posted on February 10, 2002 05:58:42 AM
Yesterday was pretty much a bust. There were several estate sales listed in the paper, so we thought we would take a crack at them.
Sale 1: No signs anywhere on the house, mailbox, etc. With only 3 cars in the driveway, we weren't sure we were at the right house. Turns out we were. The seller meets us at the door and says "everything's for sale, make an offer." We overhear a buyer in the kitchen make an offer on an item and the seller says "I just bought that yesterday, it's not for sale." The lady says "I thought everything's for sale?" and the buyer says "everything but that." We left.
Sale 2: Large fundraiser sale held inside a large gymnasium. Nothing good, we move on.
[/b]Sale 3[/b]: Again, no signs! What's up with that? This sale was supposed to start at 9:00 a.m. and we get there at 10:30. Nothing interesting left except an overpriced antique dresser and more overpriced cast iron pans. Gone again.
Sale 4: This was an estate sale of an apparently very wealthy family. It was a main home and two smaller guest cottages. You could pay for your items in any of the three homes. The one thing I was interested in buying was not priced and there wasn't enough people "in charge" to find out how much they wanted for it. The Lamb Chop puppet is probably still lying on the couch where I left him. Now here's the weird part, one of the heirs was at the sale who, quite obviously, lived far away and was still extremely upset about the death of this person. She was crying, sobbing, whailing, etc. I tried hard to get away from her but she seemed to always be around the next corner. Nothing bought here either.
Sale 5: The ad listed antiques, but they were really reproductions. Another one bites the dust.
We gave up on the estate sales at this point.
Junk Shop: Nice pink depression bowl with lid in mint condition. Paid $5 and don't care what it's worth.
Auction: After sitting through 3 hours and only buying one item, here come the box lots! I have my hands on a box and some sucker (I use this term lightly) reaches around and snatches it out from under me. There was a miscommunication between the auctioneer and one of the workers and they let him have it. My husband is still (this morning) mad about this one.
After 18 hours, we are out a total of $46 for the day. So how did you come out?
posted on February 10, 2002 06:34:42 AM
18 hours and 46 dollars-you and hubby on a joyride ,this is cheap,no cover charge,met interesting people ,one from out of state.fresh air ,nice houses to visit,what more do you want?of course they could serve cocktail ??
posted on February 10, 2002 08:17:26 AM
Sounds rough, but then, you're depending on the integrity of strangers, which is always dicey.
It's funny. I used to drag my beloved to these sales regularly; he hated to go...until he found something wonderful and valuable (which he still has). Now he bugs ME to stop the car when he sees a sign.
I think the only win is to grow philosophical about the game. Most times you lose, but sometimes you win, and when you do, it can be spectacular.
I actually enjoy seeing how other people lived at estate sales, even though it can be creepy or downright unnerving, like the experience you had with the grieving relative. I wonder why one of her family members wasn't taking care of her.
Better times are ahead, as well as days just as frustrating as yesterday. It's all part of the game. I'll bet you have certain "comfort" rituals to help you keep your spirits up. For us, it's a stop at a popular breakfast-only place for a nice tall stack of blueberry pancakes. Yum.
posted on February 10, 2002 09:04:16 AM
I have had those days too. Sometimes I can go to 30 sales and not find a thing and sometimes I can go to only 4 or 5 and come back with my car full. It is just a matter of timing and luck.
But the even better part no matter what happens is you get to meet a bunch of nice people through out your travels.
Good luck,
bp
