Saturday 4/11/09

I did not expect to encounter any sales with today being Easter Saturday. There was nothing listed in Craigslist near my home and no notices were posted on the usual nearby utility poles. But when I ventured towards Ponce De Leon Ave. I found a sign that would then lead me to at least six other sales.

Briarcliff Terrace – Virginia Highlands “Yard Sales”

My first find was two sales directly across the street from one another. The first was a rather small sale where an older gentleman presided over an eclectic collection of clutter in his driveway. Here I found a selection f small framed art prints of old European scenes, plastic bags filled with gears and springs from old clocks, a fully set up two person tent and a suitcase filled with golf balls. On a table at the end of the drive was an array of nine wall clocks most of which were promotional items for pharmaceutical products. Among the drugs promoted on the timepieces were Paxil , Celexa and Lexapro.
I bought nothing.

Across the street was a larger sale arranged in a highly fastidious manner. The merchandise was so well arranged in this woman’s driveway and lawn that one dare not call it clutter. Everything was placed in a highly organized manner upon a series of well placed tabled and boxes. Even the stuff laying on tarps and carpets in the yard was neatly arrayed. Nearly all the smaller items were placed inside clear plastic bags that were properly labeled. On he first table I found a large selection of souvenirs and memorabilia related to the Master’s Golf Tournament (which was going on at this time). The Master’s is a Georgia event and golf is a popular sport but this collection of mugs, plates, balls and totes seems obsessive.
Another table held electronics and anther house wares. Boxes contained neatly arranged copies of Southern Living and medical journals. Even the boxes containing hundreds of Cds had them were placed neatly in rows. The sale was so fastidious that perhaps buyers were scared to root through the stuff and mess up the order. Near the back of the driveway were dozens of new boxes of bathroom fixtures. Above them taped to the wall was a prices list from their manufacturer. A buyer muttered to me as I appraised the quantity of the boxes “Why would anyone want that many towel racks?” In the yard I found framed prints and some original artwork and a washtub filled with water containing a large selection of floating plastic duckies.
I bought nothing but commended the seller on her fine arrangement of goods.

Materials from the Master's.





















Floating duckies

















Virginia Ave. – Virginia Highlands “Yard Sale”

This sale was a small event in front of an old apartment building here a young couple had put their unneeded collection of cute and bright retro items out in the street for someone to buy. I always look upon the sales of the young with delight as for many it is the first time they realize that no matter how interesting something seems at one time it will eventually become clutter in their life. Among their divestments were an orange 70’s telephone with an adjoining case for a telephone book, a bright red plastic hanging lamp, a large painting of a clipper ship, a large framed piece of embroidery, a Colecovision game unit, a jigsaw puzzle of an Amish scene, a Fox and the Hound lunch box and a large cat cage. The seller’s cat kept checking out the cage.
I bought nothing.



Retro goods on display.


















Glen Arden Dr. – Morningside “Yard Sale”

This sale was disappointing. Here a man had lined his driveway with an uninteresting assortment of stuff that I had seen at nearly every yard sale in the past year. An old printer, disassembled ceiling fans, an old TV and wire storage racks. A few boxes of books yielded boring religious and self-help titles. But there was a copy of “Is there a Cow in Moscow”. This was the least memorable sale of the day. I bought nothing.














Noble Dr. – Morningside “Mega Sale”

This large sale was in the small backyard of a large Morningside home. A lot of the stuff here offered shape contrast. The initial object I encountered here was a large blowup print of a scene from Pulp Fiction. Next to it was a half dozen small psycadelic framed art works depicting day glo geometric shapes floating in strange alien landscapes. Next to these was a large Fauvist style painting of a cat looking at a bird in a cage. Scattered around the rear driveway were even more contrast, a large set of archery equipment including some deadly looking arrows, a box of old fireworks, a wet suit, a large tablecloth with a tie died peace symbol on it and one of those weird ugly ergonomic chairs from the early days of computer use that were impossible to sit in. Mixed in with all of this were perfectly mumdane stuff like a coffee maker, a lamp, tote bags and small candles. The media here was also contrasting. In a box of books I found an old Sidour, “The Zen of Zelda”, “Worse Than Watergate”, “Conspiranoia”, “Driven to Distraction and “Day Hikes in the Santa Fe Area” The collection of videos was stranger for here political conspiracy reigned. I found “From Ike to Mao”, “Invisible Ballots’ and “The truth and Lies of 9-11”
This whole scene was dominated by a massive sculpture of a menacing blue parrot that was not for sale.
I bought some candles to use with my Octomom art.


Used fireworks in Morningside.



















Mind bending art.


























Sherwood Ave. – Morningside “Yard Sale”

This final sale was small but interesting. There was not a lot in the yard or driveway of this small brick home. I first went to the back driveway where a single card table contained some brightly decorated Easter Eggs. When I approached a trio of Latino women were laughing hysterically at the eggs. The seller nor myself were not able to understand why the eggs had set off such a reaction. In the front yard I found an old Obama sign lying atop three newspapers with election headlines. Nearby were two very large action figures. One of which I recognized as Bruce Campbell’s character in “Evil Dead” (The chainsaw gave it away). Nearby was a college diploma from Oberlin College selling for $100,000. The seller admitted that this was a joke. But I had a feeling he was unhappy with what his BA from a private college had given him since graduation.
I bought nothing.




100 Grand Diploma.