Tag: garage sale

  • Garage sale thoughts

    The last two days I’ve been in charge of the sale department for our garage sale. So while Kristen may have done the majority of the work, she simply has no ability/desire to look at someone and say “I want $20 for that chair.” I think I was meant for a haggle-based society so it’s fun for me.

    A couple observations about garage sales.

    #1 You want to attract the early morning garage sale customers. They are great! Not only do they come ready to buy, they are polite and fun to talk to. 

    #2 If someone says “I am going to tell my daughter about that, I’ll be back” it probably means they are not coming back.

    #3 Don’t hold anything until someone has paid. We made that mistake with a bed frame… several others wanted it and that person never came to get it. 

    #4 It’s perfectly acceptable to pull into my driveway, look at things and then drive away. Apparently, it is just as acceptable to pull up and ask for directions to other garage sales.

    #5 Traffic drops off sharply after noon. And the people who come after 1:30 PM can be downright mean. Not everyone, but some people cussed at us when we wouldn’t give them $20 items for $2. 

    #6 Expect to chat with neighbors. That’s the best part of a garage sale! We spoke to tons of people over the last two days and it was really encouraging. I had a great conversation with Les Young about why he’s running for Bruce Township Supervisor. He’s got some great ideas that earned my vote on Tuesday. (Also planning to support Jeanie Lerchen, in case you were interested.) 

    #7 Smile and be patient. Just like traveling overseas… a smile and a patient attitude will get you all you need.

  • Move Update


    our big move    With the move just a few weeks away I thought it would be good to give a quick update on our move. 

    The Romeo House. We had a flurry of showings last week and only one this week. No offers, not much we can do, just keep waiting for God to reveal His plan. We are at the point where we really need to find a caretaker to live here until it sells. I’ll be the first to admit that I’d take a tenant as well. 

    The San Diego House. That’s a big part of why the whole family is going out next week. I am pretty cheap, so the expense has Kristen and I upside down. But we wanted to involve the kids in picking a place to live so they knew where they were landing. While we’ve not made a final decision we would definitely prefer to be in El Cajon, La Mesa, or some of the other town near th YS office. Lots more on that next week.

    Our moving date. I booked the truck to arrive on August 4th and leave August 7th. That’s really soon! We will likely be leaving shortly after that. School starts August 25th at the latest so we have plenty to do before Megan and Paul go to school.

    Megan McLaneSale! Yes, we will be having another, larger and longer, garage sale. Depending on the place we rent next week we may be unloading a little stuff or a lot. We’ve made decisions on a lot of inside furniture. But all the outside stuff completely depends on the place we’re moving. The more stuff we sell the more cash we have for decorating the new place and the less we need to pay to ship stuff 2300 miles. 

    The car. After 10 years we are selling the Camry. It’s been an awesome car for us. 136,000 miles and no maintenance issues. Seriously, a car wash and a fresh set of tires and its ready to sell. We’re going to sell it way below Blue Book too. Right now we are talking to various dealers about getting a new car out there. 

    The kids. They are super excited about going to San Diego to pick out a house. And I think they are ready Paul McLaneto move. Of course, they are sad that we are leaving friends behind and that they won’t be going to Amanda Moore anymore. I know I’m really sad that Paul won’t have Ms. Berringer since Megan had such a great experience there with kindergarten. At the same time they can’t wait to explore all the new things San Diego has to offer for them. 

    The job. Loving it. My co-workers are a blast! They don’t take themselves too seriously. The stuff that I’m doing, work wise, is perfect for me. It’s awesome to interact with so many youth workers around the country about our shared passion… reaching and teaching kids with the message of Jesus Christ. I’m very excited that the project I’ve been working on since I started are about ready to “go public.” There is a lot of stuff coming for this fall that just has me jazzed. Can’t wait.

    The hobby. A side benefit of having a job which captures so much of my passion is that I’ve now got new found free time. Before I had a job at the church and a hobby with YMX. Before YMX it was golf, coaching golf, watching golf, and doing anything golf. So I’ve been thinking a lot about what my hobby will be. I still don’t know. I’m thinking it may be golf… which would be right on schedule. I typically play a ton for 3-4 years then take 3-4 years off. I’ve not played much in the last 2-3 years… so I’d love to be in a league again. Maybe even go back to coaching if I can. 

    A quick addendum. A few friends were quick to point out on this post that while we won’t be seeing our Michigan friends as much, we’ll still be friends! The internet has made the world so much smaller. In fact, I’ve been reconnecting with high school friends via Facebook.  Between Facebook, blogging, IM, twitter, etc. While our proximity will be different, friendship will remain in tact.