words and photos by Lige Menard
In the wake of our lives we have the potential of leaving behind various legacies. Progeny carry on the lines of blood, and we linger still in their memories and stories. Some leave behind a legacy of artistic creation, or the details of a life worthy of historical documentation. There is a typically overlooked legacy that most likely you’ve been missing out on. A legacy of possessions. Apparently, the popular contemporary belief is you can’t take it with you when you’re gone. When the neighborhood elderly travel out to that sweet by and by, the family comes to collect their heirlooms and desired keepsakes. The most common next step, and I feel a righteous move, is for the family to call in the professionals and host an estate sale. As our predecessors gain in age, so do the items of their lives. The kind of things you just can’t buy on the street. Unique collectibles, retro clothing, and vintage everything. Don’t miss out on the fact that grandma and grandpa didn’t throw anything out. Suburban archeology isn’t just for the WALL-E’s of tomorrow. It’s here for you, today!
I’ve been thrift drifting the streets many a weekend morning, following signs placed at choice intersections, or posts on the medias social. Garage sales are great and can bear the best prices, but the real magic is in the estate sales. If done right, which often is the case, there’s an air of reverence to the moment. Respect that you’ve been welcomed into the deceased’s home. It’s not a carcass to be cleaned. Don’t act like a carrion. I don’t think YOU would do this though, reader. You’re waaaay to classy for such behavior, and it’s one of the reasons why I love you!
A few tips: Often, the prices are researched online and set at the going market rate, but regularly things are priced to sell! Over the course of one to several weekends, the prices are discounted fifty to seventy-five percent off. So if you really want something, then buy it now, but if you gamble on it not selling and wait it out… there’s treasure to be had for pennies on the dollar. Show up early on the first day of sale, and if your arms or bag become full, it’s standard to ask a sale worker to place your items by check out. Be wary of making piles in corners because they too will be picked through while you’re busy elsewhere. It’s considered garoche to haggle at the beginning of sale, but it’s generally considered acceptable at the end of sale. Also, even though you’re buying “as is”, it is ok to plug in electronics and test them on site. Don’t forget it’s a no-refund game, and despite many sellers taking cards or CashApp, VenMo, PayPal – cash is always king. Sometimes it’s a cash-only jam. So be ready.
Let me take a beat and share some of what I’ve found out there in my righteous picking. I have added an extensive amount of cassettes, records, and eight tracks to my collection. I have scored scores of cameras. My daughter and her friends love to hit up Grandma’s closet. Various instruments, including my prized Suzuki Omnichord from 1985. Similarly to the Amish with their farming implements not being dated past sometime in the 1800’s, you gotta love how Grandpa didn’t date his tech past 1995 or earlier. You like board games? Wellaurjckwosocoenoc
Whoa! In attempting to share all the things I’ve collected on my estate sale travels I suffered brain overload and faded there for a second. I guess the best thing is for you to come over and hang out with me! Then you wouldn’t just read the word Nintendo, but you would be able to do something about it.
In a world of inflation and saturated consumption – repurposing, reusing, and buying on the thrift are not just fiduciary smart choices, but environmentally sound choices. It’s sad to consider, but a demographic that makes up a large portion of our population is dying out. As they pass, so too do the possessions they gathered around them. Don’t miss out. Collect them while they are out there to collect. Remnants of another time carrying echoes of previous usage. Finding another owner that values them is a far better fate than the dumpster, or at best a bulk donation bin.
I close with a story.
At an estate sale in Port Neches I noticed the upstairs was open to buyers and nobody seemed to be coming back down with anything. Eventually, I made my way on up, and found myself alone with hundreds of solemn dolls. Various styles and designs from a range of eras. Amongst their well crafted wicker furniture, these precious babies truly seemed… saad. There was a pressing feeling that they missed their mother, and that when I made my way back down… I would be leaving them to an orphan’s fate. Abandoning them to a future where certainly they would be busted up, and scattered to places where no one knew their mother’s name. I walked amongst them. Taking their pictures together. Looking them in their hand-painted eyes each in turn. To the back of the second floor, I found a bedroom. Not one doll was there. The furniture was sparse and dollhouse-like in appearance. The effect was haunting. There was a picture of maamaa from circa 1970-something. I don’t remember consciously making the choice, but a choice was made. I gathered all the empty boxes I could find, and carefully placed all the babies I could carry within them. Certainly, I seemed abnormal as I loaded up hundreds of precious littles in my JeepSteed. Maybe they thought they had a Buffalo Bill shopping with them that fine Saturday morning? In truth, my intention is to establish a babydoll orphanage. I would wager there are more long term care mothers looking to adopt out there than there are beebles in my baby stables. There’s a century-old Russian doll I found last weekend. She’s an elderly woman and made of a curious material. Her one eye seems to follow me around the room. The sale lady said she hadn’t seen it during the long days of setting up and was surprised I had found it sitting behind the doll shelf.
