Summer means vacations and fishing to some, but to many the word summer is interchangeable with the words “garage / yard / porch, etc. sale.” Tis' the season of the year to drive around and seek valuable information contained on garage/yard sale signs that dot every street corner, every electric pole, etc.
After all one wants to make sure that said garage/yard sale is selling good stuff - - like old, moldy plastic flowers, or that half open bag of grass seed, maybe that special purple tie-dyed "I'm with stupid" t-shirt you been searching for for 3 years, them amazingly well kept bent aluminum window frames, or just maybe you'll see way off on the side, one of them rare, elusive Canadian sofa bushes, etc.
It’s the Time of the Signs!
In the early days of garage / yard sales, the days of selling were just usually Friday and Saturday, now most sales take place starting on Thursdays and running until Sundays. Most garage sales have set times however it has been noticed on occasion that those who arrive early with pockets full of money often make their own rules.
I’ve noticed that some people price every item while some have various islands of goods organized by price, I prefer the island theme but that’s difficult unless you’re selling books or like items.
One difficult part of garage/yard sales is trying to competitively price items, I mean you wouldn't want to give away them bent window frames for less then they're worth, now would ya? A ten cent used bottle of Elmer's glue that would have gone home with someone instead was priced at fifteen cents and sadly returned to storage, to await another day. The seller’s high hopes of a little less clutter are only partially realized, and the effort to carry everything back inside is only greater in comparison to what was needed to first display everything.
Some folks buy garage sale stuff and just use it, some are just looking for project ideas, they will build planters, bird feeders, benches and whatever from items many folks throw away, or sell at garage sales.
Others go around looking for parts, in fact while researching a bit for this post, I discovered Mr. Jalopy. Mr. Jalopy finds parts / items bound for oblivion and creates something useful, interesting or both. He recently rewired an old stereo that he could record vinyl albums to an I pod. He also gives a lot of credence to those who garage sale creatively in that he is a leader of something called, “The Maker Movement.” This movement is composed of people who make items bound for a landfill into something useful. My Jalopy has even been consulted by large corporations who seek to market their products to people like him. The “Maker Movement” is supposed to be a new group in America’s culture, however I believe it’s simply making do with what you have, or with what you find at a garage sale.
Then you have some who garage sale just for fun, others for their children’s dorm room, while others have a whimsy to satisfy. If times are indeed getting a little tougher, then garage sales make even more sense than ever. You can save money over buying new and a week-end of sales are much less expensive than the same time spent boating on a lake. Plus, where in the world are you going to find old, moldy plastic flowers or bent aluminum window frames, competitively priced, but at a garage sale.
Talking about all this got me to remembering a story I heard while back at the Pinnebog General Store about Miriam and Soloma.
Seems them two love garage sales, especially Soloma and they're always on the lookout for a big bargain wherever they can fine one. Well one day, they were driving along when Soloma spyed a garage and driveway full of stuff. Getting all giddy she started to yell at Miriam, STOP! STOP! STOP! Miriam slammed on the brakes, thinking she hit a dog or something.
Soloma jumped out and started towards the driveway and garage. There were all kinds of things, such as baby toys, sports equipment and household items, this was one of the best Garage Sales she had found in a long time.
Miriam was trying to park the car while Soloma was already looking around, but something was odd. She noticed there was no one else at the house looking around, and then she noticed there weren’t any price tags or a sign in the yard. She looked at the owners of the house and they were smiling.
“Is this a Garage Sale?” she asked?
“No, but it should be,” "We're just moving in" the husband replied as they both started laughing. Soloma's face turned tomato red as she apologized then hightailed it back to the car.
Have a special day and a great week!
