Give Thanks...Our Yard Sale Summer

 The sign, with words barely legible from the rain, is a fitting conclusion to our summer. It visually told us that the season--of yard sales--was over.

What a summer it was.

We've been in our new home two full years this fall. Last summer it seemed all of our free time was used putting in our yard. As last winter transitioned to spring, my wife and I asked each other, "Where are all the yard sales up here?" We moved from a much more populated area--there seemed to be yard sales everywhere. Thinking back last spring, we couldn't remember seeing many yard sales the summer after the move.

One day in spring my wife and I were on our way to Logan when we past our first yard sale. It was on the main road a few blocks from our house. We actually drove by, then decided we ought to check it out.

That started it all.

We ended up buying a foot massager, a 2002 Olympic volunteer Marker coat and some other knick-knacks. The next week we were driving into town when we past another yard sale sign. Once again, we drove past, decided ought to check it out because it worked so well the week before, turned around, and found some treasures. We bought things for the yard...a cart, an antique children's wagon, and our beloved windmill that was destroyed in the last storm.

After that, we started looking for yard sales. It became part of our weekly routine. We'd get up Friday mornings and drive into town. We checked the high-traffic intersections, then the large green power box in front of Kent's Grocery Store. That's where the savvy yard salers post their adverts. Most yard sales were held on both Fridays and Saturdays. We check out the Friday sales, then do the same thing on Saturday mornings. We even got the kids--and by extension, the dog--to join us. We usually bought something at every sale, even if it was only trinkets that cost a buck or two.

We came home with some amazing finds, and admittedly, some junk, too. That stuff we plan on selling when we hold a yard sale of our own next spring.

The sign, wet and almost unreadable, signaled the end of an extremely successful season. Here's hoping next year is just a good. We're thankful we were able to pick up so many things, and something we did not expect...we met so many amazing people, listened to their stories, and maybe even helped them out a bit. All in all, not the worst thing.