jaunthie | Garage Sales

I participated in a multifamily garage sale today. My parents live on a block that was having one, so

fisherbear and I took a bunch of stuff we'd been intending to get rid of anyway over to their house last night. This morning we grabbed coffee for the four of us from our favorite coffee place at 7 a.m., and then went to my parents' house to help set up. The sale was scheduled to start at 9 a.m.

Naturally enough, we had our first buyers show up around 7:30.

Garage sales really are a world of their own. By the time things wrapped up, I'd learned or remembered many important things about being part of garage sales:

They are exhausting.

Items are only worth as much as people are willing to pay for them.

Early birds to garage sales come in two categories: the really cranky, rude people who want to get the "best stuff" first and are pissed that things aren't perfect; and really nice specialists who are hunting for their particular mania and are thrilled if you'll let them look early, or check to see if you have that, or whatever. Needless to say, I much prefer the latter to the former.

People go gaga for the damndest things.

People utterly ignore some items you'd think would be wildly popular and/or make someone's day.

Making someone's day because they found something really special (to them) and you're selling it for fifty cents or a buck or whatever is a really good feeling.

Sometimes people really do come back for that item they said they might come back for.

Good take-out Indian after a day of dealing with garage sale setup, selling, breakdown, and cleanup is a really, really wonderful thing.

Tomorrow we'll have to go back to help with cleanup from the "free sale" one of the neighbors is hosting to help get rid of the stuff that didn't sell today. Hopefully, though, there won't be much left. We'll see!