Some things I never seem to learn from

Two years ago I distinctly remember flopping on the couch exhausted and saying, "I will never do this again."
Almost two years to the exact date, here I am again exhausted after a two-day garage sale.  And once again, I've said, "I'm never doing this again!"

It's funny how I somehow forget how much work it is to prepare for a garage sale and then clean up afterwards.  I spent probably four evenings in the basement dragging out "stuff" for it.  I had nothing large to really sell so it was boxes and boxes of small stuff. 

Up and down the basement steps I went to drag box after box out to the garage.  My husband helped me price a lot of it which was very helpful, but it was still a BIG job.

I did sell a lot of it which was nice, but I've also spent the last three hours cleaning up.  Tables taken down, folded and put away...borrowed tables placed by the garage so that I can deliver them back to their owners.  Only four small boxes went back downstairs which is pretty good.  And about six boxes are being taken to Goodwill.  It's just a lot of work no matter how you look at it.

I think what I detest the most about garage sales...well, aside from the amount of work that goes into them, are the customers who who want to haggle over a $2 item that is obviously worth a lot more than $2.

The best one today was a woman who pulled a t-shirt and pair of shorts from a table among my 22 year old daughter's clothes.  These were NOT kid's clothes but adult clothes.  So, I had each piece priced at $1 which I felt was a bargain for a hardly worn shirt, jeans, sweatshirts, shorts...all of which were on the table. 

Well, the woman pulls out the t-shirt and matching shorts and because they match, she wants them both for $1.  Really?  After an eye roll, I sell them together for a buck.  I told myself that, although she is dressed to the nines, maybe she really can't afford more than that.  But honestly, it's people like that or the woman that wanted a 50 cent hardly worn leather belt for a dime that really make me detest having garage sales.  If I wanted to just give my stuff away, I would have taken it ALL to the Goodwill.

Maddie and Kelsey

Trying to find the positive in the week-long event, I'd say those positives are:

• My girlfriend's sixth grade daughter, Maddie, wanted to sell her clothes to make some money so she came over and sat with me both days.  That was fun!
• My own daughter, Kelsey, sat outside with us for most of the time too which was fun!
• I also saw some wonderful acts of kindness in kids.  One boy about six years old bought his mother one of my candles for her for Mother's Day.  When he told us he'd be giving the candle to his mom, he also showed us a necklace and earrings he had purchased at another garage sale down the street.  He couldn't have been more proud of his dime store necklace.  His reaction was priceless!
• Another shopper, a neighbor girl in the second grade, was out shopping for her cousin.  It wasn't the cousin's birthday, the neighbor girl was just wanting to buy her cousin a present.  Too cute and very considerate.

So, with a whopping profit of $162....another garage sale is behind us.  I'm thinking if I divide that profit by just the hours it took me to prepare for the sale and sit outside for two days, I made about $6 an hour. 

Somebody please remind me next year about this post and talk me out of EVER doing a garage sale again!