Saturday 3/22/08

Several years ago I wrote about visiting yards sales the Saturday before Easter and said it was a not so Good Saturday for sales. I learned this week that there is a lull in yard sales regardless of the weather on this holiday eve day. Some basic research revealed that I was wrong in my glib terminology. It is not Good Saturday as I recalled from my parochial school days but Holy Saturday. Among other names bestowed on the day before Easter are White Saturday, Black Saturday, Easter Eve, Low Saturday and Silent Saturday. Regardless low, silent black or white its not a great days for yard sales. While I do not want to enter into religious discussion in this site in today nearly all the book collections I found put up for sale on appeared to feature some spiritual works. Regardless of the banality of whatever other clutter the sellers were divesting themselves of the reasons these religious works were put out for sale indicates the vendors either wanted to spread the word or felt these works were simply taking up space in their home and lives. I will let the reader decide. Regardless it was still a lousy spring day for yard sales.



Elmira Ave. - Candler Park “Yard Sale”

This was a moderate sized sale with a collection of clutter spread out on the grass in front of this old craftsman bungalow. Among the stuff displayed there was a box holding quartet of bobbing headed hockey players, a box of small picture frames(another ubiquitous item at yard sales), a collection of hats and caps, a skinhead wig, a selection of unused children’s creative playthings that included coloring sets, and science experiments as well as a box of books. Among the books were “Trend Following”, “Unlimited Real Estate Profit”, and “Are You Dumb Enough to be Rich?” “The Secret Life of Bees”, “When Godly People Do Ungodly Things”, “Hope for the Troubled Heart”, “Created to Be God’s Friend” and “What Should I do with my Life?”
I bought nothing.


Quartet of hockey players.
















N. Morningside – Morningside “Estate Sale”
After driving by several locations were sales were supposed to be held, I checked out this inside-the-house event in Morningside. Only two rooms of the large manor home were open to shoppers and the contents were boring and disappointing. The living room was crowded with some furniture, books and décor items and a screened-in sunroom had some straw baskets and dried flowers displayed in old watering cans. The books were boring too. Among them I found Works by Danielle Steel, Nora Roberts and Sue Grafton, “Great Entertaining”, “Crisis” and “The New York City Cabdriver’s Joke Book”. I bought nothing and quickly moved on.




Box of boring baskets.


















Hillpine Dr.- Morningside “Yard Sale”

This sale set up in a very charming courtyard area beside a large Tudor home had more to look at and the clutter in this setting was pleasantly photogenic. Among the stuff displayed between a stone fountain and a restored garage was an old console stereo, a old off brand slide projector, a lava lamp, some toys, a chandelier, a copy of Santa Claus Conquers the Martians on DVD and a large ceramic Easter Bunny.
Among some books were “Religious Themes in Flower Arrangement”, “Outline of General Zoology”, “The Life of Christ”, “The Land Question in Palestine”, “Healing and the Mind”, “The Desire of Ages” and “3 Most Important Steps to Your Better Health and Miracle Living”.
I bought nothing.

Lava lamp in well appointed courtyard.

















Oakview Ave. - Oakhurst “Yard Sale”

This was the most impressive and interesting sale of the day. An assortment of all sorts of clutter was spread out in the front yard of this older frame bungalow. A disassembled ceiling fan that looked sadder than most fans rested in the dirt with its amputated blades appearing limp and useless. On a sofa in the middle of the yard was a collection of framed Norman Rockwell prints and an old print of a collie. On a table in front of the sale were an opened bucket of powdered margarita mix and some plastic cocktail glasses. One presumed these items were being sold as a set. On the ground were bright blue tarps holding colorful neckties, old athletic shoes and some bedclothes. Two stools were in the middle of the yard one held a basket of Xmas foliage and the other held a motor board cap a remnant of someone’s graduation. There was a box of books on the ground that contained the following titles -“More Than you Dare Ask”, “Taking Sides”, “Scarred by Struggle, Transformed by Hope”, “Diverse Worship” and “The Coming Conflict with China”.
I bought nothing.



Dejected and disassembled ceiling fan.














Rockwell images upon a sofa.














McLendon Ave. - Lake Claire “Yard Sale”

On the way home I stopped at this small sale near my home. A small selection of things was displayed on the homes steps and on two tables in the homes tiny front yard. On one of the tables was a wooden lamp base in the shape of a four-legged mustached man, a wine cooler, a pair of socks, some mugs, a candleholder and a few pieces of stemware. On the steps were some games toys and jigsaw puzzles. On another table were an old manual portable typewriter and an even older adding machine. Among some books was “Prayer of Jabez”, “That Special You”, “The Cowgirl Companion”, “Saturday Night Live – The First 20 Years”, “Children’s Letters to God”, “Hot Stuff” and “The Good Life”.
I bought nothing but did notice that one of the shoppers here had bought some sort of massive oversized giraffe figure that was protruding through the sunroof of her car.

Purchase made in Lake Claire.

Saturday & Sunday 3/15&16/08

The weather was of control here for the last two weeks. Last Saturday I set out to document sales only to encounter a freakish late Winter snowfall. The following Friday Atlanta was cast into the national news when monstrous tornados ransacked downtown and the nearby Cabbagetown. Neighborhood. Regardless some people in the face of adversity will still have yard sales.












Candler Park Dr. – Candler Park “Yard Sale”

It had rained most of the morning but the intrepid seller was arrange a yard full of stuff, some of it soaked with water when I arrived. Among the stuff gathered in the small yard of this frame turn of the century bungalow included office supplies, packages of pipe cleaners, baggies filled with plastic eating utensils, plastic cups, an unopened package of roach bait, a few kitchen knives, pile of women’s clothing a large pelt of an undetermined creature, and a pair of swim fins with party décor dumped on top of them. While storm clouds hovered above threatening the drop more water of the already damp stuff buyers picked through the merchandise. Around the perimeter of the yard were some furniture items including a table, a bureau and a small desk. Among some books there I found “Human Anatomy and Physiology”, “Eat Right for Your Type”, “Space time and Medicine”, a 2001 PDR, “Awaken the Giant Within”, “Conversational Brazilian Portuguese” and “The Lady from Atlantis”
I bought nothing. About one hour after visiting this sale a scary hailstorm hit the neighborhood.
Swim fins at a wet sale.













Sunday

Vance Ave. - Virginia Highlands “Yard Sale”

The weather was far different on Sunday. On my morning bike ride I happened across this attractive sale in the yard of a small home off Virginia Ave.
It appeared the sellers were having a good time with this event and the sunny spring weather boosted the halcyon mood. On the white picket fence in front of the home hung a variety of hats and caps. Greeting me at the gate was a lamp in the shape of a hula dancer with a shade of Hawaiian design. There were a lot of toys here as the seller was a rep for a boutique toy company. On a table on the porch were several new in the box sets of Seuss oriented items including a Horton tea set. Boxes on the property held piles of old blocks and wooden letters. Other stuff scattered about included men’s clothing (none of which fit me) a child’s bicycle, a bread maker, and a wooden stool with hand painted designs on it and some kitchen items.
I bought nothing.

Box of letters.

















Polynesian style lighting.























McLendon Ave. - Candler Park “Yard Sale”

Cindy and I walked to this sale after I returned from my bike ride. Here the driveway was filled with a collection of unwanted items for sale. The sellers must have been anticipating a hungry crowd today as they were vending hot dogs fresh and hot off the grill, a large variety of muffins, and piles of packaged salty snacks. By the looks of it the food was not moving. In the driveway we found a blue motor scooter (the first I’ve encountered since Atlanta's flirtation with cheap Chinese scooters began), piles of clothing, a pair of humidifiers, a selection of women’s shoes, a good amount of toys, including a purple Teletubby, several toy trucks and a large dog cage. On a table I found a bobbing head Michael Vick figure, an Orangutan with rainbow colored hair, a plastic device that made Cajun sounds and some books. Among the books were “Telecom Dictionary”, “The Runaway Jury” and “Four Past Midnight”. Cindy bought two bras from a box filled with bras and we each purchased a hot dog.
Later in the day I saw someone taking the scooter for a test drive in the neighborhood.



Bobbing headed disgraced football star.
















Multicolored ape with Cajun sound device.


















Box of bras.

Saturday 3/1/08

DeKalb Ave. – Inman Park “Craptastic Sale”

I noticed the interesting signs for this event on when I was out on Friday evening. They noted “yard sale for those who are hard to buy for”. I’m difficult to buy for so I made it my first stop on Saturday morning. In the parking lot of a Neon art studio I found a number of tables holding clutter and a lot of stuff collected on the pavement. Piled on a nearby grassy area was a collection of men’s casual clothing and a box of old beer cans. There was a large selection of books here in boxes and upon tables among them was “After Thought”, “Henry Ford and the Jews”, “Practical Mental Magic”, “Small Town Girl”, “Call It Sleep”, “Middlesex”, “The Death of Vishnu”, “The Big Book of Death”, “Eaters of the Dead” and “Don’t Know Much about History”
On one table was a collection of Simpson’s stuff including a Clue Game, a trivia game, several frosted steins, a number of toy characters and an activity set. All the stuff was in it’s original packaging and appeared not to have been opened.
On another table was an old vibrating massager (in its original box) but it appeared to have been used. Nearby were some small bottles of natural creams and lotions.. On another table was a Mister Bill action figure, a playboy flask, a Trivial Pursuits game on DVD and a Financial Advisor 8 ball and ashtray or small bowl that said “tonight” on it. Against the wall of the Neon studio was a selection of old audio and video gear and a vacuum cleaner. Other stuff strewn about included a ceramic ape contemplating a human skull, a pile of deflated inflatable guitars, a plush figure of that Martian character from the Warner Brothers cartoons and a box filled with cheap give-away sunglasses.
I bought nothing.
Clothing and box of beer cans.















Deflated guitar among the clutter.



















Antique massager in opened original package.













Ashtray for tonight.














Winter Ave. Oakhurst – “Yard Sale”

I could not find anything else in my neighborhood so I headed across the tracks to two sales in Oakhurst. This first one was a small event with just a few things in the yard. Among the stuff there was about a dozen articles of women’s clothing, two red plastic children’s chairs, a plush ape, a child’s bed and two canvases with original paintings on them. One may have been Haitian the other featured either angels or fairies at play.
I bought nothing.






Art found in Oakhurst.




















Mead Ave.- Oakhurst “Yard Sale”

In front of a small frame cottage a couple nonchalantly looked over a moderate collection of clutter. In front of the home I found several pairs of flip flops, some computer programming manuals, two tubes of acrylic paint, a drum machine, a plastic ax that made a groaning sound when you pushed a button on it, a lamp, a chair a several tee shirts.
I bought nothing.








Groaning plastic ax.