Adventures in Wonderland – Estate Sales

My sister and I are Estate Sale attendees.  Now just for clarification, an Estate Sale is a way of liquidating the entire belongings of an individual, family or estate.  They are held inside the home, are much larger than the average Garage Sale, and generally are run by companies that specialize in this type of selling.

My sister calls these jaunts, searching through the stuff of old dead people.  Hmmm – yeah, pretty much correct.  I will say, that having attended several over the past years, I’m going to have some rules of “what to do with my stuff when I die”.  As I am a collector of many things, I don’t expect my children, grandchildren or extended family to want to keep everything in my house.  However, if I should ever see my clothes (including underwear), food from the pantry, make-up and assorted brushes etc., and anything from the bathroom for sale, I shall come back and haunt all three children.  Same with family photographs – keep them or destroy them but do not sell them.  That seems so sad to me to find a book of wedding pictures that no one wanted, for sale amongst the paperback mysteries and cookbooks.

Then too, I am always amazed at the things people collect.  As I said, I’m a collector of many things (teapots and seashells and small boxes and dragons and a couple other things) also, however I do try to keep my collecting habits under control.  (Nowadays, my personal rule is:  If I buy something to add to a collection, I have to get rid of something in that collection and since I tend to have an emotional attachment to those items, I seldom add anything.  Please note – this rule does not apply to anything outside, as in - the yard.  I can still have all the yard art, wind chimes, bells, potted plants, and whatever else appeals to me.  Once I fill up the yards, then my personal rule will apply.)

We went to one sale and the individual collected clocks.  Now, I like old clocks.  I have several, (yes, yes – a small collection).  This person must have had over 200 clocks.  Heavens! You’d spend days just winding them and when finished, you’d have to start over again!  And, the whole house must have swayed with the TICK TOCK.  And, he didn’t have just one of a type, for instance, there were about 25 carriage clocks – all pretty much the same.  Ah ha! you say, obviously he was a Horologist (a person who makes clocks or watches).  Well maybe but for a job he was a doctor.

Then we went to one with more stuff than I’ve seen in one small house – ever. I don't know why the house didn't just explode.  You could hardly walk around, there was so much stuff.  And, it was all piled on top of other stuff that was for sale that you couldn’t see.   Among other thing, this person collected rabbits (no, not live ones) and not just “Bunnies for Easter” all kinds of rabbits.  And, like the clock guy, a dozen of the same type.  OK one or two, cute but a dozen – all alike.  Just strange. 

At least in my various collections, no two things are alike.

Oh – the clock guy – he also collected cameras.  Not super cool cameras from the way, way back.  Ordinary cameras from the 70’s on.  Good ones, I’m sure but there were four 6-foot tables covered with cameras. 

Now, while I understand the difference between a garage sale and an estate sale, we’ve been to a couple of “estate sales” that were held in barns and out buildings and were full of old rusty stuff.  I’m thinking this probably was a “guy estate sale’ as I could have seen Michael picking up more rusty hammers, screwdrivers, nails and such.

I like to look at books others read.  So far, at all the ones we’ve been to, I have to assume the family has taken the good books – like mysteries or Sci-Fi, or fantasy or history because there are usually only self-help types or books explaining the bible, God, or humanity in general.  Hmmm – I’ll bet someone did away with all the steamy romance books before the sale began.

Take care