Adventures in Yard-Saleing

Until yesterday, the most experience I had with putting on a yard sale was selling Kool-aid and fruit roll ups at our neighborhood sales in Oklahoma. 

Who knew they required so much...effort?!

First, you have to go through all of your stuff to find what you want to put in. If you are me, this means you pick up the item and  toss it in the "keep" pile until you realize that your "sell" pile has nothing in it. You then proceed to move everything to the "sell" pile. 

I had to develop a new motto: Don't think. If you think, you might reflect on how much you paid for the item, or how much sentimental value it has. That's dangerous: thinking is bad.

Next, you buy yard sale signs and post on craigslist. This is generally pretty easy, unless a few hours after you put up the signs, huge gusts of wind and rain blow them all down. 

If it is a yard sale, you have to wake up super early to put the stuff outside. If you are me, you like it to look all pretty and organized. This never lasts long, of course. 

Then comes the interesting part: the yard sale go-ers. This is a diverse lot of people; many are just looking for a good deal and you are only an obstacle to this goal.

If you are me (aka inexperienced and lazy) and opt for a "name your own price" policy, you will soon discover the gravity of your mistake. It is wise to have a friend around who is less of a pushover. If you feel weak in your stance on a price, you just give them the look and they do the mean work for you. Done. Phew, glad that was settled...

Last, if you have your yard sale in the spring, you run the risk of rain. It will probably come at a most inopportune time, such as during the middle of a crucial sale. Nature will thus have dictated your income that day.

Don't get me wrong. Yard sales are good learning experiences. A few friendly folks will elicit that warm neighborly bonding feeling, and of course, you can't neglect that nice fat bag of cash. 

Plus, it's eco-friendly!!! Reduce, reuse, recycle, my friends :)