this as a hobby."
Depending on when you come in, you'll find everything from unopened Fisher-Price toys from the 1970s to vintage dishware and clothes to old musical equipment from the Coles' former retail store, Captain Whizeagle's, all packed in a space not much larger than a child's bedroom
"It's just kind of things that catch my eye," Cole says of the inventory. "Things that look old, look cool, look collectible."
But Junkstore Cowboy isn't just a year-round garage sale—it's also become a destination for touring punk-rockers, who stop in to chat about Dead Moon or snag Cole's autograph.
"When I first opened, there were still a lot of bands touring from out of town, and a lot of people came down [to the store], which was really cool," Cole says. "I miss that camaraderie of being on tour and being backstage with different bands and whatnot."
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