This past weekend I found myself working an estate sale for a seller who was seriously injured while staging the same sale. I promised to help and I did. But I’d long forgotten what it was like to jump out of bed at 6:00 am, shower, and put on makeup just to hit the road to sit in traffic. But I arrived on time and was ready when the doors opened at 9:00 am. My adrenaline was flowing and it felt good until – a shopper put her cell phone in my face and showed me that Amazon priced the same hair dryer $2 less than ours. It was new and so was ours. Caught off guard, I just stared at her. She DEMANDED to know what I was going to do about it. Like an idiot, I told her “We’ll keep it until discounts kick in.” Oops, not the right answer. Another “regular” who worked the sale told her we’d accept her price. Then the shopper pulled out her credit card to pay. And that’s when I ever so nicely told her, “We are cash only.” She left with a scowl on her face and empty handed.
The morning was a rough start for me, but I knew it would get better. And sure enough, the nicest, funniest young man came through – Danny B. He was having a good time talking with everyone while shopping and I, of course, listened in. At one point he referred to our sale as … “A GARAGE SALE.” No way was I going to let that go unchallenged. There are differences and I began to rattle them off …
- A garage sale is something you see while driving down the street at 40 mph and keep going because it’s obvious there isn’t anything there.
- A garage sale is all clothes, toys, and clear glass flower vases. Bring lots of quarters.
- A garage sale has a few pieces (maybe) of worn out furniture, Walmart bikes with flat tires, and paperbacks.
- A garage sale is someone’s opportunity to make a few bucks before heading up I-35 to Chocktaw Casino.
- A garage sale doesn’t happen when it rains … or snows … or Dallas gets hit with inclimate weather.
- A garage sale is usually conducted by the homeowner who knows virtually nothing about pricing.
So what is an estate sale? Check back next week and I’ll tell you what Fred and I think.
If you have any comments about garage sales or estate sales … I’m listening. Send me an e-mail @ tlb155@airmail.net. I’ll make you famous next week!