The Found Year

I love garage sales. Or yard sales. Whichever you prefer. I’ve never understood the difference (because when I was growing up our garage sales were always held in the yard since we didn’t have a garage), but I’ve always suspected a classist distinction. Regardless, I love going to them. I love having them. I love selling my junk and buying other people’s junk. I think I inherited it from my Mom.

I remember having a garage sale (in the yard) every year when I was a kid. We’d put card tables out in the front yard and cover them with all the stuff we’d accumulated over the previous year that was now worn out. Clothes. Games. Chipped dishes. Random stuff from the junk drawer. Old toys. Old shoes. Old electronics. Books. Magazines. You name it we sold it.

As an adult, I’ve probably had about half a dozen garage sales myself. Sometimes I get so excited to sell stuff that I sell things I don’t even want to get rid of! That’s probably just crazy, but if my old junk can make someone happy, it makes me feel good.

I’m planning for a garage sale right now for two reasons:

1. Get rid of junk. We don’t need it. We don’t want it. We are looking to lighten our load in this year and get rid of things that are just weighing us down.Check out my minimalism challenge for more ideas on how to de-clutter your life.
2. Make some money. Every $30 we make is a day of sabbatical in Thailand. Seriously. I measure all my spending and earning in thirty dollar increments now.

To be honest, we’ve also bought more stuff than I anticipated for our pop up camping adventure (sabbatical part I), and I like to stay balanced by purging when we bring in a lot of new stuff. So, that’s exactly what we are doing.

Don’t need it? Toss it! Don’t wear it? Sell it! Don’t like it? Get rid of it! No more holding on to things “just in case.” Life is too short to live like that. We are committed to living fully every day and in the moment, so having “what if” clutter around just doesn’t jive with our new life philosophy.

Here’s a preliminary list of the stuff we are clearing out! Whatever doesn’t sell will make it to the donation bin. Consider going minimal and having a garage sale (or yard sale) of your own!

To Sell

• Dishes. We have too many.
• Cookware. We only need one of things.
• DVDs. We don’t watch them.
• XBox and games. We don’t play it.
• Art supplies. Wasting space.
• Clothes. I have too many.
• Extraneous home decor. Just dust catchers.
• Anything in the garage that we haven’t used in a year. Mystery box anyone?
• Purses. So many purses.
• Books. I’ve never re-read a book in my life.
• Dog crate. No longer needed.
• Grill we inherited.  Never used by us.
• Jewelry. I never wear it.
• Old blankets. Ready to be retired.
• Bookshelves. Because we’re selling our books.
• Fake plants. AKA dust monsters. Who has the time to clean leaves one at a time? Not me!
• Art that doesn’t make my heart sing or head think.
• Old luggage. Still usable.
• Weightlifting bench and weights. Never used. Sad.
• Old sleeping bags. Not ours and not sure whose they are!
• Gutters. If someone buys these, I’ll do a happy dance. Probably will just trash.
• Mismatched cocktail glasses.
• Extra dog stuff.
• Stationary bicycle stand. Never used. Sad.
• Dresser that doesn’t match anything.
• Lawn mower. We just went artificial!
• Builder installed lighting. Tempted to hold on to it in case we need it when we finish the basement, but I don’t really like it so why would I?
• Random collectibles. No more collecting anything except experiences.
• Random junk. No drawer, no closet, no box will be safe from clearance!

To Buy (yes, there are still a few things I’m scouring for on Craig’s List and at sales)

• Camping equipment
• Books I haven’t read (cheaper than buying new on my Kindle)
• Patio furniture for our newly landscaped backyard
• Awning lights for the Freedom Machine (aka pop up camper)

Note: Our garage sale (sans garage) is tentatively planned for April 29, the day after my last day of work! How apropos for this new chapter of our life.