Last Saturday I had a yard sale. For anyone who has yet to have one, it is a tremendous amount of work. Hauling all the "stuff" up from the basement, sorting and organizing it in the garage, finding tables to put it all on, and pricing everything is not only time consuming - it's exhausting. And yet...
I've had many yard sales over the years and really enjoy the experience.
As I stood in the garage, late Friday afternoon, painting cardboard signs to hang at the end of my street, I wondered if it was all worth it.
What is so appealing about opening my yard to strangers and hoping that at the end of five hours my stuff will be gone?
It certainly isn't the money...if you put a $5 sticker on something you originally paid $75 for, you may end up getting $3 for it.
I actually had a woman ask if I would "take less" on something I had marked twenty five cents. Less? Less than twenty five cents?
This is what is so great about having a yard sale...human nature! I love the interaction and the overall carnival atmosphere of it all. Sure, it's a wonderful thing to "clean house" and make a little extra money, but it's the people that make it fun!
Yard Sailors are happy, fun people. Happiness is contagious so there's a lot of joking and laughing and smiling at yard sales. Treasure hunting puts people in a good mood...and when they find their treasure in your garage it's a wonderful thing.
Among all the happy shoppers in my garage on Saturday, there were two special moments that made me smile:
The Football Mom: She was so happy to find a like-new duffel bag for only $2 for her little boy's first year of football. She told me that she couldn't afford a new bag and he never would have gotten such a nice bag if not for my yard sale. The little boy was so excited as he proudly carried his new bag down the driveway.
The Perfume Lady: She asked if I had any makeup or perfume I didn't want. I had a bottle of Opium, practically full, that I didn't want. I sold it to her for $5 (along with a small powder and a tube of lotion) and you would have thought I had given her the moon. She told me that she can't afford luxury items like perfume and this meant a lot to her.
The preparation may be a lot of work, and most people probably think a waste of time, but I enjoyed opening the garage door and letting those treasure hunters in. It's a great feeling knowing I had some part in making someone else smile.
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