Garage Sale Guru

Hello, my name is Hilary, and I am a Garage Sale Addict. It feels good to get that off my chest.

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I do not know how this happened. I do not feel that I was genetically predisposed in any way. Growing up, I was firmly against garage sales. Our jumprope team held a fundraising garage sale every year. I would get knots in my stomach and pray that no one I knew would see me manning the tin cash box adding the masking taped price tags.

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I saw this "shopping" as a form of financial weakness - a way of stating you were content with mediocrity and a self-declaration that you did not feel you deserved the best.

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My second obstacle was the guilt I would feel over leaving a garage sale without purchasing anything. I would feel tremendous pressure to not hurt the sellers feelings. I was self-centered enough to think that their whole self-esteem and satisfaction hung on the balance of me purchasing their old flower pots for 50 cents. I have since turned into a shrewd business woman, not letting my feelings of guilt drive my financial decisions.

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As I have gotten older and stopped caring about what other people think, I have slowly embraced this new lifestyle.

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It is the thrill of the hunt, the dew on grass that denotes you are one of the first ones and a sale, the blood rushing through your veins as you pull up and see an air hockey table for $7.00, the jubilation of finding a new pair of shoes in your size with the store price tag still attached, the mathematical calculations in your head of how much money you have saved, and the satisfaction of announcing to the world the incredible purchases you have just made.

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As a warning, this blog may turn into a forum for me to do just that, tell you all about my incredible purchases.

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As you see above, I made a haul today. How much did I spend you ask? Drumroll please....$15 total. I got 4 new pairs of Polo capri's for $3 a piece (as you see, one still had the $59 pricetag from Dillards), a myriad of new books for my kids (including several Usborne books - you will know what I am talking about if you have a pushy neighbor that is licensed to throw Usborne book parties to stay at home Moms), a new Barbie Doll for a quarter, a Cherry-O board game for a dollar, and a near-life size Semi truck for Uno Dinero.

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I will now offer an official invitation for anyone to join me on a Saturday morning hunt. Bring your dollar bills and keep your eyes peeled for a good bargain, and I promise you will go home with a whole new lease on life.