i was going to have a garage/yard sale, but i am on a hard to find street, so i decided to load up my pickup and head to the flea market. wooohoooooooo i am so happy, i made $625.00 today !!!

some of the crap i figured i'd have to end up tossing out, people fought over and that stuff sold right away. and conversely, stuff i figured was valuable and folks would want, never sold. go figure.

got a sunburn. ouch. i got to the flea market at 5am and started setting up. by 5:30 am, folks were out with flashlights trying to earlybird cherry pick. i was amazed, it was my first time selling at a flea market. i made $200 by 6am. sun wasn't even up yet.

i've lived in this house for 7 years now, and i STILL have some boxes i've never unpacked. thats one of the reasons i decided to sell stuff. also, 2 car garage and could just barely squeeze one vehicle inside. i reckon i still have 2, maybe 3 pickup loads to sell. its just amazing what people will buy, and what they will refuse to buy. couldn't EVEN give away mre's and computer related stuff. and in a sort of different way of thinking, it kinda made me feel good to think that people were getting some things they needed, at a really good price, instead of me just ignoring it while it hogged up space in the garage forever.

what amazed me are all the people who make their living at the flea market. i can't exactly figure out where they get all their stuff, obviously they have to get it during the week. they all tell me "oh i get stuff at garage sales" but who has garage sales during the week? i have a regular 40 hour a week job, and i kept telling people that i just wanted to sell stuff off and get rid of it. some folks are so skeptical. i priced stuff low and cheap, telling folks i was going to sell it and not haul it back home again. everybody was really nice, i only got insulted once. some people!! in the end, i only brought a couple boxes of stuff back home. those dang mre's, some computer software, and a few miscelleaneous items.

its amazing what this flea market has. there are even regulars who sell small livestock every weekend. chickens, ducks, baby pigs, etc etc etc. i sure had fun.

made a few new friends today, my "neighbors" in the surrounding stalls. turns out each was a regular vendor, each there pretty much every weekend. they explained that they were each others "family" out there, they keep track of each other and worry when someone doesn't show up. when i left at noon, each gave me a hug or handshake and told me to be sure to come back soon. sure made me feel good. i had no idea.

well, i guess thats enough rambling. everyone have a nice and safe day and take care.

gene

-- gene ward (gward34847@aol.com), June 09, 2001

Answers

One great source is auctions at storage facilities that are closing out foreclosure units. Storage USA here in Albuquerque for instance sells the entire unit for one price and the usually go for little more than a song. You can't go into the units and it's sight unseen aside from standing at the open door and as is where is and you must vacate the unit within 24 hours. Seen some mighty nice stuff go for next to nothing.

-- Willy Allen (willyallen2@yahoo.com), June 09, 2001.

We have used flea markwts as an income suppliment ever since Lynn quit work to be a SAHM. They are so much easier than setting up a yard sale.

-- Jay Blair in N. AL (jayblair678@yahoo.com), June 10, 2001.

i tell ya what, this motivated me. i'd like to learn more about how folks find merchandise to sell. obviously i'd never quit my regular job, due to great health care benefits first and foremost, but also paid vacation, etc etc etc. but makeing an extra fistful of cash once or twice a month sure makes a HUGE difference.

can any of you who do sales give me some idea of how and where you get stuff?

i do know that the local salvation army has an auction 3 times a week to raise their operating cash by selling off donated items. what else???

thanks gene

-- gene ward (gward34847@aol.com), June 10, 2001.

One trick to the storag shed shopping that I picked up from a friend is to mount one of those curved truck mirrors on a stick and use it to reach into the shed and get a look at the goodies inside. Some places will let you do that. Said fried high-bidded a really loser- looking bin (ripped couch, crappy stuff up front) for a song and walked off with two or three (dang memory!) near-to-new, spiffed-up Harley Davidson Hogs that were hidden behind all the crapola. Ya never know til you check it out.

Note on the MRE's. They really never go bad - we save them for emergency use (hurricanes, etc) and keep a few in the car in case we ever get stuck somewhere. If you live out near some larger cities, put a case or two in your car and see if any of the homeless could use a bite to eat. Chance are, if you off-load them somewhere near a tent city or cardboard shack area, they'll be gone before your tailights fade into the darkness. Never forget that there is no such thing as surplus food in this world.

-- Soni (thomkilroy@hotmail.com), June 10, 2001.

Hi Gene! We have done flea markets for years. During the nice weather, u would be surprised how many people have yard/garage sales during the week. Just look in the newspaper and go driving around. We have bought gobs of stuff and re-sold them. A lot of the stuff (in my opinion) was pure junk, but sold like hotcakes. Other items, we learned, sold depending upon the time of the year and the seasons. Believe it or not, our biggest selling times of Christmas items was in July and November. One thing I've found at yard/garage sales and auctions is is that if you go nearer to closing/end of the day, or the last day of the sale, people are so willing to get rid of their stuff that a lot of times they give stuff away or sell it for .25 cents a box (big boxes i might add). We also buy figurines, hobby stuff, housewares, at Bargain Supply Co. in Louisville, KY and they have a website. A lot of the over-priced items u see in the truck stops and gift shops can be found there and re-sold for less than the stops or shops. Good luck! Traci

-- Traci rae Davis (krystalgrace61@yahoo.com), June 10, 2001.