‘One man’s trash is another man’s treasure’
From the Editor
As I drove my kids from house to house all those Saturday mornings, I never told them we were yard saling to save money. Rather, we were treasure hunting! Who knows what kind of great stuff we might find out there, in the wild.
The best yard sales were the neighborhood ones where you could park your car and stroll from one house to the next. Often, we’d encounter young children at the end of driveways, selling lemonade and snacks. I always felt compelled to support their endeavors and make a purchase (even if my taste buds didn’t always agree with their concoctions).
Barbie dolls were the first treasures. At 50 cents each my girls could go home with new dolls and a bag full of accessories. Hours of imaginative play ensued and I felt a lot better dropping 50 cents or a few dollars than spending a hundred at the mall. My son loved Thomas the Tank Engine. Finding the engines, tracks or accessories at a yard sale delighted us both.
While I relished the thrill of yard sale discoveries, having a yard sale was a completely different story. The early bird shoppers, arriving before I set up, left me drained, and the haggling gave me a headache. I’ll never forget the time I sold a basketball for a dollar, only for the buyer to drive off in a luxury car after bargaining it down to 50 cents. Despite the effort expended, the financial return never seemed to match up.
The treasures we searched for evolved over the years, from toys and games to vintage books and high-end clothes. When the kids were in middle school, it became a running joke that mom “braked for yard sales” – no matter what and even if we were running late to get somewhere. I really wasn’t that bad! I could do the math though. The costs of raising three kids, mortgage, braces and always something unexpected, left us with little extra in the budget. There’s no doubt that the yard sales stretched our dollars!
There came a terrible time in their late teens, when my kids would turn up their noses at the thought or mention of a yard sale. But as life often does, it came full circle. Now, as independent adults, my children appreciate the value of a good yard sale-find just as much as I do. I mentioned to my daughter that I was planning to write about our yard sale days. Her response warmed my heart as she shared her favorite treasures she found and how she loved those times we spent together.
Many of the municipalities now have city-wide yard sales on a designated day. Look for those listings in the weeks to come on the Events and Happenings page in Shore Local.
As always, thank you for picking up this issue of Shore Local. It means a lot to us. Email shorelocalnews@gmail.com with your suggestions or story ideas.
Let the hunt for treasures continue, and may each yard sale excursion be filled with joy, nostalgia, and delightful discoveries!
Peace & Love,
Cindy
