December 18,2004

Irwin St. - Old Fourth Ward.
This sale was advertised in the paper as being in Inman Park. It was not. The sale was at least two blocks over the railroad tracks and not more than five blocks from the MLK birthplace. It’s a garage sale in the rear of this new row of faux 1920’s style row homes. The row faces some still decrepit looking housing across the street. As well as this strange new cinder block edifice that looks like the bunker of the future. I follow the signs and wander into the rear garage. There is no one there. The seller is inside the row home avoiding the frosty morning temperatures.
There is not a lot here. I find on a table some ugly almost deformed looking paper mache fruit and vegetables. In a paper shopping bag I find over a dozen plastic lemons. He must have either become fit or given up getting in shape for he is selling his copy of “Fit for Life” along with a jump rope and a VHS pilates instruction tape. There are a number of new looking home furnishings for sale, including a very nice black and white cowhide. On the floor is what looks like an unopened gift box of bungee cords. There is of course the omnipresent unmounted, but fully assembled ceiling fan. The seller never shows himself the whole time I am there. Some cold and disoriented looking Mexicans wander in and examine the gift box of bungee cords. Finally a man comes out of the warmth of the house picks up the cowhide and walks away with it.
I buy nothing.

Oakland Ave – Grant Park, Sale of Treasures

I should have looked more closely at this ad in the AJC but the selection of sales was so slim I was led into this deception by a lack of proper foresight. The ad was placed under Garage Sales. But this is just some dealer trying to sell a bunch of stuff he’s purchased at real garage sales. Out of indignation I did not even go onto the parking lot of the small warehouse that holds the so call treasures. This being the season of good will I refrain from entering the premises and arguing with the proprietor over deceptive practices. The only good thing to come out of this was that next to the site was a Quonset hut I had never noticed before. I am always happy to come across these mid century relics that are so quickly disappearing from our urban landscape.

Patterson Ave.- East Atlanta, Moving Sale

This was a true moving sale located inside of an old bungalow in East Atlanta. So this was the only event that I attended today that was truthfully advertised. On the porch swing are a few indiscernible items and two old charred pizza pans with a sign over them proclaiming “free stuff”. Passing the unidentifiable freebies I enter the house. Inside are neat stacks of unwanted staff that smack of a prosperous life as well as a life that is being left behind. At the door is a full and fairly new computer system for $350. There was an additional monitor with the relatively high price of $60. Scattered about are an intercom system, a sand blasting kit, 2 boxes of weather seal, some xmas lights still in the box, a small toy penguin, a hammock that look as it had never been used, a large plastic spider, the pig mania game, a box of old candles and a pair of inline skates. In the kitchen is an assortment of seemingly high quality and nearly unused cooking items. Among the kitchenware is a set of eight mugs that looked as though they had some liquid suspended in them. The suspended murky liquid only goes halfway up the mug. Maybe the intent is for the user to have to decide if his vessel was half full or half empty. The user could also ponder what was that liquid is and what it is doing there and hoping it does leach in into what user may be imbibing.
In a back room I find some men’s clothing. A collection of t-shirts trace the journey of one man’s life. One proclaimes, “I got shaved” another “I climbed the great wall”. Another is from the Hard Rock café in Beijing (some bad food after wall climbing) and another endorses the drinking of Inca Cola
Neatly arranged on the floor are a selection of books. Among them is a very tiny copy of “joy of cooking” it’s about the size of those miniatures bibles printed small so that troops can carry them into battle in their shirt pockets. The ones that often save lives by stopping bullets from hitting the fighter’s heart. But this miniscule cooking tome did not have a bullet lodged in it. Some normal sized books include A Lonely Planet guide to Antarctica, “Clicking” by trend guru Faith Popcorn, “I could do anything if only I knew what it was”, “Guerilla Marketing” vols. 1-4 of” Tales of the City”, “What Color is your Parachute”, “Close the Deal”, “How to spot a bastard by his star sign”, two Harry Potter books, “Ice Bound”, “Conversations with God” “Men with out ties” and “The Dr. Cookie Cookbook”. Some other media includes a VHS copy of “Pretty Woman” a DVD of the first season of Survivor and a set of six audio tapes entitled “Develop your own psychic powers”. On the mantle are a number of CDs including titles by Bette Midler, Madonna, The Village People and Bridget Bardot. I was planning to purchase an Ofra Haza CD when I found Cindy had removed all the money from my wallet to buy something at the Candler Park Supermarket this morning.
I buy nothing.