Yard Sale Addict

McLynn Ave. – Morningside “Estate Sale”

From the ad in the AJC I knew that this would be a full-fledged estate sale. The sale had started on Friday and I had fears that resellers may have pillaged a lot of stuff. When I arrived I was glad to see the type of things I was interested in seeing were still there, for on the porch was an array of home health care equipment and piles of 1964 newspapers. The cover of a vintage copy of the AJC Sunday magazine carried the headline - “Atlanta the Hollywood of Health Films”. Inside I found the professional sellers at their card tables in the living room. I immediately headed up the narrow staircase so I could begin my intensive examination of the contents away of the suspicious eyes of the resellers. The second level was one room created from a refinished attic. On one side was a desk with a copy of the score to “Happening Now”. The Eddie Lunn/ Bob Oldenberg musical featured a Peter Max style cover and featured such songs as “Communication Gap” and “Hymn to Rebellion”. Next to the desk was one of those rolling chairs often seen in rehabilitation wards. On the other side of the attic was a lot of old Xmas decorations, a box of old rulers, an old Monopoly game as well as the games Password and Probe. On the floor were two boxes one held the contents of a Lincoln Log set and the cover of the set. The other held some wooden imitation tinker toys. The Lincoln Log cover stated that Lincoln Logs were America’s National Toy. Given that no toys seem to be manufactured in the United States at this time I doubt there is a current National Toy.
Downstairs in what could have been a dining room I found on the wall a framed photo montage featuring the heads of family member. Below it were two unframed prints of the current and former Georgia Governor’s mansions, a WebTV keyboard and receiver and a table full of sewing supplies.
A small kitchen had the usual old glassware and cooking implements, a George Foreman Grill in its original box and several avocado green fondue pots. I was delighted to see the presence of used food, as partially filled jars of old spices were priced at 25 cents. In a nook off the kitchen I found a bowl shaped like a pineapple, a VHS tape of hints from Heloise, a few old telephones, a fire extinguisher and a ceramic figure of a farm wife with a basket of apples in one hand and a baby in the other.
In the front of the house a card table in the salon held a stack of old sheet music with titles such as “Gypsy Love Song” and “Hills of Home”. Mixed in with the music were guides for learning to play the recorder, the clarinet as well as an EZ method for mastering the ukulele. Near the musical guides and scores was a pile of old linens and cloth napkins.
Some books found on a shelf in a hallway included “Best Jokes of All Time”, “Microwave Miracles”, “Eight Weeks to Optimum Health” and several titles on arthritis and several on gaining wealth. One book displayed alone on a antique table was a hardbound program to the 1926 unveiling of a statue of Confederate VP Alexander H. Stephens in Washington D.C.
I bought nothing.