Missive From the Great Other :

A Yard Sale of Real People — And a small revelation.

I held a yard sale today — it was very enlightening! After spending most of the month of April preparing, repairing, shifting and “shovering”, I set up the Ad, then set up the sale (after carting the haul to the front yard). My selling point was that “I’m cheaper than China” — probably not entirely accurate, but it fit my mood. I live in a small town. I’m a “garage sale fanatic” for most of my life. It was a beautiful, sunny day and a fine one to be an observer of life outside of the current angst fed by our ever present media bubble. Take no offense, I take great comfort in belonging to this bubble, but all things can become bubbles if not interrupted by occasional reality.

And — so it was today. I had gone to a lot of trouble to clean, scrub, polish, and even primp my belongings so they were at their best for their on-stage appearance. Good Grooming works, even if you are auditioning for being a sales point in a small-town garage sale. Placement is as important in heaps of linens as it is in real estate. You know: location, location, location. It also holds true that there is another very valuable factor in success at a garage sale.You see, I am a life-long buyer of re-sold goods.

And here we are at the scene today, and I have learned a few things. It appears that this particular trait holds many surprises for any observer. Look closely:

1. There may be wear and tear to the product that you either fail to notice, or do not have the skills to repair.

2. There may have been efforts to conceal defects by the current owner that ruin the value or function of what you are about to buy.

This seems simple enough and transparent enough, but how will you know enough to recognize these things? That would be your own knowledge, but where do you find knowledge? It is usually found residing in a brain that has absorbed other knowledge.

1. Do not look for this commodity without considering the information source.

2. Test the information against reliable sources. It might not be very valid if obtained from “the man in the street”. So, you will find that you are always testing, testing, testing.

How does some one know this? There’s the trick. You have to pay attention — all the time — to everything. When you do that, you begin to play that old game: “how is this thing not like the other”. This should be followed by a rousing round of “how is this thing the same as something similar”.

So, this is what I learned today: People love to come to these sales. It’s not necessity, it’s treasure hunting, it’s hobby appraisal, it’s ‘’Oh, look!” I remember that, that’s just what I needed, there’s my next door neighbor, we haven’t seen each other for months. Why the thought occurs that “Community” as inter-action”, might just awaken all of us, might accommodate new ways of solving old problems.

H-m-m-m-m-m! For some reason, my mind just segued to that old “Star Wars” bait ending — there’s Han Solo — suddenly super-frozen by his old enemy, Jabba the Hutt. But, we’ll have to wait and see the next installment to see if he is rescued. Gee! Too bad real life isn’t as simple as a scripted plot. Maybe, just maybe, that’s why real life is better than being continually seduced by a circuitous plot; with facts that change only when the actor must be replaced.

Oh! There is one other thing — this might be about things other than garage sales as well. Could be —