E. Parkwood Dr. – Druid Hills “Estate Sale”
When I arrived at this one story traditional home there was not one other shopper inside the residence. It was like being able to wander alone in an old burial site. But since the sale started on Friday it was more like being in a pillaged burial site. With much of the goods having already been sold it was difficult to get a ready understanding of life in this home. I headed first to the basement seeking thinking perhaps that that region might be less disturbed than other areas. There I found several old mattresses stacked on their sides, some old gardening tools and a emergency escape ladder. It seemed strange that the ladder was in the basement instead of an upstairs room. Also on the lower level was some old Xmas decorations and old sports equipment. In one corner were the remnants of a work-bench with tools, hardware and some paint cans scattered about the work surface.
Upstairs things were in much better order. In one bedroom I found a pile of unframed prints on the carpet. On top of them was a painting of a white haired woman. Among the prints were images of sailing ships and scenes from Israel. In the same room I found several canes and a few bottles of Old Spice aftershave. In the corner of that room was an old console TV with a simple pedal style leg exerciser in front of the screen. In another bedroom were some piles of linens and some women’s clothing.
In the den I found a book entitled the “Complete Book of Corporate Forms” as well as “How to cash in on your hidden memory power”, “The New Money Dynamics”, “How to develop a super power memory”, “Washington Waste from A to Z”, “Keeping your money”, “In search of excellence”, “Word power made easy”, “Sidetracked Home Executives” and “Phobia Free”. On a shelf in the den were several empty canisters for super 8 home movies and a film projector. On an ottoman was a large Mexican sombrero and on a nearby chair a matching serape.
In the kitchen I found the usual assortment of redundant utensils and glass ware. On a table was a plaque the said “If there is righteousness in the heart,
there will be beauty in the character.
If there is beauty in the character,
there will be harmony in the home.
If there is harmony in the home,
there will be order in the nation.
If there is order in the nation,
there will be peace in the world....”
Next to it was a trivet that said Peggy’s Kitchen.
A portrait of Peggy?

















CD and quaint ceramics.
















Headgear from Old Mexico













In the front of the home I found a small leather case that with an inscription that read “A stud in the hand is worth two under the bed”. On a chair were two small pitchers next to a copy a CD of Rob Zombie’s “Music to Strip By”. Also in the room were two Spirograhs.
Up a flight of stairs were two small rooms. In one I found a walker, a large fan and a desk covered with old office supplies. In the other room was an exercise bike.
I bought a yard-stick.
View of the attic.

Springdale Rd. Druid Hills “Yard Sale”
This sale was in the rear driveway and garage of a large brick manor house. On the way to the garage I passed a disorderly pile of stuff marked “free”. Among the stuff in the pile was a Norman Rockwell print, a tote bag, a dish drainer and a pattern for a Halloween costume.
Outside the garage was a rack of women’s clothing with a bright red dress at the end. Inside the garage I found a pile of books, in the pile I found “The Pet name book”, “All Politics is Local”, “How to live happily as a teenager”, “The Family Crucible”, “Creative Costumes”, “I love you but why are we so different?”, “The Four Seasons cookbooks”, “Second Time Around” and “The 7 Habits of highly effective people”. Other stuff inside included some golf clubs, a life like ceramic cat and a children’s dish set that resembled junk food.
I bought nothing.
Vintage Rockwell among the free stuff.













Rack of clothes in Druid Hills.

Saturday 11/04/2006

Clifton Rd. – Candler Park “Yard Sale”

It’s late in the season and the yards are covered with fallen leaves and only the most determined are having sales. This event on Clifton was sort of a repeat sale from a few months ago. There was a lot less stuff in the yard than the earlier sale. In front of this Italianate manor home I found an old case or Rit dye, a Gore Lieberman button, some women’s clothes, a small dresser, a few light fixtures and some women’s magazines from the 50’s. Among some books I found “Tooth Imprints on a Corndog”, “Tips and Traps on Buying a Home”, “My Sister from the Black Lagoon”, “WCIYP”, “The Wrinkle Cure” and “How to Buy and Manage Rental Properties”.
I bought nothing.



Door leading to a repeat sale.

Beringer Dr. – Inman Park “Moving Sale”

This sale in a small commercial/warehouse living space was not fully ready when I arrived shortly after nine AM. They were in the process of moving stuff out to the curb and I did not want to irritate the sellers so I quickly snapped a photo of a strange looking exercise device on the curb and drove on.

St. Charles Ave. – Virginia Highlands “Yard Sale”

At this sale a selection of goods were set up on a few tables under a large oak tree in from of a bungalow. A constant rain of festive colored leaves fell upon the clutter the entire time I was there. It’s moments like this that make visiting sales in the off season so enjoyable. Among the cascade of leaves I found a box labeled “Retreat Box- Calm”
a ceramic mouse holding a piece of cheese, a display of faux ceramic cheese, some kitchen implements, a few items of holiday décor and a globe.. There was a selection of cookbooks on one of the tables, among them were “Good Food Gourmet”, “Much Depends on Dinner”, “All About Meat” and ‘The Art of Making Sausages”. Leaning against a tree was the headboard of a metal bed. A man in a heavy coat and winter hat watched over all this.
I bought nothing.
Two decor objects depicting cheese.













Calm in a box.

Rocky Ford – Kirkwood “Yard Sale”

There was not a lot left here when I arrived but this did not seem to have been a large sale from the start. Among the stuff remaining was a floor mat for a Burger King, one of those big ionic air cleaners that operate by questionable science, a comic figurine representing three monkeys passing gas, some kitchen stuff and two strange looking wood carvings that resembled bird heads.
I bought nothing.





Primates with gas issues.













Avian wood carving found in Kirkwood.

Lamont Dr.- Decatur “Estate Sale”

This was a larger sale filling up the yard and driveway of a one-story home. I was surprised to see that they had their yard sale permit prominently displayed on the cashier’s table. I asked if Decatur required permits for sales and they told me this had been the rule for some time. According to the seller there is no cost for the permit but only two are allowed per year.
After inspecting the paperwork I looked around perhaps to see if the legality had affected the presentation of the clutter. Here on Lamont I found that the goods were departmentalized. Neatly printed signs indicated the value and use of goods in the driveway. One sign read “Bathroom”, another “Home Décor’ and a third “Hair Supplies”. The hair supplies table included blowers, curlers, brushes and a few tubes of bottles of creams and lotions. There as also a 1980’s book of men’s hairstyles included in the mix. The area marked bathroom supplies consisted of an unruly pile of soft goods on the driveway pavement. Some Monopoly money was mixed in with the towels and draperies. The Home Décor area included several porcelain clowns, small picture frames, some lampshades and a few candles shaped like apples.
In the yard were several large piles of men’s, women’s and children’s clothing. A collection of games was displayed on a tarp. Among them were Chauvinist Pig, Therapy-The Game and CEO. The later was a business trivia game.
Among some books in boxes I found ‘When Muscle Pain Won’t Go Away”, “Physiology Coloring Book”, “Learn to Relax”, “How Good Do We Have To Be?”, “The Anxiety and Phobia Workbook”, “Anita Guyton’s Anti Wrinkle Plan”, “How to Think Like Leonardo Da Vinci”, “Inline Skating” and “Do What You Are”.
The final item of note was a large pile of faux fall leaves in the middle of the yard. As the sale progressed real leaves mixed with the fabricated ones.
I bought nothing.
Illustrated book of mens hair styles.

















Pile of stuff for your bath.














Table of things for your hair.















Game found in Decatur.














Man made Autumn leaves in the yard.

Saturday - October 28, 2006

Harold Ave. – Lake Claire “Yard Sale”

The season is now in decline. The morning is cold and damp, signs are fewer and the quantity of goods being divested is lessening. Here on Harold Ave I find two women in winter garb watching over a tarp full of clutter and the remnants of an attempted lemonade stand. No child is in site to manage to refreshments and no one is asking about the icy beverages. Among the things spread out on the tarp and a few pieces of small furniture are some clothing, several jigsaw puzzles, a lamp sitting upon a large CD player, an assortment of cables and some books. Among the books I find “Seabiscuit”, “The Human Stain”, “City of Night” and “Waiting”. To the side of all of this there is a large device resembling a Civil War mortar, reading the find print on the barrel I find it is a machine for creating mulch.
I buy nothing.

Massive mulcher seen on Harold Ave.

Inman Village – Inman Park “Multi Family Sale”
This was a community sale at the development where the Mead Packaging plant was situated in Inman Park. It is one of the larger in-town developments with faux lofts in the building where notebooks were once assembled, rows of row-homes and detached homes that are so adjacent to one another that one can barely walk between them. The sale was in the garages of the row-homes. While the merchandise here is not of great interest the cleanliness and sanitary nature of its display was striking. The garages were spotless; no oil stains on the concrete, no piles of foul rags, no odors of petroleum products, no filth encrusted pyramids of rusty garden tools. Is this the future of in-town living? What is the clutter I encountered in these spotless storage areas for Lexus’s and BMW’s? First, electronics placed on tables in neat rows, the cables tied in an orderly manner. Second, women’s clothes brought here by way of trendy boutiques. Finally things that the occupants must of brought from a previously habitat and that no longer fit space wise or aesthetically into these modern abodes. Among this stuff were some boxes of Lps (one containing a 78 collection of Cantorial singing), some garden tools, albeit quite new but bear in mind these row homes have no green space and remnants hobbies that have been abandoned. These included exercise devices, scuba diving gear and roller blades. Among some books here I found “Criminal Justice Today” , “Organic Chemistry” and “Guts”. More detail of the divestments can be seen in the photos below.
I bought nothing.
Colorful selection of fine men's wear.











A variety of clean stuff found in Inman Park garage.













Forgotten hobbies being sold.













One of the few older items found in Inman Park Village.












Scene inside a clean garage.

Church St. - Decatur “Yard Sale”

Later in the day I was out with Cindy and we stopped at two sales. This one was in the yard of a corner bungalow. The items gathered here spoke of too much collecting and not enough living as the yard looked like a failed attempt at having an antique store. Perhaps this is the fallout of the Lakewood Antiques market closing. Among the stuff in this man’s yard were several old movie posters, a number of books including works by Sheldon, Koontz and one work entitled “You are all Sanpaku”. Other stuff in the yard included a Frank Franzetta looking painting, a collection of old razors, some stationary products from 40 years ago and some old Xmas décor.
I bought nothing.



Movie posters among the fall leaves on Church St.

McCurdy Dr.- Medlock “Yard Sale”

This is the furthest I’ve been from the in-town sales I normally visit for some months. Regardless I was still not outside the perimeter. But this event did have a much different feel. Most of the stuff here was in a massive garage/storage building behind a small one-story home. The building was deceptive from the exterior for inside it was huge. It was also very clean and well lit inside perhaps these Medlockians are taking notes from the Inman Village dwellers. The orderly arranged contents inside the storage building were stunning in their boredom. The more I looked the less I saw. Some reading matter there included “Haunted Mesa” “Before He Wakes”, “Fallen Idols”, “The Restless Dead” and “Tara Road”. A few things did stand out such as a lamp constructed from a spool of rope and a painting of a female clown. After seeing the clown picture I tried to determine if the clown was one of the women hosting the sale. Even Cindy though this sale was boring. We both bought nothing.



Real clown of seller dressed as clown - you decide.

Saturday 10-21-06

I seldom like to visit yard sales held by people I know. First there is the obligation to buy coupled with the familiar sense that your friends and neighbors know that you are judging them by their goods out in their yard. Today I visited three sales held by friends and neighbors.

Hardendorf Ave. – Lake Claire - “Multifamily Sale”
Both these sales were visible from my front porch. The larger of the two filled up most of the driveway and the sidewalk in front of the home owned by the two gentlemen across the street. Here I found some odds and ends from their rock bank such as a Tascam four track mixer, a pink guitar strap, a studded belt and a pair of leopard skin platform shoes. In the driveway were some Halloween masks, a portrait of a dog, a print of a woman’s legs, and a disassembled ceiling fan. Among some books were “Choke”, “The Jesus Papers” and “A Prayer for Owen Meany”.
Other items included a cocktail mixer, a set of traveling decanters, a retro style telephone and a pair of devil horns.

Portrait of neighbor's pet dog.


















Neighbor's dog wanders among the clutter.













Pile of goods selected by a buyer.













The other sale two doors down were much smaller and featured some women’s clothing, a children’s playscape, a large plush frog and a saddle. The saddle was perched atop the playscape.
I bought nothing.
Saddle on a playscape.

Oakdale Ave. - Candler Park “Yard Sale”

This sale was held in the driveway of a friend who is in Cindy’s poker group. She is another yard sale addict but she actually buys and accumulates the stuff she finds at sales. At this event she was culling her clutter and putting a good bit out for sale. Nearly all of what was here was decorative and non-utilitarian. Unless one considers candles utilitarian. Even the clothing such as the French maids outfit hanging from a tree or the tee shirt that said “No Money, No Honey” fit this standard. Some objects were cryptic in nature such as a box of quartz crystals or another box of melted candles. Larger items of furniture appeared as if they had always been distressed. Through all this wandered the seller’s cat. Other stuff gathered about included a tapestry with the words “The Queen of Everything”, ceramic masks, several things in glass bubbles, a pair of garish porcelain chickens and a large plush bear. Among some books I found “Power Vs Force”, “The Labyrinth of Solitude”, “Fruits of the Moon Tree”, “The Adventure of Self Discovery”, “Mans Search for Meaning” and “The Politics of Experience”. I bought nothing but Cindy came home with some clothing.

Dress on a stop sign.


















Costume in a tree.

Oakdale Ave. - Candler Park “Yard Sale”

This sale on the southern end of the same street was in the yard and on the steps of a craftsman bungalow covered in spray cobwebs. Some folks around here have a good sense of Halloween decorating but this household just went wild with the cobwebs. Below the faux gossamer was a washer and dryer, some undergarments, shoes, tote bags, a traveling large animal cage, a paint by the numbers kit and some books. Among the books were “Codependent No More”, “The Bartenders Standard Manual”, “The Bartenders Bible”, “Metropolitan Life” and “Experimental Theater”.
I bought nothing but Cindy purchased a bathrob and a wool hat.

Cobweb covered home.












Reading matter and other goods displayed on front steps.

Elmira St. Candler Park “Yard Sale”

In front of another bungalow with an anti war sign in the middle of her yard a woman watched over an assortment of clutter. Here I found a poster showing the varieties of squash, some light fixtures, several one gallon cans of old paint, some costume jewelry, a few kitchen items and a lot of books. One box of books carried a sign reading “relationships from 70’s, 80’s”. Two decades later she must be moving on to new relationships. Among the titles put out were “Your Yoga Body map for Vitality”, “The Cancer Prevention Diet”, “The Physician Within You”, “The Pursuit of Loneliness”, “The 9 Insights of the Wealthy Soul”, “Old As Dirt –So What”, “Smart Women/Foolish Choices”, “Learning to Fly”.
There were several boxes and signs around indicating that various things were free. I took a free book on personal renewal.

Books no longer needed.













One of the free things found on Elmira.

Saturday 10-07-2006

Elmira St. - Candler Park “Yard Sale”

This sale featured an excessive amount of Halloween wares and I found myself wondering if this individual was a freelance Halloween décor dealer or simply liked to hoard these materials. In the front yard and porch of this craftsman bungalow I found a large Creature from the Black Lagoon mask, a string of lights featuring smaller Lagoon Creature heads, a variety of plastic bats (the flying mammal not the whiffle ball sort) a large plastic light up Frankenstein and an assortment of faux skulls or differing sizes. There were also a number of other adult child items including the stereotypical assortment of unopened Star Wars figures and some protective gear for skateboarding or some other knee crushing activity. The sale featured a large selection of garish clothing for sale; shoes with animal prints and hefty heals as well as glittery club-ware as well as some practical pieces of apparel.
I bought nothing
Santa and plastic bat














Head of the creature.














Selection of fine footware.













Skulls on Elmira.