I am what I am

I'm an admitted consumer. I'm not terribly proud of that but I am also not totally ashamed by it either. I believe my consumerism to be somewhat in check since most of my wardrobe hails from either Target or Old Navy and my home is furnished primarily with family heirlooms - some more heirloomy than others, if you know what I mean.

The obvious hurdles to overcome in being a successful consumer are the ability to purge things you're no longer using and to finance new purchases.  Having hit a crossroads this winter where our storage room is completely maxed out in its storage capacity and the items on the wish list are a little more substantial than a new pair of flip-flops, I've decided it's time to hold the dreaded garage sale. I've put this off for years but I think it's a workable solution to freeing up some space around here while offering some gently used items to others who might like a good bargain and also, hopefully, generating a little cash-ola.  I'm thinking this is a really good, environmentally-friendly win-win for me and my potential shoppers.

I've set a date and have enlisted help from my mom, who is a garage-sale hosting veteran.  Because our location is not terribly conducive to cars parking on the street I thought I would mention to our neighbors - the ones most inconvenienced by the traffic disaster I will hopefully create - my plan, as a neighborly heads up. I also mentioned that if they had any interest in a garage sale of their own perhaps we could coordinate our efforts.  That was really a sidenote to my message, but just a thought.

This afternoon I found my mailbox full of mail, but most of it belonged to the aforementioned neighbor. When the boys and I went to deliver it she told me that she had received my message and thanked me for letting her know but assured me that they wouldn't be interested in having a sale that day.  I reiterated that I just wanted to make them aware of my plans from a parking perspective and was ready to walk away.  That's when she said it, with more than a hint of judgment.

"Thanks for notifying us, but we would never have a sale here because...well...we're just really not garage sale people." 

Oh.  I see how it is. I apparently am "garage sale people."  I think she thought I might be dissuaded and that I might look at her differently after that position statement. 

Let me assure you. I'm not and I do. So, come mid-May, the neighbors should be prepared for the Hondos to drag every last piece of junk we have right out onto the driveway. I'm thinking that the directional signs will be in neon colors and maybe we'll get Andrew out there on a loudspeaker to auction off the double stroller.  Then she'll see exactly what "garage sale people" look like. 

This should be fun.